Tom Brady and the Buccaneers secured a 21-16 win over the Seattle Seahawks in Munich, Germany on Sunday.
On a trick play attempt, running back Leonard Fournette threw a pass intended for Brady that was intercepted.
After the game, Brady said he had tried to call off the play before the snap.
Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers won their second straight game on Sunday, trekking all the way to Munich, Germany, to defeat the Seattle Seahawks 21-16.
While the Buccaneers were able to hold on for a relatively comfortable win, the game was not without its stumbles, specifically, one bad stumble on an attempted trick play from Brady.
Leading 14-3 in the third quarter, Brady and the Buccaneers decided to give the fans in Germany a show.
Facing first-and-10 on the cusp of the red zone, Brady lined up to the left side of the snap as a wide receiver, with running back Leonard Fournette set to take a direct shotgun snap from the center.
It looked as though the Buccaneers were just trying a bit of wildcat offense, but after fake-tucking the ball for a run, Fournette popped back up and lobbed a ball in Brady’s direction.
Things fell apart fast.
Brady slipped on the turf, leaving Seahawks cornerback Tariq Woolen as the only man with a play on the ball. He made the catch, giving Fournette the first interception of his career.
Adding a bit of insult to injury, Brady got called for tripping on the play, gifting the Seahawks an extra 10 yards of field position.
While the play ended in hilarious fashion, it’s not entirely surprising the Buccaneers tried for it, given how the Seahawks had defended Brady earlier in the game.
On a previous wildcat play, Seattle left Brady completely uncovered when he shifted into a decoy position so that Fournette could take the direct snap.
On that play, Fournette rushed for a short gain, but it appears that the Buccaneers thought they might be able to pull a fast one on the Seahawks if they dialed up a similar look.
“I was hoping to be wide open, and I probably was on the first one,” Brady said after the game. “I think they were pretty clued in on the second one, and they said ‘cover him, cover him,’ and I was on the sideline and tried to yell, ‘Lenny, no!’
“But it was too late, and the ball went up in the air and I was trying to just — whatever, jump up and knock it down, but I ended up falling on my face.”
“That would have been pretty fun,” Brady concluded of the play. “I think I’ve had a few catches. Never had a touchdown, though.”
Thankfully for Brady, it all worked out in the end. On the very next drive, Brady connected with wide receiver Chris Godwin for a touchdown strike that put the Buccaneers up 21-3, giving them enough breathing room to hold on for the win.
A report this week indicated that Buccaneers coaches aren’t happy with running back Leonard Fournette‘s conditioning heading into the 2022 season.
Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times reported that Bucs coaches were unhappy that Fournette “was about a donut shy of 260” pounds when he reported to mandatory minicamp earlier this year. Fournette did not take part in the voluntary portion of the team’s offseason work.
Fournette appeared to respond to that report and those who have been throwing barbs his way on social media in a tweet of his own on Tuesday.
“They wouldn’t have the same energy in your face so why entertain them . . . See y’all September 11,” Fournette wrote.
That’s the date of the first Buccaneers game of the season, but open practices in training camp will provide plenty of opportunities to see if Fournette looks overweight or in need of extra rest because he isn’t in the kind of shape he needs to be to play an NFL game. If either is the case, his fitness and its impact on his role will be a major talking point in Tampa.
Buccaneers running back Leonard Fournette has reportedly drawn the ire of the team’s coaching staff by letting himself get out of shape this offseason.
Longtime Buccaneers beat writer Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times said on his podcast that Fournette, who is listed at 228 pounds, actually weighs about 30 pounds more than that.
“The last time we saw Leonard Fournette he was about a donut shy of 260,” Stroud said. “He certainly didn’t look like a guy who could play every down.”
Fournette decided not to participate in voluntary Organized Team Activities, and when he showed up at mandatory minicamp, the coaches felt he has a long way to go to get into playing shape.
“Coaches were not happy, and that’s an understatement, when he didn’t participate in the OTAs, but then he shows up at the mandatory minicamp weighing damn near 260,” Stroud said. “And that’s not a good sign for a guy that you just spent a three-year contract on.”
The Buccaneers spent a third-round draft pick on running back Rachaad White, and they have running backs Ke’Shawn Vaughn, Giovani Bernard and Kenjon Barner on the depth chart as well. All of those backups may need to get themselves ready for the possibility that Fournette is going to need more breathers than usual.
TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday activated starting running back Leonard Fournette from injured reserve, making him eligible to play in Sunday’s divisional playoff against the Los Angeles Rams.
To make room on the roster, the Bucs waived running back Le’Veon Bell.
Fournette, who suffered a hamstring strain in Week 15, began his 21-day practice window last week to return from IR. While initially there was confidence that Fournette could return for last week’s wild-card game, he felt discomfort when he attempted to reach top speed and wasn’t activated, coach Bruce Arians said.
