Bruce Arians Refuses to Stop Making the Same Mistake With Tom Brady
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have experienced a steady fall south over the last few weeks. Much of which has seen the bulk of the criticism land on Tom Brady‘s shoulders. The situation has only further compounded with some possible internal friction. What has made matters more complicated is head coach Bruce Arians making the same mistake repeatedly with Brady.
The Buccaneers continue to stumble
The last few weeks have seen the Buccaneers take a continued tumble south out of the running for the NFC South division title.
Tampa Bay has dropped three out of their last four games, which has pushed them to the sixth overall seed in the NFC playoff picture. The Buccaneers are coming off yet another tough loss, falling just short against the Kansas City Chiefs 27-24.
The Buccaneers made a late push to close the gap against the Chiefs, but their offensive shortcomings have continued to be the focal point of criticism. Much of which has landed on Tom Brady’s struggles throwing deep passes. According to Next Gen Stats, Brady completed three of 36 such attempts for 94 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions from Week 5 to Week 11.
These issues have continued to remain with the franchise to a greater degree due to head coach Bruce Arians making the same repeated mistake with Tom Brady.
Bruce Arians refuses to learn from his same mistake
Throughout the season, the constant trend after each loss has been Bruce Arians’ brutal honesty about his team performance to the media.
Arians has remained quite transparent to the point where he has publicly bashed Brady for his shortcomings on multiple occasions. His comments have garnered a building concern around the situation. Arians has once again gone that route as he stated to Michael Silver of The NFL Network that the Buccaneers are now calling plays that Brady chooses.
“He picks all the plays now. We call what he picks, Arians said. “We just have to get better. He’s getting more comfortable every week. We’re getting close.”
There may be a positive tone to the comments, but it yet again pinpoints the team’s offensive issues on Brady’s shoulders. Arians’ transparency to the media isn’t helping the situation, as much of the matters he discusses are best served to remain internal.
The 43-year-old may have a thick skin with the criticism, but it has remained a constant theme after each loss for the Buccaneers this season. Arians’ comments show that the team is trying every avenue to push things forward, but the optics are not encouraging as it places the blame on Brady moving forward.
Only time will tell how things will unfold, and if Arians will learn from the same mistake he continues to make.
Still time to figure it out
The Buccaneers have seen much of the buzz around the team dwindle over the last few weeks due to their struggles.
However, there remain four more games to play in the regular season. Tampa Bay still holds full control of their playoff fate, which includes a favorable remaining schedule. They have two games against the Atlanta Falcons while also facing the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings.
The final month of the season will provide Tom Brady time to continue to take steps forward within the offensive game plan. With the playcalling in Brady’s hands, that should offer him more comfort and confidence in running the offense.
The next few weeks will make it quite clear if the Buccaneers can make a deep playoff run to the Super Bowl.
