Kevin Gorman: Tom Brady in Tampa Bay? Another 6th-round QB sees a good fit

With Tom Brady likely headed to Tampa Bay, I found the perfect person to relate to what it’s like to be a former sixth-round pick who played quarterback for the Buccaneers.

Where Brady was the 199th pick of the 2000 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots, Bruce Gradkowski was selected five spots higher by Tampa Bay in 2006.

Never mind that Brady had the same amount of passing yards last season (4,057) as Gradkowski had in his seven-year NFL career, or that Brady has 14 more Pro Bowl appearances, three more MVP awards and six more Super Bowl rings. This isn’t about a comparison but rather the interesting insight Gradkowski has in overseeing grading for Pro Football Focus and understanding what makes Tampa Bay attractive to Brady.

“It’s amazing what he has accomplished,” said Gradkowski, a Green Tree native who starred at Seton LaSalle and Toledo and spent two seasons as a Steelers backup and also two seasons in Tampa Bay. “I have a lot of respect for him. Now, I’m excited to see what can happen. I know the kind of competitor he is, and I want to see if he can bring it to a new organization.”

https://t.co/ft1fKpOKFo pic.twitter.com/wFC1fwfFYG

— Bruce Gradkowski (@bgradkowski5) March 17, 2020

Gradkowski, however, is still trying to wrap his brain around the unimaginable move by the 42-year-old Brady of choosing to play for anyone other than the Patriots after 20 NFL seasons.

“To picture Tom Brady in a new uniform was hard to believe,” Gradkowski said, “almost like Peyton Manning in Denver.”

But Manning played in two Super Bowls for the Broncos — becoming the first starting quarterback to lead two teams to a championship — so Brady has multiple means for motivation. He can separate the star quarterback from the genius coach by showing that he can win without Bill Belichick and do so without scandal. And he can prove that his talent isn’t dwindling when he’s surrounded by better playmakers at receiver.

The Bucs feature a pair of 1,000-yard receivers in Chris Godwin and Mike Evans, who combined for 17 touchdowns and both average more than 15 yards per catch and will give Brady downfield threats. With those two as his primary targets, Jameis Winston passed for 5,109 yards and 33 touchdowns last season for Tampa Bay despite throwing 30 interceptions. Brady has never thrown more than 14 interceptions in a season.

In New England, top target Julian Edelman had 100 catches for 1,117 yards and six touchdowns last season but averaged only 11.2 yards per catch. The Patriots’ next three receivers — Phillip Dorsett, Mohamed Sanu and Jakobi Meyers — combined for 81 catches for 943 yards and seven touchdowns. That makes Tampa a clear upgrade.

Imagine if the Bucs add four-time All-Pro Antonio Brown to their receiving corps.

“That’s the most important key,” Gradkowski said. “Brady was lacking that in New England. And Brady was frustrated that they weren’t making more moves to get more weapons around him.”

"The weapons he has, are you kidding me?!" @bgradkowski5 on Tom Brady to the Buccaneers pic.twitter.com/SfwOhHgB1p

— PFF (@PFF) March 17, 2020

Brady also should have the benefit of better protection. Gradkowski said PFF graded Tampa Bay’s line as the NFL’s seventh-best, three spots ahead of New England. When Brady was in rhythm and had a clean pocket, his PFF grade was 91.6. His passing grade was 77.4, below the likes of Ryan Tannehill and Russell Wilson — who were both in the 90s — but still respecable for an NFL quarterback. Against pressure, however – and Gradkowski clarified that it was pressure around him, not a blitz — Brady’s passing grade was only 49.7.

“If you can give him time and protection and weapons around him, he can still do it,” Gradkowski said. “It’s going to be a different dynamic than where he came from, but in a good way. I could see Brady thriving there.”

Gradkowski believes the biggest change for Brady will be in working with new coaches, going from playing for Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, who developed specific game plans for each opponent, to Tampa Bay’s throw-downfield philosophy by Bruce Arians and Byron Leftwich.

I imagine that Brady wants to show he can separate the star from the genius by winning without Belichick.

“The dynamic with Bruce Arians and Byron Leftwich, they’re good coaches but great communicators,” said Gradkowski, who hosts an NFL radio show on Sirius XM from 12-3 p.m. on Thursdays. “Belichick really praised him when he left, but I don’t think it would have come to this point if they really wanted him back. He’s getting up in age and, at some point, they have to move on and do what’s best for the club. I do think Brady didn’t feel as appreciated as he should have been.

“This relationship with Bruce Arians is going to be special, a breath of fresh air. Bruce Arians has coached a ton of QBs, both middle-tier type of guys and Hall of Famers like Ben (Roethlisberger). He knows how to deal with these types of quarterbacks. Brady has the right weapons around him. Brady will be able to work with them, take control of the locker room and be the leader he can be.”

Whether Brady can lead Tampa Bay to a Super Bowl remains to be seen, especially when the idea of seeing him in a new uniform is still hard to believe. Brady has more than the motivation of a quarterback who still carries a chip on his shoulder from being a sixth-round pick. Now that he has playmakers, it’s a dangerous combination.

The big question is whether Brady can carry Tampa Bay to a chip.