Tom Brady makes NFL history on winning return to New England

LOS ANGELES -- Tom Brady became the NFL's all-time leading passer and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers squeezed past the Patriots 19-17 as New England's favorite son made an emotional return to Foxborough on Sunday night.

Brady was facing his former team for the first time after two decades of dominance in New England which resulted in six Super Bowl championships.

"I am not tearing up," the 44-year-old quarterback said. "I already went through all that. It was my home for 20 years. I have the best memories."

Playing in a steady rain, Brady became the NFL's all-time leader in passing yards after completing a 28-yard throw to teammate Mike Evans in the first quarter to pass Drew Brees by one yard.

Brady entered the contest needing 68 yards to pass the recently retired Brees. He now has 80,560 total yards compared to Brees' 80,358.

"I can throw a little bit and I am glad I have had some great guys to catch it," Brady said. 

"It's is pretty cool. Nothing in this sports can be accomplished without incredible teammates. Guys did a great job catching the ball for 22 years."

Brady completed 22 of 43 passes for 269 yards against the Patriots and threw no interceptions in the see-saw contest. He got a lot of help from his supporting cast, including running back Leonard Fournette, who rushed for 91 yards, and kicker Ryan Succop, who booted four field goals.

Brady said earlier in the week that he was in no mood for a stroll down memory lane, but after the game he admitted it has been an emotional ride.

"I was just trying to keep my poise," said Brady. "We did get a win on the road. It is a good win here in Foxborough."

Patriots fans clamored for tickets to Sunday's game, splurging up to $13,000 for the chance to pay tribute to Brady, who never had the chance to say his goodbyes.

The Patriots honored Brady with a one-minute video of his highlights before the game. He took the field in the warmup to chants of "Brady! Brady! Brady!" that filled the stadium.

There was a mixture of cheers and jeers from the rain-soaked crowd of 65,800 when he came on for the Buccaneers' first offensive drive of the opening quarter. 

The response was more low key when he set the all-time passing record with six minutes to go in the first quarter. The Patriots chose to not stop the game and honor Brady as play continued as if it was a normal 28-yard pass and run.

Succop kicked a 48-yard field goal with just under two minutes remaining in the fourth quarter to make it 19-17.

Nick Folk had a chance to give the Patriots the lead but his 56-yard field goal attempt clanked off the left upright with 55 seconds remaining and sailed harmlessly away. That allowed Brady to just run the clock down to the final buzzer.

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Brady outplays Rodgers, Titans and Steelers remain unbeaten

Tom Brady won the battle of the Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks on Sunday, outduelling Aaron Rodgers as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers routed the previously unbeaten Green Bay Packers 38-10.

Brady completed 17 of 27 passes for 166 yards and two scores, and Ronald Jones rushed for 113 yards and two touchdowns as the Buccaneers handed the Packers their first loss of the season.

Brady’s sidekick Rob Gronkowski also got into the act as the dynamic duo connected for their 91st career touchdown pass, as the Bucs improved to 4-2 on the NFL season.

The 12-yard score with 62 seconds left in the second quarter capped a 28-point second quarter that set the tone for the rest of the contest at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.

“He played great today. We got to try and keep getting him and the tight ends the ball,” said Brady of Gronkowski.

Six-time-Super Bowl champion Brady joined the Buccaneers this season after spending two decades with the New England Patriots.

Rodgers finished 16 of 35 for 160 yards with two interceptions.

“I think we needed kind of a kick in the ass,” said Rodgers. “We needed a little bit of a wake-up call at some point this season because things have been so good.”

Elsewhere, Derrick Henry’s 5-yard overtime touchdown run kept the Tennessee Titans unbeaten, while the Pittsburgh Steelers routed Cleveland to join them at 5-0.

Ryan Tannehill threw for 364 yards and four touchdowns, and Henry ran 22 times for 212 yards and two touchdowns to lead Tennessee over Houston 42-36, while the Steelers ripped Cleveland 38-7.

The Titans improved to 5-0, matching their 2008 start for the best in club history, while the Texans sunk to 1-5.

‘It was wild’

Houston’s Deshaun Watson completed 28 of 37 passes for 335 yards and four touchdowns, including a one-yarder to Brandin Cooks that gave the Texans a 36-29 edge with 1:50 to play.

Tannehill marched the Titans 76 yards and hit A.J. Brown with a 7-yard touchdown pass with four seconds remaining in regulation to lift Tennessee level.

“It was wild,” Tannehill said. “Started out strong, had a lull in the third and fourth quarters. We just kept believing, kept fighting, and had the confidence to get it done.”

Tannehill drove the Titans 82 yards in six plays in overtime to set up Henry’s winning run.

“He’s unbelievable,” Tannehill said of Henry. “Every week he does the same thing. He’s out here grinding for us. He was great.”

Ben Roethlisberger completed 14 of 22 passes for 162 yards and a touchdown, and James Conner ran 20 times for 101 yards and a touchdown to lead the Steelers, who are 5-0 for the first time since 1978.

Pittsburgh jumped ahead 24-0 thanks to a 33-yard Minkah Fitzpatrick interception return touchdown, Roethlisberger’s 28-yard touchdown pass to James Washington, Conner’s three-yard touchdown run and a 35-yard Chris Boswell field goal.

Cleveland’s Baker Mayfield threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Rashard Higgins in the second quarter, but Chase Claypool scored on a three-yard run in the third and Benny Snell added a one-yard touchdown run in the fourth for the Steelers to seal the victory.

The NFL’s two other undefeated teams, Seattle (5-0) has a bye week.

No new positive Covid-19 tests were reported Sunday, allowing all games to be played as scheduled after a week that saw disrupted practices for multiple teams with at least one positive test.

Denver’s Brandon McManus kicked five field goals to lift the Broncos over host New England 18-12, the Patriots falling to 2-3, their worst five-game start since 2002.

Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson threw for 186 yards and a touchdown and ran for 108 yards and another score as the Ravens won 30-28 at Philadelphia.

Eagles star Carson Wentz threw for two touchdowns and ran one yard for another with 1:55 remaining but was stopped on a 2-point conversion attempt, and the Ravens (5-1) ran out the clock.

Ryan powers Falcons win

Matt Ryan threw for 371 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Atlanta Falcons to their first victory, 40-23 at Minnesota, while Philip Rivers threw for 371 yards and three touchdowns to power Indianapolis over visiting Cincinnati 31-27.

Nick Foles threw for one touchdown and ran for another to lead Chicago over host Carolina 23-16, while Detroit’s D’Andre Swift ran for 116 yards and two touchdowns to power the Lions over Jacksonville 34-16.

The host New York Giants won their first game of the year 20-19 over Washington after the visitors went for a two-point conversion instead of a tying kick and misfired on a throw.

Giants receiver C.J. Board was immobilized and carted off the field with a neck injury after being hit by Washington’s Deshazor Everett in the third quarter.

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