TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have no one to blame but themselves for failing to take advantage of an opportunity to tighten their grip on first place in the NFC South.
Instead, the three-time defending division champions share the top spot with Atlanta after allowing the Falcons (3-2) to drive for a tying field goal in the closing seconds of regulation, then score a touchdown on the first possession of overtime for a 36-30 victory that left the Bucs (3-2) struggling to describe what happened Thursday night.
Tampa Bay has lost two of three games following a 2-0 start that included a road win at Detroit. The offense couldn't run out the clock after Lavonte David's interception in Falcons territory with less than two minutes remaining. Sloppy tackling contributed to a usually reliable defense not being able to stop Atlanta when it mattered most.
The Falcons forced overtime on the final play of regulation, then won it on a short pass that KhaDarel Hodge turned into a 45-yard TD.
“We had an opportunity to win it in every facet of the ballgame. We didn't close it out," coach Todd Bowles said, adding that special teams could have done more to help Tampa Bay's cause, too.
“It was a team effort," Bowles added. “We didn't point fingers at anybody.”
Baker Mayfield threw three touchdown passes without an inteception, Mike Evans caught a pair of TDs passes, and an injury-depleted defense clung to a three-point lead for most of the fourth quarter before Kirk Cousins led the Falcons downfield twice to pull out the victory.
Cousins finished with a Falcons-record and personal-best 509 yards passing with four TDs.
Still, Bowles felt there were some aspects of the team's performance on which Tampa Bay can build.
“We had plenty of chances to win (and) we understand that,” the coach said. “We’ll go back to work, we’ll get better at that as a team and we’ll move forward. So, that’s positive.”
Bowles has emphasized the importance of starting fast, and the Bucs are doing a better job of that under first-year offensive coordinator Liam Coen. They scored 24 points in the first half of each of the past two games, the first time Tampa Bay has done that in consecutive weeks since 2019. Mayfield threw three first-half TD passes Thursday night for the first time since 2020, when he was with Cleveland.
As well as the offense played in the opening half the past two games, the Bucs scored nine points in the second half of a 33-16 win over the Eagles. They were limited to six points on a pair of field goals on Thursday night.
DL Logan Hall had two sacks Thursday night, giving him a team-leading three through five games. That matches the total the third-year pro had the past two seasons combined.
Poor tackling, including CB Zyon McCollum missing the stop after reaching around Hodge to try to break up the pass on Atlanta's winning TD, cost the Bucs dearly against the Falcons.
Bowles didn't single out McCollum, though, noting the defender actually tipped the ball.
“We don’t have a problem with his aggressiveness," the coach said. "He was trying to make a play, he was in position to make a play, and it just went through his hand.”
Bowles hopes the additional time the Bucs have off before playing again a week from Sunday will give players a chance to get healthier. S Antoine Winfield Jr, (foot) and RT Luke Goedeke (concussion) haven't played since the season opener. DL Calijah Kancey (calf) has missed all five games. The secondary took another hit when S Jordan Whitehead (groin) was injured Thursday night.
81 — The Falcons rolled up 550 yards of total offense while running 30 more plays than Tampa Bay's 51. It's the second time this season that the Bucs defense has been on the field for more than 80 plays.
Another NFC South road matchup at New Orleans on Oct. 13.
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