CARLTON DAVIS

SportsPulse: Phoenix Suns beat reporter Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic weighs in on Robert Sarver allegations and explains how the team is trying to play through it.

Tom Brady threw two touchdown passes, Leonard Fournette ran for two scores and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat the Philadelphia Eagles 28-22 on Thursday night.

Matthew Stafford passed for 343 yards and four touchdowns as he outdueled Tom Brady and led the Los Angeles Rams to a 34-24 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Tom Brady threw for 276 yards and five touchdowns, helping the Tampa Bay Buccaneers extend their winning streak to a franchise-record 10 consecutive games with a 48-25 victory over the Atlanta Falcons.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Carlton Davis has apologized for tweeting an anti-Asian slur, saying he didn’t understand the offensive nature of a word he used.

Davis said he was unaware that it had a "darker, negative connotation."

(AP Photo/Mike Roemer)TAMPA, Fla. – Like most NFL cornerbacks, Carlton Davis plays with a short-term memory but never forgets a bad performance. The third-year pro and the rest of Tampa Bay’s young secondary was dominated by Tyreek Hill during the regular season and are eager to redeem themselves against the speedy Kansas City Chiefs receiver in the Super Bowl. Hill had 13 receptions for 269 yards and three touchdowns in a 27-24 victory over the Bucs on Nov. 29. “I play defensive back in the NFL, so you’re going to have your share of losses. I’m going to continue to be a dog and go out there and give it my all,” Davis said.

Tampa Bay gets another shot at Hill and the Chiefs in the Super Bowl on Sunday, Feb. 7, 2021. It was the second and most impressive of three scores for Hill, who was the star of Kansas City’s 27-24 victory at Tampa Bay in Week 12. Tampa Bay gets another shot at Hill and the Chiefs in the Super Bowl next Sunday, the first rematch in the NFL finale in nearly a decade. Davis was burned repeatedly, including on consecutive TD passes from Patrick Mahomes to Hill (75 and 44 yards) in the first quarter. Down three with 4:10 to play, Tampa turned to its defense to get a stop and get Brady the ball back.

But Gronk in particular has always been a big-play guy in big games for Brady, and Green Bay doesn't have linebackers who excel in coverage. Green Bay will do some blitzing, though not as much as Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles figures to do. Unlike Brady, Rodgers can create outside the pocket, and he's especially dangerous when doing so. Veteran placekicker Mason Crosby is solid, making all 16 field goal attempts, but missed four PATs for Green Bay. Tampa Bay's Ryan Succop, now in his 12th pro season, made 28 of 31 field goal tries but missed five extra points.

Nearly every team still vying for the Super Bowl has an elite cornerback often capable of shutting down an opponent's top receiver all by himself. The NFC playoff bracket has three of the conference's four Pro Bowl cornerbacks: Green Bay's Jaire Alexander, Los Angeles' Jalen Ramsey and New Orleans' Marshon Lattimore. Staley's scheme has employed Ramsey in multiple roles throughout the season, and his job often changes from play to play. Oddly enough, the remaining playoff team perceived to have the least dominant cornerbacks is defending champion Kansas City, the favorite to make it back to the Super Bowl. “Some of the best cornerbacks happen to play on the best teams, that’s all I can say,” Bills safety Micah Hyde said.

“It meant the world for him to get that record and, then, to have an easy touchdown," Bucs coach Bruce Arians said. Brady joined Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning and Dan Marino as the only players with multiple seasons of at least 40 TD passes. “Whatever happens for me as a quarterback is reflective of what we do as an offense,” Brady said. " The latter trimmed Atlanta’s deficit to 30-27 before Brady put the game away with two late drives. Brown had his most productive day since joining the Bucs midway through the season with 11 catches for 138 yards.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady (12) throws during the first half of an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Saturday, Dec. 26, 2020, in Detroit. The Bucs (10-5) set a franchise record with 588 yards and snapped the NFL’s second-longest postseason drought behind Cleveland’s 18-year run that can end Sunday. “We’ve been scratching and clawing every single year to make the tournament," said receiver Mike Evans, who was drafted by Tampa Bay six years ago. Tampa Bay rested Brady ahead 34-0, its largest halftime lead in franchise history. Tampa Bay set team records in points (34) and yards (410) in the first half.

He made the announcement in an Instagram post (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)The Latest on Week 15 in the NFL (all times EST):___2:55 p.m. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have lost Carlton Davis to a groin injury. Davis, who leads Tampa Bay with four interceptions, was ruled out for the rest of the game against the Atlanta Falcons early in the second half. Okwara sacked Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill in the end zone with 3:31 left in the second quarter. ___2:25 p.m.New England Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore has left the game at Miami in the second quarter with a right leg injury.

He recognized Monday night’s 25-23 victory by his Tampa Bay Buccaneers wasn’t very artistic. But Tampa Bay (6-2) had to sweat it out. But he fumbled when hit by Blake Martinez and rookie Darnay Holmes recovered at the Tampa Bay 12. ... Evans led Tampa Bay with five catches for 55 yards, and Gronkowski wound up with four receptions for 41 yards. New Orleans beat Tampa Bay in the season opener 34-23.

(AP Photo/David Becker)LAS VEGAS – Tom Brady threw four touchdown passes to move past Drew Brees for the most in NFL history and ran for another to lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a 45-20 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday. Carr then connected on a 44-yard pass to Nelson Agholor to set up a 1-yard TD pass to Waller that cut Tampa Bay’s lead to 24-17. It also gave the Raiders their first opening drive TD since Week 16 of last season vs. the Chargers. FAVORITE TARGET IIBrady connected with Gronkowski for the second straight week with a 5-yard TD pass in the second quarter. Raiders: T Sam Young left with a knee injury in the second quarter and didn't return.