Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles feels the team would be far better next season if they stopped waiting for star quarterback Tom Brady to steal victory from the jaws of defeat week in and week out.

There is no denying how important Brady has been to every team he’s led. Throughout much of his legendary career, he was often the best player on the New England Patriots and Buccaneers squads, and in 42 different cases, the 44-year-old rescued his teams from a loss with a fourth-quarter comeback win.

However, Bowles does not want to see that from his starting QB in 2022. Not just because he will be 45 years old and playing high-level football, but because he believes his team would be better off if they carry the winning load together instead of relying so much on Brady’s right arm to win games.

During a Monday appearance on the “Ira Kaufman Podcast (via JoeBucsFan), Bowles proclaimed that the rest of the Bucs need to make Brady’s “job easier” next season and earn their keep.

“I think if everyone gets to the mindset of, ‘We need to make Tom’s job easier not him make our job easier,’ we’ll be a better team. If we don’t have to rely on the heroics, sort of speak, and everybody’s doing their job and earning their keep, we’ll be a better team … There was a few games that we shouldn’t have even been in. If we take care of our business that way, more of a team-like thing, we’ll be a better team.”

Brady is a 15-time Pro Bowler, including last season for the Bucs. After deciding to retire earlier his year, the NFL legend walked back his decision about a month later. 

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