For the second time in franchise history, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are Super Bowl champions. Tom Brady and his club were able to convincingly defeat the defending champion in Kansas City Chiefs at Raymond James Stadium 31-9. While both offenses had some great games, it was the Bucs who woke up furious when Brady committed himself to Rob Gronkowski during twice the first half to build on the Tampa Bay lead. Penalties plagued Kansas City throughout the first half and two violations by DPI led to a pass to Antonio Brown to extend Bucs’ lead 21-6. In the second half, the Buccaneers continued to answer the Chiefs’ field goal kicks with attacks, while Leonard Fournette turned in a 27-yard touchdown to put a dagger right into the KC return.
Todd Bowles’ defense took advantage of the Chiefs who played with a temporary attacking line – especially in the packing positions – and Mahomes was able to put pressure on him continuously. That led to the Kansas City QB starting the game, and his first eight attempts to pick up third also included one of his two interceptions on the night. Meanwhile, Tom Brady completed the game and completed 21 of his 29 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns. He was also named Super Bowl MVP.
This is the Buccaneers’ first Super Bowl title since the 2002 season. As for Brady, he extends his NFL record to seven Super Bowl titles, further strengthening his place as the greatest quarterback on an NFL field. For a more in-depth look at the Buccaneers’ championship win, check out our takeaways below.
Why Tampa Bay Won
Offensively, both clubs were a bit slow outside the gate, but when the Buccaneers finally landed in a rhythm, they were able to find the end zone relatively easily. The connection between Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski was especially strong from the jump. The legendary duo quarter-final coupled on Tampa Bay’s first two touchdowns of the day. Overall, the determined end position was an important attacking area for the Bucs. As Mike Evans and Chris Godwin combined just three catches for 40 yards, the combination of Gronkowski and Cameron Brate was 93 yards and two touchdowns, while hitting nine of their ten targets. In the second half, the running game was an important weapon for Tampa Bay because they not only wanted to build on their lead, but also to kill the clock. As a club, the Bucs ran 145 yards on the ground with 4.4 yards per carry, which included a 27-yard attack by Leonard Fournette in the third quarter (more on that below).
On the defensive side of the ball, defense coordinator Todd Bowles put together a master class to attack a clear weakness in a conflicting attack. In this game, the Kansas offensive is considered an obligation, but it turns out to be much worse. Bowles was able to use minimal pass-rushers while still putting pressure on Patrick Mahomes, forcing him to run throughout the game and commit two interceptions. In the first half, Mahomes was just 67 yards out, largely due to pressure from Bowles’ top seven. Aside from the fact that he came to Mahomes, the defense of Tampa Bay eliminated Kansas City’s great playing ability with Tyreek Hill, who received a quiet 73 yards, almost completely.
Why Kansas City Lost
As noted above, the temporary offense was a fatal mistake for Kansas City. Mahomes was sacked three times and the Buccaneers were able to score eight quarter-hits, not even the amount of pressure they put on. Due to the lack of talent and experience in the tackle positions, Mahomes was constantly under siege and asked to make a balanced throw almost regularly, which turned out to be unsustainable.
Aside from the offensive line fights, the Chiefs were not as disciplined as they should have been, especially at the end of the first half. As the Buccaneers would try a 40-yard field goal after failing to convert a third-and-five effort from the KC 22-yard line, the Chiefs went outside giving Tampa Bay a first-round pick gave. In the next play, Brady contacted Gronkowski for a 17-year assault. In the next offensive possession for the Bucs, the Chiefs defense committed two penalty kicks that put the ball on the 1-yard line, where Brady could hit Antonio Brown for touchdown. These two penalty goals for the Kansas City defense yielded 14 points, which is not exactly a Super Bowl winning formula.
Pivot point
Even when this game started at halftime and the Buccaneers were 21-6 ahead, there was not too much that Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs counted out. However, as they ran out for the third quarter and Kansas City continued to manage field goals only, a loss began to become more inevitable.
After Harrison Butker kicked a 52-year-old player to give the Bucs a 21-9 lead, Tampa Bay did twice in the first half what it had already done: answer the KC field goals with touchdown. Tom Brady wasted no time in deflecting his offense 74 yards out on the field on subsequent possession, and Leonard Fournette was able to run in a 27-foot dagger hoping the Chiefs could make a comeback, from the cleared away. To make matters worse for Kansas City, Mahomes made a choice in his next possession, which turned Tampa into a three-point field goal.
Playing the game
Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski kicked things off for the Buccaneers offensively with this eight-pointer. Although this screenshot was not particularly dazzling, it did make history. With that score, Brady-Gronkowski duo Joe Montana and Jerry Rice (12) surpassed with 13 post-season knockouts, the most by any QB receiver combination. It just adds to the four Super Bowl titles they also share with each other.
What’s next
From here, the Buccaneers can party with the rest of the faithful Tampa Bay and enjoy their first title since the 2002 season.