This year, Tom Brady may find the going tougher than ever.
The best NFL players become international stars, and fans eagerly follow the twists and turns of their careers. For many years now, one player has been more significant than any other in moving NFL odds and setting the agenda in predictions, analysis, and previews. Tom Brady will surely be remembered as the greatest quarterback of all time, and NFL fans have at least one more chance to see him pilot a team.
Brady may not yet be done with seven Super Bowl rings to his name, but if he is to make it eight and reach an astonishing eleven Super Bowl appearances, he faces some huge challenges. Here are my picks for the three biggest challenges Brady faces going into NFL 2022.
A Declining Offense?
Courtesy: Sports Illustrated
When Tom Brady first moved to Tampa Bay, one of the attractions was a host of top offensive talents. Antonio Brown and Rob Gronkowski soon joined Chris Godwin and Mike Evans. With those weapons at his disposal, Brady and head coach Bruce Arians led the Bucs to a Super Bowl triumph.
In 2021, all of those offensive pieces were once again in place. But the team fell short this time, losing to the Rams in the Divisional game. And as the 2022 season draws closer, the Bucs’ offense looks different and far less promising. Brown torched his Tampa career in the final game of the regular season, and Gronkowski has retired. The Bucs are likely to lean a little more on the running game under new head coach Todd Bowles, and I think this year’s offense will be less potent than in seasons past.
Fierce Competition at QB
Tom Brady has dominated the league for over twenty years, regularly fending off younger quarterbacks. But now, the NFL is full of ultra-competitive contenders. Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert, Joe Burrow, and Josh Allen have established themselves, playing at a level that perhaps even Brady did not match in his prime. These are all dual-threat QBs, too, with energy, youth, and strength on their side, and none of them seems to have plateaued.
Besides younger stars, there are fierce older competitors, too. Russell Wilson is now with the Denver Broncos. Aaron Rodgers seems to be as good as ever, and he is the odds-on favorite to lead the Packers to the NFC North title.
Age Always Wins
Courtesy CBS Sports
Brady is 45 years old. Even though he threw for 5,316 yards and 43 touchdowns last year, one wonders how long he’ll be able to keep piling up those stats. Given how well he played last season, his retirement announcement in February came as a slight surprise, but it wasn’t a huge shock when he reversed that decision not much later. But there is a limit to how long he can keep going. Admitting that he doesn’t have another five years left in the NFL was not earth-shattering news, and it would not be a major surprise if Brady hangs it up after three or four more years.
If the Bucs were a dominant team, another Super Bowl might look more realistic. But they came up short last year, and only a late comeback got them in contention against the Rams, who were the better team for most of that playoff game. Maintaining his usual high standards will take a phenomenal effort, especially when the Bucs–to compete–need Brady to be at the top of his game.
Of course, nothing is impossible where Brady is concerned. We’ve learned that lesson multiple times over the years. Still, Tom Brady faces multiple challenges in the unforgiving NFL.
