The Tampa Bay Buccaneers took a brutal loss to the Atlanta Falcons in overtime on the road.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers hit the road to take on the Atlanta Falcons in an NFC South matchup. Entering the game with a 3-1 record, it seemed as if they were going to be able to expand on their divisional lead. That didn’t happen, though. The Falcons secured a 36-30 victory after scoring a touchdown in overtime to end the contest.
Just under the two-minute warning, with the game winding down, Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins was intercepted by Buccaneers linebacker Lavonte David. By that time, Tampa Bay had all but secured the victory.
The Falcons’ defense got a stop, allowing Cousins — who tallied 509 passing yards — to force overtime and eventually win the game. It was a crushing loss for Tampa Bay, who fell to 3-2 on the season.
Baker Mayfield reacts to Buccaneers’ overtime loss
Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield threw three touchdown passes to help the Buccaneers to a 30-point outing. Late in the game, the defense didn’t back him up, and the offensive play-calling essentially put the game in the hands of the rushing attack.
Still, Mayfield didn’t secure a victory, which is all he cares about.
“All I care about is wins,” Mayfield told reporters. “That’s it. So I’ve got to find a way to finish that game out on offense.
“I was thinking about the first half, missing that shot to Shep… I’m just replaying that one over in my head, that maybe it shouldn’t have even been an overtime situation. I have to make the plays when they’re there. Then in the second half, just got to take care of the football, and got to finish on offense.”
Throughout the game, Mayfield connected on 19 of his 24 pass attempts for 180 yards. His yardage wasn’t impressive, but he was making big plays and closing out drives. Offensive coordinator Liam Coem needed to let him try to secure the victory, rather than the rushing game.
Buccaneers offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs unhappy with loss
Mayfield isn’t the only star that’s upset following the collapse. Nobody in the locker room will be happy with the way they suffered defeat.
After the game, Tampa Bay star offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs reacted to the game.
“We had an opportunity to close it out, and we didn’t. So, it sucks. We have three days to let it steep. It should hurt, it should suck,” Wirfs explained. “…Gotta move on. It sucks. I’m p___ed. I’m not happy about it. It was right there. They gave it to us. They threw the Lavonte pick and said, ‘Here you go. You guys win.’ And we sh___ed down our leg. So, we need to move on.”
The Buccaneers have a long break, as their next bit of action comes a week from Sunday. They’ll hit the road again, this time taking on the New Orleans Saints, another NFC South rival.
