Tom Brady

Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski defying age as Tampa Bay Buccaneers roll early

Updated Sep. 20, 2021 8:48 p.m. ET

After more than 20 years of NFL excellence, it's difficult to come up with new ways to describe Tom Brady.

But that didn't stop pundits from lauding the 44-year-old quarterback's performance in a 48-25 blowout for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday.

The reigning Super Bowl MVP cooked up a gem against Tampa Bay's NFC South rivals, going 24-for-36 for 276 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions.

Tom Brady throws for five touchdowns, 276 yards in Buccaneers' 48-25 win over Falcons

Tom Brady continued his scorching start to the 2021 campaign, throwing for five touchdowns and 276 yards with no interceptions in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 48-25 win over the Atlanta Falcons.

Through two games, both wins, Brady has completed 65.1% of his passes for 655 yards, nine touchdowns, two interceptions and a passer rating of 113.3. Over a 17-game season, he is trending for an astronomical 76.5 touchdowns, 17 interceptions and 5,568 passing yards.

While expecting anybody ⁠— even Brady ⁠— to keep that pace is asking way too much, it is fair to ask other, more reasonable questions. Say, for example: Can the 2-0 Bucs somehow get better?

On "First Things First," Michael Vick explained why he thinks that's likely to happen.

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Vick pointed to Brady's less-heralded weapons ⁠— such as tight end Rob Gronkowski and wideout Chris Godwin ⁠— making major contributions as reason to believe the Bucs can get better from here.

Gronk has 12 catches, four of which were touchdowns, in Tampa Bay's first two games. It's not as though Brady is force-feeding his longtime buddy, either.

The 32-year-old tight end's 12 catches have come on just 13 total targets, resulting in a catch rate of 92.3%.

It's a small sample, but when Gronkowski most recently had identical catch and touchdown numbers through two weeks, he finished the season with 1,176 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns en route to an All-Pro season in 2015.

With help like that ⁠— as well as Godwin (13 catches, 167 yards, two TDs), Mike Evans (eight catches, 99 yards, two TDs) and Antonio Brown (six catches, 138 yards, one TD) getting in on the act to start the season ⁠— it's no wonder the Brady-for-MVP chatter is swelling.

On Monday's "Undisputed," Skip Bayless said Brady is "now off to the races to win this year's regular-season MVP, to go with another Super Bowl MVP that will come at the end of the year."

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"Tom Brady is off to the races to win regular season MVP" — Skip Bayless reacts to Bucs' big win over Falcons I UNDISPUTED

Hear what Skip Bayless has to say about the ageless Tom Brady and his Tampa Bay Buccaneers following a 2-0 start to the season.

Dating to last season, Brady has thrown four or more touchdowns in four consecutive regular-season games.

Only two other quarterbacks in the history of the league have done that: a pair of Hall of Famers in Dan Marino (four games in 1984) and Peyton Manning (five games in 2004). However, both Marino and Manning were in their 20s when they reached that mark.

Brady is well past that but showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, he recently said he could probably play until he's 50.

"I mean, I don't find it so difficult," Brady said. "Plus, Florida, it's kind of a retiree state. So I feel like I can play and then just glide into retirement. I think I can. I think it's a yes."

Is anyone going to risk doubting him at this point?

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