After starting the 2024 campaign with three wins in four games, the Bucs will now play their first NFC South game of the season on Thursday night. Tampa Bay will be in Atlanta for a primetime matchup with the Falcons, playing its first of back-to-back games in divisional play.

The Bucs have an early lead in the NFC South race, sitting at 3-1 while the Falcons and Saints trail behind them at 2-2 and the Panthers sit in last place at 1-3. Thursday night will be a big opportunity for Todd Bowles’ team to build on its lead atop the division, and then it’ll have another chance to do so in Week 6 with a trip to New Orleans.

But for now, let’s focus on the Falcons. In particular, let’s take a look at how some of the Bucs’ key players have fared against the Dirty Birds in the past? Tampa Bay as a franchise holds a 31-30 advantage in the all-time series, but what about this group of players? Let’s break it all down.

Baker Mayfield Has A Complicated History With The Falcons

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

There’s something to be said ahead of Thursday night’s game about the history that Baker Mayfield has with some of the coaches on the Atlanta sideline, as he spent some time with head coach Raheem Morris and offensive coordinator Zac Robinson when all three were in Los Angeles two seasons ago. But what about Mayfield’s history with the Falcons franchise? It’s a bit complicated.

Overall, Mayfield is 2-1 against the Falcons in his career, beating them as a rookie with the Browns in 2018 before splitting two meetings with them as a Buc last year. His numbers over those three games are pretty solid, too, as he has completed 63.7% of his passes against Atlanta while throwing for 635 yards and six touchdowns to just one interception. He has 12 carries for 55 yards and a touchdown against the Falcons as well.

So, what’s complicated about that? Well, it’s more so how Mayfield fared against the Falcons the two times he saw them last year. His 17-of-20, 216-yard, three-touchdown performance in that 2018 Browns win does a lot of work for the overall numbers. Tampa Bay’s signal-caller was less than impressive in the two meetings between the two sides last year.

In the first game, a 16-13 Bucs loss, Mayfield was 27-of-42 for 275 yards with a touchdown and an interception while adding 32 yards on three carries. It wasn’t good enough, but he nearly made up for it in the waning moments of the game by leading a late drive that saw the Bucs threaten to take a late lead. But instead, they had to settle for a game-tying field goal before the Falcons drove down the field and won it at the end with a field goal of their own.

The story was similar in Tampa Bay’s Week 14 win at Atlanta. Mayfield was largely ineffective throughout the game, but his overall numbers tell two stories. He was 14-of-29 (not great) for 144 yards (also not great) and two touchdowns (good), plus he ran for another touchdown to give him three total touchdowns on the day (good). One of those was the game-winner to Cade Otton, a touchdown pass that gave the Bucs a 29-25 win and the top spot in the NFC South at the time.

Mayfield will surely look to play a better all-around game this time, though he’ll have to do so against some coaches who know him pretty well.

Bucs’ Legendary Receivers Have Loads Of Production vs. Falcons

Bucs WR Mike Evans and Falcons CB AJ Terrell – Photo by: USA Today

Unsurprisingly, both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin have had some major success against the Falcons over the course of their respective careers. Playing them twice a year for as long as they have, they’re bound to have some gaudy-looking stats, right?

Over 18 career games against Atlanta, Evans has 92 catches (on 149 targets) for 1,407 yards and 11 touchdowns. Those 1,407 yards are the second-most for him against any team, while the 11 touchdowns are tied for the most he has against any one team. He has three multi-touchdown games against the Falcons, as well as four 100-yard games. His best game was an 11-catch, 150-yard, two-touchdown game in November of 2016.

Last year, though, Evans’ numbers against the Falcons were less eye-catching. He had a solid six catches (on eight targets) for 82 yards and a touchdown in the first meeting, but the second meeting saw him limited to one catch (on six target) for eight yards.

Bucs WR Chris Godwin – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Godwin, on the other hand, has more production against the Falcons in his career than any other team. In 13 games, he has 72 catches (on 100 targets) for 998 yards and nine touchdowns. He’s torched Atlanta on several occasions, so it’s hard to narrow down his best performance out of these:

Dec. 30, 2018 – 6 catches (9 targets), 114 yards, 2 TD, 19.0 avg.
Nov. 24, 2019 – 7 catches (8 targets), 184 yards, 2 TD, 26.3 avg.
Jan. 3, 2021 – 5 catches (7 targets), 133 yards, 2 TD, 26.6 avg.
Dec. 5, 2021 – 15 catches (17 targets), 143 yards, 9.5 avg. 

