In his long and decorated NFL career, Tom Brady has never been on a side with a losing record. And this year that looks like a real possibility. The Bucs fell below .500 once again after the 35-7 loss on Sunday to the dominant San Francisco 49ers. And Brady isn’t making the road any easier. He had things to say and might have taken a very subtle dig at his next opponents.

Tom Brady and the Buccaneers will welcome the reigning AFC Champions Cincinnati Bengals at the Raymond James Stadium for Sunday Night Football. Tom Brady had great words of praise for opponent quarterback Joe Burrow. However, he may have undermined the capable Bengal’s defense a bit. And that might come back to bite Brady on Sunday.

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On the most recent episode of the ‘Lets Go Podcast’ with Jim Gray and Larry Fitzgerald, Brady said, “We’re onto Cincinnati. Great team. Great, young quarterback. Good skill players. They do a lot of things well. We’re going to have to put everything we’ve got into it.” However, about the Cincinnati Bengals defense, the five-time Super Bowl MVP said “fairly tough” instead of bigger praise. And maybe Brady went too far with the blatant underestimation.

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Although Tom Brady only said the words inadvertently, the Bengals’ defense will not like the slight roast. Cincinnati’s defense has been vital in their five-game win streak this season and 9-2 record in the last 11 games. Pass rusher Sam Hubbard, LBs Germaine Pratt, Logan Wilson, and Reader and Bates III on the defensive end have been the perfect catalyst to Joe Burrow’s offense.

With Bengals star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase back from his hip injury, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense has to be special on Sunday to stop Joe Burrow from connecting with his LSU teammate. However, the biggest load of the game will be on Tampa Tom, who is playing with a depleted offensive line. Center Ryan Jensen and tackle Tristan Wirfs are out. And Alex Cappa will be on the opposite side for a change. Brady’s sole dependency will be on his Pro Bowl wide receivers Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Julio Jones.

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Brady’s running backs Leonard Fournette and Rachaad White will also try to do their bits, but the Bengals’ defense is not likely to go easy on the running game. Tampa Bay still tops the NFC South Division. However, with only 4 games left in the regular season, Tom Brady knows there is zero room for error.