Coming off their bye week and looking to build on a two-game winning streak, the Bucs reverted to their previous form. After taking a 17-10 lead in the third quarter, they went conservative, played not to lose and then did exactly that. A late touchdown in regulation forced overtime, then the Browns put them away with a touchdown to win 23-17.

Tampa Bay got off to a bad start, letting Cleveland march right down the field with a 78-yard drive that was capped off by a 31-yard touchdown run by Anthony Schwartz on a reverse. But Tom Brady and the offense responded well, with a big 35-yard run by Rachaad White sparking their first possession. After some more tough running by White and Ke’Shawn Vaughn got the Bucs inside the red zone, Brady found Chris Godwin for a 10-yard touchdown to knot the game up at 7-7.

The Browns got the lead right back on their next drive, though, thanks in part to a late hit out of bounds by Devin White on Jacoby Brissett. After a Carlton Davis pass breakup on third down, Cade York booted a 51-yard field goal to put Cleveland up 10-7.

Bucs CB Jamel Dean and Browns WR Amari Cooper – Photo by: USA Today

After Brissett and Nick Chubb got the Browns in field goal range, York shanked a 39-yarder wide left with 3:53 left in the first half.

Tampa Bay took advantage of the missed kick, with a key fourth-down conversion at its own 38 keeping the ensuing possession alive. Brady then found Godwin for gains of seven and 23 yards before the Bucs eventually had to settle for a 42-yard field goal by Ryan Succop. His kick tied the game at 10 just before halftime.

The Bucs got the ball to open the second half with a chance to double up after tying the game late in the second quarter. Instead, they went backward. White lost two yards on a first-down run, Brady was sacked on second down and an eight-yard pass to Julio Jones only got them back to the original line of scrimmage. And after a 29-yard return by Donovan Peoples-Jones on the punt, Cleveland was set up well to re-take the lead. The Browns failed to do so, though, punting the ball back after a three-and-out.

Bucs QB Tom Brady – Photo by: USA Today

The Bucs opened their next drive by getting Mike Evans involved. His 28-yard catch put him over 10,000 for his career, making NFL and franchise history. That sparked an impressive drive for Tampa Bay’s offense, as Jones followed with a 15-yard run before Godwin came through with a 22-yard catch. Three plays later, Brady connected with Ko Kieft for the rookie’s first career touchdown catch, a five-yarder that gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.

The Bucs moved the ball a bit on their next drive before facing a 4th & 2 at the Browns’ 37-yard line. Instead of going for it to give themselves a chance to potentially put the game away, Bowles took the delay of game and punted the ball away. But Jake Camarda’s kick went for a touchback, ultimately resulting in a marginal net gain.

The Browns failed to take advantage, with Devin White and Carl Nassib teaming up for a third-down sack on Brissett. Cleveland went for it on 4th & 9 near midfield, but an Amari Cooper drop gave the ball back to the Bucs. The Tampa Bay offense, however, promptly went three-and-out before Camarda dropped a punt inside the Browns’ 5 with just under seven minutes to play.

Cleveland went to work from there, with two big third-down conversions giving the offense some breathing room. But a third-down sack by Rakeem Nunez-Roches forced the Browns into fourth and long. They elected to punt with 2:35 to go, giving Tampa Bay a chance to put the game away.

Bucs QB Tom Brady – Photo by: USA Today

But the Bucs went backward again. White lost three yards on first down, Brady missed Evans on second down and Brady was sacked on third down, killing just 14 seconds and two Cleveland timeouts.

Going from the Bucs’ 46-yard line after the punt with 2:10 to go, the Browns ran Chubb for six yards to get to the two-minute warning. After the timeout, Chubb ran 28 yards to Tampa Bay’s 12. But a pass breakup by Devin White and a tackle for loss forced a 4th & 10 at the 12. Then, on their last chance, the Browns tied the game up with David Njoku making an insane touchdown catch with 32 seconds to go.

The Bucs had three timeouts to work with as they tried to get into field goal range. Only they chose to use just one of them, letting valuable time burn off the clock before a 26-yard pass from Brady to Jones. Two incompletions later, the game headed to overtime.

Tampa Bay won the coin toss in overtime, giving the offense a shot at redemption right off the bat. The Bucs picked up two first downs and looked to have another, but a third-down hands to the face penalty on Donovan Smith negated it. The Bucs then missed on 3rd & 14, forcing a punt.

Cleveland went from its own 21, with Chubb losing two yards on first down. A holding penalty then moved the Browns back to a 2nd & 21 from their 9. A pass breakup by Jamel Dean and a Devin White stop then forced a Cleveland punt, meaning Tampa Bay only needed a field goal to win the game.

The Bucs got one first down on their next drive, but got nothing else. They lost Tristan Wirfs on a second down incompletion, then Donovan Smith allowed another sack to Garrett, forcing a punt with only three minutes to go in overtime.

Browns RB Nick Chubb and Bucs DB Antoine Winfield Jr. – Photo by: USA Today

After a 17-yard pass from Brissett to Cooper, the Bucs forced the Browns into a 3rd & 4. But on that 3rd & 4, Brissett hit Cooper for a 45-yard gain to the 3-yard line. Two plays later, Chubb punched it into the end zone to give Cleveland a 23-17 victory.

Brady finished the afternoon 29-of-43 for 246 yards and two touchdowns, with Godwin being his primary target. He caught 12 of his 13 targets for 110 yards and a touchdown. Evans was a disappointment, catching just two of his nine targets for 31 yards. Tampa Bay racked up four sacks and 11 quarterback hits on the day, but Cleveland ran for 189 yards and controlled the clock all day.

The Bucs had eight drives of fewer than 20 yards and finished 4-of-15 on third down. Nine penalties and 70 yards also killed Tampa Bay as the team dropped back below .500 on the season.

The Bucs (5-6) return to the field next Monday night at Raymond James Stadium, hosting the Saints (4-7). Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m.