The Tampa Bay Buccaneers absolutely coughed up a 13-point lead in the fourth quarter against Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, letting them rally for a brutal 26-19 overtime loss at Raymond James Stadium. That puts Tampa Bay at a soul-crushing 1-5 on the season, including a winless 0-4 record on their home turf. With that kind of start, the Buccaneers are now almost certainly out of reach of the postseason.
The Fourth Quarter Collapse Was Just Gut-Wrenching
Man, you hate to see a team just fall apart like that in the clutch. The Buccaneers were up 13-3 at halftime, and Daniels even connected with Emeka Egbuka for a 2-yard touchdown early on. They even pushed that lead to a comfortable 13 points after a Chase McLaughlin field goal in the third quarter. But then Rodgers and the Steelers just started their comeback, and it was game over. Rodgers led Pittsburgh on their first touchdown drive of the day early in the fourth quarter, finding Darnell Washington wide open for a score to make it a one-score game. Then, just three plays later, Daniels threw a bad interception right to Daylen Everette. Daniels just tossed it up on third down, which turned into an easy field goal for Chris Boswell, his 310th career made field goal, the most in Steelers history.
The Steelers’ defense completely shut Daniels down again after that, forcing a quick punt in less than a minute. Rodgers put the Steelers in scoring position at the two-minute warning, but he took a huge sack on third down, forcing them to settle for another field goal to tie the game at 16-16. Any offensive momentum Daniels had was long gone by then. On just his second play after that Boswell field goal, he threw what nearly became a pick-six! Looking for Egbuka again, Steelers cornerback Jamel Dean jumped the pass and ran it all the way down to the 3-yard line. Somehow, Rodgers couldn’t punch it in from there, and a chip shot only put them ahead briefly. Daniels actually completed his first pass after missing nine straight, finding Ted Hurst for a 22-yard gain to quickly get them in position to drill a 53-yarder and force overtime. But that just prolonged the agony.
The Baker Mayfield Problem Is Getting Worse For Tampa
This whole situation screams that the Buccaneers just need Baker Mayfield back on the field, like, yesterday. He went down last month in their loss to the Minnesota Vikings after dislocating his thumb while throwing an interception. An MRI showed no ligament damage, which is a good thing, but Mayfield has not played since and could be out for as many as six weeks. Daniels, who stepped in to replace Mayfield in Week 4, is now 1-2 in the first three starts of his career. He did guide the team to their first win of the season last week against the Dallas Cowboys, behind a huge night from Bucky Irving. But his first NFL start against the Green Bay Packers also saw him throw two interceptions. Fast forward to Sunday, and those two crucial picks in the fourth quarter really sealed the deal.
Rodgers capitalized on the Buccaneers’ unraveling in overtime, mounting a long drive that he capped with a 6-yard pass to Germie Bernard for a touchdown. That was Bernard’s first career touchdown, too. It gave them the win, but for Tampa, it just solidified their brutal start. This team is now 1-5, dead last on their home turf, and they are facing a long road ahead without their starting quarterback. They need to find some answers, and fast, if they want to avoid this season completely spiraling out of control.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
Leave a Reply