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Tom Brady didn’t mince words after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ second straight loss.
Following the Buccaneers’ 41-31 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, the veteran quarterback had a clear message for his team — they have to play better if they want to be one of the “good” teams in the league.
“It’s a team sport. We didn’t play great on offense. We didn’t help (the defense) much, either,” Brady said following Tampa Bay’s loss.
“We didn’t do great in the first half,” Brady continued. “Too many missed opportunities on third downs, turnovers. We gotta play a lot better to be one of the good teams,” Brady added. “We haven’t played our best yet this year.”
Buccaneers Offense Finally Comes Alive During Loss
For the first time all season long, the Buccaneers’ offensive unit actually produced. Tampa Bay scored a season-high 31 points, while actually “outperforming” Kansas City’s offense on a per-play basis. The Buccaneers averaged more yards per play than did the Chiefs (6.4 to 5.4). Furthermore, Brady actually produced a higher passer rating (114.7 to 97.7 rating) and more yards per pass attempt (7.4 to 6.4) than did Patrick Mahomes.
However, the defense faltered after dominating during the first three games of the season. Entering Week 4, the Buccaneers’ defensive unit ranked first in the league in points allowed per game (9.0).
Not only did the unit allow 41 points to the Chiefs — the most allowed in a single game during the Brady era — the defense didn’t force a Kansas City punt until the very end of the game. Perhaps most discouraging was the fact that the Chiefs absolutely dominated on third-down conversions, going 12-of-17 (70.5 percent) for the game.
Head coach — and former defensive coordinator — Todd Bowles didn’t hold back in his assessment of the defensive unit following the loss.
“Everything in this game fell on the defensive side of the ball,” Bowles said. “You name it we did it. Missed tackles. Missed assignments. Bad calls.”
While the Buccaneers will have a sour taste in their mouths following this humbling loss, they’ll have an opportunity to get back on the right track when they host the Atlanta Falcons in Week 5. Following the Falcons’ victory over the Cleveland Browns in Week 5, Atlanta holds a record of 2-2. In other words, the matchup will determine the NFC South division leader after one month through the season.
Buccaneers Continue to Struggle to Run the Football
To say Tampa Bay struggled to run the football is an understatement.
As the Buccaneers rushed the ball just six times for a total of three yards — 0.5 yards per carry — it continued a streak of lackluster rushing for the 2022 Buccaneers.
During their 14-12 loss to the Green Bay Packers last week, Tampa Bay rushed for just 34 yards. Prior to that, the Buccaneers ran for just 72 yards in their win over the New Orleans Saints.
It’s a big change from the 2021 squad that ranked a respectable 15th in rushing yards per attempt (4.3). Entering this game, the 2022 team ranked 30th in rushing yards per attempt (3.4).
Brady didn’t seem to have a concrete reason on why the Buccaneers are struggling to run the football this season.
“You know, we’ve got to take a look,” Brady said after the game. “I’m sure it’s not just one thing. I’m sure it’s probably several things. You know, we’ve just got to take the time to evaluate it and see if we can do a better job. Obviously, we’re not going to throw it all the time. I mean, we have plenty of good, capable runners and a line that does a great job in the run game. We just haven’t kind of found our rhythm there yet.”
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