As inconsistent as the Bucs offense has been in 2021, one of their strengths has been red zone execution. Heading into their Week 4 game against the Patriots, Tampa Bay was 10-14 in converting red zone trips to touchdowns. But against New England, it was nearly their undoing. Tom Brady and co. went 1-4 inside the Patriots’ 20, and had another touchdown dropped on a possession just outside the 20. Moving the ball wasn’t difficult for Tampa Bay, but finishing drives was.

“We didn’t execute,” head coach Bruce Arians said. “We didn’t execute at all. Our routes weren’t [good], our spacing wasn’t very good, we didn’t throw the ball very well down there. A couple things that we thought we were going to have they had mixed up and doubled the guys we thought we’d have.

“We never thought we’d put Codey McElroy in a game, and all of a sudden he was double-covered. So, yeah, some things like that happened and Tom [Brady] was real smart with the ball. He was extremely careful. He wasn’t going to throw a pick down there. It’s a disappointing part of the game to watch us play in the red zone that game.”

Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has long been known for his stingy red zone defense, and that was certainly on display on Sunday night. The Patriots took away several primary options for the Bucs, including a play-action shot to McElroy on the Bucs first scoring drive of the game. The Athletic’s Greg Auman researched the ugly details.

Three of Brady’s 16 throws were dropped, including a touchdown by Antonio Brown at the end of the game. Early in the contest, Mike Evans also dropped a slant pass that would have set up first-and-goal. A few throwaways occurred as well, a testament to New England’s stellar defensive effort.

The Bucs have been an outstanding red zone offense ever since Arians took over, so expect a bounce back. Six possessions to the opposing team’s 30-yard line will rarely yield as little as 19 points, especially with the talent Tampa Bay has. Better days are coming for the Bucs offense, but Sunday night was tough to watch.