The Tampa Bay Buccaneers ended an ugly three-game losing streak Sunday at Raymond James Stadium with a 16-13 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
The formation led by Tom Brady, who was eliminated five times in their last six duels, is experiencing particularly difficult times these days.
Offensively it was anything but a spectacular duel, but the crowd favorites only found a way to prevail late in the game. Almost two minutes before the end, 13:9 behind, the “Bucs” knocked on the door of the guests, but they defended themselves.
However, they failed to score a first down after that and returned the ball to Brady with less than a minute left in play. The linchpin of the Florida formation didn’t ask that much, he crossing the field to eventually find tight end Chris Otton’s hands in the end zone with less than 10 seconds of regulation time remaining.
The 45-year-old athlete attempted an impressive 58 stints, of which he completed 36, for 280 yards. His ground play was particularly ineffective at a meager 24 yards.
On the opposing side, center Matthew Stafford completed 13 of 27 stints for 165 yards and a touchdown pass.
Winners of the last Super Bowl, the Rams (3-5) will need to find a solution to their problems quickly if they are to defend their title, they who are now in danger of missing the playoffs.
The Seahawks continue to surprise
In Arizona, the Seattle Seahawks continued their surprise season with a 31-21 win over the Cardinals.
The Seahawks (6-3) lie first in the National’s West Division without much excitement, while many thought they were beaten preseason to the likes of the Rams, Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers, all in that division.
Running back Kenneth Walker had another impressive performance with 26 carries for 109 yards and two majors. He also added three catches for another 20 yards.
Quarterback Geno Smith continued to do exactly what was asked of him, completing 26 of 34 stints for 275 yards and two majors against an interception.