NEWSLETTER
If there is anything football fans know, it is to never count out Tom Brady.
But at age 44, without a handful of stud targets and offensive linemen at his disposal, and facing a 24-point deficit, this was looking like the last hurrah. And then Brady and his teammates did that thing Brady and his teammates do when facing long odds. Heck, they don’t get much longer than facing a 27-3 deficit at the 7:07 mark of the third quarter:
BUCS BALL ‼️
📺: #LARvsTB on NBC pic.twitter.com/Ob6GxayN3c
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) January 23, 2022
FIRE THE CANNONS! 💣💥
📺: #LARvsTB on NBC pic.twitter.com/HLTtjz705k
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) January 23, 2022
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1485380191346204676
https://twitter.com/Buccaneers/status/1485382192729673731
https://twitter.com/NFL/status/1485386235619299330
https://twitter.com/Buccaneers/status/1485388540682854407
https://twitter.com/Buccaneers/status/1485389292373487616
ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!!!!
📺: #LARvsTB on NBC pic.twitter.com/kJXJTpNrhb
— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) January 23, 2022
But then, after nearly fumbling away the possession, Matthew Stafford did THIS:
9️⃣ TO 1️⃣0️⃣ TO SET UP THE WIN! pic.twitter.com/1hrjkOa4lQ
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) January 23, 2022
And that set up redemption for Matt Gay, who was short on a 47-yard field goal earlier in the quarter:
MATT GAY FOR THE WIN! pic.twitter.com/AQBU54oVhD
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) January 23, 2022
If you’re looking for a feel-good playoff story, these Rams in this game had it in spades. Matt Gay was a Buccaneers fifth-round draft pick in 2019, but was cut after just one year with the team after posting a 77.1 percent success rate on field goals. Odell Beckham Jr., thought to be cooked after a less-than-amicable divorce in Cleveland, has been balling out since late in the regular season. And then there is Matthew Stafford. I sure thought Stafford would go full Lions down the stretch. He almost did. But almost only counts in horseshoes and hand-grenades. Probably realizing that, Stafford made the most of his second chance. And now, the Rams are one game away from playing the Super Bowl in their home stadium.
First, they’ll need to topple that pesky 49ers bunch who was enjoying that Rams-Bucs game play out:
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) January 23, 2022
