GREEN BAY, Wisconsin (AP) – Tom Brady and the road magic of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers take them home to the Super Bowl, the first team to play in one on their field.
Brady has six Super Bowl rings with New England and now heads to his 10th NFL championship game with his new team. With the help of a stifling passing race and a curious final call to the fourth and goal for the Packers, Brady and the Bucs beat Green Bay 31-26 for the NFC title on Sunday.
The Bucs (14-5) won their eighth consecutive victory, the franchise’s record, on the road, to reach the Super Bowl for the first time since the 2002 championship season, reports The Associated Press.
They were helped by a strange decision by Packers coach Matt LaFleur, with just over two minutes left and five points less. In the fourth goal, he decided to kick a field goal. Tampa Bay then ran out of time at the Packers (14-4).
The Bucs will face the Kansas City Chiefs at Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium on February 7. Kansas City beat Buffalo Bills 38-24 in the Sunday night AFC Championship.
Green Bay lost 31-23 and scored the first and the goal of 8 in the last minutes. But after Aaron Rodgers launched three consecutive incompletes, the Packers settled for Mason Crosby’s 26-yard field goal with 2:05 left.
The Packers had all three remaining timeouts and hoped that their defense could force a shot. The Bucs thwarted that plan, exhausting the rest of the time, aided by a penalty for passing interference on Kevin King.
Led by Shaquil Barrett and Jason Pierre-Paul combining five sacks, Tampa Bay broke Green Bay’s streak of seven consecutive wins. The Packers lost in the NFC championship game for the fourth time in the past seven seasons, according to the AP . Green Bay has not made it to the Super Bowl since the 2010 championship season.
Rodgers went 33 from 48 to 346 yards with three touchdowns and an interception, but dropped to 1-4 in conference championship games as a starting quarterback.
The Bucs built a 28-10 lead early in the third quarter thanks to Brady’s three touchdown passes, including a 39-yard Scotty Miller with 1 second remaining until the break. Brady made 20 of 36 for 280 yards.
The Packers recovered when Brady threw interceptions in three consecutive attacks just the second time in his career. Green Bay reduced the lead to 28-23 at the end of the third quarter, with Rodgers touchdown passes to Robert Tonyan and Davante Adams.
INJURY REPORT
Packers RB Aaron Jones injured his chest and Bucs ‘safety Jordan Whitehead injured his shoulder in a third quarter move that resulted in Jones’ fumble. Defensive Packers striker Tyler Lancaster (ankle) and linebacker Krys Barnes (thumb) left in the second half.
The Bucs played the entire game without wide receiver Antonio Brown (knee) and safety Antoine Winfield Jr. (ankle).
NEXT
The Bucs return home to play in the Super Bowl.
The Packers’ season is over.