One Simple Piece Of Advice From Tom Brady May Have Made Tristan Wirfs’ Career
October 30th, 2025
Blocking for Tom Brady.
Joe is trying to forget Sunday, which was very likely Tristian Wirfs’ worst game in the NFL.
Against New Orleans, shockingly, Wirfs looked like just a guy. And he ain’t just a guy. He’s a two-time All-Pro. What happened in New Orleans, Joe isn’t sure.
This week Wirfs appeared on “Bussin’ With the Boys” co-hosted by former NFLers Will Compton and Taylor Lewan. With Lewan being a former left tackle, he wanted to know from Wirfs how freaked out he was when he was drafted, when he learned he’d be blocking for Tom Brady. It’s a story Wirfs has told a few times.
Wirfs admitted it was an immediate “Welcome to the NFL” moment before he even stepped foot into One Buc Palace.
“Talk about nightmare fuel, dude,” Wirfs remembered. “That’s what [Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht] told me when they called me the night of draft, ‘You ready to protect Tom Brady?’ And I was like, ‘WHAT? You’ve got to be kidding me?'”
First, Wirfs had to gain confidence. The Bucs had told Jason Pierre-Paul and Shaq Barrett, knowing Wirfs would start, that they had to use every tool in their toolbox on Wirfs. Hold nothing back.
There was no training camp or OTAs or worthless preseason games thanks to The Sickness. So the Bucs had to get Wirfs as prepared and ready as possible to square up on mouthy Cam Jordan of the slimy Saints in Week 1.
“I had Shaq Barrett and JPP my first training camp,” Wirfs explained. “And they were just cooking me. And I’m like, ‘I don’t know if I’m cut out for this.'”
The last thing the Bucs needed was to have a rookie with his confidence shot, trying to block for Brady. And Wirfs said it was Brady’s calm, simple encouragement one day that helped him mentally turn the corner.
“He said, ‘Don’t get beat fast and don’t get beat inside and we’ll be okay,'” Wirfs said. “And I was like, ‘Sounds good.'”
And we all know the rest of the story. Still, for Wirfs, there were reminders for whom he was blocking.
Wirfs didn’t specify the culprit, but a pass rusher got past him once and drilled Brady. Wirfs expected to get his tail royally chewed by Brady. Instead, Brady, just gave him a death stare from hell, Wirfs said.
Brady didn’t say a word. He didn’t need to. Wirfs got the message: Pick your damn game up.
Wirfs said his biggest fear was to give up a block and have his man blast Brady into retirement.
“I don’t want to be the one to end Tom Brady’s career,” Wirfs said. “Which it turns out I did. The last play of Tom’s career I gave up a sack.
“That’s going to stick with me for the rest of my life.”
Well, Wirfs shouldn’t fret. That was not Brady’s final snap. In a home playoff game against Dallas, in the Bucs’ final possession, Brady was sacked on second down by Micah Parsons.
Brady completed a 12-yard pass to Julio Jones on third down and on fourth down, Brady’s final play of his career, he threw an incompletion over the middle intended for Jones.
Getting drafted and realizing you’ll be blocking for the GOAT, as Tristan Wirfs puts it, “is nightmare fuel.” pic.twitter.com/RqAqaBKBOg
— Bussin' With The Boys (@BussinWTB) October 29, 2025
October 30th, 2025 at 9:16 am
K.MACK destroyed TW78 lol….
i remember that lol
6-2!!!
GO BUCS!!!!!!
October 30th, 2025 at 9:29 am
Bounce back game coming against NE. Wirfs will dominate.
Speaking of NE, their surprising 6-2 record come against opponents with a combined .355 winning percentage (Bucs opponents are .500).
October 30th, 2025 at 9:42 am
Objectively bad game.
It happens.
Still won.
October 30th, 2025 at 9:55 am
And people question Tom’s greatness
Kept it simple don’t get beat fast or inside
October 30th, 2025 at 10:18 am
It’s time to hammer down against the Patriots.
Complete Game 38-10
October 30th, 2025 at 10:29 am
So what happened last Sunday, penalties and poor performance, we are not used to that.
