The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are on a mission to win their fourth division title. They have won three games against the Raiders, Panthers, and Giants in the past three weeks. The Buccaneers played the Los Angeles Chargers this Sunday in Los Angeles in hopes of continuing their winning streak. Before the game, the Chargers were 8-5. The Chargers defense hadn’t allowed over 20 points in a game all season except for the games against the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals. Could the Chargers stop the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense from scoring and stop their current win streak?
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense has been struggling throughout the season due to injury issues and the loss of star receiver Chris Godwin, who was predicted to have a big season this year. However, the Bucs have still found ways to win and revamp a rushing game that has been obsolete in past seasons. One of the Bucs highlights in the run game, rookie Bucky Irving, went out last week with a back issue. Throughout the week, Irving was questionable for Sunday’s game. Would Irving be able to play in Sunday’s game and help propel the Bucs to a fourth straight win?
Bucs Big Day Running
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers won massively over the Los Angeles Chargers 40-17. Baker Mayfield, the Bucs’ quarterback, had a good day, throwing for 288 yards. Mayfield only missed five passes all game, going 22-of-27 with four touchdowns and one interception. Mike Evans, the Bucs’ veteran receiver, had one of his best days of the season, catching nine passes for 159 yards and two touchdowns. Evans is on a career journey to have another 1000-yard season, making it his 11th straight 1000-plus season. Evans is chasing Hall of Fame Legend Jerry Rice’s record of 14 1000-yard seasons.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers run game has been impressive in the last four games. The Bucs have managed to gain over 150 yards in each of the past four games. The player that has led the way is rookie Irving who has been leading the run attack. Except for last week against the Raiders, where Irving left the game because of a back issue, Irving has been great. Irving rushed for 117 yards on 15 carries. Irving has gained 360 yards in the past four games with two touchdowns.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers set a new franchise record with 222 yards on the ground this game. According to the Bucs website, Head Coach Todd Bowles said this after the game: “That’s December football. We’re trying to stop the run and we’re trying to run the football. Today we did a good job.”
Bucs D
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers put Chargers Quarterback Justin Herbert under pressure for most of the game. The Bucs’ defense sacked Herbert three times and had ten quarterback hits. Herbert threw for 195 yards, going 21-of-33 with two touchdowns and one interception. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers held the Chargers run attack below 50 yards as the Chargers would only gain 32 yards on the ground. This would be the fourth game in a row where the Bucs D would hold a team under 100 yards rushing.
The Buccaneers have one of the easiest schedules of the remaining season. Playing the Chargers was the only challenging game that could not have gone the Buccaneers’ way. Next week, the Buccaneers will play a struggling Dallas Cowboys team. This game should be another easy one for the Buccaneers to win. Currently, the Buccaneers lead the NFC South division 1.5 games above the Atlanta Falcons. The Bucs have allowed 4,997 yards on defense, ranking them 27th in the league.
Final Thoughts
One must wonder how deep the Tampa Bay Buccaneers could go if they make it to the NFL Playoffs. All season, Bucs fans have seen a decent offense but not a good defense. Can the Buccaneers get the team to a contenders level for the playoffs, and could the run game be the key to controlling their destiny? Could Baker Mayfield lead the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a fourth divisional title and possibly another Super Bowl Championship for the franchise?
