The Tampa Bay Buccaneers fell back below .500 on Sunday with a 17-23 loss to the Cleveland Browns in overtime. The game marks the sixth loss of the year for the Bucs as they are now neck and neck with the Atlanta Falcons, who are 5-7, for the top spot in the NFC South division.
Chris Godwin Explodes for a Good Game, Bucs’ Lose Another Offensive Lineman
The man of the day for the Tampa Bay offense was wide receiver Chris Godwin. The 6-foot-1-inch wideout finished with 110 yards on 12 catches and had the Bucs’ first touchdown of the game in the first quarter on a ten yard connection from Tom Brady.
Although it was not Brady’s best performance, he still played very well with 246 yards and two touchdowns to Godwin in the first quarter, and then also to rookie tight end Ko Kieft on a five yarder in the third quarter to extend the Buccaneers lead to 17-10. It was Kieft’s only catch of the game.
With Leonard Fournette sidelined for the game with a hip injury, the running fell primarily on Arizona State rookie Rachaad White. White has had a promising first season thus far and it continued in Cleveland. He finished with 64 yards on the day and averaged around five yards a carry. He was also a prominent presence out of the backfield through the air with nine catches for 45 yards.
In the overtime period, the Buccaneers suffered another huge loss to injury; once again to the offensive line. Tristan Wirfs went down after a Browns’ defensive lineman fell on top of his leg, bending him over into an awkward position. He was carted off with the help of the Tampa Bay training staff.
Head coach Todd Bowles on Wirfs’ injury and his impact: “He brings leadership and toughness. Obviously he’s one of the best in the game. When you lose a guy of that caliber, he’s going to be tough to replace.”
Josh Wells came in to replace the injured pro-bowler. Tampa Bay is already suffering from injuries to Ryan Jensen and Luke Goedeke.
Early reports have indicated that Wirfs was up and moving around a little bit in the Tampa Bay locker room. So, there is hope that the injury is not as devastating as it possibly could be.
Browns’ Comeback Helps Lead them to Victory in Thrilling Game
Tampa Bay’s defense was able to hold the Browns for the majority of the second half, preserving the Bucs’ 17-10 lead. Then in the fourth quarter, Browns’ quarterback Jacoby Brissett connected to former Miami Hurricanes tight end David Njoku for a 12-yard touchdown to tie the game up at 17.
This left 32 seconds on the clock for Brady and the offense. The goal was to drive down and give Ryan Succop a shot at winning the game. A deep pass to Julio Jones put the ball into the Cleveland side of the field. Bowles decided not to use a timeout after a prior 1-yard pass to White. This ran the clock down to 15 seconds left and it led to an incomplete pass to Cameron Brate.
Brady when questioned on the usage of timeouts late in the game: “It was a tough situation… in the end they just made the plays and we didn’t.”
The Bucs failed to complete a Hail Mary and the game was sent into overtime.
The Browns then had a chance to score with time running out in OT following a series of three and outs. A few plays into the drive, Brissett connected to Amari Cooper on a huge 46-yard gain taking it to the Tampa Bay two-yard line. This eventually led to a 3-yard touchdown run by Nick Chubb, leading to a 23-17 victory for the Browns, their fourth win of the season.
Chubb finished with 110 yards on the day.
Up Next
The Bucs are now 5-6 following the loss. They still have the lead in the division by having the tiebreaker over the Atlanta Falcons. Next week, the team has a Monday night battle with the New Orleans Saints. Kickoff is at 8:15 p.m. E.T.