The Buccaneers were not ready for some football on Monday night (y’all remember that awful Hank Williams, Jr. tune they used to play before MNF games, right?) against the far more talented Philadelphia Eagles.
Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield threw his first interception, and the Bucs defense failed to stop the Eagles from running the ball down their throats in a 25-11 loss that ended any hopes of the Bucs going 17-0 this season.
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Mike Evans had a couple tough drops in some key moments, one of which could have been a TD, but instead led to a Chase McLaughlin field goal. He also hauled in an impressive leaping one-handed catch that eventually led to his goal-line TD catch that was ultimately meaningless.
Despite that Evans TD, the second half overall was a bit of a snooze fest, as the Eagles continued to dominate and even came away with a safety (that I predicted) following an acrobatic Dee Delaney interception (the Bucs’ second pick on Eagles star QB Jalen Hurts of the night) that pinned the Bucs within their own two yard line.
The Bucs faced a trio of injuries to their secondary, with Carlton Davis not playing at all, Jamel Dean getting injured in the middle of the game, and Christian Izien doing the same. If you were asking who that Pitts, Jr. guy was after he got stiff armed into oblivion by A.J. Brown, well, I’m right there with you.
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Tampa Bay’s offensive line faced its first real test of the season against an actual NFL defense on Monday night, and by golly did it fail in spectacular fashion.
No, the Bucs should not go get a new running back. No, Dave Canales and Todd Bowles should not be fired.
If your offensive line is a group of turnstiles that would be just as effective as trying to stop people from sneaking into a subway station in NYC as they were in stopping this Eagles d-line, you’re not going to get anything done.
Eric Dickerson could have been Tampa Bay’s running back and Andy Reid could have been their offensive coordinator, it would not have mattered. The Buccaneers were not going to get anything going.
Fortunately, that Eagles team will be the most difficult matchup of the season. At least, until the Bucs have to travel to San Francisco and take on the second-most talented defensive line in the NFL (the most talented played in RayJay Monday night).
Yeesh. At least the Bucs play the potentially Jameis Winston-led New Orleans Saints next Sunday.
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This article originally appeared on CLTAMPA.COM and is used with permission.
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