The Buccaneer's first divisional match-up was no snoozer as the Bucs and Saints combined for seventy-eight points. It was a bizarre game, especially the way it played out. There were many back-and-forths, with each team having a twenty-point run. The Bucs started the day dominating the Saints, scoring seventeen unanswered points in the first quarter.
Things flipped quickly in the second when New Orleans put up twenty points to take a three-point lead over the Bucs. Finally, late in the second quarter, both teams swapped touchdowns to put the game at 27-24 in favor of New Orleans at halftime. It looked like we were about to have a scoring fest for the rest of the game, but that would only be true for one of the teams. Tampa Bay shut out the Saints in the second half and put up four touchdowns to win.
The Two Sides of Baker Mayfield
Mayfield was all over the place in this game. He finished the game with 325 yards passing and four touchdowns, but he threw three interceptions. He was very reckless with the ball this game and threw more interceptions than in the previous five games combined. Most of his yards on the day came from passes under ten yards down the field. He was horrendous on passes more than ten yards down the field. Baker Mayfield was 1/10 with two interceptions when throwing ten-plus yards past the line of scrimmage. Thankfully, his receivers helped him with some fantastic run-after-the-catch plays. Running back Sean Tucker caught a ball at the line of scrimmage but then took it thirty-six yards to the end zone after breaking two tackles. Later in the third quarter, a similar play happened with Chris Godwin. Godwin caught a ball at the line of scrimmage and then exploded forward between Saints defenders to go fifty-five yards into the endzone.
Mayfield currently leads the NFL in passing touchdowns by three, and though that was mainly due to his four TD passes on Sunday, he will still need to be better going forward. Mayfield was lucky that he had his supporting cast step up because a couple of his touchdown passes should have been short gains. I have confidence that he will be better in the future and get better at making the right choice, but Sunday was not a good example of that. On top of this, Mayfield's most valuable asset is his leadership. He is a great leader, and after the game, he did nothing but praise his teammates, who stepped up big for him in this game. Time and again, Mayfield has shown his leadership abilities, and that's why the Bucs were humming today on offense.
Running Through New Orleans
The Buccaneers' run game was outstanding this game. The Bucs, who finished dead last in rushing a year ago and came into the game 20th in rushing, ran for 277 yards. Despite missing their starting running back, Rachaad White, the two backups put up incredible stats. Bucky Irving continued to show his electricity with the ball in his hands, running for eighty-one yards and one score. Irving has proven time and time again that he is the best running back on the team and already has an impressive highlight tape six games into the season. On his longest run of the game, Irving took it thirty-one yards and broke or evaded six different tackles. He offers an explosiveness that the Buccaneers haven't seen at running back in a long time.
Another running back went off for the Bucs, and he was even better than Irving. The second-year back out of Syracuse, Sean Tucker, came into the day with only two carries on the year for eight yards. Sunday was a different story because, in the absence of Rachaad White, Tucker had fourteen carries for 136 yards and one touchdown. Tucker wasn't done, however, as he also went off in the receiving game, catching three passes for fifty-six yards and another touchdown. He was highly efficient with the ball, averaging 9.7 yards per carry. The two backs combined for 217 yards and should both be key pieces to the offense in the future. The Bucs have three capable running backs, and if they can find a balanced attack using all three of them, this offense will continue to have fifty-point games.
Defense Finishes Strong
The Buccaneers had the advantage of playing against a rookie quarterback making his debut. Overall, they did a good job taking advantage of that but still allowed many yards and points. Despite winning by twenty-four points, the Buccaneers defense still allowed twenty-seven points to a struggling rookie quarterback. Rattler finished the game with 243 passing yards and one touchdown but had a passer rating of 60.7. Rattler also threw two interceptions, fumbled once, and was sacked five times by the Tampa defense. So, to be fair to the defense, they did an excellent job at stopping Rattler, and one of the touchdowns from the Saints did come on special teams via punt return. The Buccaneers even had a touchdown on defense when Antoine Winfield Jr. took a fumble fifty-eight yards to the end zone. It was Winfield's first game since week one, and he made his return well-known. On the day, Winfield had four tackles, one pass deflection, a QB hit, and that fifty-eight-yard touchdown.
Calijah Kancey was also returning from injury and made his season debut for the Bucs. Kancey finally appeared this year and came up big with one sack and two tackles for loss. Tampa missed him, and having him back and healthy is an excellent sign for this defense. The player of the day on the defensive side of the ball would probably have to be rookie safety Tykee Smith. Smith had five tackles, two pass deflections, an interception, and a forced fumble. He was making plays all over the field, and the stat line showed it. Seeing what this defense can do when all its available pieces are excellent. In the future, they need to be better about allowing so many points, but when you win a game by twenty-four, there's not too much you can complain about.
Up Next: The Baltimore Ravens
The Buccaneers are back in primetime next week as they take on the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football. This will be a massive test for the Bucs because the Ravens are one of the hottest teams in the league. After losing their first two games, the Ravens are on a four-game winning streak. Baltimore is led by reigning MVP Lamar Jackson. Jackson is deadly with his arms and legs, slicing up defenses weekly. The Ravens also added Derek Henry in the offseason, and he has been playing at an MVP level. Henry leads the NFL in rushing by almost 100 yards and has nine total touchdowns on the season. He has been unstoppable, and the Bucs will need all eleven guys on defense to bring him down. Luckily, the game will be at home so that the Buccaneers will have that advantage.
Final Score: Tampa Bay Buccaneers 51, New Orleans Saints 27
Bastable's Three Stars
1st Star: Sean Tucker (136 Rushing Yards, 56 Receiving Yards, 2 Total TDs)
2nd Star: Chris Godwin (11 Receptions, 125 Yards, 2 TDs)
3rd Star: Tykee Smith (5 Tackles, 2 Pass Deflections, 1 INT, 1 QB Hit, 1 Forced Fumble)
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