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Tom Brady led the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to another come-from-behind win on Sunday afternoon. A win at home against the Carolina Panthers secured the NFC South division for the Bucs. In a must-win game for his team, Brady went 34/45, throwing for an impressive 432 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.
On Monday morning, Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe spoke about the surprising comeback from Brady and the Buccaneers. Bayless said that although he thought the Bucs could win before the game, he began to question whether they could get it done as the game went on.
He said the struggles in the Bucs' running game and offensive line made him were concerns. However, Brady led the team superbly with the passing game.
Skip Bayless said that on the first day of the new year, the seven-time Super Bowl champion went '23' as in channeling his inner Michael Jordan:
"On the first day of 23, Tom Brady went 23, as in Michael Jordan, on the Carolina Panthers in a win or basically go home game."
Although the win against the Carolina Panthers didn't come easy, the Bucs are now NFC South champions for the second consecutive year. This is the first time in franchise history that the team has won consecutive division titles. Despite a 8-8 record with one game remaining, the Bucs will host a playoff game in the Wild Card round.
Tom Brady's connection with WR Mike Evans was the difference maker in Sunday's win over the Panthers
Leading up to the Week 17 matchup, Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady repeatedly said that he needed to connect with wide receiver Mike Evans more. Despite the 1,000 receiving yards he has now accrued this season, Evans has not been a common target for his quarterback in the end zone.
That ended on Sunday. Evans caught nearly half of his quarterback's passing yards and all three passing touchdowns. Evans had 10 catches for 207 yards and three touchdowns. As a result, he now has nine straight seasons of 1,000 receiving yards. He is now the only player in NFL history to have 1,000 receiving yards in every year of his career so far.
If the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going to make a run in the NFC playoffs, the connection between Brady and Evans will need to be strong. We will see how they get on in the coming weeks.
