Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady displayed the form that won him six Super Bowl titles with the New England Patriots in his last two outings following a disastrous performance in their 20-19 loss to the Chicago Bears. The 43-year-old Brady bounced back from that disappointing loss by throwing two touchdown passes in their 38-10 rout of the Green Bay Packers in Week 6. He followed it up with a five-touchdown performance in their 45-20 win over the Las Vegas Raiders that lifted them to the NFC South's top spot with a 5-2 mark. Brady had a rocky start to the season where he threw just three touchdown passes with the same number of interceptions, making people think about if he's really fit with the offense that head coach Bruce Arians has set up in Tampa Bay.

Brady proving critics wrong

However, Brady proved critics wrong as he threw 15 touchdown passes with just one interception in the next five games where the Buccaneers went 4-1. During that five-game stretch, Brady had two games with five touchdowns, including five passing scores in their come-from-behind win over the Los Angeles Chargers. Brady now has 1,910 passing yards and 18 touchdowns with four picks this season, his third-most after seven games.

Brady's astounding numbers have analysts putting him in the conversation for the Most Valuable Player award, alongside young quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs and Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens. Also, Brady's performance had staunch critic Max Kellerman apologizing for the "cliff theory" he made several years ago.

He declared that the veteran quarterback's performance is on the decline and his best years are behind him.

Gronk weighs in on Brady's outstanding season

But for a long-time teammate, tight end Rob Gronkowski, he's not surprised with Brady's outstanding performance this season. "It's not a surprise," Gronkowski said of Brady's performance, per a report by Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times.

Gronkowski played alongside Brady for nine seasons with the New England Patriots before returning and joining him in Tampa Bay this season. According to Gronkowski, he's been seeing Brady's work ethic firsthand and how he keeps his body in tip-top shape. "I see it happen, and it's just unbelievable," said Gronkowski, who has benefited from Brady's outstanding play in terms of his personal statistics.

After being limited to just two catches in four targets and 11 yards in his first two games with the Buccaneers, Gronkowski recorded 20 catches from 32 targets for 269 yards and two scores in his next five games. Gronkowski's resurgence has given the Buccaneers an additional threat on offense aside from their wide receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Scotty Miller. The Buccaneers will try to carry the momentum of their two-game winning streak when they take on the New York Giants on Sunday, where they are a 10-point favorite in betting odds, per USA Today.