The signing of quarterback Tom Brady has created a drastic change in the odds for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Brady, 42, had been a member of the New England Patriots since joining the NFL in 2000. During that span he has amassed six Super Bowl rings, four Super Bowl MVP awards, three NFL MVP awards, 14 Pro-Bowls and numerous other accolades which grow with each game played. All further counting of Brady’s stats will now take place in red, bay orange and pewter.
The Buccaneers went 7-9 last season and early indications were that odds-makers had more of the same expected of the team in 2020. Now with the addition of Brady, they’ve jumped up to +1500 on their Super Bowl 55 odds trailing only Kansas City, Baltimore, San Francisco and New Orleans. Meanwhile the Patriots who were at +1200 prior to Brady’s departure have fallen to +1800.
Tampa Bay was able to land Brady on a two-year deal worth $30 million annually. Brady’s signing has been graded an A move by many pundits including CBS’ Pete Prisco. Another move graded as an A, which was expected, was the Saints bringing back Drew Brees. These two moves create an interesting match-up in the NFC South as the Buccaneers and Saints will face each other twice in the regular season. Brees (547) and Brady (541) are the NFL’s top two quarterbacks for all-time touchdown passes.
What other additions the Buccaneers will add to the office for Brady remains to be seen. Will Antonio Brown follow Brady to Tampa Bay?
One thing is for certain. The Buccaneers moves have not been limited to the offensive side of the ball as the team was also able to re-sign defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul. Also signed to a two-year deal, Pierre-Paul had 8.5 sacks in 10 games after missing the first six games of the season with a back injury.