It was Brady who threw the game’s only interception, ending the Buccaneers’ possession near the end of the first half, and it was Brady who lost his cool under pressure. In a disastrous first half, he was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for the first time in his career after complaining to the officials about being hit in the face by Rams linebacker Von Miller in the second quarter.
The flag came in the midst of Brady and the Buccaneers’ most productive drive of the game to that point. Brady had converted on second-and-17 from the Rams’ 50-yard line, finding Leonard Fournette for a 19-yard gain, but the drive stalled three plays later. Ryan Succop missed the 48-yard field goal attempt, leaving the score at 17-3. The Rams kicked a field goal and went into halftime up 20-3.
In an attempt to defend last year’s championship win, Tampa Bay returned all 22 of its starters from last season’s team, a first in the salary cap era. The Buccaneers re-signed Chris Godwin, one of the off-season’s biggest free agent targets, and also brought back Antonio Brown, whom Brady had lobbied for the team to sign last season.
Neither player was available to Brady in Sunday’s game, however, as Godwin tore an anterior cruciate ligament during the regular season and Brown was released by the team in December. Another of the team’s high-profile adds, defensive back Richard Sherman, was placed on injured reserve with an Achilles injury.
Those losses, coupled with the fact that the Buccaneers were without their All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs, manifested in protection issues in the passing game and offensive inefficiency. Tampa Bay converted just three of 14 third downs.
But Brady has to this point in his career been the ultimate postseason advantage and, in the second half, it looked like the 44-year-old quarterback known for his late-game heroics could lead yet another dramatic postseason comeback.
The Rams extended their lead to 27-3 on Stafford’s 1-yard touchdown run at the beginning of the third quarter, and Tampa Bay struggled to respond with a field goal. But Kupp fumbled the first pass on the next possession, giving the Buccaneers new life and a short field.