In a game where the final score doesn’t even come close to telling the story, the Bucs lost 24-18 to the Bills on Thursday Night Football. Impressive players for the Bucs were few and far between, but here is a list of those who were the game’s most impressive.

Chris Godwin

Bucs WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: USA Today

Godwin was a reliable target for Baker Mayfield, as he was the most consistent part of the Bucs offense. He ended the game with five catches for 54 yards and a touchdown. The touchdown was a thing of beauty, as Godwin snatched the ball out of the air on a short slant with a defender draped all over his back.

Godwin isn’t well-known throughout the NFL as a contested catch maven, but his performance in that area is one of the best in the league. He added a 14-yard run on an end around early and was the Bucs leading rusher through the first quarter of the game. In the second half

Antoine Winfield Jr.

Winfield continued to make his case for Defensive Player of the Year with another phenomenal game. The four tackles on his stat line don’t do him justice. It was his backside blitz and subsequent pass deflection that allowed William Gholston to come up with a key interception in the first half that set up a Bucs touchdown that tied the game at ten.

Winfield has been a big-play machine all season long as he now has six passes defensed, two sacks, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries on the season. He is, in short, a one-man wrecking crew, and is in line to get paid.

Will Gholston

Gholston was the beneficiary of the Winfield pass deflection, but still made an incredible play to find the ball and come down with his first career pick. He added two pass deflections and a couple of tackles on a night where the Bucs lost their top two defensive tackles. At 34 years old, Gholston is still showing he can be a key depth contributor for the Bucs defense.

Jake Camarda

Camarda may have lost the punting duel on the night to Bills punter Sam Martin (who was masterful in continually keeping the Bucs offense inside their own 10-yard line to start drives), but the Bucs punter was still very good in his own right. His initial punt to put the Bills at their own 4-yard line should have helped the defense get off to a hot start. Should have.

On the night, Camarda averaged 50.8 yards on six punts while putting one inside the 20 and another two launched for touchbacks. He also got scrappy with the Bills’ special teams unit. showing he isn’t afraid to mix it up with anyone. #puntersaredangerous

Rachaad White

Bucs RB Rachaad White and QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

White broke the 4.0 yards per carry mark for the first time in, well, a long time. With nine carries for 39 yards, he was able to exploit a few holes that were opened up for him and gain some first downs.

In the passing game, White was very good. He led the team in receiving, catching all seven of his targets for 70 yards. He made a few defenders miss as he was able to generate consistent yards after catch on the night on several check downs and a very impressive 20-yard screen to set up the Bucs’ first touchdown.

Anthony Nelson

Nelson was the Bucs’ best pass rusher in the game. The fifth-year outside linebacker showed up when few others on the Bucs defense did. He had four tackles, two for a loss, and the defense’s lone sack on the night. The sack was schemed up where he faced no blocker, but he deserves a ton of credit for not letting Bills quarterback Josh Allen elude him by scrambling.

Anthony Nelson SACKS Josh Allen for a loss of 10 yards 😤 pic.twitter.com/pGJwSH4T7l

— Buccaneers Nation (@BucsNationCP) October 27, 2023

Mike Evans

I debated putting Evans on this list. He was held to a single catch for just seven yards throughout most of the game. But when the Bucs needed him most, he came up with a huge catch to keep the game within reach. And the catch required an insane amount of concentration.

MIKE EVANS OFF THE HELMET pic.twitter.com/KR9QXZZiDe

— JPAFootball (@jasrifootball) October 27, 2023

With another grab on the ensuing drive, Evans ended the day with three catches for 39 yards on six targets. But that one catch blew life into a previously listless offense and gave the Bucs fleeting hope at a time they desperately needed it.