3 stats that defined Washington’s thrilling upset over Tampa Bay

What if we told you before kickoff on Sunday that the Washington Football Team played without their two starting edge rushers for well over 50% of the game, averaged just 2.8 yards per rush attempt, registered zero sacks of Tom Brady and still managed to pull off the upset over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers?

You probably would’ve laughed in our face. However, it was Washington that got the last laugh in Landover on Sunday.

It wasn’t just that Ron Rivera’s group beat the defending champions, though. They dominated them in every facet.

In fact, 10 of their 19 points were gift-wrapped courtesy of a William Jackson penalty on the last play of the first half and a Dax Milne fumble that preluded a Mike Evans TD that pulled the Bucs within 23-19 early in the fourth quarter.

Take those two gaffes out of the equation and we’re probably talking about an even more lopsided scoreline. Either way, a win is a win is a win and Washington badly needed it to end their four-game skid.

A lot of the unexpected unfolded at FedEx Field on Sunday, but these three stats really told the story of the game.

These 3 stats defined the Washington Football Team’s upset over Tampa Bay on Sunday.

3. Tom Brady’s forgettable first quarter

Anyone else notice that the Buccaneers came out extremely flat?

That would almost be putting it kindly, because Bruce Arians did not have his team ready to play coming out of the bye. In many ways, Tom Brady encapsulated Tampa’s sluggishness. He was off on a number of throws and had no interest in attempting a pass downfield until Evans broke loose in the fourth quarter.

Before that, though, the Bucs’ offense was unwatchable. When Brady and Co. look back on this loss, they’ll be kicking themselves for their terrible start. Simply put, the performance will go down as one of the worst we’ve seen from Brady, as it marked the first time since 2009 and just the third time in his illustrious career that he tossed two first quarter interceptions, per ESPN Stats & Info.

Washington was only able to come away with a field goal after Brady’s first INT, but the offense made up for it in spades a few minutes later in the form of a 20-yard touchdown throw from Taylor Heinicke to DeAndre Carter.

Those 10 points ended up making all the difference, as the Football Team walked away with a 29-19 victory.