Late mistakes by Baker Mayfield and Bucs offense are what cost them a win against Commanders
Coming out of halftime, it was anyone's game. And late in third quarter, it looked the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had finally figured things out as it took a four-point lead over the Washington Commanders.Things looked even better after the Bucs came up with a huge fourth down stop on the following possession. All of a sudden, […]
Coming out of halftime, it was anyone's game.
And late in third quarter, it looked the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had finally figured things out as it took a four-point lead over the Washington Commanders.
Things looked even better after the Bucs came up with a huge fourth down stop on the following possession. All of a sudden, Baker Mayfield and co. were in a spot where they could increase the lead to seven- or 10-points. Either way, the momentum was there to capture.
Instead, Mayfield bobbled the snap on the next drive and lost the ball. The Commanders recovered at the Bucs 13 and scored a touchdown on another fourth down attempt. Now, it was a three-point Washington lead the Bucs had to overcome.
Well, it looked like that was about to happen on the subsequent drive. The Bucs faced a 3rd and inches from the Commanders 12, which is a give-me-type situation in the NFL. A conversion was on the horizon and a touchdown was in sight.
But another mishap happened at the snap. This time, the ball was snapped early and the Bucs weren't ready for it. As a result, the Washington defense came crashing through and tackled Irving in the backfield for a loss of two yards.
NFL games are never decided on one play, it's always a collection of sorts. For these two plays, it's easy to see why they're the catalysts behind the loss.
We're talking about a big swing in points, here. The Commanders weren't supposed to come away with seven points like they did and the Bucs were supposed to come away with more than three points and even potentially more points on the drive where Mayfield lost the fumble.
It's a tough swing for Mayfield, as he finished 15-of-18 for 185-yards and two touchdowns. He also added 23-yards on seven carries that included a killer 18-yard run on 3rd and 9 that sparked the Bucs offense.
In all, it's at least an 11-point swing, which in a game decided by three points, is obviously huge.
Don't get it twisted Commanders deserve all the credit in the world. They came to play and routinely made plays all night long, especially on third and fourth down.
But there's plenty of room to argue "what if" when it comes to the Bucs' mishaps. At the same time that's the twisted beauty of the playoffs: Every mistake weighs 100x more than what it would during the regular season and the slightest miscue can sink your hopes of winning.
The Bucs are going to have a very sour taste in their mouths this offseason and frankly, they have no one to blame but themselves. However, if there's one team that can overcome
