It's hard to tell that he's old – Chiefs head coach Andy Reid backs Tom Brady

Dejan Kalinic

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It's hard to tell that he's old – Chiefs head coach Andy Reid backs Tom Brady image

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid backed the "unbelievable" Tom Brady amid questions over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback's form.

Brady struggled as the Buccaneers slipped to 7-4 with a 27-24 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in the NFL on Monday.

The six-time Super Bowl champion was 0-for-6 with two interceptions on deep passes against the Rams and is 0-for-19 on such passes in his past four games, missing his past 22 deep attempts. It is the longest streak for any QB since 2017, as per NFL Research.

But as the Chiefs (9-1) prepare for Sunday's clash against the Buccaneers, Reid hailed 43-year-old Brady.

"He's unbelievable. He's a great player, a Hall of Fame player. We're lucky enough to have a chance to be in this era where we can watch him," he told a news conference on Wednesday.

"And he's old, and it's hard to tell that he's old, and that's a tribute to how he takes care of himself and the care in living that he does all the way around, from diets to workouts to everything.

"He's the ultimate professional and a great player."

The loss to the Rams marked the first time since 2006 that Brady has lost consecutive home games in the regular season. Ahead of the Chiefs' visit to Raymond James Stadium, Brady has never suffered a three-game home losing streak.

But the Buccaneers are facing Patrick Mahomes, who led the Chiefs to victory in the Super Bowl last season. This season, Tampa Bay are 1-4 against quarterbacks who have started in Super Bowls and 6-0 in all other games.

Still, Reid is wary of Tampa Bay, who are second to the New Orleans Saints in the NFC South.

"You just have to prepare and study them and do the best you possibly can at covering the guys. I mean, if you're playing zone, to narrow the width and the depth of the zones as best you can, and then if you can, get pressure on Tom," he said.

"But he's playing pretty good football right now, and whatever anybody says, he’s playing pretty good football and he's making that work."

Dejan Kalinic