Shortly before Tom Brady announced his decision to leave the New England Patriots, it was reported that the six-time Super Bowl champion was looking to have a say in the offensive game plane with any team he joined.
So, with the Buccaneers having emerged as the big winners in the Brady sweepstakes, the question is just how much input will Brady have on Bruce Arians’ offense, which ranked third overall last season, averaging 397.9 yards per game? The fact the Bucs traded for tight end Rob Gronkowski seems to indicate that Arians is willing to incorporate tight ends more into the passing game, rather than just use them as blockers.
Bucs QB coach Clyde Christensen spoke to Bob Kravitz of The Athletic recently about Brady joining the Buccaneers, and addressed the question about whose offense we’ll see on the field in 2020.
Per Christensen:
“I think what we’ll see here (in Tampa) is Bruce’s offense with a Brady influence. Bruce wants to keep the offense the same. We did some good things last year. Tom has been terrific as far as saying, ‘Just tell me what you want to do.’ And honestly, there’s a lot of carry-over from all these offenses; it’s just what you call certain things. We’re looking forward to seeing how he can influence the offense. He’ll make it better. That’s what the great ones do. He’ll have some great ideas, so we’re anxious to get his take on things.”
It sounds like Brady and Arians are on the same page so far, with neither one trying to assert themselves over the other. Brady will happily take over Arians’ pass-happy offense that features Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
Again, we’ll likely see more of Brady’s influence in the utilization of tight ends and running backs in the passing game. Keep in mind the Bucs drafted Vanderbilt running back Ke’Shawn Vaughn in the third round of last month’s draft because they loved his pass-catching potential.
The Brady-Arians relationship can create something special this season. All they need now is to get on the field together.
[lawrence-related id=32708,32700,32693,32686]