Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady is set to have yet another crucial test in the second half of the season, as he will meet the San Francisco 49ers’ formidable defense in Week 14. Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana will be closely watching this matchup, and he will have an eye on how the 49ers’ stout defense ends up performing against Brady.
The 49ers enter their upcoming showdown against the Brady-led Buccaneers ranking at first in the NFL this season in both points per game allowed (15.8) and yards per game allowed (283.9). They have also tallied 36 sacks in 12 games played, with 14.5 of them coming from defensive end Nick Bosa.
Montana has watched a multitude of Brady’s games over the years, and as he recently touched on during the NFL Network’s “NFL Total Access” program, he believes that there is only one way to “stop” the seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback.
“The one thing about the 49er defense is they can get pressure, and I think that's the only way you can stop Tom,” Montana said.
“You've got to get pressure on him and put pressure on him fast. … I don't care how old he is, you let him sit in the pocket and throw, he's going to make plays just like that. So the biggest thing that you can do is you got to get somebody in his face quick.”
Brady has made it a career of negating pressure from opponents with quick passes, which 49ers defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans has stressed quite a bit to his team ahead of Week 14.
“Yeah, with Brady, you know the ball is coming out quick, so guys have to be disciplined in coverage,” Ryans said during a press conference on Thursday.
“Be tight on all the running backs, they catch a lot of balls from Brady, so we have to be tighter on the running backs, tighter on the checkdowns, because we know the ball is coming out very quick and you have to understand with pressure you’re not going to get there.”
Tampa Bay is aiming to pick up a statement road win over the 49ers to string together a much-needed winning streak at this stage in the season.
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