Tom Brady has struggled over the past three games, and many believe the 43-year-old is simply showing his age. Rob Ninkovich, who was teammates with Brady in New England, views Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians as the root of the problems.
Ninkovich said on ESPN’s “Get Up!” Thursday morning that Brady needs a new head coach. The former linebacker strongly disagrees with the approach Arians has taken with the media this season, which has been to criticize Brady and blame the quarterback for missing open receivers and misreading coverages.
“I’m giving Tom Brady a new head coach because Bruce Arians, at this point, is not cutting it. All his interviews, he has thrown players under the bus,” Ninkovich said. “Asking him about (Antonio Brown and he says), ‘Well, A.B. was open on that play.’ Asking him about Tom Brady being confused by coverages — I don’t think Tom Brady gets confused by coverages. Honestly, to throw him under the bus like that and to come out and the media and say the things he says…”
Brady has thrown five interceptions over the past three games, two of which were losses for the Bucs. Arians was critical of Brady after the loss, and that was not the first time the coach has called out Brady publicly this season.
There were questions from the start about what type of fit Brady would be in Tampa. Arians has a much different coaching style from Bill Belichick, which is probably something that appealed to Brady after two decades with the Patriots. What Brady may not have envisioned was his head coach throwing him under the bus on numerous occasions. If the Bucs miss the playoffs or continue losing, that could become an even bigger issue.
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