Tom Brady, Mike Evans Connect for 3 TDs as Buccaneers Rout Justin Fields, Bears

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers weren't about to lose to the Chicago Bears again.

Though the Buccaneers lost to the Bears last season before winning the Super Bowl, they enacted some revenge Sunday with a 38-3 victory at Raymond James Stadium. Tom Brady and Mike Evans led the way for Tampa Bay, which improved to 6-1 and has now won four in a row.

Chicago's offense struggled throughout the game, and it dropped to 3-4 with its second straight loss.

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Notable Player Stats

• Tom Brady, QB, TB: 20-of-36 for 211 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs
• Mike Evans, WR, TB: 6 catches for 76 yards, 3 TDs
• Chris Godwin, WR, TB: 8 catches for 111 yards, 1 TD
• Leonard Fournette, RB, TB: 15 carries for 81 yards, 1 TD; 2 catches for 9 yards
• Justin Fields, QB, CHI: 22-of-32 for 184 yards, 0 TDs, 3 INTs; 8 carries for 38 yards
• Khalil Herbert, RB, CHI: 18 carries for 100 yards; 5 catches for 33 yards

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Tom Brady Continues His Greatness, Throws 600th TD 

Both teams were missing key players with Antonio Brown, Rob Gronkowski and Lavonte David among those sidelined for Tampa Bay and Akiem Hicks and Robert Quinn out for Chicago's pass rush.

The absence of Hicks and Quinn would be a problem against any team, let alone one with Brady slinging the ball around. That was apparent right away when the all-time great threw touchdowns to Chris Godwin and Evans in the first quarter, the second of which was his 600th career touchdown strike.

Brady's onslaught continued with two more touchdown strikes to Evans in the second quarter with one coming on the play after he connected with the three-time Pro Bowler on a deep ball.

It's a testament to Brady's greatness that he was somewhat inconsistent by his elevated standards and threw six straight incompletions at one point. The CBS broadcast revealed that tied a career-high, but he still had his team up 35-3 at intermission against a defense that has impressed at times this season. 

The second half was a formality for everyone but fantasy football players as Tampa Bay used the clock and continued its dominance. It grew so frustrating for Chicago that Bilal Nichols was ejected for throwing a punch.

While the Bears are far from Super Bowl contenders, they also entered play 3-3 with an impressive win over the Cincinnati Bengals. The pass-rush has been their strength, but Brady and the Buccaneers had no trouble at any point and sent a message to the rest of the NFC.

They are still the team to beat.

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Justin Fields Gets No Help and Struggles in Loss

Frankly, wins aren't the most important thing for a middling Bears team this season. Chicago has been missing a true franchise quarterback for generations, and the hope in the Windy City is Justin Fields can eventually change that reality.

Unfortunately for the visitors, some rookies are put into position to succeed and others are not.

Fields fell into the latter category with terrible protection, multiple dropped passes and a game that went awry in the first quarter. The result was three strip sacks in the first half alone as he faced consistent pressure, although he also made things worse with an interception to Dee Delaney on a poor decision while moving out of the pocket.

The gap between Chicago and a legitimate contender like Tampa Bay was crystal clear from the start, and it was easy for Bears fans to be concerned about Fields' health and overall development while he was under duress seemingly every time he dropped back to throw when the game was still somewhat hanging in the balance.

It got worse in the second half when Darnell Mooney let another pass that was high, but catchable, bounce off his hands. The second one ended up in Jordan Whitehead's hands for Fields' second interception and might have left the quarterback reminiscing about throwing to Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson when he was at Ohio State.

Fields has a ways to go before he becomes a game-changing NFL quarterback, and Sunday was a step in the wrong direction. But he also didn't get any help from his teammates in the blowout loss.

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What's Next?

Both teams stay in the NFC for the next contest when the Bears host the San Francisco 49ers and the Buccaneers travel to face the New Orleans Saints.