I’ll be honest — it was tough to choose what to write about this week.
There were some obvious topics to choose from: Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence stumbling twice to score the game winning touchdown to stun the Chiefs, the Bills’ and Eagles’ flaws costing them their first losses of the season or the Cardinals finding the most entertaining way to choke a 21-6 lead over the Tennessee Titans.
However, there’s one team that stood out most this week, and they’ve proved — despite the unexpected challenges thrown at them — they’ll still find a way to fight until the very end.
I’m talking about the current kings of the NFC South, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. However, let’s just say their road to 5-1 had quite the storylines.
Starting Week 1, quarterback Baker Mayfield found the game-leading touchdown pass to rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka with just a minute left in the game. And while the Falcons were able to drive down to field goal range, Younghoe Koo missed the 44-yard kick, giving the Bucs their first win.
The Bucs then paid a visit to Houston where they faced the Texans the following week. Down five in the final two minutes, Mayfield orchestrated the 80-yard game winning touchdown drive, which was sealed by running back Rachaad White’s two-yard endzone run. Despite missing the two-point conversion, the Texans had no time left to respond, and the Bucs won it 20-19.
Week 3 is when things get completely bizarre. Up 26-20 in the last two minutes of their matchup against the New York Jets, kicker Chase McLaughlin, who hadn’t yet missed a field goal attempt, lined up to kick the field goal to put the Bucs up by nine.
But the kick was blocked by Jets defensive end Will McDonald IV, who then returned it all the way to even the score. Head Coach Aaron Glenn danced down the sideline, thinking the game would just end right there.
But with just under two minutes to go, Mayfield had plenty of time to orchestrate a drive that would put McLaughlin in field goal range. This time, there was nobody there to block the 36-yard field goal, as the ball went right between the uprights to make the Bucs 3-0.
Their only loss came from Week 4’s matchup against the defending Super Bowl champions, the Philadelphia Eagles.
The lowlights were obvious: two turnovers, failed touchdown conversions in the red zone and the Bucs’ unpromising third down conversion rate. But the team’s offense broke through in the third quarter with two 70-plus-yard catch-and-run touchdowns, making them look competitive in spite of defeat.
But then came their Week 5 game against the red-hot Seattle Seahawks.
I expected this to be an all-around shootout — and boy did it deliver. Both Mayfield and Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold tallied 300-plus passing yards. Both teams generated 400-plus yards of offense and shared five consecutive touchdown drives with each other.
But what was the defining win factor? Clutching in high pressure situations.
After Mayfield connected with receiver Sterling Shepard to tie the game even at 35 points apiece, the Seahawks had control of the clock and had the opportunity to drive the ball to field goal range and win it for the 12s.
But, two plays in, Darnold threw a pass up the middle that deflected off a defensive lineman’s helmet and landed in the hands of linebacker Lavonte David for the interception.
Considering the ball was already in Seattle territory, the Bucs only needed to hold onto the ball and run the clock down just long enough for McLaughlin to seal the 39-yard game-winner.
With this win, the Buccaneers are not just the first team in NFL history to win four of their first five games of a season by three points or fewer — they are also the first team to win four of their first five games of a season having trailed in every game with less than a minute to go in regulation.
To put it simply, the Buccaneers have found a clutch gene. They know what it takes to win tight matchups and can execute under pressure to come out on top. And if there’s a team that’s going to need this clutch gene for the weeks to come, it has to be the Bucs.
The Bucs will encounter some rough seas ahead with matchups against the Detroit Lions in Week 7, the Buffalo Bills in Week 11 and the Los Angeles Rams in Week 12. If the team can continue to keep up with their opponents and strike at the right moment like they did in Seattle, I could imagine this team becoming the dark horse to win big in the playoffs this season.