From hurricanes to injuries: The Bucs have leaned on 'resiliency'

TAMPA, Fla. — Fresh out of the injury tent and trying to hold a four-point lead over the New Orleans Saints in Week 6, Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield lowered his shoulder and hurled himself into cornerback Marshon Lattimore.

It was the Bucs’ franchise QB trying to set the tone as running back Bucky Irving took the handoff for a 31-yard gain. Mayfield would find tight end Cade Otton five plays later for an 8-yard touchdown.

On the play where he got hurt, Mayfield spun and ducked his way out of would-be sacks by cornerback Alontae Taylor, but he fell on his stomach after his foot was caught behind by defensive end Carl Granderson.

The NFL’s touchdown leader through the first six weeks of the season may have gotten the wind knocked out of him on that play, but he bounced back just like Tampa has all season — through injuries, losses and adversity.

Now, the Bucs (4-2) are set for a big test on “Monday Night Football” (8:15 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN/ESPN+) when they host the Baltimore Ravens (4-2), but thus far, their calling cards have been their multiplicity on offense with coordinator Liam Coen’s constant motions and shifts, plus aggression on defense with coach Todd Bowles’ elaborate blitz packages.

On a deeper level, their identity has been their “resiliency,” according to Bowles.

While he joked Thursday about Mayfield sounding like Rocky Balboa after the QB was described as showing “tenacity” and “grit” as a scrambler, the notion was spot on. Mayfield averages 6.5 yards per carry when leaving the pocket, fifth most in the league among quarterbacks with 20 or more rushes coming into Week 7.

As a whole, Mayfield leads a group that has shown it’s been pretty tough to rattle, and the team embodies the scrappiness of their QB and the heart of their coach.

Two major hurricanes affected the Tampa Bay region in a span of 14 days, with the second one forcing a teamwide evacuation that sent 300 members of the organization and their families with 30 pets to New Orleans. Receiver Mike Evans said the Bucs were playing for something “bigger,” and, in a week where they had to practice at Tulane University, they were able to come away with a 51-27 win over the Saints.

“It was kind of weird,” left tackle Tristan Wirfs said. “I mean we found out on like Sunday night or Monday, like, ‘Yeah, we’re leaving Tuesday.’ We’re like, ‘What do you mean?’ So just that quick turnaround, like, ‘Pack your stuff up, pack your families up. We’re going.'”

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WHETHER OR NOT that evacuation set the tone for a chaotic second quarter is up for debate — as some Bucs players say the Saints were provoking them — it certainly didn’t help their circumstances in a crucial game where falling to 0-2 in the NFC South would be less than ideal.

“I mean, it’s sudden change. That’s part of football, that’s part of life,” Bowles said. “Things are going to happen to you daily that you’re going to have to make adjustments to, and you’re going to have to keep your composure when you’re doing them.”

After jumping out to a 17-0 lead, things unraveled quickly. Mayfield threw three interceptions — two were tipped — and Rashid Shaheed returned a Jake Camarda punt 54 yards for a touchdown. The Bucs also racked up seven penalties in those 15 minutes, as chants of “Who dat! Who dat!” engulfed the Caesars Superdome as they headed to the locker room down 27-24.

“[Bowles] basically told us, ‘Just keep your composure. They can’t beat us,'” defensive back Tavierre Thomas said.

Mayfield added, “It comes down to guys being able to hit the reset button, knowing it’s a tight game and saying, ‘Hey, if we just do our job, we’re going to be all right.’ Having that mindset of ‘one play at a time.'”

Bowles’ demeanor resonated with his coaching staff and players, and he made technical adjustments to squeeze the pocket so quarterback Spencer Rattler could no longer escape on bootlegs.

They stopped dropping their outside linebackers into coverage. And they started running the ball more while continuing to rely on their screen game.

“I mean if you see our coach on the sideline, he’s pretty much the same the whole game,” Irving said. “It is always great to have a coach that stays calm and collected during them times.”

Cornerback Zyon McCollum, who missed a tackle on KhaDarel Hodge‘s game-winning 45-yard touchdown in overtime against the Falcons in Week 5, notched a crucial interception in the fourth quarter. Bowles had supported McCollum after the Atlanta loss, saying he played it correctly, going for the ball despite missing the tackle. His uplifting cool carried over.

“It’s everything,” McCollum said of that support. “If I don’t have my confidence, if I’m not playing confident, I’m a completely different player.”

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IT’S WITH THAT same steadiness and resilience that the Bucs have managed to pull off major wins against the Washington Commanders, Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles this season, despite not being at full strength for any one of those games.

Against Washington, they were forced to rely on backup safety/nickelback Christian Izien as an outside cornerback after McCollum, Bryce Hall and Josh Hayes all exited the game with injuries. The last time Izien played outside cornerback? His sophomore year of high school. He then spent the next four games subbing for All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr. (foot).

They were also without starting right tackle Luke Goedeke for four games after he suffered a concussion in Week 1, with Mayfield taking five sacks against the Lions but coming away with a 20-16 win. By that game’s end, they were without defensive tackle Vita Vea, who suffered a sprained MCL, in addition to defensive tackle Calijah Kancey, their 2023 first-round draft pick, who had missed five games with a calf injury. They had to rely on backup Greg Gaines and practice squad callup C.J. Brewer.

They’ve gotten unexpected contributions from defensive lineman Logan Hall, who sacked Kirk Cousins twice in Week 5 and has three sacks this season after missing the opener with a foot injury.

Sean Tucker, their third-string running back whose career was stifled by a heart condition discovered at the NFL combine in 2023, had a career day against the Saints — rushing for 136 yards and a touchdown and adding 56 receiving yards and another score in his first extended action with Rachaad White out because of a foot injury.

His counterpart, Irving, a 2024 fourth-round draft pick, currently leads the team with 328 rushing yards and is averaging 5.7 yards per carry.

“You’ve got to adjust. You have to adjust,” Bowles said of injuries. “And guys make the team for a reason. You’ve got to know why they’ve made your team and put them in position to make plays. Everybody’s dealing with that and everybody’s adjusting differently. We like where we are right now.”

Bowles’ defense will be tested by the Ravens, who lead the league with 453.7 yards per game. Baltimore is the only team to score more touchdowns than the Bucs (20) on offense at 21, and Jackson has been the catalyst as he continues to make a case to repeat as the NFL’s MVP.

“First, you’ve got to pray,” pass game coordinator/inside linebackers coach Larry Foote said. “You’ve just got to pray. You’ve got to hope and you’ve got to wish. It’s going to take a group effort — even the [safeties]. Everybody is going to have to be responsible for him. At the end of the day, when he drops back and decides to run, it’s going to be a challenge. When he does get tackled, it’s a shoestring tackle — that’s when the prayers are going to be needed.”

If the Bucs can escape with a win, they would be 5-2 heading into a rematch with the Falcons (4-3) in Week 8 and a chance for redemption with first place in the division on the line.