Tampa Bay Buccaneers

5 Bucs to Watch Against Buffalo

In what could be the toughest matchup of the season, here are some players that could be the difference for the Buccaneers.

Dec 11, 2021 at 08:30 AM

1. QB Tom Brady

While Brady's numbers last week against Atlanta were impressive, he hasn't played the Falcons nearly as much as he's played this week's opponent. In fact, he's played Buffalo 35 times, winning an impressive 32 of those contests. It gives him a .914 win percentage against the Bills, which is the best by any quarterback against a single franchise. His 32 wins are the most, as well since 1950 with a minimum of 20 matchups.

Brady hasn't lost to Buffalo since Week 17 of 2014 and that was when the Patriots had already locked up the #1 seed in the playoffs that year. Brady has scored 70 touchdowns on the Bills and averages 247.7 yards per game with a 97.9 passer rating.

Should Brady throw for at least three touchdowns and 286 or more yards, he will set an NFL record for most in each category against a single opponent.

He's leading the Bucs' top-ranked passing and scoring offense against the Bills' top-ranked overall defense as the NFL's passing leader himself. In fact, the league's passing leader has faced off against the #1 ranked passing defense seven times in Week 14 or later since 1980. Brady has been a part of two of those contests and is a perfect 2-0 in them. The other quarterbacks, including Hall of Famer Peyton Manning, are a collective 0-5 in such games.

Widen the lens and the number one scoring offense has won the last six matchups (including playoffs) against the number one total defense, according to NFL research. This is all to say that the Bucs and Bills are two teams that match up extremely well, with the pair ranked first or second in major offensive and defensive categories. For instance, the Bucs rank first in passing yards per game and passing touchdowns per game where the Bills' defense ranks first defensively in both of those categories.

2. TE Rob Gronkowski

Brady isn't the only one that is hyper familiar with Buffalo. Not only has Gronkowski played the Bills 15 times, but Buffalo is where he considers his hometown. He grew up a huge Bills fan, which may give some insight into why Gronk does so well against them. In those 15 games, Gronkowski has 69 receptions with an average of 15.5 yards per, 12 touchdowns and averages 71.3 receiving yards per game. He has six games with 100 or more receiving yards against Buffalo which is the second-most of any single player against the franchise. He sits just behind Hall of Famer Don Maynard, who had eight.

Though Gronk missed time earlier this season, he still has six games this season with multiple touchdowns. Him and Buffalo's Dawson Knox are two of just four tight ends that have at least six such games. If Gronk has another multi-touchdown game against Buffalo, he'll tie Antonio Gates for the most games with two or more receiving touchdowns by a tight end in NFL history. He could also tie Tony Gonzalez for the most 100+ yard games as a tight end in history should he accomplish that this weekend.

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TAMPA, FL - DECEMBER 09, 2021 - Wide Receiver Cyril Grayson #15 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during practice at AdventHealth Training Center. Photo By Tori Richman/Tampa Bay Buccaneers