Tom Brady and the Buccaneers are simply not built for primetime

Tom Brady and the Buccaneers have two straight losses under the bright lights.

Before he donned the pewter and black of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, quarterback Tom Brady had a brief history against the Los Angeles Rams. Their last meeting took place in Super Bowl LIII, which was won by New England.

Unfortunately, the result was not the same on Monday Night Football in Week 11 as the future first-ballot Hall of Famer wasn’t at his best against the team against whom he captured his sixth title with a 27-24 loss that drops the Buccaneers to 7-4 on the season.

Brady had his moments but he made a number of mistakes, as did the rest of the team, particularly the defense. This is now two consecutive games in primetime in which Tampa Bay has underperformed and looked out of sync. That fact alone means trouble come playoff time.

Furthermore, if Tampa Bay wants any shot of hosting and playing in the Super Bowl, Brady cannot be throwing ill-advised interceptions and the defense must clean up their tackling. Additionally, not only the players but the coaches have to alter their gameplan. Whatever they do in preparation for a primetime game is not working. Expecting a different result while working with the same habits is a recipe for disappointment.

Tom Brady and the Buccaneers won’t win a championship struggling in primetime.

Throughout his career, Brady has been excellent and primetime used to be where he shined the brightest. So far this season, the results have largely put many Tampa fans to sleep with disappointing dreams.

In addition, why has defensive coordinator Todd Bowles not understood that constant blitzing without requisite coverage is ineffective at times and adjust? Can he fix it? Absolutely, but time is against them and being forced to go on the road in the postseason is not always a route that teams want to travel

Granted, Tampa Bay did win the NFC South in 2002 at 12-4 and go on the road to win the NFC, but that was close to two decades ago with a historically great defense. This is different. This is a team that seems to be predictable and when things go well, they are hot and if not, the production decreases.

The season is far from over and Tampa Bay is likely to make the playoffs. But given how competitive the NFC is, there’s no room for error. Additionally, many playoff games are held at night and so far this season, Brady and the Bucs have struggled under the lights as they are 1-3 under the lights this season. This is a trait that they must fix now or fall victim to down the road.