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Tom Brady's 5-TD day lifts Buccaneers out of 17-point hole vs. Chargers

Tom Brady bounced back from a rough first half to throw for five touchdowns in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers38-31 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.

The Bucs trailed by 17 points near the end of the first half, and it appeared Brady was going to be outgunned by Chargers rookie Justin Herbert. Instead, a late interception by Herbert helped the Buccaneers (3-1) seal a win.

Brady completed 30 of 46 attempts for 369 yards with the five scores and an early pick six.

Tom Brady smiles while hugging Cameron Brate.

Chargers fumble leads to Brady-led comeback

The tides turned with time winding down in the first half. Rather than take a knee before heading into the locker room, the Chargers (1-3) ran it but lost the ball on a fumble. Brady answered by hitting Mike Evans for a 6-yard touchdown to go into the locker room down, 24-14.

He threw two more out of the half before the Chargers answered. When Los Angeles retook the lead late in the third quarter, Brady threw his final score of the day to close out a 90-yard drive. Ke’Shawn Vaughn caught the 9-yard toss to make it 35-31.

Brady broke his own record with another day of at least three touchdowns.

Brady’s day begins with another pick six

Brady got out to a rough start and threw his second pick six of the season in the first quarter. Michael Davis, who was 5 years old when Brady was drafted by the New England Patriots, jumped the route and returned it 78 yards to put Los Angeles up 14-7.

It started 24 consecutive points for the Chargers. They could have gone into the half with a 24-7 lead, but a fumble inside the 10-yard line led to Evans’ TD.

Herbert vs. Brady significant QB age gap

The meeting between quarterbacks was a significant showcase in young versus old. It’s the first time since at least 1950 there was a gap of at least 20 years between starting quarterbacks.

Herbert is 22 years and 209 days old while Brady is 43 years, 63 days. The difference is 20 years, 219 days.

Herbert was 20-of-25 for 290 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.

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