by Carter Brantley
It was fourth and 10 and all hope wasn’t quite lost, but things certainly didn’t look great for the Bucs.
There was a little over a minute remaining, and the Buccaneers were down 19-14 on the road against the Houston Texans and their mighty defensive front with both starting offensive tackles for the Buccaneers out.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield dropped back to pass and looked like he was about to be taken down for a game-ending sack.
He magically escaped the pocket (causing Troy Aikman to even show some emotion for once) and scrambled for over 10 yards, picking up the first down and setting up what would eventually be a game-winning touchdown on a 2 yard run from Rachaad White.
The big story of the game was the Bucs’ rushing attack, as the usually explosive Bucky Irving had 71 yards on 17 carries, but Rachaad White (who’s become far more of a receiving back with Irving’s emergence as a star) had a heck of a night, posting 65 yards on over 6 yards per carry.
Mayfield managed to again fight off the turnover woes he suffered a bit last year, as he’s gone through 2 games without throwing an interception after leading the NFL in picks thrown in 2024.
Despite those standout performances, this Monday Night matchup turned into a bit of a slog after an electric start by both offenses.
Both teams scored in the first 4 possessions of the game leading into the 2nd quarter, but the score stalled at 14-10 until there were 6 minutes left in the game.
Houston reduced the score to 1 with a field goal after being set up at the Tampa Bay 35 by a blocked punt.
Following another empty possession offensively, the Bucs defense gave up what seemed to be a backbreaking touchdown with a little over two minutes to go in the fourth quarter after Texans running back Nick Chubb managed to find the end zone on a 25 yard run.
But the Texans left Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay offense with all three of their timeouts and a little over two minutes left, which proved to be too much time.
Now the Buccaneers are 2-0 out of the gate for the fifth consecutive season.
While neither the Texans nor the Falcons are world beaters, having to start out with consecutive games on the road is a challenge for any team regardless of the opponents.
The Bucs finally get their home opener this upcoming Sunday against the New York Jets, who have gotten off to their usual rotten start.
Tampa Bay will be in their 50th anniversary uniforms, bringing back the white and creamsicle gear of the inaugural 1976 season.
But it’s a great start to the season; it’s only Week 2, and it hasn’t always been pretty, but with the amount of injuries this team has sustained, being 2-0 is mighty impressive.
Fire those cannons, it’s good to be a Buc.
