Monday night was a highly anticipated matchup between the Bucs and Ravens with Tampa Bay returning to town for the first time in three weeks. After leading 10-0, Tampa Bay’s mistakes compounded and led to a sizable 41-31 loss. There was plenty to be disappointed about after watching this one. The Bucs will be looking to improve in these aspects before its Creamsicle week when they take on the Falcons.

HC Todd Bowles

The extra day of planning did nothing for head coach Todd Bowles and the rest of the team on Monday night.

Ravens RB Derrick Henry and QB Lamar Jackson – Photo by: USA Today

In particular, Bowles had no defensive answers for containing Lamar Jackson or Derrick Henry. There was plenty of concern about containing the star duo coming into Monday night, but between Jackson’s elusiveness and Henry’s brute force, stopping them was a challenge the Bucs’ defense had little answer for, and that falls back on Bowles.

Yes, there were missed tackles. The defense did not do themselves any favors in that regard. But in terms of overall defensive game planning, there were plenty of missed assignments and guys left wide-open. Jackson did whatever he wanted to through the air and on the ground with little resistance.

On the ground, Jackson and Henry combined for 24 carries and 221 rushing yards, led by Henry’s 15 carries for 169 rushing yards. If that was not enough, Jackson had no problem dropping back and connecting with whoever he wanted to, completing 17 of his 22 passes for 281 passing yards and five touchdowns.

The head coach also failed to show aggressiveness down 17 points. The team could have had a fourth-and-9 on Baltimore’s 44. Instead of going for it and putting up a fight, the team elected to punt it away. The first play after?

Derrick Henry had an 81-yard run.

If that was not enough, the team decided to trot out Mike Evans with a bad hamstring and kept Chris Godwin out on the field with less than a minute left in a game that was already decided. Now Evans looks to have suffered a more serious injury, while Godwin’s injury is even worse and looks season-ending.

Let’s just say this is a game Todd Bowles will quickly like to forget, as it was an unmitigated disaster.

QB Baker Mayfield

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

Baker Mayfield put together as impressive of a first quarter as he could have, completing eight of nine passes for 105 passing yards with a touchdown pass to Mike Evans. It looked like another big day at the office for the Bucs’ quarterback, but things quickly went awry in the second quarter.

First, Mayfield had plenty of time to find someone in the end zone after moving the ball downfield, but his pass intended for wide receiver Jalen McMillan was intercepted by cornerback Marlon Humphrey. Then, looking to respond after a quick Ravens’ touchdown, he would throw another interception to Humphrey after pushing the ball past midfield.

These two mistakes led to Tampa Bay losing the lead, momentum, and ultimately the game. It made an impressive performance quickly turn disappointing due to poor decision-making.

Bucs’ Red Zone Offense

The Bucs’ offense had no problem moving the ball down the field in the first half.

Scoring touchdowns, however, proved difficult.

After getting out to a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, Tampa Bay had a chance to make it a 14-0 game after getting the ball down to the 5-yard line. They did momentarily after Baker Mayfield found Chris Godwin for a touchdown, but it was called back as Tristan Wirfs picked up a questionable offensive holding call. They were unable to get into the end zone on that drive and the one that followed.

The Bucs then controlled the game throughout the second quarter, putting together an 11-play, 67-yard drive that amounted to no points. Mayfield had plenty of time in the pocket but threw the ball directly into cornerback Marlon Humphrey’s hands in the right corner of the end zone. It easily could have been a 21-7 game, but the offense struggled to get the ball over the white line.

Poor Tackling

Poor tackling was a big reason why the Ravens found so much offensive success. It was a theme across the defense, from the defensive line failing to wrap up, the linebackers not getting in position to bring down the ballcarrier, or the secondary whiffing as guys got downfield.

One moment in particular stuck out. Safety Jordan Whitehead and cornerback Zyon McCollum both had a chance to have a big moment on a ball Lamar Jackson launched their way in the first half. Instead of making a play on it, Whitehead and McCollum watched wide receiver Rashad Bateman come down with it and each missed the ensuing tackle as Bateman ran 59 yards down the field.

Just about every pass Jackson threw went for more than 10 passing yards due to missed tackles from the team as a whole. That has to change, especially as the team gears up to face the Falcons again in less than a week.

CB Zyon McCollum

It was a disappointing game for Zyon McCollum, who beforehand was playing like one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL. Not only was McCollum partially responsible for the big 59-yard catch by Rashad Bateman, but he would later be burned by Bateman down the right sideline on a 49-yard touchdown in the middle of the third quarter.

It was that kind of day for the defense, and even the most impressive defensive Buccaneer coming in had a rough go of it in Primetime.

S Jordan Whitehead

In pointing out the big play Jordan Whitehead and Zyon McCollum allowed above, I thought it would be the only mention of each of them. That proved not to be the case, as Whitehead’s woes continued throughout the game. Whitehead missed a handful of tackles and also gave up tackling Derrick Henry as he caught a short pass and ran it in for a touchdown in the fourth quarter. The veteran safety has cooled off after a hot start and has to clean up his tackling and coverage.

ILBs K.J. Britt And Lavonte David

Bucs ILB K.J. Britt – Photo by: USA Today

K.J. Britt has become more of a liability and less of a factor at inside linebacker. Throughout the game, Britt struggled in pass coverage up the middle of the field, allowing the Ravens’ trio of tight ends (Mark Andrews, Isaiah Likely, and Charlie Kolar) to settle in on their routes and find plenty of room to run.

As if that was not enough, Pro Football Focus’ lowest-graded inside linebacker was also called for a roughing the passer penalty that was key for Baltimore to advance the ball downfield toward the end of the first half.

It has been a tale of two Britts in Tampa Bay. After impressing down the stretch last year, it has been a largely disappointing season for the former fifth-round pick. Calls to bench him in favor of J.J. Russell or finding an outside replacement will only be growing louder.

It was not just him, though. Lavonte David also takes responsibility for allowing these plays to happen, and he was nowhere to be found, recording just two total tackles. The defense needed their veteran to make more of an impact, but he did not do enough.