Bucs' Tom Brady Says He Doesn't Get Favorable Roughing the Passer Calls from Refs
January 19, 2022
Tom Brady might be the greatest quarterback of all time, but that isn't enough for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers star to get preferential treatment from referees.
On the most recent episode of his Let's Go! podcast, Brady responded to a stat from co-host Jim Gray about how he had only gotten one roughing the passer call this season before the playoffs:
Tom Brady @TomBrady.<a href="https://twitter.com/PFF?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PFF</a> can you pull this stat? Unless it doesn’t favor me in which case forget this ever happened…<br><br>“Let’s Go!” is out now: <a href="https://t.co/yiKIK5ImOP">https://t.co/yiKIK5ImOP</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/JimGrayOfficial?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JimGrayOfficial</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/SIRIUSXM?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SIRIUSXM</a> <a href="https://t.co/pa41UVCUGe">pic.twitter.com/pa41UVCUGe</a>
Pro Football Focus responded to the request:
Brady did, however, concede that officials "probably let me get away with a lot of unsportsmanlike conducts, talking smack to the other team and talking smack to the refs."
Across almost any sport, fans will believe the biggest names benefit from favorable rulings.
With Brady, citing the number of times he was the victim of roughing the passer may not be the right tact to dispel that notion.
The 44-year-old isn't much of a runner, with 1,124 rushing yards over 22 seasons. According to Scott Smith of the Bucs' official site, Brady's average time to throw was also the second-fastest (2.50 seconds) in the NFL. Add the two together and you get a quarterback who isn't opening himself up to a lot of contact.
That's one reason the Hall of Famer continues to be so effective so deep into his career.
