Brock Purdy, 49ers spoil Tom Brady’s homecoming
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — As homecomings go, Tom Brady was happy to be back playing for just the second time in his NFL career not far from where he grew up in San Mateo, California.
He purchased about 100 tickets for family and friends, and most decided to sit in the nosebleed section of Levi’s Stadium so they could be together.
There was plenty of time for hugs and handshakes in the days leading up to Sunday’s game against the 49ers.
But then the game began, and all the banners and balloons couldn’t hide the fact the team Brady is playing for doesn’t give you much to cheer about.
The Bucs suffered their worst defeat of the season, falling 35-7 to a 49ers squad with rookie Brock Purdy making his first NFL start at quarterback.
Purdy, the final player selected in the 2022 NFL draft out of Iowa State, seems to be stealing a page from Brady’s biography. He threw two touchdown passes and ran for another score as the 49ers built a 28-0 halftime lead.
The 22-year-old, who was born the year before Brady was drafted in the sixth round by the Patriots in 2000, didn’t have to do much as the 49ers rushed for 209 yards and three touchdowns (one by Purdy). Christian McCaffrey led the way with 119 yards and a score on only 14 carries.
“I loved having everyone here, and it was nice for my family to come close, and I think they had a lot of people from the neighborhood came,” Brady said. “It’s not going to change the outcome of the game, unfortunately, because you’ve got a cheering section.
“But it was sweet for everyone to come and support me, support our team. ... I wish we could’ve done a much better job. It was a frustrating day for all of us, and we’ve got to go back and regroup.”
The game was so out of reach that Purdy, who went 16-of-21 passing for 185 yards with two touchdowns, only attempted three passes after halftime.
The Bucs had a touchdown taken off the board for the second time in as many weeks when an apparent game-tying 68-yard touchdown pass to Mike Evans in the first quarter was erased due to a holding call on left tackle Donovan Smith.
Remarkably, the Bucs still hold a one-game lead in the NFC South at 6-7 heading into next week’s game against the Bengals.
But as tight end Cameron Brate said, the Bucs don’t resemble a first-place team.
“It’s hard to, like, grasp that really because of the way we’re playing,” he said. “We don’t feel like we’re playing like a first-place team, and we’ve got to figure it out. Offense, defense, special teams, kind of got killed in all three phases (Sunday).”
Coach Todd Bowles told his players afterward they have four games left to figure out what kind of team they want to be.
“We can’t be one set of Bucs and another set of Bucs. It’s got to mean something,” Bowles said. “We’ve got a one-game lead with four games to go. You either want it or you don’t. You can’t care more than anybody else. As a coach, you don’t go on the field, (but) we definitely got out-coached, so we’re not excusing this at all. We got outplayed, as well, so as a team, as a group, we’ve got to buckle down and we’ve got to decide what our fate is the next few weeks.”
The Bucs had three turnovers, including a pair of interceptions by Brady, who entered the game with only three in 524 attempts.
After falling behind so quickly, the Bucs again were forced to abandon the running game. Brady attempted 55 passes, completing 34 for 253 yards. His only touchdown pass was a fluke. It bounced off receiver Chris Godwin and into the hands of Russell Gage, who fell across the goal line. Brady also missed Evans once in the end zone.
“At the end of the day, I made a terrible throw,” Brady said. “I’ve got to make it.’’
Brady also seemed resigned to the fact that the Bucs just aren’t very good, especially on offense.
“I think all year, we never get off to fast starts,” he said. “We’re behind, and it turns into a pass-a-thon, and it’s hard to play football like that. (San Francisco) is a good football team. ... They played well (Sunday). Brock played really well. They made a bunch of plays — offense, defense and special teams. We didn’t make many offensively, we didn’t make many defensively. We didn’t make many on special teams. You win because you make plays and keep them from making plays.”
Bowles indicated it’s too late to make changes to the coaching staff, though he said the Bucs continue to try to tweak things on offense.
He wasn’t exactly sentimental about Brady’s homecoming being ruined by the three turnovers and eight penalties for 62 yards.
“I feel bad about the team. We don’t play the game for one guy,” Bowles said. “Regardless of who it is, we don’t play or coach it for one guy. We play as a team. We’ve got to block for him. We’ve got to play defense for him. He’s got to throw the ball for us. It’s a team effort when we win, it’s a team effort when we lose. And (Sunday), it was a team effort.”
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