Don’t Panic — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers Will Be Just Fine Following Loss To Kansas City Chiefs

The 2022 Tampa Bay Buccaneers are far from a perfect team.

The Buccaneers fell to the Kansas City Chiefs, 41-31, in a game that really wasn’t close during the entire night. From the time Tampa Bay fumbled the opening kickoff until the final meaningless pass from Tom Brady to Russell Gage, the Buccaneers were simply outplayed.

Through the first three weeks of the season, the defensive unit was the best in the NFL. Despite a lackluster offense that only produced 17.0 points per game, the defense held opponents to just nine points per game.

This game was the exact opposite of what was seen over the first three weeks of the season.

For the first time all season long, the Buccaneers’ defense came up small. And for the first time so far this season, the offensive unit finally came alive.

Behind the returns of Tampa Bay’s big trio of receivers in Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Julio Jones, the Buccaneers scored a season-high 31 points. In fact, it was their highest-scoring output since their Wild Card playoff victory over the Philadelphia Eagles last season.

The Buccaneers were actually efficient on third down for the first time all season long, going 6-for-10. Tampa Bay was actually just 12-of-42 (28.6%) on third-down conversions for the season entering this game. During the 2021 campaign, the Buccaneers converted on 44.8% of their money downs, ranking fifth in the league.

Brady was his usual efficient self, technically “outplaying” his young rival, Patrick Mahomes. The 45-year-old veteran went 39-for-52 for 385 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions and a 114.7 quarterback rating. Meanwhile, Mahomes went 23-of-37 for 249 passing yards, three touchdowns, one interception and a 97.7 quarterback rating.

However, the defense failed him and the offense at the worst time.

“It’s a team sport. We didn’t play great on offense. We didn’t help (the defense) much, either,” Brady said after the game.

“We didn’t do great in the first half,” Brady continued. “Too many missed opportunities on third downs, turnovers. We gotta play a lot better to be one of the good teams. We haven’t played our best yet this year.”

The Buccaneers are now 2-2. And while the record is lackluster and the play has been pedestrian, there’s not enough reason to panic.

Remember, this is a team that plays in the worst division in all of football in the NFC South and they’re still tied for first place in that very division with the 2-2 Atlanta Falcons,

Yes, the Falcons. An Atlanta squad led by a starting quarterback — Marcus Mariota — who hadn’t served as a starter in the NFL since the 2019 season and just won a game in which he completed 7-of-19 passes for 139 yards and an interception.

The Buccaneers just so happen to get a chance to claim sole supremacy in the NFC South when they play host to the mistake-prone Falcons in Week 5.

Tampa Bay has its flaws. The run defense was absolutely gashed by a Kansas City offense — 37 carries for 189 yards, 5.1 yards per attempt — not known for its running game. The defense had absolutely no answer for Mahomes and Travis Kelce (nine receptions, 92 yards and a touchdown), which is a bit concerning considering the Bucs will have to find a way to slow down elite quarterbacks if they want another chance at the Super Bowl.

“Everything in this game fell on the defensive side of the ball,” Bucs coach Todd Bowles said following the loss. “You name it we did it. Missed tackles. Missed assignments. Bad calls.”

But the offense came alive with its full group of receivers healthy for the first time in a full game all season long (Evans, Godwin, Jones and Russell Gage).

In fact, the Buccaneers actually outproduced the Chiefs in yards per play (6.4 to 5.4) and Brady actually threw for more yards per attempt than Mahomes (7.0 to 5.7).

It’s only four games into the season. There’s still 13 of them left.

Tampa Bay may not look like the team to beat right now. Heck, they may not even end up with the best record — or one of the best records — in the NFC by season’s end.

But all they need to do is get into the playoffs. Playing in the NFC South ensures they’ll be a division winner at the very least with a home playoff game.

Remember the 2020 Buccaneers? The same squad that ended up winning the Super Bowl and defeating these same Mahomes-led Chiefs less than two years ago?

The 2020 squad started out the season 7-5 and seemed to reach an absolute low point following a humbling loss to — guess who — the Chiefs — in Week 12. Not only were the Buccaneers struggling just to get into the playoffs, they looked like a clearly inferior team to their division rivals, the New Orleans Saints, who had started out the season 9-2 up until that point and had swept Tampa Bay during the regular season.

The Buccaneers actually entered the postseason as a wild card — fifth seed — and won three games on the road before winning Super Bowl LV at their home stadium.

This isn’t a finished product through four weeks. Just like the 2020 Buccaneers weren’t a finished product through 12 games.

As long as Tampa Bay wills its way into the playoffs with a healthy core — something they failed to do last postseason with key injuries to Chris Godwin and Tristan Wirfs — the Buccaneers will be one of the teams in it at the end.

Remember who’s the quarterback here. As long as Brady is in the fold, the Buccaneers will always have a chance.

It may not seem like it now, but expect the Buccaneers to be just fine by season’s end.

They have flaws to fix. But they have plenty of time to do it.