INDIANAPOLIS — Tom Brady led Tampa Bay with a pitch in his first and only preseason series, and the Indianapolis Colts’ backup came in Saturday’s preseason finale. defeated the Pirates 27-10.
Brady looked sharp on quick offense, going 6-for-8 for 44 yards while knocking down a quarter on 11 drives for 66 yards.
Seven-time Super Bowl champion Mike Evans, Julio Jones and most of the Buccaneers’ other starters then watched from the bench for the remainder of the game. Brady returned to practice on Monday after missing the first 11 days of training camp for personal reasons.
Matt Ryan and the Colts starters also played about a quarter.
After Ryan led Indy to a lead in his final series — Deon Jackson’s 1-yard touchdown run — Indy’s bench dominated.
Tampa Bay led 10-7 on Ke’Shawn Vaughn’s 1-yard scoring slump, but Phillip Lindsay’s 2-yard scoring gave Indy the lead late in the first half. Sam Ehlinger’s nifty 45-yard TD in the second half of the second half helped Indy leave.
line dance
Tampa Bay’s biggest concern heading into the regular season will be protecting 45-year-old Brady, as the offensive line took two more hits on Saturday.
Center Robert Haynesy (left ankle) and defender Nick Leverett (shoulder) left early and did not return.
Haynesy started Saturday in place of injured Pro bowler Ryan Jensen, who was kicked out of the practice field on the second day of training camp. The Buccaneers also need to replace recently retired Pro Bowl linebacker Ali Marpet and linebacker Aaron Stinney, who suffered a season-ending knee injury.
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