“He looks fine. He looks good,” Arians said Friday. “He didn’t have the setback he had last week, so we’ll wait and see.”
Fournette earned the nickname “Playoff Lenny” and later “Lombardi Lenny” last postseason, when he had a league-high 448 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns despite not being the starter during the regular season.
It earned him a starting role this year, and he rushed for 812 yards and eight touchdowns in Weeks 1-15 — 10th-most in the league during that span. His 1,266 yards from scrimmage during that span also ranked 10th in the league for any position and sixth among running backs.
“Other guys really stepped up when he was out, but obviously we really love having Lenny in there,” quarterback Tom Brady said this week. “He did a great job in the biggest moments last year. I think everyone believes in him, trusts in him and knows he can really come through for us.”
After Fournette was placed on IR in Week 16, Bell signed with the Bucs — admitting at the time that he thought he might be done with football and was focusing on his boxing career.
Bell tallied 49 scrimmage yards on 12 touches, including a touchdown catch in Week 18 against Carolina.
Fournette’s presence could certainly help offset the potential losses of All-Pro right tackle Tristan Wirfs and Pro Bowl center Ryan Jensen, who are both game-time decisions with ankle injuries, and keep the Rams’ Aaron Donald and Von Miller from teeing off against Brady.
On Friday, the Bucs ruled out wide receiver Breshad Perriman, who started last week against the Eagles but is suffering from hip and abdominal injuries, and running back Ronald Jones, who has been dealing with an ankle injury since Week 17.
The late-season shuffling of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ roster continued on Thursday as the team placed four more players on reserve lists.
Inside linebacker Lavonte David and running back Leonard Fournette were put on injured reserve, meaning they must miss at least three games before being eligible to return to the active roster. There are three games left in the regular season but David and/or Fournette could make it back for the playoffs if the Buccaneers clinch a spot. David is dealing with a foot ailment and Fournette with a hamstring strain, both injuries suffered in last Sunday’s loss to the Saints.
The Buccaneers also placed wide receiver Jaelon Darden and defensive lineman Rakeem Nunez-Roches on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Under the recently-revised NFL COVID protocols, players who test positive and are fully vaccinated can return to the team at any time if they are asymptomatic and generate two negative COVID tests 24 hours apart. Given the timing of the diagnoses for Darden and Nunez-Roches, however, it is not likely they will be cleared to play by Sunday.
The Bucs’ series of roster moves in Week 16 come in the aftermath of a Week 15 game in New Orleans in which the team lost a long list of key players to injuries. Wide receiver Chris Godwin and defensive lineman Patrick O’Connor both suffered knee injuries in the game and have been placed on injured reserve; Godwin’s injury has already been revealed to be season-ending. In addition, wide receiver Mike Evans is not practicing this week after sustaining a hamstring injury on Sunday, though he has not been placed on injured reserve.
The timing of the moves of David and Fournette to injured reserve could actually be interpreted as a positive development, at least in part. Head Coach Bruce Arians said earlier in the week that it hadn’t been determined yet how much time those two would miss, which would impact when and if they went on injured reserve. By making the move now, the Bucs are ensuring that David and Fournette will be eligible for the first round of the playoffs, should they secure a spot. Had the Buccaneers waited a week or more to put those two on I.R. it would have indicated that they were expected to be out longer into the month of January.
The Buccaneers suffered multiple losses in their shutout defeat at the hands of the Saints on Sunday, with running back Leonard Fournette and wide receivers Chris Godwin and Mike Evans all exiting with injuries. Now, they’ve reinforced at least one of those positions, signing veteran running back Le’Veon Bell on Tuesday, according to NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero.
Bell, who appeared in five games for the Ravens earlier this year, will join Tampa Bay ahead of its Week 16 game against the Panthers, pending a physical. Fournette, who has been productive as the team’s clear-cut No. 1 this year, is expected back for the playoffs but is set to miss each of the Bucs’ final three regular-season games with a hamstring issue, per ESPN. With backup Giovani Bernard already on injured reserve with a hip ailment, Bell provides insurance behind former starter Ronald Jones II.
Widely considered one of the top backs in the game at the height of his Steelers career (2013-2018), the 29-year-old Bell has found far more mixed results since leaving Pittsburgh. The former Pro Bowler struggled as a starter in one and a half seasons with the Jets before finishing 2020 as rotational relief with the Chiefs. After spending the entire offseason on the free agent market, Bell signed with the Ravens in September after injuries decimated Baltimore’s backfield, totaling just 83 yards on 31 carries behind fellow veterans Devonta Freeman and Latavius Murray.
Bell figures to slot in as the Buccaneers’ No. 3 back as early as Week 16, behind Jones and second-year back Ke’Shawn Vaughn.