The Tampa Bay Buccaneers entered Week 3 with a lot to gain and ended up losing big time against the Vikings, falling to 0-3 and sustaining an injury to star QB Baker Mayfield. Mayfield left the game “screaming in pain,” casting a shadow over a rough day that head coach Todd Bowles attempt to bring levity to afterward.
Bowles captured the spirit of the wide open NFC South in his post-game news conference, looking on the bright side of his team's loss.
“Funny thing, we're 0-3 and we're a game out of first place, so we have to get our stuff together, we gotta reach down and do more, to a coach, to a person, to a player, we gotta do more and figure out what we can do more, how can we do better, and come back tomorrow and get ready to go.”
An ugly avalanche to start the game included an injury to promising young offensive talent Jalen McMillan. Mayfield didn't have his best game before the injury bug bit down on him, completing 17-for-34 passes for 217 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Offensive playmakers Bucky Irving and Emeka Egbuka combined for just 100 yards, putting a damper on the Buccaneers hopes against a white hot Brian Flores-led Vikings defense.
October 4 brings a familiar foe to Tampa Bay, former division rival Green Bay, in a game between two faltering teams with playoff hopes. Undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels is Mayfield's backup, a scenario that looks like bad news if the Bucs star can't play. Bowles knows he's lucky to play in a relatively easy division in comparison to the rest of the NFL, but an 0-4 start would make a comeback nearly insurmountable and the Bucs boss probably knows it deep down inside.