The playoffs tend to be Tom Brady’s time to shine, but he certainly has some skeptics this go around.
The New England Patriots are set to take on the Los Angeles Chargers in the AFC Divisional Round on Sunday. It hasn’t been the sharpest year for Brady or the rest of the Patriots, but by no means have they been a bad group.
In a piece for NFL.com, writer Gregg Rosenthal ranked each remaining playoff quarterback by “trustworthiness.” Brady landed in fourth place, behind the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, Indianapolis Colts’ Andrew Luck and New Orleans Saints’ Drew Brees.
Here’s what Rosenthal wrote about Brady.
“Not since early in Brady’s career has he felt so game-plan dependent. If Josh McDaniels and Brady are able to win the mental battle against Gus Bradley’s defense before the snap, Brady still has the arm and the accuracy to pick apart the Chargers on Sunday. The larger question is what happens if the Chargers‘ pass rush consistently wins, like it did during their 2017 matchup. In that game, Brady handled the pressure beautifully during a typically surgical performance on his way to an MVP. While those games have come far less often in 2018, it would be on brand for Brady to make some playoff magic just when the football cognoscenti begins to doubt him again. Like old times.”
While there certainly is reason to be skeptical about Brady (and it’s not a lifetime achievement ranking), at a certain point playoff experience probably should take over. Either way, you can make a pretty good argument for any of the quarterbacks in the top four, although we’re sure Patriots fans would take Brady over anyone else.
