After what was a bad loss to the Lions last week, the Bucs had a chance to rebound in a big way on Sunday afternoon at Raymond James Stadium. Hosting the Falcons, they had a chance to extend their lead atop the NFC South to 1.5 games. Instead, the offense was lifeless once again and the defense allowed big plays late as Atlanta walked it off, 16-13, on a 51-yard field goal by Younghoe Koo. With that, Tampa Bay lost its division lead.

The Bucs got the ball first and looked to get off to a decent start, crossing midfield before getting to a 4th & 6 at the Atlanta 42-yard line. Todd Bowles chose to go for it, but Baker Mayfield couldn’t find Deven Thompkins after escaping pressure, turning the ball over on downs.

With good field position, Desmond Ridder quickly got the Falcons down the field. Tight end Jonnu Smith did the most damage, with his second catch setting up a 1st & Goal at the 6. A few plays later, Ridder ran for a two-yard touchdown to put the Bucs in an early 7-0 hole with 6:48 left in the opening quarter.

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Deven Thompkins returned the ensuing kickoff to the 33-yard line to set up the offense for its second drive and after a few first downs, Tampa Bay tied the game with an explosive play. Mayfield unloaded a 40-yard touchdown pass to Mike Evans, who beat A.J. Terrell down the field.

The Bucs quickly forced a three-and-out from there and had a chance to keep the momentum going, but three penalties on their next offensive possession set them back. It was the Falcons that then stole momentum, with former Buc Scotty Miller beating Carlton Davis for a 45-yard pickup on the next drive.

Tampa Bay’s defense ultimately held up inside the 10-yard line, but Younghoe Koo came on and gave Atlanta a 10-7 lead at the 11:51 mark in the second quarter.

The Buccaneer offense came right back, with Mayfield finding Chris Godwin, Evans and Thompkins at different points in the drive to get down the field. A 22-yard pass to Rachaad White eventually set up 1st & Goal at the 6-yard line, but that’s where the drive stopped. Chase McLaughlin ended up coming on to drill a 24-yard field goal, tying the game at 10 with 5:14 left in the first half.

Bucs OLB Shaq Barrett and DT Calijah Kancey and Falcons QB Desmond Ridder – Photo by: USA Today

The Atlanta offense responded by marching right down the field on its next drive. But after getting to the 11-yard line and threatening to set up a chance to double up on points out of halftime, the Falcons did the last thing they could afford to do — turn the ball over. Shaq Barrett and Calijah Kancey got to Ridder, with Barrett knocking the ball loose for a fumble. Jamel Dean recovered, keeping the game tied at 10 before halftime.

The Bucs forced a three-and-out to start the second half, but the Falcons ended up right back in position to take the lead again after the Tampa Bay offense’s first drive of the third quarter ended with a Deven Thompkins fumble at the 27-yard line.

The game continued to swing from there, as the Falcons got inside the Bucs’ 1-yard line before Ridder fumbled the ball back to Tampa Bay. Rookie Yaya Diaby recovered it, keeping the game even at 10.

But after the Bucs couldn’t move the ball out of their own end zone, Atlanta’s potent rushing attack came to life. Ridder scrambled for 19 yards and Tyler Allgeier ran for another 12, and that was all the yardage needed to set up a go-ahead 41-yard field goal by Koo with 2:04 left in the third quarter.

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

The Buccaneer offense continued to go nowhere on its next drive, ultimately getting stuffed for a loss on third down. And despite Jake Camarda pinning the Falcons at their own 7-yard line, the visitors soon had a chance to put the game out of reach. A 46-yard pass from Ridder to Allgeier with Devin White out of position got the ball moving and Atlanta continued to move it from there.

Ridder then looked to extend the lead with a touchdown run, but Antoine Winfield Jr. didn’t give up on the play, instead punching the ball out for a fumble. The ball went out of bounds in the end zone, resulting in a touchback. Just like that, Tampa Bay had the ball back, down by three, with 6:30 to go.

Things were going well for the Bucs when Mayfield found Godwin for a 33-yard gain to the Falcons’ 28, but then disaster struck as Mayfield threw into double coverage and was intercepted by Richie Grant. With 3:41 to go, the ball went back to the Falcons.

Tampa Bay’s defense did its job from there, forcing a three-and-out to give the offense one more chance. A 31-yard run by Mayfield on 3rd & 9 got the ball to the Falcons’ 35 by the two-minute warning. A pass to Cade Otton and a defensive pass interference call at the 8-yard line set things up for the win, but two incompletions and a third-down sack forced the Bucs to settle for a field goal. McLaughlin nailed a 36-yarder, tying the game at 13 with 45 seconds to go.

But overtime wasn’t in the cards. Ryan Neal lost Kyle Pitts on the Falcons’ ensuing possession, with Pitts getting the visitors into field goal range. Koo came on and nailed a 51-yard field goal as time expired to send the Bucs to their second straight loss.

The Bucs (3-3) now face a short week before making the trip up to Buffalo for a game against the Bills (4-3) on Thursday Night Football. Kickoff is set for 8:15 p.m.