Tom Brady To Start Buccaneers’ Preseason Finale

The Buccaneers are planning on dressing any healthy starters on Saturday in the team’s third preseason contest on Saturday night. That includes Tom Brady, as noted by Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times (Twitter link). 

Brady just returned from an 11-day training camp absence which, while planned, was the cause of much speculation. He resumed practicing this week, in line with the timeframe laid out by head coach Todd Bowles; at the time, though, it was unclear if the future Hall of Famer would see any preseason action this year.

“We got together as a staff and as a team and we understand we want to see certain things, so we’re putting everybody out there,” Bowles said, via Greg Auman of The Athletic (subscription required). This will mark Brady’s first game action since the Buccaneers’ playoff loss to the Rams; as Auman notes, however, he has played in Week 3 of each preseason dating back to 2009.

The 45-year-old made waves when he retired in February, doing so again 40 days later when he reversed his decision. He will play at least one more year in Tampa, but already has his next career move (a transition to the broadcast booth with FOX) lined up.

Brady has also been involved in one of the top controversies in the league this offseason; he was (in part) the subject of the Dolphins tampering scandal which resulted in significant penalties for the team and their owner, Stephen Ross. Neither Brady nor Sean Payton – the other targeted acquisition of Miami’s illicit conversations – have been disciplined as a result of the investigation.

Stroud also reports (via Twitter) that Luke Goedeke will start at left guard. The rookie has been in the running to replace Aaron Stinnie, who suffered a season-ending knee injury. The news that he will work with the first-team offense is certainly a sign that he could win out the spot, but there will still be serious question marks about the Buccaneers’ protection in the absence of Stinnie, Ryan Jensen and Ali Marpet.

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