It’s time for PewterReport.com’s 2-Point Conversion post-game column, which features two statements, two questions and two predictions based on the latest Bucs game. Tampa Bay lost back-to-back games for the first time this season, falling to Atlanta 31-26 as Baker Mayfield’s Hail Mary attempt failed on the last play of the game. The Falcons improved to 5-3 on the year and 4-0 in the division, sweeping the Bucs, who are now 4-4 and just 1-2 in the NFC South.

Todd Bowles and his defense continues to be the main culprit in yet another Bucs loss, while Liam Coen’s offense fought hard in Tampa Bay’s first game without wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.

2 BIG STATEMENTS

STATEMENT 1. Todd Bowles – “26 Points Should’ve Been Enough”

There’s no finger-pointing in the Bucs locker room or at the team headquarters. This is a tight-knit Tampa Bay team and head coach Todd Bowles won’t stand for it.

So please allow me to point the finger instead – right at Bowles and defense.

Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

When Bowles was asked about the job that offensive coordinator Liam Coen did in having to manufacture some yards and plays without the team’s top two weapons in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, he felt the offense did enough to win the game.

“I thought they fought,” Bowles said. “They did some good things. They had time of possession and made some plays. You don’t like the false starts, but overall, those guys fought hard – 26 points should be enough.”

And he’s right.

Sort of.

The only problem is that Bowles’ defense – after surrendering 30 points or more for the third time in the last four games – now ranks 28th in scoring defense, allowing 26.6 points per game.

But if Tampa Bay could play competently on defense, and maybe hold teams to 22 points or less, which is middle of the pack league-wide this year, then 26 points truly should be enough to win.

There’s no excuse for the Bucs defense to be this bad. General manager Jason Licht and the personnel department have stocked this unit with a trio of first-round picks in defensive tackles Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey and outside linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, a trio of second-rounders in All-Pro safety Antoine Winfield Jr., defensive tackle Logan Hall and outside linebacker Chris Braswell, and a trio of third-rounders in outside linebacker Yaya Diaby and cornerbacks Jamel Dean and Tykee Smith. Dean is on injured reserve and Smith was out with a concussion.

Bucs FS Antoine Winfield Jr. and ILB Lavonte David – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Perhaps the team’s best defender this year, cornerback Zyon McCollum, is a fifth-round pick. As was inside linebacker SirVocea Dennis, who has been sidelined on injured reserve after having shoulder surgery. Oh, how the defense has missed Dennis in coverage as well as blitzing since Week 3.

Not all of those draft picks have been hits just yet, but there is certainly enough talent for Bowles and his defensive coaches to work with to assemble a defense that should be giving far less than 26.6 points per game.

Licht and the front office also re-signed longtime inside linebacker Lavonte David and strong safety Jordan Whitehead this offseason, both of whom have won a Super Bowl in Tampa Bay along with Winfield, Vea, Dean and outside linebacker Anthony Nelson, a former fourth-round pick. Talent really isn’t the issue, but most of these players – these veterans – just aren’t playing well as teams like Atlanta score touchdowns seemingly at will against Bowles’ defense.

The Bucs are 30th in yards allowed at 387 per game, 29th in passing yards allowed at 255.4 per game, and 20th in rushing yards allowed in 121.6 yards per game. For the second straight game, Tampa Bay’s defense hasn’t really created a takeaway. The Bucs recovered a fumble on a backward pass by Lamar Jackson in a 41-31 loss on Monday Night Football, and Kirk Cousins mishandled a handoff to Tyler Allgeier near the goal line and the fumble rolled through the back of the end zone for a safety.

But Tampa Bay’s defense truly hasn’t forced a takeaway to offset the four interceptions Baker Mayfield has thrown in the past two weeks like they did when he threw three picks in a 51-27 win at New Orleans against rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler.

Bucs DTs Calijah Kancey and Vita Vea – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

None of the Bucs’ stars on defense shined against the Falcons. David looks slow in coverage. Neither Diaby nor Tryon-Shoyinka nor Kancey nor Vea got to Cousins. Whitehead had a coverage bust on the first Kyle Pitts touchdown, and while Winfield heroically tried to force a fumble on Pitts’ second score, the replay official didn’t think he forced it before the Falcons tight end crossed the goal line.

The players need to play better, but Bowles and his staff need to coach better and scheme better. The job of any coach is to bring out the best in his players. The job of any play-caller is to aid the players by putting them in the best position to make some plays.

