But his WR were uncharacteristically out of psynch with him. And this season unlike last he has new weapons to break in.
As for precedent, Brady has been injured at the end of almost every season, and undergone a couple of actual off season surgeries prior to this in season one, he's played (shoulder, ankle, elbow, sports hernia) and 2008 was the first time Belichick held him out and it didn't seem to have the desired effect...
Manning was positively ragged at the start of his 2008 season, and he was only held out of the Colts pre season because he continued to have swelling in his surgically repaired knee. If Brady isn't experiencing any setbacks in training camp, I fully expect to see him play in pre season unless injuries at other positions make that a risk not worth taking...