Blythe Hastings ’23
Sports Editor
Tom Brady’s brief time in Tampa Bay has been filled with milestones, and Sunday marked another one. Brady became the first player in NFL history to throw for 600 touchdowns in his career. The Buccaneers signal-caller reached the landmark with his second touchdown pass against the Bears, hitting Mike Evans with six seconds left in the first quarter for a 9-yard score. The TD toss put the Bucs up 21-0. Evans gave the history-making football to a fan in the stands after the touchdown, unaware of the pigskin’s significance.
The team had to negotiate with the fan to get the ball back to Brady and the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Brady’s opening TD toss of the day was a 4-yard pass to Chris Godwin with 4:37 to go in the first. Already the league’s all-time leader in touchdown passes, Brady broadened his lead Sunday. The retired Drew Brees sits at second with 571, and Aaron Rodgers is at fifth all time and No. 2 among active players with 427. The 44-year-old Brady now has five multi-TD games this season, as he entered the week leading the NFC in touchdown passes. On his way to becoming the NFL’s all-time leader in passing yardage in Week 4, Brady became just the second quarterback to hit the milestone mark of 80,000 yards after Brees first accomplished the feat. On Sunday, the greatest of all time wrote more history.
In other news, the Titans make a massive statement. Back-to-back impressive wins against AFC powerhouse teams. Tennessee dominated from the jump, controlling the ball with ease against a struggling Chiefs defense. Ryan Tannehill’s offense scored on all five of its first-half possessions to leap out to a 27-0 halftime lead. Derrick Henry continued to play like a beast and started his day with a jump-pass touchdown on the opening drive. For the first time since Week 1, Henry didn’t hit the century mark on the ground. It speaks volumes for the Titans that they were able to blow out the Chiefs. Kansas City Henry faced seven-plus defenders in the box on 26 of 29 rushes. Tannehill and A.J. Brown then ripped the defense apart. It’s the type of dual-threat offense that allows Tennessee to smash opponents.
Has Patrick Mahomes run out of magic? The star quarterback threw another forced pass that turned into a turnover, lost a fumble, and was knocked out late after taking a knee to the facemask late in the blowout loss. Facing a defense that’s been decimated in the secondary, the Chiefs offense was unrecognizable, unable to sustain drives, making unforced errors and looking lost all afternoon. The Chiefs generated a measly 67 total yards in the first two quarters, averaging 3.9 yards per play, and never once crossing midfield. With the defense unable to get a stop, it seems like Mahomes feels he must be perfect each drive, which has led to forced passes that have ended in turnovers. Sunday’s loss was a culmination of issues that ruined Kansas City as it fell to 3-4, further behind in the playoff race as the midway part of the season comes close.
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