Monday, 4 a.m.
Brock Purdy was perfect. The Tampa Bay Bucs, however, were not.
Brandon Aiyuk was elusive. The Bucs were eluded.
The San Francisco 49ers finished strong. The Bucs were finished early.
And there you have it, the story of a complete team vs. one that still has flaws. The 49ers had a better running game, more dangerous receivers, a better run defense and a more competitive secondary. No wonder they won.
True, it might have been closer than some expected. Still, a 13-point victory (27-14) is decisive enough in the NFL.
It could have been closer. The Bucs were stopped twice in the red zone in the fourth quarter — once on downs and once on an interception. But there was never a feel that the Bucs were going to win.
The first reason is the Bucs didn’t have enough defense. Purdy had a perfect quarterback grade of 158.3. Aiyuk caught 158 yards worth of passes. The 49ers held the Bucs to 66 yards rushing.
Mayfield threw for 246 yards, but his rating was just 76.7.
The loss leaves the Bucs at 4-6. They’ve lost five of their last six.
Tampa Bay travels to Indianapolis Sunday at 1 p.m.