Having not won a game since Oct. 13, the Bucs had one last chance to flip momentum for themselves heading into their Week 11 bye. It wasn’t going to be easy, though, as the defending NFC champion 49ers were in town looking to hand Tampa Bay its fourth straight loss.

It was a slow start for the Bucs offense, but the 49ers couldn’t get enough separation early and took just a 10-3 lead into halftime. The home team was then ignited by a Jacob Cowing muffed punt early in the third quarter, and from that point on, went on a 14-3 run.

San Francisco came back to take a 20-17 lead, but Tampa Bay found enough offense to get down the field late and tie the game at 20 with 41 seconds left. But that proved to be too much time for Brock Purdy and the 49ers offense, as they marched right down the field and picked up 39 quick yards. That set up Jake Moody up for a game-winning 44-yard field goal, which he nailed to down the Bucs 23-20.

Here’s a recap of all the action from Sunday’s loss at Raymond James Stadium, Tampa Bay’s fourth in a row:

49ers 23, Bucs 20

49ers WR Ricky Pearsall and Bucs FS Antoine Winfield Jr. – Photo by: USA Today

The Bucs won the coin toss and elected to defer, meaning Brock Purdy and the 49er offense would get the first crack at things. San Francisco went heavy on the run to open the game, picking up 31 yards on four plays to get into Tampa Bay territory. But two Purdy misfires stalled the drive, forcing a punt.

Starting from their own 4-yard line after the punt, Baker Mayfield and the offense got out of their own end zone with a 15-yard third-down conversion from Mayfield to Otton. But after coming up short on 3rd & 5, the Bucs had to punt it away themselves.

San Francisco had its next drive extended by a third-down holding penalty on Josh Hayes, and the visitors soon capitalized as Purdy found rookie Ricky Pearsall for a 46-yard touchdown. The six-play, 71-yard drive took 3:51 off the clock and made it a 7-0 lead for the 49ers with 4:15 left in the opening quarter.

The Bucs moved the ball near midfield with a steady dose of Bucky Irving to start their next drive, but a third-down sack led to a second punt in two drives. Already up 7-0, the 49ers went back on offense from its own 13.

A couple of big third-down conversions keyed the ensuing possession, with George Kittle catching a 13-yard pass to convert a 3rd & 6 just before the end of the first quarter and Jauan Jennings later hauling in an 11-yard pass from Purdy on 3rd & 9 to get inside Tampa Bay’s 40. Soon after, Jennings picked up 18 yards on a 3rd & 4 pass to set up a first down at the Bucs’ 11.

The Buccaneer defense stepped up from there, forcing a Purdy incompletion on 3rd & 9 from the 10. Jake Moody came on and drilled a 28-yard field goal, making it a 10-0 lead for the visitors after a 14-play, 77-yard drive that lasted 8:14.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

Tampa Bay’s offense finally crossed over into San Francisco territory on its next possession, with Mayfield finding Ryan Miller for 11 yards before converting a 3rd & 3 with a tight-window throw to Otton. Mayfield converted another third down with a 7-yard throw to Otton, but at a big cost as Pro Bowl left tackle Tristan Wirfs had to be helped off the field after suffering a knee injury.

Irving kept the drive going for Tampa Bay after the injury with runs of nine and 10 yards before another short Otton catch brought up a 3rd & 5 at the 9-yard line as the two-minute warning hit. After the break, a pass to Irving lost three yards and the Bucs had to settle for a 30-yard field goal to get within 10-3 just 1:14 before halftime.

San Francisco quickly got into field goal range on its next drive, with Purdy and Jennings linking up for 30 yards. But the drive didn’t go any further, and Tampa Bay got a break as Moody came on to miss a 49-yard field goal attempt wide left to keep the game at 10-3. That’s where the score remained as the half came to an end.

The Bucs offense opened the second half with a three-and-out, but Trenton Gill’s 44-yard punt was muffed by Jacob Cowing and recovered by Anthony Nelson. That was a huge swing for Tampa Bay, as it set up a 1st & 10 at the San Francisco 21-yard line.

After a third-down conversion by Irving, Mayfield connected with Rachaad White for a 9-yard touchdown to convert the turnover into points. With McLaughlin’s PAT, the Bucs pulled even at 10-10.

