Eagles next in veteran Brady’s firing line
PHILADELPHIA: Tom Brady is showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, the 44-year-old quarterback is still accomplishing new feats.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion looks to continue his stellar season when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-1) visit the Philadelphia Eagles (2-3) this morning, Thai time.
Brady is fresh off a performance against the Miami Dolphins in which he passed for 411 yards and five touchdowns during a 45-17 victory.
It marked the first time the 22-year veteran passed for 400 yards and five touchdowns in the same game.
The huge outing is partly why Brady leads the NFL with 1,767 passing yards and ranks second with 15 touchdown passes.
He also has an ongoing franchise record of 203 consecutive passes without an interception, breaking the club mark (199) he set last season.
“What he does is crazy, especially at his age and with the level of play that he has been able to sustain for such a long time,” Buccaneers receiver Mike Evans told reporters.
“It’s unreal and I don’t think we will ever see it again.”
The right-handed Brady injured his passing thumb during the game against Miami but insists the injury isn’t serious.
“You play a game and you get hit and you deal with different bumps and bruises over the course of the year,” Brady told reporters on Tuesday.
“It’s just this bump and bruise just happens to be on my hand. I feel confident that I’ll be able to go out there and do what I need to do.”
Brady is more concerned about the short preparation time to dissect a Philadelphia defence that features threetime Pro Bowl cornerback Darius Slay and two stellar defensive linemen in six-time Pro Bowler Fletcher Cox and breakout star Javon Hargrave.
The latter is fourth in the NFL with six sacks.
“It’s a really tough defence,” Brady said.
The Eagles notched a 21-18 road victory over the Carolina Panthers last Sunday to halt a three-game slide.
Slay intercepted two passes and cornerback Steven Nelson picked off one as Philadelphia recovered from a 15-3 deficit late in the second quarter.
The Eagles went ahead for the lone time on quarterback Jalen Hurts’ sixyard touchdown run with 2:38 minutes remaining.
Tampa Bay will be without tight end Rob Gronkowski (ribs), who will miss his third straight game.