If this level of catastrophe continues to happen in Tampa Bay and the defense costs the team a chance at making the playoffs because Bowles couldn’t fix the issues on his side of the ball, it could likely cost him his job at the end of the season.

STATEMENT 2. Liam Coen’s Patchwork Offense Is Even Better Than Expected

Bucs OC Liam Coen – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

If you would have told me before the game that Tampa Bay would out-gain Atlanta and put up 432 yards of total offense, including 102 yards on the ground, with Baker Mayfield throwing for three touchdowns and offensive coordinator Liam Coen’s unit converting 64.3% (9-of-14) on third down – all without star receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin – I would have suspected that the Bucs pulled the upset and won.

But of course, Tampa Bay didn’t.

Getting 24 points from Coen’s makeshift offense and a two-point safety from a Falcons mishap wasn’t enough to overcome the 31 points surrendered by the Bucs defense, including 24 in the first half alone.

But what Coen, a rookie NFL offensive play-caller, was able to do with a very young and inexperienced receiver corps outside of aging, 30-year-old veteran Sterling Shepard, was nothing short of amazing. Mayfield’s two interceptions were costly, as he got a little too daring on a couple of second-half throws. But he did complete 37-of-50 passes (74%) for 330 yards and a trio of TDs, including two to tight end Cade Otton, who had a team-high nine catches for 81 yards.

Bucs WR Rakim Jarrett – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

I’m coming around to Otton, who might be developing into a Cam Brate-type tight end in Tampa Bay before our eyes.

Shepard (three catches, 18 yards), Trey Palmer (two catches, 29 yards), Ryan Miller (three catches, 19 yards) and rookie Jalen McMillan (four catches for 35 yards and a 17-yard end around) all chipped in, but none dazzled. The best receiver Tampa Bay had on Sunday was second-year-pro Rakim Jarrett, who had three catches for 58 yards (19.3 avg.) and nearly caught a deflected Hail Mary pass for a touchdown – expect that he was about two feet out of bounds in the back of the end zone.

I’d like to see a more prominent role for Jarrett moving forward, especially in the F role in the slot, replacing Godwin because he has the build for it.

And we need to see more of Sean Tucker.

You remember him, right?

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield and RB Sean Tucker – Photo by: USA Today

The NFC Offensive Player of the Week winner from Week 6? The guy that totaled 192 yards and two touchdowns versus the Saints?

If Coen had a fault on Sunday in life after Evans and Godwin it was only giving his fastest offensive weapon three touches – two carries for three yards backed up near the Bucs’ own end zone, and one catch for nine yards. Bucky Irving led the Bucs with 44 yards on nine carries (4.9 avg.) and had seven catches for 40 yards, while Rachaad White had six carries for 29 yards (4.8 avg.) and five receptions for 38 yards.

A much greater challenge awaits in Kansas City next Monday night against a great Steve Spagnuolo defense. But Coen showed off his adaptability and creativity enough against the Falcons to suggest that the Bucs have at least a fighting chance offensively against the Chiefs.

2 PROBING QUESTIONS

QUESTION 1. Did Kirk Cousins Really Sweep The Bucs?

Falcons QB Kirk Cousins – Photo by: USA Today

Yes. Prior to his arrival in Atlanta, Todd Bowles’ defense had some success against Kirk Cousins, beating him with the Vikings in 2020 and also in the 2023 season opener at Minnesota. In those two games combined, Cousins threw for three touchdowns, two interceptions and fumbled three times while being sacked eight times.

But the Falcons signed Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract with $100 million in guaranteed money for a reason: to beat the Buccaneers and win the NFC South title.

So far, so good for Cousins and the Falcons in that initiative. Cousins has thrown a combined eight touchdowns – four in each victory – against Bowles’ defense this year with only one interception and one botched handoff to Tyler Allgeier, which resulted in a safety in Sunday’s 31-26 win over the Bucs at Raymond James Stadium. Neither turnover proved to be costly, nor did the six combined sacks Tampa Bay’s defense had versus Cousins in the two games against Atlanta this season.

What’s incredible is that Cousins has been nearly invincible versus Tampa Bay but just average against other teams. Of his 14 touchdown passes this year, eight have come against the Bucs. That means he’s only thrown six touchdowns in the Falcons’ other six games – along with six interceptions. The Falcons are 3-3 in their other five games this season, including losses to Seattle, Kansas City and Pittsburgh in which Atlanta has only scored 14, 17 and 10 points, respectively.

