Having become the NFL’s all-time leader in passing yards earlier this month, it was fitting that Tom Brady, quite literally, stuck out like a sore thumb last night.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback threw two touchdown passes and added another 297 yards to his tally in a 28-22 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles, despite having his thumb taped.
Brady was seen icing the injury on the sidelines during Sunday’s crushing win over the Miami Dolphins, but insisted it had caused him no major issues following last night’s win.
“I feel great,” Brady said afterwards. “Awesome.”
Both of the 44-year-old’s touchdown passes came before the break – to Antonio Brown and O.J Howard – firing the Buccaneers into a 21-7 lead at halftime.
The Eagles threatened a late comeback as quarterback Jalen Hurts rushed for two TDs, but the Bucs survived the scare to make it three wins in a row for the defending Super Bowl champions and move to 5-1 on the season.
Having lost three-time All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman to a hamstring injury during the first quarter, adding to a proliferating injury list, Brady and the Bucs will relish the break before their week seven game against the Chicago Bears on October 24.
“It was a good win,” Brady said.
“It’s tough to win on the road. Obviously, we didn’t play our best, so we’ve got to get back to work. We’ve got a good little break here – use it and get back to work.”
‘Regular Season Lenny’?
Brady heaped praise on his running back, Leonard Fournette, who ran for 81 yards, caught six passes for 46 yards and scored two touchdowns.
“He’s a great back,” Brady said. “Big, tough, catches it, runs, blocks, does everything for us – so great to have him in there.
“When he’s rolling, it’s tough to stop us,” Brady added.
Fournette, who signed for the Bucs last season, has started the season in strong form. Having already rushed for 332 yards in the first six weeks of the season, Fournette is already just 35 yards short of matching his rushing tally from his 13 games last season.
The 26-year-old was fondly given the nickname ‘Playoff Lenny’ after he burst into life during the Buccaneers’ playoff run following an inconsistent year. Now settled in Florida, this season he seems determined to become ‘Regular Season Lenny.’
“Having that year under my belt, it makes a big difference,” Fournette said after the game.
“Especially playing with my guys for a year – trusting them, them trusting me … the trust and accountability is there on both sides.
“The sky’s the limit for me.”
Meanwhile, the Eagles will look to bounce back and square up their 2-3 season record when they face the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 7.
They face a Raiders team rocked by the departure of head coach Jon Gruden, who resigned on Monday after reports emerged of him using homophobic, racist and misogynistic language in emails while he worked as an ESPN analyst.
Rich Bisaccia, the Raiders’ former special teams coordinator and assistant head coach, has been appointed interim head coach.
