TAMPA — Though Tom Brady’s consistent ability to engineer waning-moment comebacks borders on the robotic, the ensuing celebrations don’t.
Twenty-three years into his unparalleled career, the euphoria remains spontaneous and surreal.
“Some games, would I rather win by three touchdowns? Absolutely,” Brady said Thursday, three days after leading a pair of touchdown drives in the last five minutes to help the Bucs eke out a 17-16 win against the Saints. “But if we’re not going to win by three touchdowns, I mean, that’s a great way to win a game, because I’ll remember that game for the rest of my life.”
The triumph was Brady’s 44th fourth-quarter comeback, passing Peyton Manning for most in NFL history. It also was the largest regular-season fourth-quarter comeback of his career, according to ESPN.
When the Bucs trailed by 13 points with 5:34 remaining, they had a 0.7% percent chance of winning, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
Brady went 14-for-19 for 118 yards and two touchdowns on the last two drives, connecting with seven different receivers. Eight seconds remained when he took the snap for his decisive 6-yard scoring pass to Rachaad White.
“And for all the guys on the team that experience it, all the coaches, that was a great celebration in the locker room,” Brady said.
“We really enjoyed it. You realize, look, you could be down and you could look bad. You just keep fighting your tail off. It’s never over, and you’ve just got to keep finding a way.”
Contact Joey Knight at jknight@tampabay.com. Follow @TBTimes_Bulls.
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