The Buccaneers bounced back with an impressive win on the road against the Falcons, notching six sacks and two turnovers to defeat Atlanta 35-22 on Sunday.

Here is our weekly list of the players who really stood out in the win.

WR Chris Godwin

Godwin was unstoppable early on Sunday, hauling in six passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns in the first half alone, including a nearly impossible touchdown grab that game the Bucs a 13-10 lead in the second quarter.

Godwin finished the game with seven receptions on eight targets, his longest catch going for a 71-yard touchdown in the first half, two touchdowns and a career-high 184 yards.

DT Vita Vea
Vea and Ndamukong Suh were a force up the middle the entire game on Sunday, with Vea standing out not just on defense.

While Vea finished the game with two tackles, a pass deflection and a third down sack in the fourth quarter, Vea’s biggest play of the day came out of a goal line package on offense where the defensive tackle hauled in a one-yard reception for his first touchdown of his career.

CB Jamel Dean
After a stellar performance against the Cardinals, Dean didn’t see the field for a single defensive snap against New Orleans in Week 11. Bruce Arians stated multiple times throughout the week that Dean needed to be on the field and he returned to action against the Falcons, making his presence known early and often as he was rotated in, often lining up opposite WR Calvin Ridley who finished the game with two receptions on six targets for 26 yards.

Dean finished the day with two tackles and five pass breakups.

ILB Devin White
White had another building block performance on Sunday.

Despite briefly leaving the game to be evaluated for an injury in the second half, White ended the game with eight total tackles. Not just used as a weapon in coverage, White had a very good day when sent to pressure Matt Ryan, adding two sacks and bringing his season total to 2.5 sacks. White also had eight stops to finish second on the team, tied with Lavonte David and one less the Sean Murphy-Bunting.

QB Jameis Winston
Early in the game Winston was destined for the Most Disappointing List. Despite a rough start, throwing an interception on his first pass of the game and adding another interception on an ill-advised jump pass intended for Dare Ogunbowale in the first quarter, Winston quickly turned his performance around.

Winston bounced back and made some impressive throws including the 71-yarder to Chris Godwin for the Bucs first score. Winston finished 18-of-28 for 313 yards, three scores and two interceptions.

CB Carlton Davis
Davis has struggled in coverage this season, both when locking down his marked receiver and avoiding penalties, but he turned the tides on Sunday against an explosive Atlanta offense playing his best game of the year.

Davis finished with five pass breakups including a big interception, the first of his career in Tampa Bay.

Bucs Offensive Line
28 pass attempts, and no sacks. Football is a pretty simple game. The team that blocks the best and tackles there best usually wins. On Sunday in Atlanta the Tampa Bay offensive line rebounded from a tw- sack, 12-hit game to limit the Falcons to just one quarterback hit.

Bucs Coaching Staff
We haven’t been shy in our criticism of the Bucs coaching staff, from Byron Leftwich’s play calling to Todd Bowles defense being one of the worst in the NFL. But on Sunday, both sides of the football did their best coaching of the season snd had terrific game plans that were executed well. Maybe as important was a clear message accepted by the players that this season isn’t over. There was no signs of tanking. Complimentary football is a phrase tossed around quite a bit these, days and sometimes coaching is a forgotten part of that equation. On Sunday it mattered, and was evident.

Honorable Mentions: DT Ndamukong Suh, P Bradley Pinion, CB Sean Murphy Bunting, LB Lavonte David

– Mark Cook and Taylor Jenkins combined on this report

 

 

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Bucs Hc Bruce Arians – Photo By: Getty ImagesArians Pleased With Bucs Secondary Growth On Sunday
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