The Tampa Bay Buccaneers dropped their Sunday game against the New England Patriots 28-23, and it was a game where all three facets of the team had trouble producing.
It was a game where the defense uncharacteristically gave up explosive plays, the offense struggled mightily on third down and the special teams unit couldn’t generate much in the return game. The Bucs still held on to the NFC South lead due to a Carolina Panthers loss, but that’s not something they can rely on all year to happen while their own struggles continue.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield took to the podium after the team’s loss, and he wasn’t happy — and he made sure to say that he and the rest of the team need to play at a higher standard going forward this year.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) throws downfield during the third quarter against the New England Patriots / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Tampa Bay’s offense started out strong on Sunday with a touchdown pass to Emeka Egbuka, but it faltered afterward, going 5-13 on third down (38%) and being unable to move the ball in a consistent rhythm.
Mayfield told media after the game that he gave the team, and his offense, an extended message about “having some pride” when it comes to making the little mistakes that can cost the team games on Sunday.
“[We] just did not execute good enough. [We have] to do all the little things right in critical moments and we did not do that today,” Mayfield said. “That’s what I told the team and told the offense after the game. At some point, when the stuff comes up during the week, whether it’s mistakes or things we talk about and then it shows up on Sundays, you have to have some pride about you. You [have] to have the fear of that failure and messing up for your teammates when we talk about something, you [have] to have better responsibility and accountability for the guys around you and get it fixed.
Mayfield mentioned that this wasn’t just pointed at the rest of his teammates — it includes him, too, and making these improvements across the team starts from the top down.
“Case in point, it starts with me,” Mayfield said. “[I missed] some throws there that I would like to have back, some more completions. The low ball that I gave Cade [Otton] towards the end there, if I would have stuck it on his chest, he probably would have gotten the first down, instead of having to get into a short yardage situation. It starts with me, but everybody has got to have pride about it too.”
The Bucs have lost two of their last three games and face a tough remaining schedule, facing off against the Buffalo Bills next weekend in Buffalo and then the Los Angeles Rams on the road in California. Both of those teams have played great football this year — the Rams might just be the best team in football — and there is a reality where the Bucs drop to 6-5 on the year with two more losses.
Mayfield wants to avoid that reality, though. He’s already taking accountability for himself after this recent lull, but he’s also looking to see a “killer instinct” from the offense when it comes to production. The offense scored immediately on the first drive of the game with a well-executed drive, but they faltered considerably after that — Mayfield doesn’t want to see anything like that again.
“Right now, I think we are lacking that on offense and it comes down to me,” Mayfield said. “That is my job to get that fixed, and I will do that.”
The Buccaneers face off against the Buffalo Bills at 1 p.m. next Sunday.
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