Sunday, towards the middle of the third quarter in Carolina, the Buccaneers trailed 14-0. During Tom Brady’s heyday, the deficit would have seemed surmountable. The oddsmakers had Tampa Bay as a 13.5-point favorite in this battle, so the Buccaneers were practically a guarantee to win. This was the opportunity for Brady and his offense to get revenge on the lowly Panthers for last week’s loss to Pittsburgh. In Carolina, they faced an interim head coach, former XFL quarterback PJ Walker, and a team that had recently lost its greatest player.
But after yet another shocking loss, this one 21-3 and strangely worse than last week’s, it is safe to say that the Tom Brady Era as we know it has come to an end. As Oliver Connolly noted in these pages last week, Brady is not responsible for the majority of Tampa’s problems.
The wide receivers continued to be a liability on Sunday, beginning with Mike Evans dropping a touchdown pass on the opening drive. According to ESPN Stats and Info, there were 10.9 yards between Evans and the closest defender. It was the season’s most blatant drop of a pass traveling over 30 yards.
The offensive line is also a patchwork. Still recovering from an elbow ailment, left tackle Donovan Smith was culpable for repeated false starts. Luke Goedeke, a rookie guard, was benched after a poor performance.
The transfer from Bruce Arians to Todd Bowles is already tainted, and offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich may want to avoid social media for a bit after calling yet another bad game. The Panthers’ defense also merits an abundance of praise. Even down to their third-string cornerback, who had to play due to injury, they were relentless.
However, the “best of all time” should have discovered some flaws. At halftime, he should have galvanized his team. However, they emerged with the same lack of vitality as in the first half. And despite his age-defying heroics over the past few years, Brady now appears to be a 45-year-old quarterback playing in his final season. On Sunday, several of his passes lacked the zip we witnessed from Brady in his early 40s, rendering him more susceptible to turnovers.
The Buccaneers are currently 3-4, with the Ravens and Rams on the horizon, and Brady, his teammates, and coaching staff have shown absolutely no signs of life.
What is the purpose of this season for Tom Brady?
With seven Super Bowl victories, nearly every notable quarterback record, and sufficient fortune to ensure his grandchildren’s prosperity, he has no compelling reason to continue playing. He was aware that he would be lacking important offensive weapons. Antonio Brown was finally deemed unreliable enough to be released from the NFL. Rob Gronkowski has retired. While the transition from Arians to Bowles should have been simple, a new culture would need to be learned.
And the offensive line has long been a concern. Brady had previously overcome similar obstacles, but this was the first time he dedicated his entire being to propelling his team. The last person to leave is the first one to enter. The Brady of the current Tom Brady era did not take Wednesdays off. To be fair, Brady has earned the right to do whatever he pleases, and he is infamously dealing with personal issues, but what’s the point of continuing to play if you’re going to miss a quarter of practices?
In addition, there is the issue of age in general. Brady’s desire to demonstrate that age is irrelevant for elite athletes ready to adopt extreme lifestyles is essential to his TB12 brand. Perhaps Brady believes he is invulnerable, but there is a pattern of aging quarterbacks tumbling off a cliff. Why take a chance?
The most recent example is Drew Brees, but Brett Favre’s body was almost deteriorating during his final season with Minnesota. In his final regular season, even Peyton Manning had 17 interceptions to just nine touchdowns.
Thanks to one of the greatest defenses of all time, it still culminated in a Super Bowl championship. With the Bucs, Brady does not have the luxury of such a supporting cast. He must be the pillar of this team. Possibly he still is, and Tampa Bay is not yet finished in a weak NFC, but at the moment it is resulting in dysfunctional football.
In one of the countless questionable play decisions against the Panthers, Brady scrambled on a second-and-eight within Carolina territory in the final minutes of the third quarter. As Brady lurched forward for a one-yard gain, TV analyst Jonathan Vilma succinctly summed up the situation: “That’s not it.”
