Monday, 4 a.m.
Once again, the Bucs lost.
Is anyone surprised?
Lately, it seems all the Bucs do is lose. They are on a nightmare streak, losers of seven of their last eight games. A once-promising season has gone dark. What was once very good has turned very bad, and it doesn't look as if it will get better.
The Bucs lost to a less-than-average Miami team, 20-17, Sunday. The Dolphins were starting a rookie quarterback for the second time. Their defense had given up 45 points last week.
And they walloped the Bucs, who have now lost seven of eight games.
The Dolphins ran for 145 yards, and newbie Quinn Ewers threw for two touchdowns against a weak Bucs' defense.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield continued his horrible second half, throwing two interceptions and losing a fumble. The Bucs are 0-8 when Mayfield throws an interception. The Bucs also had a field goal blocked, the first time Chase McLaughlin has missed from more than 50 yards(12 attempts).
Oh, Mayfield did throw for 346 yards. Jalen McMillan caught seven passes for 114 yards, Chris Godwin caught seven for 108.
But remember how stubborn the Bucs were in trying to run the ball last week? This time, they ran just 16 times for 53 yards.
For the Bucs, the only positive was that Carolina also lost 27-10 at Seattle. That means the winner of next week's game -- at Tampa Bay's Raymond James Stadium -- wins the NFC South and make the playoffs.
Do they deserve it? Probably not, but teams have backed into the post-season before. A bigger concern is how the Bucs have become an awful team. In their second half, the Bucs compare with the worst teams in the NFL.
The Bucs are home against Carolina Sunday.