QUESTION 2. Can We Be Done With The Creamsicle Uniforms Now?

Bucs throwback creamsicle flags – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

I hope so. I know the players like playing in the throwback jerseys, and Bucs fans have bought plenty of the nostalgic merch, but can we make a deal when it comes to the creamsicles? The Bucs have now lost five straight games in the old orange and white uniforms – 2010, 2011, 2012, 2023 and 2024 – with the only win in creamsicles coming in the debut of the throwback game in 2009. The Bucs need to wear the throwback uniforms against the Panthers in 2025. That would be the best game to attempt to break the creamsicle curse.

If Tampa Bay can’t beat Carolina next year at home then it’s time to bury Bucco Bruce once and for all. Or at least for a decade. Can we make that deal? Seriously, the novelty has worn off on me.

Listen, the creamsicle uniforms are not the reason why the Bucs lost on Sunday. But those orange and white uniforms and the winking pirate logo have been synonymous with losing for decades, which is why the Glazers decided to completely overhaul the team’s look and logo in 1997 in favor of red and pewter – a color that is totally unique to the Buccaneers. Sorry folks, but pewter > orange.

The team even tried to honor the 1979 Bucs NFC Central division championship team at halftime, but most fans headed to the concession stands instead – despite numerous pleas on the Jumbotron for them to remain in their seats for the halftime presentation. I would say that the majority of Bucs fans in attendance for yesterday’s loss to the Falcons weren’t even following the team back in 1979. And my guess is that at least half of Tampa Bay’s fans at Ray-Jay didn’t start liking the team until they wore pewter and red.

It’s time to leave the past in the past. Unfortunately, the Creamsicle Curse appears to be real.

2 BOLD PREDICTIONS

PREDICTION 1. Bucs Destined For A 4-6 Record Heading Into The Bye Week

Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

We knew this was going to be the toughest stretch of Tampa Bay’s schedule when it came out in May – from Week 5 to Week 10. That’s when the Bucs had a pair of divisional games against the Falcons, one against the NFC South rival Saints, plus three games against elite NFL teams like Baltimore, Kansas City and San Francisco. The Bucs got off to an identical 3-1 start this year like they did a year ago, and seem destined to hit another midseason skid with losses looming against the Chiefs and 49ers.

It will be difficult for Tampa Bay to finish this six-game stretch anything other than 1-5 with that lone win coming at New Orleans. The Bucs have already been swept by the Falcons and have lost to the Ravens. The Chiefs are undefeated and Patrick Mahomes should feast on the Bucs’ putrid defense, which looks absolutely lost in coverage and can’t get to the quarterback with any regularity. The 49ers seem to be getting their act together and are now 4-4 with Buc-killer Christian McCaffrey set to return against Bowles’ defense.

The Bucs had an improbable 5-1 run to end last year 9-8. Can they do it again after the bye week and go at least 6-1 down the stretch? I haven’t seen enough evidence to believe that can happen the way the defense is playing right now.

PREDICTION 2. Todd Bowles Defense Is Going To Be Embarrassed (Again) In Primetime

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes – Photo by: USA Today

Get ready for it. Be prepared to be disappointed. It’s doubtful that Todd Bowles rectifies what’s wrong with his defense against a team like Kansas City, against a play-caller like Andy Reid and a quarterback like Patrick Mahomes. The Falcons embarrassed the Bucs defense on Thursday Night Football. The Ravens embarrassed the Bucs defense on Monday Night Football. Now it’s the Chiefs’ turn to do the same – at home at Arrowhead where Kansas City doesn’t lose often, especially in primetime where Mahomes tends to shine.

The Bucs offense was able to score 24 points against a lesser defense like the Falcons. Tampa Bay might be hard-pressed to do that against Kansas City, which has really become more of a defensive team under defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo – despite the fact that Mahomes is under center, Travis Kelce is still at tight end and Reid is calling plays. That’s why the Chiefs have won back-to-back Super Bowls and seem headed for a possible three-peat.

I could see the Bucs offense mustering up 20 points at Kansas City, as the Raiders did on Sunday, but I can also see Bowles’ defense surrendering 30 points or more again in prime time – unfortunately.