Saturday, 28 Nov 2020. 9:10 AM
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TAMPA, Fla. – The Kansas City Chiefs don’t believe those who claim Tom Brady lost his touch. They insist he still plays at a high level and they will face an elite quarterback on Sunday when they cross swords with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Patrick Mahomes will be in his fourth duel against Brady in his young career, as the veteran looks to bounce back from two regular performances against teams in the playoff race.
“You can’t take anything away from Tom Brady. He is very smart, he keeps throwing the ball in the deep areas and he is always so well surrounded. We’ll have our hands full, ”said Chiefs safety back Tyrann Mathieu.
“He’s played against our system a number of times, going back to his days with the New England Patriots,” Mathieu said. He knows what to expect. We have to adjust to his new tools around him. “
Brady has won two of his previous three games against Mahomes, including the American Association Championship game two seasons ago, in overtime.
The six-time Super Bowl champion, however, has struggled in home losses to the New Orleans Saints and Los Angeles Rams in two of the past three weeks. Still, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid is wary of the 43-year-old quarterback.
Despite Brady’s recent woes, especially on deep end passes, the Bucs (7-4) matched their number of wins last season and remain poised to end a 12-year shortage without participating in the playoffs.
” He is incredible. He is a great player, a future Hall of Fame member. We’re fortunate to find ourselves in a time when we can face it, ”said Reid.
“He’s old, but it’s hard to see he’s old,” he added. It honors the way he takes care of himself, from his diet to his training methods. “
For their part, the Chiefs (9-1), reigning Super Bowl champions, have won their last five games. They avenged their only loss of the campaign by beating the Las Vegas Raiders 35-31 last weekend. Mahomes racked up 348 yards and two touchdowns in the game.
During the Chiefs’ winning streak, Mahomes averaged just over 312 yards per game, while making 14 touchdown passes against a single interception.
For his part, Brady suffered two interceptions and went 0-for-6 on attempted passes of at least 20 yards last week in a 27-24 loss to the Rams. He’s 0-for-19 on his deep-zone attempts in his last three outings, including a troublesome 38-3 loss to the Saints.
Some have questioned Brady’s ability to lead an offense as formidable as that of the Patriots during his historic 20-year stint with them.
Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians admitted the attack has lacked consistency this season, but instead pointed to the strains of the coronavirus pandemic and injuries to explain the situation.
“(Brady) can do anything, so it’s not that he’s not capable of doing it,” Arians said, responding to critics who suggest the offensive system is the source of the problem because he has. need the successful completion of long passes to operate.
“The guys are standing out, but we just can’t seem to catch them,” Arians continued.
“It changes so much from week to week, but when the guys are free, you have to join them,” he added. The ball cannot pass them through their fingers and we cannot throw the ball over their heads. “
