Week 10 at Carolina Panthers
Despite having Chris Godwin return from injury and Antonio Brown debuting as a Bucs receiver, Tom Brady had one of the worst games of his career last week. He finished with 209 yards, no touchdowns and three interceptions as he simply couldn't get the offense going. There's not much to take away other than the fact he simply had a bad game. He may struggle again this week as he gets a tough matchup against the Panthers, No. 2 in aFPA to quarterbacks.
Brady didn't play too great against the Panthers earlier this year, finishing with 217 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Still, Brady is in a talented offense with arguably the best receiving corps in the league around him. We still like him as a low-end QB1 play in Week 10.
Week 9 vs. New Orleans Saints
Tom Brady didn't have quite the dominating performance in Week 8 that he did in Week 7, but he was still good with 279 yards and two touchdowns. He's now had at least two scores in six of his eight games played this season, and that's despite several injuries to receivers. Brady gets a boost this week with the arrival of Antonio Brown, and Chris Godwin has a chance to return. To make things better, he faces a favorable matchup against the Saints. When he played the Saints in Week 1, Brady scored three touchdowns and had 239 yards. Brady is a top 10 quarterback option in Week 9.
Week 8 at New York Giants
Tom Brady looked dominant last week as the Bucs went with a pass-heavy gameplan, throwing 45 times. Brady finished with 369 yards and five total touchdowns (4 passing, 1 rushing). This is the second time Brady's had five touchdowns in a game this season and the fourth time he's had at least three. Brady has looked good when the Bucs are healthy, but unfortunately, that won't be the case this week as Chris Godwin has already been ruled out. Still, it's a great matchup for Brady and he shouldn't have too many problems with Godwin out. Brady remains a QB1 option in Week 8.
Week 7 at Las Vegas Raiders
Tom Brady finished with a season-low 166 passing yards last week on a season-low 27 pass attempts. He did score twice, giving him a decent-enough fantasy outing. The Bucs jumped out to a large lead in Week 6 and ended up running more than throwing. That may be the case again this week as the Bucs face a poor Raiders run defense. And with the Raiders' issues on offense (their whole OL is missing practice), this game is truly set up for a run-heavy gameplan. Brady is still a low-end QB1 play this week.
Week 6 vs. Green Bay Packers
Tom Brady struggled last week in a tough matchup, finishing with just 253 yards and one touchdown. Not only was it a tough matchup, but Brady was playing with no Chris Godwin, no Justin Watson, no O.J. Howard, no Leonard Fournette, an injured Mike Evans and an injured Scott Miller. With a longer rest period, Brady should get most of his weapons back this week against the Packers. For the most part, Brady has had a strong season with three of his five starts resulting in 3+ touchdown games. He gets a decent matchup this week against the Packers (18th in aFPA) where he should be viewed in low-end QB1 range.
Week 5 at Chicago Bears
Tom Brady had his first truly dominating performance with the Bucs last week, finishing with 369 yards, five touchdowns and an interception. This comes after a three-touchdown game in Week 3, giving Brady back-to-back solid performances. However it'd be somewhat surprising to see him have a third really strong game as he'll face a tough Bears defense this week. Chicago is No. 5 in aFPA to quarterbacks, giving up a league-low three passing touchdowns on the season. We don't expect Brady to tank this week, but he is ranked lower than he typically would be due to the matchup. He's still a Top 20 QB option, but just barely.
Week 4 vs. Los Angeles Chargers
Tom Brady had his best game of the season last week, finishing with 297 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions (his only game this season with no picks). He hasn't been the dominant option some thought he'd be, but he's been a mid-range QB option so far this season. He gets an average matchup this week against the Chargers where he'll likely be without key target Chris Godwin. We don't expect a dominating effort this week, and Brady should be viewed as a top 20 option at QB.
Week 3 at Denver Broncos
Tom Brady had a disappointing Week 2 outing as he finished with 217 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Brady was without Chris Godwin and Mike Evans was less than 100% dealing with a hamstring injury. Godwin should return this week, giving Brady an extra weapon in a decent matchup against the Broncos. Expect slightly better numbers from Brady this week, placing him in the top 20 of quarterbacks. He's not a strong option, but he's not the worst choice in Week 3.
Week 2 vs. Carolina Panthers
Tom Brady got off to a bit of a rough start in his Buccaneers debut by throwing two interceptions. But he wasn't terrible as he added 239 yards and three total touchdowns (two passing, one rushing). The bad news is he's entering Week 2 with injury problems for his top two targets. Chris Godwin has not been practicing with a concussion and Mike Evans has been limited in practice with a hamstring injury. His value this week against the Panthers will depend on the health of his receivers, but we like Brady as a lower-end QB1 play in Week 2.
Week 1 at New Orleans Saints
Tom Brady is quarterbacking the Bucs now, which is going to be weird. But for fantasy purposes, it should be great. Brady finished as a top-12 quarterback in fantasy last year, and now joins an improved offense with weapons like Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Rob Gronkowski. He gets a fairly tough Week 1 assignment, though, against a good Saints defense. He may also be without Evans who has been sidelined in practice this week with a hamstring injury. Still, there are enough positives here to like Brady as a top 15 quarterback option this week.
