Bruce Arians says it was Tom Brady’s idea to go for TD before halftime

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers made an aggressive call near the end of the first half of their game against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, and Tom Brady was the one who decided to go for the big play.

Facing fourth-and-4 with 13 seconds remaining in the half, the Bucs decided to go for it from the Green Bay 45-yard line rather than punt. Brady completed a six-yard pass to Leonard Fournette for a first down. On the next play, Buccaneers wide receiver Scotty Miller beat single coverage down the left sideline, and Brady found him for a 39-yard touchdown.

Tampa Bay could have attempted a 56-yard field goal, but the Buccaneers made the right choice by going for the big play. Fox sideline reporter Erin Andrews said during the broadcast that Bruce Arians told her Brady made the decision to go for the end zone.

“I asked Bruce Arians what he thought about the way that first half ended and he said, ‘I loved it. That was all Tom Brady. He loved the matchup and he said let’s go for it,'” Andrews said at the start of the second half.

We know by now that Arians gives Brady a great deal of freedom, but that is a great illustration of just how much control Brady has over the offense. There was talk early in the season that Brady and Arians weren’t getting along, but Fox’s Joe Buck set the record straight on that during Sunday’s game. You can read Buck’s comments here.

Allowing a six-time Super Bowl champion to make big decisions in a conference title game seems like a recipe for success.