Tuesday, 4 a.m.

5 Thoughts

1. I understand that punter Riley Dixon is off to a wobbly start, and the Bucs need a punter who gets it off quickly. Still, blaming him for having a punt blocked on a sprint through the offensive line is like blaming a parked car that another driver smashed into. It's the protection, silly.

2. Why do people forget that Philadelphia, technically, is a pretty good football team?

3. Just asking: Did Quinyon Mitchell steal a few of the Bucs t-shirts Sunday? He sure did grab a lot of them.

4. No, I don't think Mike Evans will get to 1,000 yards this year. If they don't break him, Bucky Irving will.

5. Don't forget. Two of the Bucs' best three linemen are still out.

5 Comments

(From Todd Bowles' Monday press conference)

(On having a number of players leave due to injury in Week 4): "Quite a few. We're still processing the information and a couple of them have to get MRIs.)

(On if running back Bucky Irving is one of the players he's concerned about): "Yeah, he's one of them."

(On what happened on the blocked punt): "It wasn't really a stunt. We didn't help out like we should and it shouldn't have happened. It was a very routine play."

(On what his solution for the special teams’ woes are): "We're working on it. We've got solutions."

(On the team's slow starts defensively this season): "We come out well. It's just a different guy here or there that busts an assignment that causes a play to get going. Then, it's another guy on the next play, and another guy on the next play, and before you know it, they've got seven points."

Game Balls

Offense: Bucky Irving had 20 touches. He ran for 63 yards and caught passes for 102.

Defense: Vita Vea had two sacks. He needs some help.

Special teams: Chase McLaughlin kicked three field goals for 165 yards.

Grades

Quarterback: Baker Mayfield's stats were decent, but 149 of his yards came on two long passes. Grade: C.

Running back: Irving hasn't really had his breakout game yet, but he's been good. Grade: B+.

Offensive line: Not a great game against the Eagles' defensive line: Grade: C.

Wide receiver: The Eagles' secondary doesn't get called for holding much, do they? Grade: C.

Defensive line: Haason Reddick has been active, but he hasn't juiced the pass rush. Grade: C,

Linebacker: Lavonte David had just three tackles. Grade: C-.

Secondary: Five of the Bucs' top tacklers were defensive backs. The second half was excellent. Grade: B.

Special teams: Chase, thumbs up. Riley, thumbs down. Grade: C.

Longest field goals

1. Justin Tucker 66

2. Chase McLaughlin 65

3. Brandon Aubrey 65

4. Matt Prater 64

5. Brandon Aubrey 64

Rookie Wide Receivers

Emeka Egbuka 18 282 4

Tetairoa McMillan 18 278 0

Travis Hunter 13 118 0

Elic Ayomanir. 12 151 2

Matthew Golden 11 129 0

Power Rankings

1. Buffalo 4-0

2. Philadelphia 4-0

3. Detroit 3-1

4. Seattle 3-1

5. L.A. Chargers 3-1

Bottom 5

32. New Orleans 0-4

31. Tennessee O-4

30. N.Y. Jets. O-4

29. Miami 1-3

28. Cleveland 1-3

5 NFL Stars

1. Patrick Mahomes

2. Jaxon Dart

3. Michael Penix

4. Matthew Stafford

5. Chase McLaughlin

5 Flops

1. Adonai Mitchell

2. Minnesota offensive line

3. Cam Ward

4. Derrick Henry

5. Bryce Young

NFL Stats

Passing Yards Baker Mayfield 904 14

Rushing Yards Bucky Irving 237 17

Receiving Yards Emeka Egbuka 283 11

Tackles Tykee Smith 33 22

Field goals Chase McLaughlin 9 t-4

Monday, 4 a.m

The start was too slow. The mistakes were too plentiful. The hole was too deep.

And so it is that the Tampa Bay Bucs are no longer undefeated.

The Bucs lost their first game of the year Sunday, as the Philadelphia Eagles surged to a commanding lead in the first half and coasted, 31-25.

The Eagles played like the defending Super Bowl champions they are in the first half. They built a 24-6 lead and seemed as if they were a level higher than the Bucs.

The second half was better. Tampa Bay outscored Philadelphia 19-7 but fell just short.

The Eagles returned a block punt for a touchdown. They recovered a fumble at the Bucs' 25 and intercepted a pass in the end zone. They have won 20 of their last 21 games.

Overall, the Bucs had 376 to 200 yards for the Eagles, but their mistakes did them in.

In the second half, Baker Mayfield threw touchdowns of 77 yards to Emeke Egbuka and 72 yards to Bucky Irving. The Bucs defense held Jalen Hurts to incompletions on all eight of his passes.

In the first half, Mayfield had just 65 yards. Irving had 29 yards and Egbuka had two catches for 19 yards. Hurts was 15 of 16 with two interceptions.

Irving ended the game with five catches for 102 yards, while Egbuka had four catches for 101.

Placekicker Chase McLaughlin kicked field goals of 65 and 58 yards. The first of those was a franchise record.

Returner Kameron Johnson returned kickoffs and punts for 142 yards, including a 46-yard punt return.

The Bucs are on the road next week at 4:05 p.m. at Seattle.

Monday, 3 a.m.

If the finale surprised you, you haven't been paying attention.

The Tampa Bay Rays closed the book on their 2025 season with yet another disappointment. This time, they bowed to the Toronto Blue Jays in a 13-4 decision. It was their fourth straight loss, and their 85th of the season.

Alejandro Kirk had three hits, two of them homers, and drove in six runs to lead the Jays to the rout. Kirk's first-inning grand slam decided this one early. Addison Barger and George Springer added two-run homers.

The Rays came back to within 5-4 on a two-run single by Jonathan Aranda and a one-run single by Jake Mangum.

For the Rays, Richie Palacios had three hits and Aranda two.

The Rays face an important off-season with the change of ownership and repairs to Tropicana Field.