There is plenty to consider when it comes to talking about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as potential back-to-back Super Bowl winners, because, well, Tom Brady’s involved, and with him, there is always a lot to consider. Ever since he left the bubble of Patriot-land and embarked upon his Floridian adventure, Brady — and by extension, the Bucs – has been permanently front and center. On any given week the nation’s most famous 44-year-old occupies more spots on the news agenda and amid the Twitterverse than most of his contemporaries do in a month. Where to start? On Sunday there was, yes, a dramatic walk-off overtime touchdown to sink the Buffalo Bills, but of course, there was the added spice that it happened to be the 700th TD pass of Brady’s career, and perhaps the most dramatic way imaginable to celebrate a milestone. There was Brady’s breaking of the all-time NFL completions record that shifted him past Drew Brees, the frantic efforts put together by Bucs staffers to retrieve the No. 700 ball for posterity and, earlier in the week, being named Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year for 2021. It would be amiss not to mention his ongoing documentary series “Man In The Arena,” not quite an opus of “The Last Dance” standing, but still a fascinating look into a player that’s won seven Super Bowls and the rather startling (and amusing) revelation that he can’t seem to stop cussing. But that’s all the noise that’s merely obscuring what’s really happening, which is that Tampa Bay is looking truly scary, both in performance and circumstance. They turned in the worst quarter of football they’ve had for a while to allow the Bills to push them into overtime on Sunday, and still managed to move to 10-3. “We all know we can play a lot better than that,” Brady told reporters. “We needed to find a way because we let them back in. Our execution, when it’s good, we are tough to stop.” Aside from that blip, nothing much has gone wrong, not since Nov. 14, when a loss to the Washington Football Team was the second of a two-game skid that’s now deep into the memory reserves. Since then, the Buccaneers have won four straight games capped by Brady’s toss to Breshad Perriman for a 58-yard clincher on Sunday. They are still undefeated at Raymond James Stadium and verifiably the monster no one is talking much about with four weeks of the campaign left. With a forthcoming slate consisting of a pair of games against the Carolina Panthers, one against the injury-hampered New Orleans Saints and another versus the New York Jets, it is difficult to envision where a stumble could come from. All three of those upcoming opponents are 1-4 over their past five games. Yes, it is possible that Brady and company could win their four remaining matchups, end up 14-3, yet still be stuck as the No. 3 seed in the NFC. Probability skews otherwise though, with the Arizona Cardinals facing a far nastier schedule, starting tonight against the Los Angeles Rams, and the Green Bay Packers with a fixture list that includes a visit to the Baltimore Ravens this weekend. If the Bucs win out, a single slip-up from the Packers and the Cardinals would put Brady’s bunch into the No. 1 seed and give them the chance to take that perfect home record for a spin through the postseason. Last year’s title run was essentially the opposite, when Super Bowl glory required a trio of road wins before the biggest game of all happened to be on home turf. Back-to-back titles? A lot still needs to be done, but few teams would feel as well-positioned as Tampa Bay does right now and the oddsmakers agree, positioning them as +450 favorites (FOX Bet). Brady has done enough, meanwhile, to be the apparent frontrunner for the league MVP award. “100 percent,” FS1’s Kevin Wildes said on First Things First. “Tom Brady is your MVP. He’s got the moment, he’s got the stats and he’s got the momentum. Just like guys have Heisman moments, (Sunday) was the MVP moment – if there was any doubt people can think back and say, ‘Oh yeah.’” With Brady, there are always plotlines and coincidences, career markers and comparisons. We’re coming into Week 15, and it’s not going to change much from this point out. When someone has played 314 games, there is always something other than the game to discuss. You’ll hear a lot of other stuff, and the MVP chatter is only going to escalate, but the situation is this: Tampa Bay is on the hunt for another title and might just have the clearest path at it of any team in the NFC. That’s the real story. That’s how it is. That’s the challenge for everyone else. |
