Buccaneers Creamsicle Day Gets Ruined After Ugly Performance Against Lions, 20-6
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Detroit Lions were playing in one of the best matchups of the day.
Both teams were at the top of their divisions headed into Sunday, this game could mean a lot down the line when these teams are fighting for playoff seeds.
The Buccaneers also brought back their original creamsicle jersey's for this game with the entire stadium decked out in orange.
Game Recap
The Buccaneers offense was unlucky early on with a tipped interception that put the Lions offense on the Buccaneers 12-yard line.
If the ball wasn't tipped it would have been a potential touchdown play to Mike Evans who was wide open. Luckily the Buccaneers defense held their own in the redzone and held the Lions to a field goal.
The defense continued to make some key stops early as well, Lavontae David had a great pass breakup on Sam Laporta that killed the Lions momentum.
While Baker Mayfield was accurate early on, the Buccaneers running game struggled and put them in some difficult third down situations. The offense was 2-7 on third down in the first half.
On the other side of the ball the Buccaneers defense was holding off the Lions in the first half, until they didn't.
The Lions second to last drive of the first half went 75-yards with a touchdown on a 3rd and 13 conversion to Amon-Ra St. Brown.
The Buccaneers defense was very good in the first half, especially the rushing defense that held Detroit to just 22 yards on 10 carries.
Lavontae David stuffed the stat sheet with a sack, tackle for loss, pass breakup, and QB hit. The front seven stepped up big in the first half and did an excellent job limiting the Lions explosive plays.
Early on the offense struggled to move the ball upfield, but toward the end of the half they found some life. Three of the first four drives on offense were quick punts, then the Bucs led a field goal drive inside the red zone.
Unfortunately the next drive was short with a big miss from Baker Mayfield who had Trey Palmer wide open for a likely touchdown.
After the half, the Buccaneers offense had their best drive of the day and led the ball all the ways to the Lions 8-yard line. Along the way Mayfield found Evans and Godwin for nice chunk plays.
But then a series of a costly penalty and not called penalties forced the Buccaneers to settle for a field goal.
The defense started the half strong, holding the Lions offense in check. But a huge Jameson Williams 45-yard touchdown put the pressure back on the Buccaneers.
From that point on in the game, the Lions outclassed the Buccaneers and were the dominant team. The Lions played excellent ball control football and played smart, unlike the Bucs.
Todd Bowles also had a very conservative punt on 4th and 2 down two scores in the 4th quarter. While it may not have won the game, decisiding to punt sealed the Bucs fate on Sunday.
Baker Mayfield and the offense looked more pedestrian across the entire second half. He had missed throws downfield to Trey Palmer and the running offense struggled to move the ball.
While the offense was able to be very successful on third down through the first four games of the season, they went just 2-12 on third down.
Overall the Buccaneers defense was able to play okay against one of the best offenses in the league. They only allowed 20 points, but the Lions controlled possession throughout this game and were 9-16 on third down.
A tough game to watch after such a hot start from the Buccaneers on both sides of the ball.
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