In their first year together with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, quarterback Tom Brady and head coach Bruce Arians captured the team’s first Super Bowl win since 2002 following a masterful 31-9 win over the then-defending champion Kansas City Chiefs. For Jeff Kerr of CBS Sports, the feat was enough to put the tandem of Brady and Arians as the No. 1 quarterback-head coach partnership in the NFL, overtaking quarterback Patrick Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid of the Chiefs.
With his seventh Super Bowl ring, the 43-year-old Brady became the second quarterback in NFL history to win a Lombardi trophy with two different teams, behind Peyton Manning, who won it with the Indianapolis Colts and the Denver Broncos.
Brady led the New England Patriots to six Super Bowl titles in 20 seasons before he signed a two-year deal worth $50 million with the Buccaneers last offseason. Brady also owns the distinction of being the first player in NFL history to win a title in three different decades (2000s, 2010s, 2020s) and the first signal-caller to win a Super Bowl title in each conference.
Brady, Arians helped each other
According to Kerr, Arians was instrumental in Brady’s success with the Buccaneers after the quarterback set a new record with 43 touchdown passes with a new team with 43. Brady also finished the regular season with 4,633 yards and 40 touchdowns on 401 completions. As for Brady, he helped Arians became the oldest head coach to win a Super Bowl at 68 years and 127 days as the Buccaneers defeated three former Super Bowl MVPs in Drew Brees of the New Orleans Saints, Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers and Patrick Mahomes in the playoffs to win the Super Bowl title in their homefield, the first team to do so in the history of the NFL.
Kerr was amazed at what Brady and Arians accomplished in their first year together, considering there was no preseason and the implementation of a restricted training camp. “The odds were stacked against the Buccaneers to win a Super Bowl in Year One with Brady and Arians, and they won the title anyway. Imagine what Year Two could bring for this duo,” Kerr said.
With all of their 22 starters back, the Buccaneers are heavily favored to repeat as Super Bowl champions in the upcoming season.
Mahomes and Reid came in second on Kerr’s list, followed by Aaron Rodgers/Matt LaFleur of the Green Bay Packers, Russell Wilson/Pete Carroll of the Seattle Seahawks, Lamar Jackson/John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens, Josh Allen/Sean McDermott of the Buffalo Bills, Ryan Tannehill/Mike Vrabel of the Tennessee Titans, Ben Roethlisberger/Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Baker Mayfield/Kevin Stefenski of the Cleveland Browns and Jimmy Garoppolo/Kyle Shanahan of the San Francisco 49ers.
No long-term deal for Godwin yet
Wide receiver Chris Godwin is among the starters who will return for the Buccaneers next season. Godwin, the No. 2 target for Brady, remained with the Buccaneers after the team placed the franchise tag on him. While the Buccaneers and Godwin both expressed their intention to agree on a long-term deal, the talks haven’t gotten far, according to Luke Easterling of USA Today, per a report by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero. Pelissero said that “nothing is imminent” on a long-term deal between Godwin and the Buccaneers. However, the Buccaneers and Godwin could agree on a long-term contract in-season.
