There was plenty that went wrong for the Bucs on Sunday in a 16-13 walk-off loss at home to the Falcons. Tampa Bay came into the game with a chance to gain some separation atop the NFC South. Instead, it finds itself a half-game behind Atlanta before a short week that will end with a tough contest against the Bills in Buffalo.

But before we move ahead to Thursday Night Football, we have to take a look what was the most disappointing from Sunday’s loss.

Bucs’ Run Game

Bucs RB Rachaad White and Falcons S Jessie Bates III – Photo by: USA Today

Essentially a permanent fixture on this list, Tampa Bay’s rushing attack was once again pathetic in Sunday’s game. Rachaad White did have some good moments as a pass-catcher, but he couldn’t get anything done on the ground whether the blocking lanes were open or not. In fact, his best run of the game was actually called back on a questionable holding call. White ultimately finished with 34 yards on 13 carries, with a long of 13 and an average of 2.6 yards per carry.

Once again, Ke’Shawn Vaughn was the first running back off the bench. He was even worse, running for seven yards on four carries for a 1.8 average. As a team, the Bucs totaled 73 yards on the ground and averaged 3.6 yards per carry. But those numbers are even inflated, as Baker Mayfield had the longest run of the day in the fourth quarter, scrambling for 31 yards.

Despite a rebuilt offensive line, a new starter and a new offensive coordinator, this sure looks like the same rushing attack that ranked dead last in 2022.

Bucs’ Discipline

The Bucs were averaging the seventh-fewest penalty yards per game coming into Sunday, but that’ll change after Sunday.

Matt Feiler was called for a false start on the second offensive possession (though the drive did end in a touchdown). Then, with a chance to break a 7-7 tie, Tampa Bay’s offense went backward on its next drive, which featured three penalties. False starts on Trey Palmer and “everyone but the center” with a holding call on Robert Hainsey mixed in killed the drive before it could even get started.

The problems persisted for the Bucs throughout the afternoon. A declined illegal formation call was the next one, then the defensive and special teams units got in on the issues. Christian Izien was called for pass interference late in the second quarter, then Dee Delaney was called for a hold on a punt after the defense forced a three-and-out to start the second half.

Palmer was later called for a questionable hold that negated a big run from Rachaad White and on the next play, Deven Thompkins fumbled. Everything came back around on the next offensive drive, too, as Feiler was called for another false start with the offense backed up in its own end zone. Cody Mauch was called for a hold later on as well.

On the day, the Bucs were penalized nine times for 66 yards. The officiating crew may not have been the best and did get over-involved at times, but this can’t become a trend for Todd Bowles’ team going forward.

Baker Mayfield

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

It wasn’t quite as bad as last week for Mayfield, but he once again didn’t look as sharp as he did in the early part of the season. At different times, he wasn’t seeing open receivers, holding onto the ball too long or forcing bad throws into double or triple coverage. He did have a beauty of a 40-yard touchdown pass to Mike Evans in the first quarter, but he never got into a groove as the game went on.

Then, with a chance to win the game late, Mayfield made what was perhaps his worst decision of the season. After connecting with Chris Godwin for a 33-yard gain to the Atlanta 28-yard line, he tried throwing to Cade Otton in double coverage. The result was predictable given the decision, with Richie Grant picking off the pass and all but sealing the deal for Atlanta.

While Mayfield did guide the offense on a game-tying drive after that, the offense left a lot out there and Mayfield himself took responsibility for that after the game. Overall, he finished 27-of-42 for 275 yards, a touchdown and an interception.

Bucs’ Pass Rush

Tampa Bay’s pass rush started extremely slow, failing to do much to disrupt Desmond Ridder. Part of that was due to Ridder getting the ball out quickly and Atlanta head coach Arthur Smith scheming the Bucs’ pass rushers out of the game, but the defensive front let it happen and the Falcons moved the ball at will as a result. A sack-fumble forced by Shaq Barrett and Calijah Kancey near the end of the first half was Tampa Bay’s lone sack of the day.

Devin White

Falcons TE Kyle Pitts and Bucs ILB Devin White – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

With the Falcons leading 13-10 in the fourth quarter, White got caught out of position — or in an in-between position — on what turned out to be a crucial play in the game. Backed up to the 7-yard line, Atlanta quarterback Desmond Ridder scrambled to his right and despite Antoine Winfield Jr. running with him, White got stuck between pursuing Ridder and covering Tyler Allgeier. The result was Ridder easily throwing the ball over White’s head, which led to a 46-yard gain for Allgeier.

More than that singular play, White did little to affect the game and it feels like it’s been quite some time since the playmaker has made a big splash play. He’s wanting a big pay day in the offseason, but he hasn’t shown enough so far in 2023 to get the money he’s looking for.

Ryan Neal

It wasn’t all bad for Neal on Sunday, but the one moment that stood out was really bad. After the Bucs tied the game at 13 late, Atlanta had a chance to get down the field and win the game. Sure enough, that’s what happened, and a lot of it came down to Neal being in a bad position. Desmond Ridder found tight end Kyle Pitts with a pass over the head of Zyon McCollum and Neal was caught flat-footed with his momentum taking him the wrong way,allowing Pitts to turn it into a big gain. The Falcons wound up kicking the game-winning field goal from there, marking another rough moment for the safety.