Tom Brady is losing more than just calm. Games are starting to slip out of reach and so is their touch.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion, who missed nearly two weeks of Tampa Bay training camp to attend to a personal matter this summer, gave his offensive line a tongue attack during the Buccaneers’ 20-18 loss in Pittsburgh on Sunday.
“There are too many plays we’re not making,” Brady said after the Bucs fell to 3-3, their worst start in six weeks since 2012.
“We didn’t get the win. It’s a game of winning it and it’s a game of playing well and performing well and we’re just not doing a good job at it,” Brady explained. “I don’t think we’ve done it in six weeks. I think we’re all playing less than we’re capable of.”
“We all have to look in the mirror,” Brady added, “and figure out why.”
That’s precisely what Twitter was saying after Brady criticized his offensive line when his latest sideline tirade came after he missed his team’s Saturday run to attend New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft’s wedding.
Coach Todd Bowles insisted Monday that Brady’s trip to New York City to serve as part of Kraft’s star-studded guest list had nothing to do with the Buccaneers’ loss to the Steelers.
Bowles also maintained that his 45-year-old quarterback is not receiving preferential treatment in his 23rd NFL season, even though he was allowed to miss a portion of training camp for personal reasons that Brady has not discussed publicly since rejoining the team after 11 years.
“He works as hard as anyone,” Bowles said. “There have been some guys who have missed meetings and some practices for something special, that just isn’t publicized because they’re not him. It just comes with the territory. Don’t worry about it too much.”
What worries his fans is Brady’s dramatic downfall following a news-filled offseason in which he retired in February, didn’t retire a month later, and after missing much of training camp found his marriage to Gisele Bundchen the subject of rampant tabloid speculation focused on his retirement. .
What Brady’s numbers say
Brady’s 3.2% touchdown rate while trying to pass is a career-low and he has only eight TD passes in six games after pitching a combined total of 96 in his first two seasons in Tampa, including the playoffs.
He had 17 TD passes right now a year ago and 14 the year before.
The Bucs are averaging 20.2 points per game, down from 30.1 points last season. Take the pick-six out of deep Mike Edwards in Week 2 and the Bucs’ offense averages just 19 points per game.
The Falcons’ quarterback recovery fell short in a 21-15 loss to Tampa Bay in Week 5 thanks largely to a disputed penalty for toughness to the passer over Atlanta defensive tackle Grady Jarrett. Even that fortuitous flag proved costly for Brady, who was fined $11,139 for trying to kick Jarrett after his takedown.
Asked after the loss to the Steelers and his second-line secondary what his message was to his teammates, leaving aside the profanity-filled rebuke of his offensive line, Brady said, “We have to score more points.”
That’s the rallying cry throughout the league, where a dozen teams are averaging less than 20 points per game and the 49ers (20.1) are off that mark along with the Bucs.
The Falcons’ quarterback recovery fell short in a 21-15 loss to Tampa Bay in Week 5 thanks largely to a disputed penalty for toughness to the passer over Atlanta defensive tackle Grady Jarrett. Even that fortuitous flag proved costly for Brady, who was fined $11,139 for trying to kick Jarrett after his takedown.
Asked after the loss to the Steelers and his second-line secondary what his message was to his teammates, leaving aside the profanity-filled rebuke of his offensive line, Brady said, “We have to score more points.”
That’s the rallying cry throughout the league, where a dozen teams are averaging less than 20 points per game and the 49ers (20.1) are off that mark along with the Bucs. …
The reasons for the shortage of points are many
– Several teams did not play their starters in the offseason and have spent the season polishing wrinkles on offense.
– Several veterans have changed teams and recreating chemistry takes time.
– The “shell” defenses popularized by former Broncos coach Vic Fangio in the red zone are strangling offenses inside the 20-yard line.
The problems in Tampa could go a little deeper.
“It doesn’t matter who you’re playing against, if you’re not making the plays, it doesn’t matter if it’s the Steelers or the Chiefs for the Packers or the Saints,” Brady said. “Either you make the plays or you don’t. It’s a production business.”
And no, Brady emphasized, it’s not just the fault of the offensive line.
“It’s all of us. It’s our whole offense,” Brady said. “We have to do a better job in the ground game, in the aerial game. Everyone has to do a better job. Obviously, there is no position that is being held at an elite level right now.”
