Tom Brady is a Tampa Bay Buccaneer. TB is headed to TB. The initials line up nicely, but it sounds weird. And judging by the photoshopped shots of Brady in pewter-and-orange it looks weird, too.
This whole thing might just end up as the answer to a weird trivia question (like Joe Namath on the Rams). What Hall-of-Fame quarterback signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on March 17? Or it might be a lifeline that leads to some more productive and thrilling football moments (see Peyton Manning with the Denver Broncos).
“It is time for me to open a new stage in my life and career,” Brady wrote in a statement on social media. Fair enough. But that only explains the motivation for leaving New England. It doesn’t shed light on why he chose Tampa Bay. Or why Tampa Bay chose to throw the bag at a QB who will be 43 years old when play resumes.
Here are 10 reasons why Brady’s move to Florida is mutually beneficial for both parties.
1) GO WITH WHAT YOU KNOW
Bruce Arians and Byron Leftwich are two of the most well-liked and offensively imaginative coaches in the NFL, an appealing combination for any QB. But Brady also knows this staff well. He suited up against Leftwich many times during the offensive coordinator’s playing days, and also has history with defensive coordinator Todd Bowles, the former coach of the New York Jets. Changing teams and cities with limited time to prep for the season thanks to COVID-19 travel bans and social-distancing measures, Brady could do worse than a staff he’s already familiar with.
2) BRUCE ARIANS IS THE QB WHISPERER
Brady doesn’t know Arians as well as he does Leftwich and Bowles, but the coach’s resume speaks for itself. He was Peyton Manning’s QB coach in Indy from 1998 to 2000. He then coached Ben Roethlisberger as a Steelers assistant from 2004 to 2011. Next he had Andrew Luck while serving as the Colts OC and interim coach in 2012, and Carson Palmer as Cardinals head coach from 2013 to 2017. Sure, last season he was stuck with Jameis Winston and his 30 interceptions, but Winston did lead the league in passing yards and was second, league-wide, in TD passes. Arians has proven able to adapt his offence and his message to all types of star QBs. He should have no problem clicking with TB12.
3) TOM BRADY IS NOT JAMEIS WINSTON
Sure, I pointed out some of Winston’s positive stats from last season, but you can still easily argue that any other starting QB is an upgrade for Tampa Bay. The former first-overall pick ended his time with the Bucs by throwing a pick-six to set the record for pick-sixes in a season. Those 30 interceptions from 2019 I mentioned above? That’s one more than Brady has thrown over the past four seasons combined. Going from one of the most careless QBs in league history to one of the most careful raises the ceiling on everything the Bucs’ offence can be.
4) DON’T BET AGAINST BRADY, EVEN AT 43
Brady has led the NFL in passing TDs four times and passing yards three times. He won a Super Bowl in his first season as a starter, was the first player to throw for 50 TDs in a single season and won his third career MVP in 2017. His greatest trait is his consistency.
5) THE BUCS ARE BETTER… AND THE PATS MIGHT BE WORSE
It possible that a factor in Brady’s departure from Foxborough is he no longer considered the Patriots a contender after losing in the wild card. Last year was first season since 2010 Brady failed to win a playoff game. Remove the quarterback position from the equation and you can still make an argument Tampa’s roster is considerably better than New England’s. The Patriots have lost valuable contributors like Jamie Collins and Kyle Van Noy via free agency. Meanwhile, the Bucs franchise-tagged Shaq Barrett, re-signed Jason Pierre-Paul and still have cap room to play with even after bringing in Brady.
6) BRADY IS A WINNER AND THE BUCS HAVE BEEN LOSERS
Tampa Bay is 150 games under .500 over the course of the ream’s all-time history. Among active franchises in the NFL, NBA, NHL or MLB the Buccaneers’ .387 win percentage is the all-time worst. They will have to go 10-6 for the next 40 years to get back to .500. Who better to break that cycle than the winningest player in NFL history? Brady has five times as many playoff wins, six times as many Super Bowl wins and seven times as many 30-TD seasons as every other QB in the team’s history put together. Meanwhile the Buccaneers have missed the playoffs in each of the last 12 years, the second-longest drought in the NFL. Having someone who has won and expects to keep winning has the potential to change the culture of the entire organization.
7) THE BUCS’ RECEIVERS ARE BEASTS
Having thrown to the worst receiving group in the league last season, Brady will now line up with the NFL’s best receiver duo in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. Both have a huge catch radius, which should negate some of the accuracy issues Brady has shown in recent years. Both are also complete receivers who run the entire route tree. New England has long prioritized small, smart receivers who win in the slot. Now Brady has big, physical targets who dominate on the perimeter. That means clean reads and much more wiggle room when he makes an error. Evans is six-foot-five and 230 pounds; Godwin is six-foot-one and 210 pounds. Brady’s top receiver in New England, Julian Edelman, checks in at five-foot-10, 195 pounds. Instead of being forced to deliver balls in small windows time and time again, Brady will play with receivers who both can create separation and routinely catch contested balls for the first time since throwing to Randy Moss.
8) MUST-SEE TV
Get ready to see the battleship in Tampa Bay firing cannons in primetime. The Bucs’ schedule will bless us with Brady against Patrick Mahomes, Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees twice. Not to mention two match-ups against the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers, franchises he turned down before choosing Tampa Bay. With his signing, the Bucs are a hot TV property. Don’t be surprised if they’re a top choice for HBO’s Hard Knocks in the coming years.
9) DON’T GO WEST, OLD MAN
Neither Vegas nor Los Angeles made geographic sense for Brady, whose business interests and family are tied to Massachusetts and New York. A 90-minute flight from Florida sounds a lot better than the cross-country haul from Nevada or California.
10) NOTHING TO LOSE AND NO EXPECTATIONS
Brady is the first player to head for a new franchise after 20 seasons with one team but that won’t be held against him. Sports fans in New England couldn’t possibly ask for anything more than he’s given them. If the next step goes well it will enhance his legacy. Think Ray Bourque going to Colorado. If it doesn’t, nobody will much care. Michael Jordan’s last NBA game was a 6-for-15, 15-point performance in a 20-point loss for a below-.500 Washington Wizards team. We still remember the six rings first and foremost. The same will be true for the QB with six rings. The Tampa Bay years are extra credit, and kind of a run-of-the-mill move for a great QB. Montana, Favre, Manning and McNabb all wore a random uniform or two before they retired. Why should things be any different for the greatest QB of all-time?
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