Gisele Bundchen may have already found a new man, but Tom Brady has seemingly rediscovered his football joy.
Advantage: TB12.
It was only three weeks ago when Brady was at his professional nadir, losing to Mitch Trubisky and P.J. Walker in consecutive games and going through an excruciating divorce that was splashed all over Page Six. Most surprisingly, it seemed like Brady wasn’t emotionally invested in the season. He skipped a Buccaneers walkthrough to attend Robert Kraft’s star-studded New York City wedding.
Tampa Bay’s tailspin continued for the first 59 minutes of last week’s game against the Rams, but then Brady turner back the clock to 2021 and led the Bucs on a 35-second, game-winning drive with no timeouts.
On Sunday, Brady put forth maybe his best performance of the season, completing 22-of-39 passes for 258 yards and two touchdowns. Though the Bucs bested the Seahawks 21-16, the game wasn’t that close. Tampa Bay out-gained the Seahawks 419-283 and went 10-for-15 on third down. Rookie running back Rachaad White resuscitated a dormant Buccaneers rushing game, running the ball 22 times for 105 yards.
And playing in the first ever NFL game held in Germany appeared to rejuvenate Brady. The seven-time Super Bowl champ called playing in front of nearly 70,000 fans in Munich one of the “great football experiences” he’s ever had.
That’s high praise, considering he’s appeared in 10 Super Bowls, and widely considered the best NFL player ever.
The Germans’ post-game rendition of “Country Road” won his heart.
“The end of the game, with them singing 'Sweet Caroline' and 'Country Roads,' that was pretty epic,” said Brady.
Brady was in such a good mood, he even joked about falling on his face when Leonard Fournette tried to throw him a pass down the field during an ill-fated trick play. “They said ‘Cover him! Cover him!’ and I was on the sideline and tried to yell, ‘Lenny, no!’ But it was too late,” said Brady.
Now at 5-5, the Buccaneers are atop the dreadful NFC South, and back on a postseason path. Once again, Brady seems to be successfully fighting his football mortality.
Marriages may end, but for Brady, football is forever.
