The Tampa Bay Buccaneers recently won their first Super Bowl title, since 2002, and most of the players credited the leadership of quarterback Tom Brady for their success in his first year with the team. Last offseason, the Buccaneers brought the 43-year-old Brady to Tampa Bay by signing him to a two-year deal worth $50 million, hoping that his experience and leadership will rub off on the younger players. Brady did just that as he led the Buccaneers to the Super Bowl title following a 31-9 triumph over the Kansas City Chiefs. For Brady, being looked up to as a leader does not come automatically, especially when you are going into a new environment, per Ben Anderson of KSL Sports.

“You go in there and you earn the trust and respect of the group of people that you’re doing the work with,” said Brady during his talk with Utah Jazz owner Ryan Smith during the Qualtrics “WorkDifferent” series as reported by Anderson.

The veteran quarterback added that that the first thing that anyone should avoid is to show that you know it all and you got all the answers. “They’re only going to trust you and respect you if they see you do the work first,” added Brady, who began his NFL career as a 199th overall pick of the New England Patriots in the 2000 NFL Draft. According to Brady, his confidence in himself has helped fuel him to success in the NFL as he won seven Super Bowl titles in his 21-year career, including six Lombardi trophies during his two-decade stint with the Patriots.

Earlier, Brady’s teammate, linebacker Lavonte David, said the quarterback raised the confidence level of his teammates when he arrived in Tampa Bay.

Bucs officially sign Bernard

The Buccaneers officially signed running back Giovani Bernard to a one-year deal, the team announced on Wednesday, per Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com and Luke Easterling of USA Today.

Bernard played his first eight NFL seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, where he ran for 416 yards and three touchdowns on 124 carries last season. Known as a pass-catching back, Bernard also caught 47 passes for 355 and three touchdowns last season for the Bengals. It was reported that Brady and head coach Bruce Arian personally recruited Bernard after he was released by the Bengals last week.

During an interview, Bernard said joining Brady and the Buccaneers as they go for back-to-back Super Bowl titles was a no-brainer.

Bernard a close friend of James White

Bernard said he’s a close friend of Patriots running back James White, who was earlier reported to be interested in joining the Buccaneers but decided to stay in New England, as they went to high school together in Florida. "White had only great things to say about Tom and his work ethic & everybody knows that, so it was just a no-brainer," Giovani said of his decision to sign with the Buccaneers. Like White, Bernard is known for his ability to become another target for a quarterback. While the Buccaneers’ backfield is loaded with Ronald Jones and Leonard Fournette, they are not known to be pass catchers. The arrival of Bernard would give Brady another target on offense.
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