09-08-2021, 01:46 PM
(09-08-2021, 07:54 AM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: 2019 Buccaneers Scoring Offense with Winston: 3rd
2020 Buccaneers Scoring Offense with Brady: 3rd
If you're arguing that Brady is the reason why the Bucs were good in 2020, that's a horrible hill to die on.
The difference is they went from the 29th scoring defense in 2019 to the 8th scoring defense in 2020. The less INT helped, obviously, but that defense was just tough. They played the 1st, 5th, and 6th scoring offenses in the playoffs and held them to 5.8, 10.1, and 20.6 points, respectively, below their season average.
You totally misunderstood. If anything you're reinforcing my point. The team was obviously better- they wouldn't have won the SB otherwise. But what changed other than Brady? The roster, coaches and coords were not new. The defense swapped just three starters: at NT, CB and S. None was a game-changer. In fact, I might argue they were all were lateral moves. Yet the Bucs still made the ultimate leap.
If it wasn't Brady changing the culture of the team (as I said initially) then it must have been something else. Shake n Bake thinks they were already good enough. Likewise, BengalChris believes the roster was "loaded". They're fair points and everyone's entitled to their view, but this one is belied by the losing that preceded Brady. Were all those teams "loaded" as well? It's a tough argument to make. Unless you felt that any team with 7+ wins should join the Tom Brady sweepstakes, it was a surprise.
Despite how it looks with 20/20 hindsight, the Bucs had been mired in mediocrity for over a decade. They finished 8 of the previous 11 years in last place (!!!). There's nothing simple about turning those kinds of teams around- we know that in Cincinnati better than most- let alone doing it by adding a 43-yo quarterback whose weak arm can only be undershot by his weaker athleticism.
All I'm saying is that he brought some serious intangibles to the table that cannot be captured by stats (as you said yourself). Either it was a miracle or he has the secret sauce. Because he made chicken salad out of.... a 7-win team lol, and Belichick wasn't there to help him.