Player of the week
Joe Burrow is the Cincinnati Bengals’ quarterback. Sunday, during the Bengals’ 35-17 victory over the Atlanta Falcons, Burrow had astounding statistics. He accumulated 501 total yards and scored four touchdowns. He threw for 345 yards in the first half alone. This kind of toss should not be allowed:
Due to his efforts Sunday, Burrow became the first quarterback in NFL history to record 500 yards and four touchdowns on two separate occasions. Two lessons learned from Sunday’s offensive onslaught: The Burrow-Chase connection continues to amaze, and Burrow is in the same company as Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen (runner-up for MVP of the week).
This amusing occurrence occurred during the Cowboys-Lions game. Jamaal Williams of the Detroit Pistons apologizes to the referee he accidentally struck in the head, while an angry official pulls him away. Unfortunately, this was Williams’ best play of the day, as he lost two fumbles in the Lions’ 24-6 defeat.
Statistics of the week
Zero. In their loss to the Washington Commanders, the Green Bay Packers converted three third-down opportunities. Aaron Rodgers joined Tom Brady in the “You lost to whom?” column; in Rodgers’ case, Taylor Heinicke and the Commanders were the losers. The Packers’ offensive performance was poor in their 23-21 defeat. Rodgers missed the mark.
His receivers did not execute efficient routes. Multiple times, the offense failed to line up appropriately. And so, Rodgers, who will earn just around $50 million this year, yelled at his teammates, which is always beneficial. In 1999 was the last time the Packers failed to convert a single third down throughout a game.
Ryan Neal is not wrong. The Seahawks were expected to crumble following Russell Wilson’s departure. Instead, they continue to find strategies to defeat strong opponents. This week, the Patriots defeated the Chargers 37-23. The second-chance phenom Geno Smith continues to play courageous football, as he throws two dimes to Marquise Goodwin.
Kenneth Walker dominated with 168 yards and two scores on the ground. And the tenacious defense sacked Herbert three times and disturbed his rhythm throughout the entire game. The 4-3 Seahawks are currently in first place in the NFC West. Reconstruction has never looked so amazing.
The remainder of the league
The San Francisco 49ers should have inquired about Christian McCaffrey’s defensive abilities when they acquired him last week. In McCaffrey’s debut, a rematch of Super Bowl 54, Patrick Mahomes and company demolished the Niner’s defense.
Mahomes was able to showcase a poor secondary without Emmanuel Moseley because the defense barely applied pressure. In the Chiefs’ 44-23 road victory, Mahomes threw for 423 yards and three touchdowns. McCaffrey carried eight times for 38 yards.
The Giants and Jets continue their winning ways in New York (well, I mean New Jersey). The 6-1 Giants won a nail-biter in Jacksonville, prevailing by a razor-thin margin. The accent is on narrowly.
After winning a 16-9 defensive duel at Denver, the obnoxious New York Jets improved to 5-2. Unfortunately, it appears that rookie rusher Breece Hall suffered an ACL tear. The stunning ascent of the New York teams is one of the more surprising turns of the season. The Giants are perhaps the second-best club in the NFC due to Brian Daboll’s immense contribution, and it’s not unreasonable to consider them the second-best team in the league (yeah, yeah not high standards but still).
And the Jets are a well-coached team that struck gold in the draught, particularly with Hall and the outstanding Sauce Gardner. We’ll watch how they react to losing Hall and facing the New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills during a difficult time.
— Sunday evening, the Miami Dolphins defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers, 16-10, as injured quarterback Tua Tagovailoa returned and thankfully completed the game. Kenny Pickett was intercepted three times by the Dolphins’ poor secondary, despite the quarterback’s consistency, touchdown pass, and lack of interceptions. The Dolphins improve to 4-3, which is only good for third place in the competitive AFC East, where no club is now below.500.
— In Washington, Commanders fans at FedEx Field screamed “Sell The Team! Sell The Team!” following a public service announcement starring Dan Snyder’s wife Tanya on the scoreboard.
— Would anyone agree with me that National Tight End Day is a tad overdone?
