The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense is off to one helluva start when it comes to an overall view of the current season.

Todd Bowles' unit is currently either leading the league or damn near close to leading the league in nearly every major defensive category. The Buccaneers defense entered Week 4 allowing the fewest points per game (9.0), tied for the most takeaways in the NFL (8), tied for the third-most sacks (11.0), and it's in the top-5 of both yards per play allowed (4.5) and first downs allowed (13).

But when comes to starting games, things are much different and it's a problem all coaches or teams dread: slow starts.

"It's not a lack of discipline or effort," Bowles said after the loss to the Green Bay Packers. "We've just got to be smart and hone in on our fundamentals. Sometimes our eyes are in the wrong place and [we 're] trying to do too much and trying to see things, and by the time we settle down they've gone down the field. We've talked about that, we're working on that and we'll get better at that."

The Buccaneers have only allowed 27 total points through three games, but 13 of those points -nearly half- have been allowed on opening drives. Another seven were allowed on the Packers' second drive of the Week 3 matchup.

But you don't have to tell this to Bowles.

"We talked about it this morning, as we’ve been talking about it all week – we’ve given up 27 points and 20 of them have been on the first drives, or the first two drives in Green Bay’s case [plus] three to the Saints and three to the Cowboys," said Bowles. "So, we’ve got to learn how to start faster and we’re looking for ways to start faster and communicate and play better right off the top.”

The Buccaneers have a shot to correct course this week against the Kansas City Chiefs, as crazy as that sounds. The Chiefs have scored on only one of three opening drives, so far this year. And that came in Week 1 against the Arizona Cardinals.

Additionally, the Chiefs have just 21 combined points via three offensive touchdowns in the first half of their last two matchups against the Los Angeles Chargers and Indianapolis Colts, respectively.

But obviously, it won't be easy. Andy Reid and co. are a collection of some of the best game-planners in the NFL and they're going to have an effective game script to open the game.

And, as we all know, opening scripts are really hard to defend. They're usually a collection of 12-15 of the best plays for the applicable/opposing offense, which obviously can create problems for the defense.

Bowles isn't letting that be an excuse for another slow start, however.

"Even a script has things in it that we know [are] coming," Bowles told reporters Friday. "We thought we had three chances the first two drives to get off the field at an opportune time. We thought we had the perfect call on and we didn't make a play. So, I don't think it was the scripts as much as us not doing what we were supposed to do early."

With all the emphasis on a strong start, it's fair to expect the Buccaneers defense to come out hot.

The last time they did so against the Chiefs, well, things turned out pretty good.

There won't be a Lombardi to hoist at the end of this one, but a 3-1 start is certainly a good swap at this point in time.

Featured image via George Walker IV-USA TODAY Sports