Tom Brady tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this year.
The NFL quarterback, who plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, confirmed he contracted the virus in February and shared his concerns about the impact the virus may have during the upcoming season as there are fewer restrictions in place to slow the spread.
He said: "I think [COVID-19] is going to be challenging this year. I actually think it’s going to play more of a factor this year than last year, just because of the way what we’re doing now and what the stadium is going to look like and what the travel is going to look like and the people in the building and the fans."
The 44-year-old sports star, whose diagnosis came shortly after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Super Bowl LV parade, believes that the double vaccination of his teammates will not stop the spread of the virus.
He told the Tampa Bay Times newspaper: "It's not like last year, although we're getting tested like last year. It's going to be, I definitely think guys are going to be out at different points and we’ve just got to deal with it."
His comments come after making headlines back in February for famously throwing the coveted Lombardi Trophy over the water to his teammate Rob Gronkowski's watercraft in celebration of their victory.
He said: "There was not a thought. It was just, 'This seems like really fun to do!'"
However, he later said that it could have ended very differently if his aim had not been what it was.
He told James Corden on 'The Late Late Show': "I found out later that, had that been an incomplete pass, that would have went down like 80 feet!"