October 30th, 2025 at 10:46 am
I would like to know why Wirfs looked like Charlie Heck against the Saints? Not like he played well the week before either. Bucs gotta have stank somewhere. Now it’s the O-line. What’s being done to fix it?
October 30th, 2025 at 10:56 am
as long as grizz sticks with the run game, the offense should return to being productive….
i think the offense will have a bounce back game….
imo, the rams game is a must win…
6-2!!!
GO BUCS!!!!
October 30th, 2025 at 10:58 am
He was getting beat outside, consistently
October 30th, 2025 at 11:01 am
Grizz stuck with the run game 4 times in a row at the 1 yd line, how’d that work out? He needs to be creative and keep the defense on their heels. More QB rollout, more off tackle runs, maybe a draw once and a while. Mix it up!
October 30th, 2025 at 11:14 am
Wirfs is the last guy I am worried about . He will bounce back. Entire O line needs to man up and Grizz needs to call better plays. Grizz had a pretty bad day as far as play calling, both run and pass. He saw that the Saints were coming with every play and did little to change the plays up. Just the most horrible play calling imaginable. Like Mike Shula bad.
October 30th, 2025 at 11:43 am
Yea Mack was on the other end of that welcome to the NFL moment, and I am sure the culprit that led to Tom’s death stare lol one of the craziest plays I ever seen Mack make, throwing a monster like Wirfs around like a rag doll lol
October 30th, 2025 at 11:44 am
Not worried about Wirfs he has proven to be one of the best LT in the league. Think we got way bigger issues than him having one bad game.
October 30th, 2025 at 11:51 am
When an offensive line gets dominated like the Bucs did on the goal line stand, it’s because the D knew what was coming- the Saints’ D coaches out schemed the Bucs’ offensive coaches much of the game
Similar to what happened in Dolphins v Falcons game – McDaniel out coached his Falcons D opponent and ran over the Falcons
Grizzard needs to figure it out vs Patriots- 2 weeks to prepare- no excuses
October 30th, 2025 at 12:43 pm
Ironlung I am sure Joe will relay your demand for answers to the Bucs right away. Lol Todd still living rent free.
October 30th, 2025 at 12:57 pm
nah you guys and everyone else made way more out of the mack X wirfs play than it really was…
i went back and looked at that play many times that week after it happened…
and yes mack beat wirfs…and good…
but……..
the play looks so much more over emphasized because wirfs was moving in the direction that mack was putting him – thus his body weight and gravity was putting him there regardless of what mack kinda did…
almost like a well precisioned wrestling move in the ring where say the ultimate warrior might bodyslam the hulkster…
wirfs gave his weight in a direction and mack just went with it – making it look all the more like mack did something completely amazing – it never happened – it was more a beautiful dance of lookery and deception on the watchers eyes…
but yes once again mack did get he best of him on a good play
October 30th, 2025 at 12:58 pm
but yes once again mack did get the best of him on a good play*
October 30th, 2025 at 1:28 pm
Mike Shula bad? How about Clyde Christiansen? He sucked!! So, All-World TW78 had a bad play. So did Brady. It happens.
October 30th, 2025 at 2:00 pm
lol,
I posted early this week, that Wirfs got his butt licked bad Sunday. Everyone was arguing with me.
Now, suddenly everyone saw it!
No Idea why Wirfs has played serval weak games. It has to be the injury, or still getting back in shape.
But he’s has a below average season.
October 30th, 2025 at 4:52 pm
I thought Wirf’s rebounded the 2nd half of last week’s game. Clearly was bad in the 1st half. What were all the bad plays in the 2nd half? Just curious what other Bucs fans saw that are complaining about him and his 2nd half.
October 30th, 2025 at 5:34 pm
THAT’S ONLY HALF OF THE STORY, JOE
“The last play of Tom’s career I gave up a sack. That’s going to stick with me for the rest of my life.”
Wirfs gave up 1 sack all season and post-season. He was so disheartened he call his old mentor, Donavan Smith for advice. Donavan Smith told Wirfs, “The true secret to mental health as an OT is to give up a bunch of sacks. Then, you won’t be able to remember them all.”