Last season, the Tampa Bay Bucs went 7-9 and missed the postseason for the 12th-straight season.
That looks to change after Tom Brady joined the franchise back in March after leaving the New England Patriots after 20 years of service. He now goes to a division that boast the Atlanta Falcons, Carolina Panthers, and New Orleans Saints.
Having a six-time Super Bowl winner doesn’t make things more exciting for rival teams who are trying to take over the division. That’s pretty much how Falcons superstar quarterback Matt Ryan feels when he spoke on how he felt about Brady joining him in the division.
According to Riley Gates of 247Sports.com:
“It didn’t get any easier in our division, for sure. They’re solid. Tampa’s defense was really tough. They add Tom, who’s such a consistent and great player. The division’s going to be a battle every week,” Ryan said. “…Our defense is going to have their work cut out for them, that’s for sure. It’s tough but I think any time you get those division games late in the year, it gives you a chance to either make up ground, or separate yourself. That’s what we’re going to need to do that time of the year.”
“I think it’s going to be important for us to get off to a fast start and make sure that at the beginning of the year, we’re right in the mix, so that when we get those division games late in the year, we’ve got a chance to separate or do what we need to do,” Ryan said. “In terms of what we need to do offensively, we’re obviously going to have to score some points. There’s some great offenses in our division. We’ve got to focus on that, going out week-in and week-out, finding ways to get touchdowns when we get in the red area.”
Ryan might not be steaming mad, he can’t be too pleased about the same QB costing him a ring in the Super Bowl joining a division where he has to face him twice a year for who knows how long.
