For the seventh time in nine games this year the Bucs offense was unable to score 21 points on Sunday. They are tied for 20th in the league in points scored entering Sunday Night Football with just 178. Points have been hard to come by for Tampa Bay this year. But all is not lost on the offensive side of the ball.

Last week the Bucs exploded for 37 points in a narrow loss to Houston that saw the defense crumble in the waning seconds of the game. And while the scoreboard doesn’t show it, this Week 10 victory over the Titans had a lot of positives. And arguably the Bucs should have scored more points.

Execution, and lack thereof, to a degree, will be a part of every offense. But the lack of execution for the Bucs in Week 10 directly resulted in 10 points coming off the board early and aiding Tampa Bay in closing the game out much earlier than they eventually did.

Bucs Opening Drive

After the Titans opened the game with a 12-play, 55-yard field goal drive that ate up just under six-and-a-half minutes of game clock, the Bucs opened their own offensive effort with a decent drive. Baker Mayfield hit Chris Godwin and Mike Evans on passes of 17 and 20 yards, respectively, mixed in with two ineffective Rachaad White runs had the Bucs in a second-and-8 at the Tennessee 35.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield and Titans DT Teair Tart – Photo by: USA Today

At that point in time the Bucs were firmly in kicker Chase McLaughlin’s range on a potential field goal to match the Titans. But right guard Cody Mauch and center Robert Hainsey both lost quickly on their initial blocks on a play action pass that forced Mayfield into a sack for a loss of seven yards. Mauch was able to recover and push Jeffrey Simmons past Mayfield, but Hainsey was unable to do the same to Teair Tart and Mayfield had nowhere to go to evade both pass rushers.

And please understand I am not absolving Mauch of the initial loss. While he was able to ensure his defender was not able to make the play it certainly contributed to the condensed pocket Mayfield had to work with that led to the sack. The result was the Bucs facing a third-and-15 outside of field goal range.

Mayfield took a shot on the next play trying to find Deven Thompkins in the end zone. The decision was a bad one as he threw into triple-coverage, and the throw was underthrown after he double-clutched and ended up trying to muscle the ball down field from a flat-footed position.

The ending was predictable: an interception. But Mayfield had Cade Otton open underneath for an easy completion that would have put the Bucs back in field goal range. The failure of the offensive line on second down and Mayfield’s ensuing curious decision directly led to potentially three points coming off the board.

Waning Moments of the First Half

Bucs OC Dave Canales and HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Fast forward to the Bucs final drive of the first half. Up 7-3 and driving, Tampa Bay had the ball on the Tennessee 41-yard line. Facing third-and-5, Mayfield was able to find Mike Evans over the middle late in his read progression with a very well-thrown ball right into Evans’ breadbasket. But Evans dropped the ball.

This drop would be his fourth on the season (per Pro Football Focus – although I would argue he has had several more) and first of the day – although not his last. Had he caught it the Bucs would have had first-and-10 at the Titans 31 with 42 seconds and all of their timeouts available to them.

It’s reasonable to expect at least three points from the offense in this situation. But Bucs head coach Todd Bowles opted to punt to instead, effectively ending the half.

Opening the Second Half with Promise – And Heartbreak

The Bucs would get the ball to open the second half of play and they would litter the drive with fireworks. Baker Mayfield would hit Cade Otton on a tight window throw on third-and-3 for six yards and a new set of downs. Rachaad White would follow that play with some razzle dazzle in the backfield, turning what should have been a negative play into an 11-yard run. It would be his longest run of the day. Two plays after that Mayfield would put a deep pass up for Trey Palmer, who would make an acrobatic play to almost bring the ball in down at the Titans 16-yard line. Palmer’s catch was aided by the ground just a bit and after a Titans challenge it would be overturned.

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: USA Today

No matter though. Mayfield would find Mike Evans on the very next play for a 43-yard shot down to the Tennessee 8-yard line. It was nice to see Mayfield and Evans hook up for a deep shot – a play the two have not quite gotten on the same page very often this season.

But here’s the thing. Evans had Roger McCreary beat handily and no one to contest him on the way to the end zone. While they were able to complete the pass, Mayfield underthrew Evans by a considerable amount and Evans had to slow, adjust, and ultimately slide to the ground to haul in the ball. If Mayfield’s pass is more on target Evans walks into the end zone for an easy six (seven with the extra point).

Two plays later Evans would return the favor to Mayfield. On second-and-goal Evans was able to find a soft spot in the end zone and Mayfield was able to target him with a good throw. But Evans would drop yet another pass that cost the Bucs a touchdown. Tampa Bay was unable to find the end zone on the following play and wound up kicking a field goal on fourth down. That’s an opportunity for four points missed.

Patience Is Difficult In A Division Race – But Warranted

The Bucs have installed a completely new offense this year, with a brand-new signal-caller. The run game is all new. The offensive line features just one player in the same spot as last year. To expect the team to start the season lighting the world on fire in an NFL environment where scoring is down across the board would have been a fool’s errand.

But there are signs of life from this offense. The Bucs’ passing game was Top 10 in the NFL in EPA/play entering week 10, and I feel confident it will still be there at the conclusion of play on Monday. The Baker Mayfield-Mike Evans connection was highlighted (or should I say low-lighted) three times above in terms of leaving points on the board, but they still connected six times for 143 yards and a score.

Mayfield and Trey Palmer are getting closer on finding their rhythm on the deep shots needed to really open the offense up. Offensive coordinator Dave Canales is still finding his footing with play sequencing, but there were stretches in each of the last two games where he showed some positive movement. And most importantly there was play after play after play where receivers were wide open.

The offense will always have a ceiling as long as the run game continues to be one of the worst in the NFL, and Mayfield’s ceiling over any extended sample size is that of a Top 12 quarterback. But in a down NFC South that is more than enough to put Tampa Bay in position to win the division when the dust settles at the end of the season.

It will require patience from the team and fans alike. But this offense looks better in Week 10 than it did in Week 1 or Week 7. And I feel confident it will look better in Week 15 than it does now.

The bones are there. The Bucs were just a few execution issues away from putting up 30 on the Titans. If they can clean up some of those, this could be a Top 6 offense in the NFC down the stretch.