Tom Brady rightly furious after 49ers defender got away with choking him (Video)

It’s not often that I’ll side with an upset Tom Brady, especially when it comes to officiating. Brady usually receives the benefit of the doubt, but not this time.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers took on the San Francisco 49ers this Sunday. Early in the first half, Bucs quarterback Tom Brady appeared to be choked (accidentally, I might add) by 49ers defender Azeez Al-Shaair. The defensive lineman reached for Brady’s upper body, only to make contact with his neck and squeeze.

It was an unusual moment to witness on an NFL field, but one that officials ought to be prepared for. Still, the refs made no judgement call, opting instead to let the game continue without a flag.

Yep, just a normal death grip. Nothing to see here.

Tom Brady choked against the 49ers, gets no call

Tom Brady is typically the beneficiary of questionable calls on the defense, so consider me shocked and unfamiliar with the stance I’m taking.

The refs…should make more calls…to Tom Brady’s benefit? Is that something I can even say out loud?

Brady is near 45 years old, and in the twilight of his NFL career (we think). TB12 is just one bad hit away from a mid-life crisis, assuming that’s not what he’s going through right now on the football field.

The Buccaneers remain atop the NFC South, miraculously, if only because of the play of the teams around them. The Carolina Panthers are trash pandas, if anything. The Atlanta Falcons are the wrong type of dirty bird. And the New Orleans Aints lost their S a long time ago.

Tampa Bay is likely to make the postseason by default, but we still haven’t seen this team play up to its full potential. And it seems like any time they do, Donovan Smith is called for a hold, thus pulling them back to square one.