Tom Brady showed his greatness once again as he helped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stage a late comeback to defeat the New Orleans Saints 17-16. The iconic quarterback set a new landmark of leading a fourth-quarter fightback for the 44th time in his illustrious career - surpassing Peyton Manning for the most in history.
With just three minutes left on the clock, the 2021 Super Bowl champions were trailing 16-3 and looked destined for a seventh defeat of the season. But the NFL great - widely regarded as the best of all time - commenced the resurgence when he found Cade Otton who completed the touchdown.
With three seconds remaining, Brady came through in the clutch and picked out rookie Rachaad White for another score before Ryan Succop added the extra point to seal a vital victory. "It's awesome by our team," quarterback Brady said. "It's a great effort by the defence to hang in there all day.
"I missed some throws early, but I'm really proud of our team for hanging in there against a team we've always struggled with. It was a great route by Rachaad, great catch. [Offensive coordinator] Byron [Leftwich] made a great call. Great job by coach Bowles, I give him all the credit. That's what he wanted and look how it turned out. So, I'll take it."
Brady also wished his daughter, Vivian, a happy birthday and dedicated his remarkable performance to her. "That's for her. She was a little worried when I said we were playing the Saints. 'Oh no, daddy,'" Brady said. Wide receiver Mike Evans shook his head in disbelief as he watched Brady deliver for his team when they needed him most.
"He gets better like in those moments. Like it's crazy," Evans said. "I think it's experience and his mindset. He knows that at the end of the game, he wants the ball in the offence's hands and he demands us to go out there and make plays." Running back White added: "It's just amazing. I've just been grateful. I believe I was just born when TB had first gotten into the league. I was born in '99.
"Just to be able to be a part of that years later down the road, you just be grateful. And you've got to cherish these moments." The seven-time Super Bowl champion finished with 36 completed passes from 54 attempted for 281 yards at the Raymond James Stadium.
It has been a rather inconsistent season for the Buccaneers so far, winning just 50% of their games. However, they are still top of the NFC South.
They will next travel to Levi’s Stadium to take on the in-form San Francisco 49ers, who have won their last five games and are leading the NFC West.
