Tom Brady Has First Losing Season Since 2002, Still Going to Playoffs

PITTSBURGH, PA - OCTOBER 16: Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) leaves the
Shelley Lipton/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Paul Bois

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady hit a career milestone on Sunday when his team lost to the Atlanta Falcons, making it his first losing season since he started with the New England Patriots in 2002.

The Falcons defeated the Buccaneers 30-17 on Sunday, primarily due to Tampa Bay’s cautious approach to playing starters this late in the season and with a playoff slot all but guaranteed. The Buccaneers closed out with an 8-9 record – the worst for Tom Brady since 2002, when he went 9-7 with the New England Patriots. As noted by Scott Thompson of Fox News, the fact it took Tom Brady 20 years to have another losing season is yet one more remarkable feat to cap his career of remarkable feats.

When you think about it, the fact that it took this long for a Brady-led team to have a losing record is quite impressive. And Tampa is still heading to the playoffs after winning the AFC South last week despite their record.

Brady didn’t play much in this contest anyway as the Buccaneers were cautious with their starters. Some wondered whether Brady would play at all given that their No. 4 seed was already locked in for next week’s wild-card matchup.

Brady got the first five Bucs drives before he was taken out of the game, and he started the game with a solid touchdown drive that ended with an 8-yard pass to tight end Kyle Rudolph to go up 7-0.

According to Athlon Sports, the Buccaneers even had no intention of playing Tom Brady due to their safe playoff spot, but the quarterback reportedly refused to watch from the sidelines.

“The Buccaneers, as a result, reportedly requested that Brady watch the game from the sideline,” noted the outlet. “Instead, Brady ignored the team’s request, suited up and played on Sunday. It’s a pretty controversial decision by a quarterback who’s team has nothing to play for this weekend.”

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.