Julian Edelman spent his entire NFL career with the Patriots. Paul Rutherford-USA TODAY Sports

Julian Edelman is very close friends with Tom Brady. He is also a New England Patriots legend who, unlike Brady, spent his entire career with the organization. So where does that leave Edelman for the big showdown on Oct. 3?

The Patriots announced this week that Edelman will be honored in a special halftime ceremony during Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints. The retired wide receiver spoke with the media on Thursday about that and some other topics, including where his loyalty will lie when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers visit the Patriots in fewer than two weeks. Edelman provided a hilarious analogy.

“It’s definitely gonna be weird,” Edelman said, via NFL Network’s Michael Giardi. “It’s like going to a family barbecue or a basketball event and you’re the step kid, or you’re like the kid who has divorced parents and your mom and dad are there and you don’t know how to react. Are they going to fight? Are they not going to fight?”

Edelman didn’t really commit to a rooting interest, but he said he hopes Brady, Rob Gronkowski and all the other players perform well and stay healthy. He also said he’s hoping for a high-scoring game and will be pulling for rookie Mac Jones.

There will definitely be mixed emotions for Edelman during the Bucs-Pats game. He has, by all indications, maintained close relationships with both Brady and Bill Belichick. He just has a very strange way of showing it sometimes.

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