Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Studs and duds from Week 4 vs. Chargers
Stud: Tom Brady
If anyone only watched the first half of Sunday’s game, they would assume Tom Brady wound up as a dud after the game. Brady flipped a switch in the second half. Brady brought the team back from a 17-point first-half deficit to all the way to the 38-31 win.
Brady threw three of his five touchdowns in the second half of the game. All five touchdowns went to different receivers and Brady also threw for 369 yards. He did throw an awful pick-six in the first half, but he recovered and continuously threw the ball down the field with precision and ease in the second half.
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Brady was able to find targets all over the field and spread the ball to receivers, tight ends, and running backs. He was definitely more than a one-trick pony in this game. This felt like a turning point game for Brady and the Buccaneers offense.
Dud: Buccaneers Secondary
The Buccaneers secondary had a really tough day against the Chargers. The team allowed Justin Herbert to throw for 290 yards and 3 touchdowns despite it being just his third career start. A unit that had looked strong during their first two games struggled to win one-on-one matchups. Other than Carlton Davis, the secondary was consistently beat in those types of scenarios.
Even Davis was not the shutdown corner we saw in the first three games as he allowed Keenan Allen to still make eight catches for 62 yards. Not horrible, but there were key completions to keep the Chargers moving on offense.
Defensive coordinator Todd Bowles was aggressive as he tends to be, but Herbert stared down the pressure to make big play after big play. The secondary lost receiver Tyron Johnson for a 53-yard touchdown early in the game. They topped this when Shawn Murphy-Bunting gave up a 72-yard touchdown to Jalen Guyton.
Murphy-Bunting also gave up a touchdown to Donald Parham Jr. All three touchdowns were the lone catches of the day for each player and it may have been a case of the defense not respecting the abilities of each player.