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Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady could only sit in mostly silence at his locker after a third-consecutive loss for the first time in two decades.
Brady was “facing forward” and “his head was in his hands” with “full pads on for several minutes,” Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times wrote, describing the postgame moment. The seven-time Super Bowl champion talked only a little, with backup quarterback Blaine Gabbert, Stroud added. While addressing the media after the game, Brady skirted a question about the scene and went right into analyzing the game.
“We just didn’t play well enough to win,” Brady told the media on Thursday, October 27 after a 27-22 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. “Give them credit. They played good and certainly better than we did.”
Brady started hot, going 7-of-10 and passing more than 100 yards, and the Bucs scored a first-quarter touchdown for the first time this season.
But then the offense shifted back to neutral, punting five consecutive times at one point. Other than a deep shot to star wide receiver Mike Evans in the fourth quarter, Brady went cold until late in the final quarter.
“You know, I think we’ve pretty much struggled with everything,” Brady said. “We struggled in the red area, struggled on third down, struggled in the run game, two-point plays, short yardage, backed up, start of the first quarter, start of the third quarter. Not very good offensive football.”
Brady Can’t Rally Bucs
Brady led the Bucs to the red zone three times in the fourth quarter, coming away with only one touchdown and two field goals.
“We’re just not getting the ball in,” Brady said.
A deep shot to wide receiver Scott Miller drew a pass interference call, putting Tampa Bay at Baltimore’s 9-yard line. But the offense stalled again. He did throw a touchdown to tight end Cade Otten three plays later, but it was called back due to a holding penalty. The execution faltered again with a completion to Julio Jones coming short of a touchdown and then a false start penalty on fourth down, leading finally to the field goal call.
Brady later hit Jones on a deep shot, a contested replay call that went in the Bucs’ favor. The Bucs moved the ball on that drive, and Brady capped it off with a touchdown pass to Jones.
Brady finished with 26-of-44 passing for 325 yards and a touchdown but fell to 3-5 as a starter for the first time in his career. Amid Brady’s latest loss, he also became the most-sacked quarterback in NFL history when Baltimore’s Justin Houston sacked him in the second quarter.
“Again, I don’t think anyone feels good,” Brady said. “Not where we want to be, but we haven’t earned it, and we gotta go earn it. You gotta go earn it. You gotta go fight hard, and you gotta go figure out how to win games.”
“I think we’re all frustrated that we’re not getting the job done,” Brady added.
Bucs Defense Sinks Without Shaq Barrett
Once Bucs linebacker Shaquil Barrett left the game with an Achillies injury, confirmed by head coach Todd Bowles, things went south for the defense.
“Shaq’s a great player for us. I hope he’s OK,” said Brady, who noted he didn’t know the nature of the injury at the time.
The Bucs couldn’t contain the Ravens rushing attack in the second half with 24 points allowed. Barrett previously gave the Ravens offense trouble all night, including a sack where he sported a Ray Lewis-like celebration. Barrett posted two tackles for loss and a sack.
The Bucs defense also failed to take the ball away for a fourth consecutive game, an ongoing issue for the unit. Getting late-game stops also eluded the Bucs again as the Ravens scored at will late in the second half. Failing to make fourth quarter stops plagued the Bucs at Pittsburgh and Carolina the previous two weeks, and the same happened in the Bucs’ last win against Atlanta.
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