Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers can't do anything to improve their No. 4 seed in the upcoming NFL playoffs. Regardless of what happens in their Week 18 game against the Atlanta Falcons on the road, the Buccaneers will stay fourth in the NFC.
But don't tell Tom Brady that it's a perfect excuse for him to rest and sit out the Falcons game because, in his eyes, it is an opportunity for the Buccaneers to get better, via his SiriusXM podcast (h/t Greg Auman of FOX Sports).
“I think when you say it's meaningless, I understand the context, but I don't think anything's meaningless. And everything's in preparation for what's ahead. I think that you could look at, okay, it's gonna matter per standing, but it matters because you're a professional. It matters because it's a performance. It matters because it's your job. It matters because it's football season and we're paid to be football players and, you know, it's all these decisions. I'm not the head coach, so I don't make those decisions, and obviously, whatever he wants to do I support it, but, you know, I love going out there and playing. I love trying to get better., We're 8-8. We don't have all our problems solved. I mean, I look at it like, man, we gotta use every opportunity, every day of practice to get better.”
The Buccaneers won the NFC South division crown outright in Week 17 when they defeated the Carolina Panthers at home, 30-24, but given the overall state of the team, Brady's take sounded justified. It's been an up-and-down season for the Buccaneers, and it's hard to say whether they could go on a deep run in the postseason. What's certain is that they would rather enter the playoffs coming off a win versus the Falcons.