Tom Brady: 3 horrible calls that gifted the Bucs QB his seventh Super Bowl ring

There is no doubting Tom Brady’s greatness. He’s the NFL GOAT and it’s indisputable. But perhaps New England Patriots fans finally got a dose of their own medicine after watching his Super Bowl run with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Brady, like the Pats for the last two decades, received some very fortuitous bounces along the way throughout this postseason.

Hold on, though! That’s not taking ANYTHING away from the achievements and successes of anyone. Come on! This fanbase faced Eli Manning TWICE in the Super Bowl and lost both times due to witchcraft. Everybody knows the feeling when a team has the mojo, and that’s exactly what the Bucs had the two weeks after they lost to the Chiefs back in late November.

But Brady and the Bucs also had the refs at their back, which no doubt aided them in some way during Super Bowl LV. Was it the reason they won? Nope! The Bucs had a tremendous game plan and took advantage of every single one of the Chiefs flaws. Then again, when multiple penalties pretty much gift you two touchdowns to make it 21-6 at half … that’s a near-insurmountable hole.

Let’s take a look at three calls by the Super Bowl officiating crew that all but officially gift-wrapped Brady his seventh championship.

3. Pass interference call on Tyrann Mathieu in the end zone

Can someone explain how this call in the Bucs-Chief game was upheld, please?

Was there contact after five yards? Yup. Was it “significant” contact that affected the ability to catch the intended pass? Not even close. Did Mike Evans pretty much just run right into Kansas City Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu? Pretty much. Was this ball even catchable? Might’ve been the definition of impossible to catch.

See for yourself:

With 13 seconds left in the second quarter and the Bucs needing nine yards to score, this was the verdict. Defensive pass interference on Mathieu. The ball was placed at the one-yard line and that made it a lot easier for Brady to find Antonio Brown for the one-yard score. That made it a 21-6 game heading into the half, with any semblance of Chiefs momentum stomped into the dirt.

Mathieu was also flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after trash-talking Brady when … Brady had trash talked him on two other separate occasions and it went unpenalized. It’s just confounding that the league’s best officiating crew not only threw this flag, but then convened and determined it was the right call.

A no-call likely would’ve made it a 17-6 game, which would’ve been a lot more manageable, especially with how poorly KC was playing.