The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have won Super Bowl 2021, defeating the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9. The Chiefs embarrassed themselves for much of the game, committing penalty after penalty in the first half and falling on their faces once again in the third quarter. Patrick Mahomes was pressured by the Buccaneers defense all night, struggling to put up any numbers until late in the fourth quarter. The bigger story is Tom Brady, who is back on top of the football world as he wins his seventh Super Bowl title and his fourth in the last seven years. Powered by a relentless defense, Brady is once again a Super Bowl winner at the age of 43

The story heading into the big game was whether the Chiefs wounded offensive line would be able to protect Mahomes against the Buccaneers viscous front seven. Early on, it was clear the Buccaneers defense was going to have its way against the Chiefs offensive line. The Buccaneers defense finished with three sacks, four tackles for loss and eight quarterback hits. The Buccaneers also forced Mahomes to throw two interceptions and found a way to keep the Chiefs powerful offense from scoring a single touchdown.

On the other side, it seemed like the Chiefs defense had no answer for Brady and the Buccaneers offense. At the end of the first quarter, the Buccaneers held a slim 7-3 lead and never looked back. They would end up outscoring the best offense in football 24-6 for the remainder of the game to secure the championship win and the franchise’s second Super Bowl victory. Brady, who was announced Super Bowl MVP during the postgame celebration, threw three touchdown passes and 201 passing yards. Brady was sacked just once and committed zero turnovers in the game. 

As expected, most of the game’s postgame reaction focused on Brady, who now has more Super Bowl wins than any NFL franchise. Many athletes took to Twitter to congratulate Brady on his seventh ring, including LeBron James, former teammates and his former team. 

Although the Chiefs suffered a crushing defeat to Brady and the Buccaneers, it’s hard to believe the Chiefs won’t get another shot at a championship sooner rather than later. Sunday’s Super Bowl loss is Mahomes first double-digit loss since the start of his professional career. Although Mahomes arguably played his worst game Sunday night, injuries and lousy penalty calls put the Chiefs at an early disadvantage. Mahomes was clearly not 100% due to a turf toe injury, and the absence of Mitchell Schwarts and Eric Fisher on the offensive line played a significant role in the loss.

Now that the 2020 NFL season has come to an end, the focus shifts towards free agency and the NFL Draft. No doubt both Tampa Bay and Kansas City will be favorites to represent their respective conferences once the 2021 season begins, but many teams are looking to make changes in order to knock off the defending champs.