The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are back baby! The Bucs easily man-handled the Eagles yesterday afternoon 31-15. Coming into this game, I thought the Eagles would be a bit of trouble for the Buccaneers, seeing as their run-game was so prolific and the Bucs had trouble stopping the run in the past. Well, it seems I was proven wrong, as the Buccaneers defense not only stepped up to the plate, they hit a grand slam.
The Eagles run-game was only ever able to muster up 95 yards on Sunday, and 39 of those yards came from quarterback Jaylen Hurts. The Buccaneers D looked as if it was playing chess on Sunday, neutralizing every single play the Eagles were about to run on them. In the end, the Birds didn’t end up flying anywhere.
It wasn’t just the defense who played a monster of a game (although Antoine Winfield Jr and Carlton Davis should be shouted out for their clutch plays during the game) but also the Buccaneer’s offense. As always, Tom Brady showed us why he is the absolute best at what he does. As I was watching this game I felt like I was watching a robot calculating the odds of each option and then throwing the ball for completion, that is how efficient and lethal he is out there.
As I said, it was almost like watching a robot out there, and Tom Brady certainly posted the stats to back up that argument. First off, Brady’s average time to throw on Sunday was 2.17 seconds, the fastest by any qualifying quarterback this season (credit to Next Gen Stats, mentioned in the Tweet Below). Brady would also connect on 29 of his 37 passing attempts, logging 271 passing yards in the process.
Another thing Brady did extremely well was to throw the short ball, as he knew the Eagles had a great knack at breaking up long passes (one of the best in the league at it). Brady’s average throw was around 7.3 yards, which is why receivers like Mike Evans and Giovani Bernard saw an amplified amount of targets in this game.
Evans was phenomenal, catching 9 of his 10 targets and racking up 117 receiving yards and one touchdown in the process. The chemistry between him and Brady is undeniable, and it really is a treat to watch. Bernard also had a great game, catching five balls for a total of 39 yards, 22 of which were on a downfield heave by Brady.
As always Rob Gronkowski was hit for a touchdown in the endzone, further solidifying the Brady-Gronkowski lore. When you think of Brady, you also automatically think of Gronk, don’t you? They’re like PB & J!
The Buccaneers manhandled the Eagles, giving us momentum that will carry into our next playoff game. The Bucs proved me wrong, which I am absolutely elated about. I cannot wait to see who they end up playing next. “Til next time!