The Morning Journal (Lorain, OH)
Brady sets record amid boos, cheers
Playing as a visitor at Gillette Stadium wasn’t the only big change for Tom Brady on Sunday night.
He also was booed. But when the Buccaneers quarterback set the record for yards passing in a career on a 28-yard completion to Mike Evans in the first quarter, there was a mixture of cheers and applause along with the jeers. Brady, 44, reached 80,359 yards through the air and then called a timeout before the next play — though no announcement had been made about setting the mark. That came during the timeout.
Ryan Succop’s field goal a few plays later — after Brady misfired on a couple of throws — gave Tampa Bay a 3-0 lead.
The six-time Super Bowl champion with the Patriots who also led Tampa Bay to the championship last season made his return to Foxborough in a highly charged atmosphere. So much so that, after a friendly greeting for the quarterback during pregame warmups, the fans were in no mood to offer him a welcome when the game began.
Brady completed two passes on the Buccaneers first drive before they stalled and punted. He stoically headed to the sideline — on the opposite side of the field from where he usually settled as a Patriot — with little reaction to the fans’ jeers.
He took the Bucs into scoring range on their next possession, however, surpassing the passing record of Drew Brees, too.
During warmups, to chants of “BRADY, BRADY, BRADY in a half-filled Gillette Stadium,
the returning hero knew exactly where he was, of course. He did his customary “Let’s Go,” fist pump after jogging the entire sideline. The crowd responded with its cheer as Brady hugged New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels before heading to the other end of the field to warm up.
Aaron Rodgers connected with Randall Cobb for two touchdowns and ran for another score as the Packers won their third straight, 27-17 over the Steelers.
Cobb caught a 23-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter to put the Packers (3-1) ahead for good and scored again on a 1-yard reception that made it 27-10 in the third period. That short throw was the 420th TD pass of Rodgers’ career, tying Dan Marino for sixth all-time.
Rodgers went 20 of 36 for 248 yards and scored the Packers’ first points on a 4-yard rush in his first home start against the Steelers, the only team he hadn’t faced at Lambeau Field.
Pittsburgh (1-3) has lost three straight, failing to top 17 points in each game, since a surprising season-opening win at Buffalo.
Cobb began his career in Green Bay and played for the Packers from 2011-18 before landing in Dallas in 2019 and Houston last year. The Packers reacquired Cobb at the start of training camp at Rogers’ request.
It was the first time Rodgers and Ben Roethlisberger had faced off since Green Bay edged Pittsburgh 31-25 in the Super Bowl in 2011.
Roethlisberger threw his 400th career touchdown pass on the game’s opening series.