It was rough, but it was a win.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Atlanta Falcons in a tight one 29-25 on Sunday, extending their winning streak to two games and putting them back on top in the NFC South. It wasn’t a game that saw any unit fire on all cylinders, but turnovers from the defense and a last-minute drive executed well put the Bucs back in it and in the win column at the end of the day.
As always, there were some individuals who stood out for the Bucs and there were others who had a more negative impact. Here are our studs and duds from Tampa Bay’s Atlanta victory:
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Antoine Winfield Jr. made a statement today. He seems to do that quite a bit.
Winfield Jr. forced a fumble off quarterback Desmond Ridder that resulted in points scored. On top of that, he ended the day with eight combined tackles, contributing all over the field as usual. Winfield Jr. is playing at an All-Pro level and continued doing just that on Sunday.
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Mayfield has had a rough go of it as of late, but this was one of his worst games. He finished 14/29 (48% completion percentage) with two touchdowns and just 144 yards, 31 of which were YAC yards from a Rachaad White screen pass. He continued to miss deep and in the intermediate zones, and if the Bucs truly do want to make the playoffs, he can’t play like this in the future.
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Talk about production. RB Rachaad White had another 100-yard rushing game, averaging 4.1 yards per carry on 102 yards, and he also was the team’s second-highest receiver at 31 yards for a touchdown. White has come alive recently as a major contributor for the Bucs, and he continued to be that workhorse back for Tampa Bay on Sunday.
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Joe Tryon-Shoyinka continues to struggle just about everywhere. Tryon-Shoyinka (and the rest of the defensive front for that matter) had a very hard time generating pressure on a wounded defensive front. He also had a rough play in the fourth quarter, unable to chase down Desmond Ridder and giving up a touchdown in a crucial spot because of it.
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Godwin wasn’t perfect by any means, but he came up clutch when it mattered. He may not have made the most of his 11 targets, but he caught a crucial ball late in the fourth quarter that set the Bucs up for a touchdown pass to Cade Otton to seal the win for Tampa Bay. Godwin has always played well against Atlanta, and he had another signature moment in the “A” on Sunday to help get the win.
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Dave Canales called one of his worst games of the season on Sunday despite Tampa Bay scoring 29 points. A pitch play on 4th and 2 to cause a turnover on downs was a lowlight among his struggles, often fading out at midfield and being unable to generate over 100 yards of offense in the first half. It got a tad better toward the end, but he needs to call better games in the future.
