After back-to-back road wins to get back to .500, the Bucs returned to Raymond James Stadium on Sunday looking for their first three-game winning streak of the season. All that stood between them and that streak – and a record above .500 – was the 2-10 Raiders, losers of eight straight.

Tampa Bay started hot, taking nearly seven minutes off the clock and scoring an opening-drive touchdown to go up 7-0. A three-and-out and another touchdown later, Todd Bowles and his team led 14-0. But the game turned in the second quarter as Las Vegas scored 10 straight points and Baker Mayfield imploded with three turnovers.

The third quarter saw more ugly play from the Bucs, but they escaped it with the 14-10 lead intact. The offense then came alive again – at last – to score two late touchdowns to finish off a 28-13 win. The victory combined with Atlanta’s loss to Minnesota means Tampa Bay is now in sole possession of first place in the NFC South with four weeks to play.

Here’s a recap of all the action from Sunday’s up-and-down day at Raymond James Stadium:

Bucs 28, Raiders 13

Bucs WR Jalen McMillan – Photo by: USA Today

The Bucs opened the game on offense, going from their 15-yard line after a Ryan Miller holding penalty on the opening kickoff. Despite the poor starting field position, Baker Mayfield and the offense got moving quickly. Rachaad White converted one third down, Mayfield and Mike Evans connected for 15 yards and another first down and Sterling Shepard picked up nine yards of his own to get into Raider territory.

After White converted a 4th & 1 at the 37, Mayfield linked up with Bucky Irving for 15 more yards to get inside the red zone. One play later, Mayfield threw a 15-yard scoring strike to Jalen McMillan to put the Bucs on top early. Tampa Bay’s sixth opening-possession touchdown of the season came on a 12-play, 85-yard drive that took 6:53 off the clock.

The Buccaneer defense got off to a fast start of its own on Las Vegas’ opening drive, forcing a three-and-out that ended with a Lavonte David sack on third down. And after a 42-yard punt from deep in Raiders territory, the Bucs offense took back over already near midfield at its own 48.

Tampa Bay marched right down the field again on its second drive, with a 20-yard catch by Cade Otton and runs of 13 and 12 yards by White setting up a 5-yard touchdown pass from Mayfield to White. With 3:52 to go in the opening quarter, it was already a 14-0 lead for the home team.

Bucs LB Lavonte David – Photo by: USA Today

Early in the second, the two teams traded turnovers on back-to-back plays. First, Mayfield had a third-down pass tipped and intercepted by K’Lavon Chaisson. But on the first play of Vegas’ next drive, Aidan O’Connell fumbled the snap and Lavonte David recovered to get the ball right back to Mayfield and the offense.

The turnover party didn’t stop there, though, as Amari Burney soon got to Mayfield for a sack-fumble that was recovered by Taylor Tre’von Moehrig at the Tampa Bay 45. Coming into the game, the Raiders hadn’t recovered a fumble all season. Suddenly, they had two in two drives.

On the ensuing possession, a 12-yard pass from O’Connell to Brock Bowers and a 29-yarder from O’Connell to Michael Mayer set up 1st & Goal at the 4-yard line, then a Vi Jones pass interference penalty on third down gave Vegas a fresh set of downs at the 1. One play later, O’Connell pushed forward for a 1-yard touchdown to get the Raiders within 14-7.

The momentum continued to turn on Tampa Bay from there, with Mayfield taking a first-down sack and Ben Bredeson getting called for a false start to kill the next drive from the start. A good punt return by Ameer Abdullah and a 29-yard 3rd-&-1 run by Sincere McCormick then had the Raiders deep in Bucs territory and threatening to tie the game.

Bucs LB Lavonte David and DT Logan Hall – Photo by: USA Today

But the Tampa Bay defense stepped up from there and got a third-down stop, holding Vegas to a 25-yard field goal from Daniel Carlson. Still, the visitors had put up 10 straight to get within 14-10 with four and a half minutes left in the first half.

Mayfield and the Bucs looked to be in business again with the first half winding down, thanks in part to a defensive pass interference penalty that extended the drive on 4th & 4. But then Mayfield lofted up a bad pass into the end zone for his second interception (and third turnover) of the quarter. That’s where the opening half ended, with Tampa Bay clinging to a four-point lead.

The Raiders got the ball out of the break and bullied the Bucs defense all the way down the field with a heavy dose of Sincere McCormick. The former practice squader had 42 yards to lead the way and helped Vegas kill 10:20 off the clock on a 16-play drive. But on that 16th play of the drive, O’Connell threw into tight coverage and was intercepted at the 7-yard line by Tykee Smith. That kept the game at 14-10 in favor of Tampa Bay with 4:40 left in the third quarter.

The Bucs offense remained stuck in neutral on its next possession, though, even after a couple of strong Rachaad White runs to give them some breathing room. A Luke Goedeke false start set Tampa Bay back, then Mayfield scrambled for a loss of one on third down to set up another punt.

The Bucs defense forced a three-and-out on the next possession, though it took a pretty big break. Calijah Kancey should’ve been flagged for unnecessary roughness on third down to extend the drive, but there was no call. To make matters worse for the Raiders, O’Connell was injured on the play and had to be carted off.

So, instead of going for it on a fourth-and-short with backup quarterback Desmond Ridder, Vegas punted the ball away.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

Tampa Bay had to punt again early in the fourth quarter, but Ridder and the Raiders offense went three-and-out themselves and punted it back with 11:46 left.

The Buccaneer offense finally showed signs of life on its next possession, with Mike Evans giving them a spark. A 32-yard catch and run on 3rd & 9 kept the drive alive, then Sean Tucker broke free for a 34-yard run. From there, White scored a 3-yard touchdown to get the lead to 21-10.

Ridder was nearly intercepted by Zyon McCollum early in the next Vegas drive, but replay ruled that the ball hit the ground. That gave the visitors new life, with Jakobi Meyers coming through with a big fourth-down conversion. But a huge third-down tackle for loss by Christian Izien forced the Raiders to settle for a Carson field goal, which got them within eight at the 3:05 mark in the fourth quarter.

The Bucs needed to kill some clock with their next possession and salt the game away. A big 44-yard catch and run by Cade Otton helped in a big way, getting Tampa Bay down to the Vegas 33-yard line. And with all of the Raiders’ timeouts gone, Tampa Bay needed to put the game away with a big third-down conversion after the two-minute warning. It did that and more, with Mayfield and McMillan connecting for a 29-yard touchdown. McMillan’s second touchdown of the day – one day after his 23rd birthday – put the home team up 28-13.

From there, the Bucs finished off what was an ugly (but hard-fought?) win in front of their home fans.

Bucs TE Cade Otton – Photo by: USA Today

Baker Mayfield’s day wasn’t a good one, with three turnovers and an overall shaky performance overshadowing his three touchdown passes. He was 18-of-29 for 295 yards, three touchdowns, two interceptions and a fumble.

Mike Evans caught four of his five targets for 69 yards, while Cade Otton brought in three of his four targets for 70 yards. Sterling Shepard chipped in as well, catching three of his four targets for 63 yards. It was Jalen McMillan who found the end zone twice, though, and he finished with 59 yards on four catches.

With Bucky Irving out of action for much of the game, Rachaad White led the way for the offense. He ran 17 times for 90 yards (5.3 avg.) and a touchdown in addition to catching two passes for 19 yards and another touchdown.

Lavonte David finished the game with a sack and a fumble recovery, while Tykee Smith returned and came up with a key interception in the third quarter.

The division-leading Bucs (7-6) will now head west next weekend to face the Chargers (8-4). Kickoff for next Sunday’s game is set for 4:25 p.m.