Tom Brady 'Absolutely' Plans to Play vs. Eagles Amid Back Injury Rumors

New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady sat during his team's preseason opener, which Jim McBride of the Boston Globe reported was because of a sore back, but the reigning MVP expects to be available moving forward.

Brady told WEEI's Kirk & Callahan on Tuesday he "absolutely" expects to play in Thursday night's game against the Philadelphia Eagles, via WEEI's Ryan Hannable: "I'm doing well. I am doing really well. You always have little things that you're working through."

The 41-year-old Brady is set to enter his 19th season, and he has not missed a regular-season game because of injury since 2008, when he tore his ACL in the season opener.

Brady is coming off a season in which he became the oldest player to be named MVP in NFL history, throwing for 4,577 yards and 32 touchdowns while leading New England to a Super Bowl LII appearance. He set a Super Bowl record by throwing for 505 yards in a 41-33 loss to Philadelphia.

His ability to play at a high level even as he has aged led the organization to deal both Jacoby Brissett (24) and Jimmy Garoppolo (26) in 2017.

Brady's absence against Washington last Thursday gave Patriots coach Bill Belichick a chance to evaluate the current backups. Veteran journeyman Brian Hoyer went 16-of-23 for 144 yards, and seventh-round pick Danny Etling went 2-of-5 for 21 yards.

New England beat Washington 26-17.