Tom Brady unleashed on referee Shawn Hochuli in Sunday’s divisional round of the playoffs that saw the reigning Super Bowl champion Buccaneers fall to the Rams.
“He got in my face in an aggressive manner and used abusive language,” Hochuli said after the game, explaining his decision to penalize Brady.
Brady screamed at Hochuli after taking a hit from Los Angeles linebacker Von Miller, which left him with a bloody lip. The quarterback was frustrated that there was no roughing the passer called on the play, and instead received a penalty — marking his first unsportsmanlike conduct call against him in his 22-year career.
“As for the hit, we did not think that it rose to the level of roughing the passer,” Hochuli said.
Just last week, Brady discussed the perception around the league that he gets “favorable treatment” by refs.
“I always hear that to different degrees about getting penalties, and so forth, roughing the passers,” Brady told Jim Gray on their “Let’s Go!” podcast.
“I don’t remember the last time I got a roughing the passer. … I don’t feel like I get them as much as people might think that I get them.”
Four days after Brady promoted the podcast on Twitter, he took a helmet to the chin from Miller.
As the Rams prepare to face the 49ers in the NFC Championship Game next Sunday, the Buccaneers are headed back to Tampa to begin the offseason.
It remains to be seen whether Brady will return for his 23rd season. The quarterback turns 45 in August.
Ahead of Sunday’s loss, Brady, who’s said he wants to play until his mid-40’s, was asked if that’s still his plan.
“I felt like then that was a great goal to set and I still have that goal of wanting to get to 45. We’ll see how it goes. I think I’m pretty much in [uncharted] territory,” the seven-time Super Bowl champion told NFL Network.
Brady also said he wouldn’t rule out attempting to play until age 50, in a 2017 interview with ESPN.
He has one year left on his deal with the Bucs at $25.4 million.