San Francisco responded in a big way, driving right down the field deep into Tampa Bay territory. A couple of third-down conversions inside the 30 set up 1st & Goal at the 9, but then Todd Bowles’ defense got a huge play from Joe Tyron-Shoyinka, who came flying in to drop Purdy for a sack. Backed up to 3rd & Goal from the 19, the next play went nowhere and the 49ers had to settle for a 33-yard Moody field goal to make it 13-10 with 4:21 left in the third quarter.

Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Rachaad White really took over on the next drive for the Bucs, running five yards for a first down, catching a 10-yard pass for another first, then running for eight and five yards to move the chains again. Bucky Irving came in to relieve him, running for eight yards to bring up a 3rd & 2 at the 26-yard line as the third quarter came to an end.

The fourth quarter opened with Irving picking up 14 yards on third down, then he found space and took it in for a 12-yard touchdown on the next play. With McLaughlin’s PAT, Tampa Bay went up 17-13 after a 10-play, 70-yard drive that took 5:03.

The 49ers looked to respond almost immediately, with Kittle breaking free for a 33-yard gain into Buccaneer territory. But after the Tampa Bay defense buckled down, Moody missed a 50-yard field goal attempt and the game remained 17-13 with 11:50 to go.

Mayfield and the offense couldn’t move the ball on their ensuing possession and failed to kill much clock, then the punt coverage team made matters worse by allowing a 30-yard return to Cowing.

A 30-yard pass from Purdy to McCaffrey under pressure sparked the next 49er drive, then San Francisco visited by a soft unnecessary roughness call on Calijah Kancey before cashing in with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Purdy to Kittle. With that, it was a 20-17 lead for the 49ers with 7:02 to play.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

The Bucs’ ensuing possession went nowhere, with Mayfield fumbling the snap on second down before taking a sack on third down. After the punt, Deebo Samuel broke free for a 32-yard gain as the clock kept ticking. But Tampa Bay caught yet another break as the drive stalled and Moody missed a 44-yard field goal to keep it a three-point game with just over three minutes to go.

The Bucs stayed alive thanks to some magic from Mayfield, who fought off a Nick Bosa sack on 4th & 7 to throw the ball up to White for a first down. After a defensive holding call, some more Mayfield magic later led to a roughing the passer call. Throw in a facemask penalty and a hands to the face call and San Francisco gave Tampa Bay most of the yardage it needed for free. Shockingly enough, the Bucs were set up with 1st & Goal from the 5.

But after going backward on 2nd & Goal, Tampa Bay couldn’t find the end zone on 3rd & Goal from the 8. The Bucs had to settle for a McLaughlin field goal, and the 26-yarder tied the game at 20-20 with 41 seconds left.

That was too much time, however. A 6-yard pass to Jennings, a 14-yarder to Pearsall and a 13-yarder to Jennings was enough to set Moody up for redemption. After missing three kicks earlier, he was good on the last one that mattered. His 44-yard game-winning field goal sent the Bucs to a fourth straight loss and a 4-6 record.

Bucs OC Liam Coen and QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Baker Mayfield struggled his way through this one, as his wide receivers didn’t do him a whole lot of favors. Still, he finished 18-of-29 for 116 yards and a touchdown and put the offense in position to win the game late. But an ill-advised run call from the 5-yard line ultimately led to a field goal, which left Tampa Bay’s defense an opportunity to blow the game late.

Bucky Irving led the way for the Tampa Bay offense on Sunday, rushing 13 times for 73 yards (5.6 avg.) and a touchdown. Rachaad White added 31 yards on 10 carries and was the team’s leading receiver, catching six of his seven targets for 39 yards and a touchdown.

The Buccaneer defense allowed 413 yards and a 5-of-11 mark on third downs as Brock Purdy improved to 3-0 against Todd Bowles in the last three years. Purdy finished 25-of-36 for 353 yards and two touchdowns in the 49er win.

The Bucs now head into their bye week at 4-6 before coming back in Week 12 for a road matchup with the New York Giants (2-8) on Nov. 24. Kickoff for that game is set for 1:00 p.m.