After committing to address the team’s slow start, Tampa Bay Buccaneers veteran quarterback Tom Brady got off to an amazing start in their game against the Detroit Lions on Saturday at Ford Field. On their first drive, the 43-year-old Brady led a six-play, an 82-yard attack that he capped with a 33-yard touchdown strike to tight end Rob Gronkowski to put the Buccaneers on the board. On their second drive of the quarter, Brady engineered a four-play, an 80-yard attack that he ended with a 27-yard scoring strike to Mike Evans.

Brady continued to wax hot in the second period as he led the Buccaneers to three more scoring drives, including a 7-play, 91-yard drive that he ended with a seven-yard touchdown pass to Chris Godwin.

Brady also connected with Antonio Brown for a 12-yard touchdown pass that capped a 9-play, 66-yard attack. After giving the Buccaneers a commanding 34-0 lead at the break, Brady was pulled out of the game, completing 22 of 27 passes for 348 yards and four touchdown passes. Brady’s amazing first-half performance caught the eye of Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James, who posted several tweets about the Bucs-Lions showdown.

Brady eclipses Winston’s record

With four touchdown passes in just 30 minutes of play, Brady surpassed Jame is Winston’s record for most touchdown passes in a season.

Last season, Winston had 33 touchdown passes, but he also had 30 interceptions as the Buccaneers finished with a 7-9 record. Brady has been a tremendous upgrade for the Buccaneers since they signed him to a two-year deal worth $50 million in the offseason. Despite his age, the 43-year-old Brady has proven that he still got what it takes to play against the young guns in the NFL.

Brady also reaches career milestone

When he took his first snap on Saturday, Brady also made history by becoming the third non-specialist to play 300 regular-season games in the NFL. Brady now joins Jerry Rice (303) and Brett Favre (302) as the only non-specialists to reach the milestone, per Robbie Weinstein of 24/7 Sports.

Quarterback George Blanda played 340 regular-season games in his career, but he also played a placekicker in his 26 seasons in the NFL. If Brady continues playing next season, he can surpass Rice and Favre on the list. Brady’s career milestone also came at the right time as he accomplished it while playing in the city and against the team where he made his first regular-season appearance when he was still with the New England Patriots. With the Patriots trailing 34-9, Brady was asked to finish the game for starter Drew Bledsoe against the Lions at Pontiac Silverdome. Saturday also marked Brady’s 298th career start, tying the mark set by Favre. Brady can set a new mark when the Buccaneers take on the Atlanta Falcons anew at home in their regular-season finale.
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