Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady helped end the NFL’s second-longest playoff drought by throwing four touchdown passes during a 47-7 blowout win over the Detroit Lions on Saturday, clinching Tampa Bay’s first postseason berth since 2007.
Brady was appearing in his 300th regular-season game, in the same city, Detroit, where his career began 20 years ago on Thanksgiving Day. He led five touchdown drives in the first half Saturday before giving way to backup Blaine Gabbert in the second half. Tampa Bay compiled 589 yards of total offense.
Brady put together the best first half of his career, completing 22 of 27 passes for 348 yards. He is the only player over the past 40 seasons with at least 240 passing yards and four TDs before halftime, according to Elias Sports Bureau. (Brady also threw for 345 yards and five TDs in the first half against the Titans in 2009.)
On the opening drive, Brady found Rob Gronkowski on a deep fade route for a 33-yard touchdown, before hitting Mike Evans on a go-route for a 27-yard touchdown on the next possession. It was the first time since Week 4 that the Bucs scored a touchdown on the opening drive, and the first time all season they scored a touchdown on their first two possessions.
Following a 4-yard touchdown run up the gut by Leonard Fournette — who filled in for the second week in a row for Ronald Jones — Brady hit Chris Godwin on a 7-yard crossing route for a one-armed, diving TD catch. Brady then delivered a 12-yard strike to Antonio Brown to make it 34-0 at the half.
Brady was particularly sharp on the deep ball — an area of concern for many of his critics who said that, at 43, he didn’t have the arm strength to orchestrate Bruce Arians’ high-flying offense. Brady went 5-of-7 with the two TDs on passes of 20-plus air yards, matching his most such completions for an entire game over the past 15 seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information.
Evans caught 10 passes for 181 yards and two TDs, and now needs just 40 yards against Atlanta next week to become the first player in NFL history to record 1,000 receiving yards in each of his first seven season. Evans is tied with Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss as the only players with 1,000 yards in each of their first six seasons.
Also catching two TDs was Gronkowski, whom Brady lured out of a one-year retirement. Gronkowski tacked on a 25-yard touchdown catch from Gabbert on his first play in the third quarter.
Should the Los Angeles Rams fall to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday or the Arizona Cardinals next week, the Bucs would move into the fifth seed in the NFC, assuming the Bucs defeat the Falcons next week. That would pit them against the NFC East winner — currently Washington — in the opening round of the playoffs in two weeks.
Source : ESPN
