The third time is the charm, as the old saying goes, and that proved to be the case for Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday night as they defeated the New Orleans Saints for the first time this season and thus clinched a spot in the NFC Championship Game as a result. It was far from the prettiest of showings from either Brady or Drew Brees, with both of the future Hall of Famers struggling.
But Brady was by far the more efficient, throwing for 199 yards and three total touchdowns as he led his team in a game where they did trail a considerable amount of time. But as things wore on, the Buccaneers began to assert their dominance, with their ferocious defense coming up trumps by intercepting Brees three times. The 30-20 win for the Buccaneers, coming after 34-23 and 38-3 losses, was quite the bounce back, and it has set them up with a meeting with the Green Bay Packers next Sunday at Lambeau Field to determine who will be called NFC champs and head to the Super Bowl.
