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As the Tampa Bay Buccaneers remain in “a dark place“, many call it justifiable for quarterback Tom Brady to abandon ship.
Brady, 45, retired from the game with unprecedented achievements and high-level play last February, but he decided to return in March. That return included dreams of an eighth Super Bowl ring, but the Bucs (3-4) look lost at sea instead of on course for a Super Bowl.
Potentially his final season, Brady’s 2022 campaign looks more like Brett Favre‘s nightmarish final season in 2010 instead of Peyton Manning riding off into the sunset with a Lombardi Trophy in 2015. Crumbling plans and public voices clamoring for Brady to quit amid his worst season in 20 years won’t deter him, he says.
“You know, I made a commitment to this team and I love this team and I love this organization. I told them in March I was playing and I never quit on anything in my life,” Brady said on the “Let’s Go!” podcast with Jim Gray on Monday, October 24. “I know as a bunch of teammates, we all count on each other and to work hard and put the team first and that’s what you commit to.”
Brady couldn’t plan for all that ensued after recommitting to the Bucs on March 13. Star tight end Rob Gronkowski retired in June amid an offseason of indecision. Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen sustained a knee injury. Another rash of injuries to key players followed from guard Aaron Stinnie‘s knee injury the preseason to the latest in Week 7 with safety Antoine Winfield Jr.’s concussion.
“There’s no quit in our group and there will never be any quit as long as I’m a part of any team, I know that for sure,” Brady said.
Brady: ‘I Want to Keep Fighting’
Brady’s choice to persevere comes amid the discouraging experiences of a 3-4 start with an offense that’s approaching NFL-cellar quality — 10 offensive touchdowns in seven games. The last time Brady played for a team with a 3-4 record (the 2002 New England Patriots), he missed the playoffs at 9-7. Arguably a failed season after winning a Super Bowl the year before, it didn’t define his following 17 seasons with the Patriots amid five more Super Bowl wins.
“I was a part of an amazing organization that taught me so many great things over 20 years in New England,” Brady told Gray. “I was part of a great college [Michigan]. It was always about the team. When I got to the Bucs, I’ve had nothing but a great experience here and I want to keep fighting as hard as I can. I’m always trying to do better.”
Brady Says How the Bucs Need to Gain Confidence
Things will need to change in a hurry for the Bucs to win against Baltimore on Thursday, October 27. The Bucs have just 21 points in the past two games with one touchdown, the running game averages a league-worst three yards per carry, and the defense keeps buckling in the second half.
“I don’t think you’re flying high after four out of five losses,” Brady said. “It would be, I would say, very naive to think, ‘Man, we’re ridiculously confident and we haven’t done things at a high level.’ It’s how do you gain confidence? You gain confidence through practice execution.”
As the Bucs seek to right the ship, the team still clings to a narrow lead in the NFC South Division ahead of the Atlanta Falcons (3-4). The league is simply loaded with mediocre win-loss records this season, Brady noted.
“It’s been an interesting year in the NFL,” Brady said. “There’s a couple teams that are playing at a really high level and there are a lot of teams that are 4-3, 3-4 and the whole season is ahead of us. But I think the point is you have to learn from mistakes and we’ve made plenty of them the last seven weeks.”
“We have not played to our level and what we’re capable of,” Brady said. “That’s our reality and we have to own it.”
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