Godwin has three multi-touchdown games against the Falcons, as well as four 100-yard games against them. Over two meetings last year, he totaled 11 catches (on 23 targets) for 119 yards (10.8 avg.).

Rachaad White Is Coming Off His Best Game vs. Falcons

Rachaad White is only in the third year of his career, so he’s seen the Falcons just four times so far. And remember, he spent most of his rookie year with the Bucs as a backup to Leonard Fournette, so he didn’t have much of a chance to make an impression on the two games against Atlanta. Last year, it was a mixed bag. But he is coming off his best game against them, and that was one of the better games of his career as a whole.

Bucs RB Rachaad White – Photo by: USA Today

In the first meeting last year, White was limited to only 34 yards on 13 carries (2.6 avg.), but he did catch all six of his targets for 65 yards (10.8 avg.).

But it was the Week 14 win at Atlanta that saw White take over. He ran 25 times for 102 yards (4.1 avg.) in that game, plus he caught both of his targets, with one going for a 31-yard touchdown. That was one of his three career 100-yard rushing games.

Over the four games against the Falcons, White has a modest 47 carries for 165 yards (3.5 avg.) on the ground. But he has an impressive 11 catches (on 12 targets) for 102 yards (11.5 avg.) and a touchdown over those four games, too. Perhaps it bodes well for him that on Thursday night, he’s returning to the stadium where he had one of the best all-around performances of his career.

Bucs’ Star Defenders Have Made Some Big-Time Plays vs. Falcons

The Bucs are pretty young for the most part on defense, but they do have some key veterans who have played extremely well against the Falcons in their careers.

Up front, Vita Vea has some big numbers against Atlanta. In eight games, Vea has five sacks, seven quarterback hits and yes, a receiving touchdown. 

🚨 THIS IS NOT A DRILL 🚨

VITA VEA HAS HAULED IN HIS FIRST CAREER TOUCHDOWN pic.twitter.com/UXlButlO9H

— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) November 24, 2019

Bucs ILB Lavonte David – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

The longtime playmaker in the middle of the Bucs defense has a busy stat sheet against the Falcons, too. Lavonte David has matched up with Atlanta 23 times in his career, and over those 23 games, he has 175 tackles (124 solo), one sack, 23 tackles for loss, four quarterback hits, one interception, eight passes defensed, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.

Those 124 solo tackles are his second-most against any team, as are his eight passes defensed. But his 23 tackles for loss is his most against any one team in his career. What was probably his best game against the Falcons came a long time ago, when David was only in his third season with the Bucs. On Sept. 18, 2014, he racked up nine tackles (seven solo), a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.

And finally, there’s 2023 All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr., who Todd Bowles and the Bucs would absolutely love to have back on Thursday night. Of course, they’d love to have him back in the lineup anyway, but when you consider the plays he’s made in recent matchups with the Falcons, it becomes even more pressing to get him back on the field.

In eight career games against the Falcons, Winfield has 59 tackles (40 solo), three tackles for loss, two sacks, three quarterback hits, six passes defensed, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. He has more tackles (combined and solo), passes defensed and forced fumbles against Atlanta than any other team in the league. And so much of that production came last year.

Bucs S Antoine Winfield Jr. and Falcons QB Desmond Ridder – Photo by: USA Today

In the first meeting in Tampa, it was his touchdown-saving forced fumble on Desmond Ridder that got the headlines. He chased down the Atlanta quarterback and knocked the ball loose just before it broke the goal line. Instead of a touchdown that would help the Falcons expand their lead, it was a touchback that kept the Bucs in the game.

In the Week 14 win at Atlanta, Winfield got to Ridder again. He had eight tackles (four solo) and a sack-fumble in that game.

Over those two games in 2023, Winfield racked up 15 tackles (eight solo), a sack and two forced fumbles.

The Bucs and Falcons will write the next chapter in their long history together on Thursday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, with kickoff set for 8:15 p.m. ET.