Tom Brady clearly wanted to get off to an auspicious start. He was bent on proving in his first time out as the Buccaneers quarterback that he remains at the top of his game, and that he continues to possess exactly the tools they required to meet outsized expectations. And, as far as motivations go, the fact that he faced the Saints — division rivals led by longtime foil Drew Brees — served only to provide even more fodder. Which was why he looked sharp as he took to the field with 12:20 left in the first quarter. He promptly led a charge of 85 yards through nine plays that, fittingly, had him calling a keeper for a touchdown. How important was it to him? He punctuated the unusual play with an even more uncharacteristic celebration, spiking the ball for effect.
Unfortunately for Brady, the Saints proved too good the rest of the way the other day. And, for the most part, the Buccaneers’ loss was attributable to his poor performance. He may have put up solid numbers on paper, but his 23-of-36 line included a sizable chunk of garbage-time output and, tellingly, a couple of interceptions that head coach Bruce Arians didn’t have a problem criticizing in public on separate occasions. As the latter noted, “He looked like Tom Brady in practice all the time, so it’s kind of unusual to see that in a ballgame because they didn’t do things that we didn’t get ready for. Everything they did, we thought we were ready for.”
True, the Buccaneers looked prepped and prepared to take the measure of the Saints. Brady was pumped to show all and sundry that he’s still king of the hill, and what better way to do so than against Brees? Too bad he could not take advantage of the opportunity. Instead, he wound up subjecting himself to greater scrutiny with a pass that ran awry due to miscommunication and another that appeared underthrown. Said Arians of the second misfire that led to a pick six: “If you’re throwing an out-route, you don’t throw it low and inside. And hasn’t been the case up until that one? He was a little late on it and probably better decision to go somewhere else with the ball”
The bench tactician is right, of course, and Brady creditably owned up to the miscues. That said, he must have been taken aback by Arians’ candor; for all the quirks of former coach Bill Belichick that may or may not have prompted him to leave the Patriots in the offseason, being aired out to dry had hitherto been the least of his worries. The good news is that everyone seems bent on moving on. “I think it’s a great learning experience. It’s just Round One of a 16-round fight and we’ll learn from it. That the Buccaneers will be better isn’t a question, though. How soon they can be is another matter altogether.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
