Short trial by Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The reigning Super Bowl winner dominated the Philadelphia Eagles almost at will in the Wild Card Game 31:15.

Munich – The dream of defending their title lives on: The Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn’t show any weakness in the Wild Card Game and didn’t give the Philadelphia Eagles a chance.

Led by a strong Tom Brady, the reigning champions dominated the Eagles 31:15 and underlined their role as co-favourites. The 44-year-old is now just two wins away from his next Super Bowl appearance as he targets his eighth title.

Completely in control

The Buccaneers left no misunderstanding from the start. The Bucs put the first exclamation mark on the very first drive, which Giovani Bernard completed for a touchdown.

The Buccaneers had the opponent completely under control, because the Eagles did not find their rhythm, did not get into the game at all and could not establish their running game. At the end of the first quarter, Ke’Shawn Vaughn provided the next Bucs points and a 14-0 lead, which kicker Ryan Succop extended to 17-0 by halftime via field goal.

The Buccaneers didn’t put on the brakes after the break, but quickly made the decision. First Brady found his buddy Rob Gronkowski in the end zone, then Mike Evans a little later.

The Buccaneers then took it down two gears, which allowed the Eagles to cosmeticise the result in the last quarter. Boston Scott ran 34 yards for the Eagles’ first touchdown, and later Kenneth Gainwell caught a pass from Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts in the end zone. The subsequent two-point conversion was also successful thanks to DeVonta Smith, who grabbed the Hurts pass.

Hurts had a few good moments but was too erratic and inaccurate overall, he also threw two interceptions. His rating after 23 of 43 passes to his own man and 258 yards: 60.

Tom Brady extends records

For comparison, Brady completed 29 of his 37 passes, threw for 271 yards, two touchdowns with a rating of 115.2.He already holds numerous playoff records, some he extended in his 35th win in 46 games.

There was bad news in the Bucs’ win, though, as O-lineman Tristan Wirfs injured his ankle on the first drive. The 13th pick of the 2020 draft tried again after that, but had to go down for good at halftime.