3 Up, 3 Down From the Buccaneers' Week 8 Loss to the Falcons

Here are some of favorite and least favorite performances from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Week 8 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

Oct 27, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) greets Atlanta Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins (18) after a game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images / Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were in it late in the game, but defensive struggles and sloppy play prevented them from beating the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday. The Bucs dropped that NFC South game 31-26 on Sunday, going down 2-0 to the Falcons and falling to 4-4 on the year. With an offensive performance that still fired, there was some good and bad in the five-point loss.

Here are our 3 Up and 3 Down from Sunday's creamsicle throwback:

3 Up

Bucky Irving

Bucky Irving remains a wonder at running back. Able to evade tackles at an atonishing rate, Irving bobbed and weaved his way into 4.9 yards per carry on nine attempts. One of his best runs came on a 15 yard run that saw him find every lane through the defense and he was able to turn a carry that surely looked like a two-yard loss into a one-yard gain by ducking through the defense. His abilty to break tackles is real and he showed it well on Sunday.

Cade Otton

Happy National Tight Ends Day! Cade Otton made it count, recording two touchdowns and serving as Tampa Bay's leading receiver on the day with nine receptions for 81 yards. He cooled down after an explosive first quarter, but he caught Tampa Bay's last touchdown toward the end of the game to put them back in it.

Liam Coen

Offensive coordinator Liam Coen didn't have Mike Evans or Chris Godwin, but he made it work anyway. Tampa Bay's offense scored 24 points in the game and rushed for 4.6 yards per carry, showing that he can make it work without his stars. A poor defensive performance didn't earn him the win, but Coen has plenty to be proud of after this performance.

READ MORE: Bucs Lose to Falcons 31-26 Behind Defensive Failures

3 Down

Todd Bowles

Communication issues and a lack of concentration have plagued this Buccaneers defense for weeks, and head coach Todd Bowles has yet to get a handle on it. Bowles is the defensive coordinator, but his unit remains undisciplined through these last few games. There have been injuries, yes, but the Bucs should still not be giving up 27 points or more in their last three showings.

Tyrek Funderburk

Funderburk is a UDFA, so this isn't too much of an indictment on him, and for what it's worth, he made a good play defending a deep pass against Darnell Mooney early in the game. But continued poor play from that point on in relief of Jamel Dean led to him eventually getting benched for Josh Hayes in the back half of the game. Funderburk is a raw product and needs NFL experience, so it's hard to fault him when he isn't a starter at this point, but he had a rough full game against the Falcons.

Baker Mayfield

Baker Mayfield has played good football this year, but he's been unable to play clean this last few weeks. Mayfield has had seven interceptions in three weeks, and while his defense could be better, the lack of points on Tampa Bay's own side of the field was costly against the Falcons on Sunday. Mayfield had just 10 interceptions the entire year last year, so he'll need to do anything he can to keep those down going forward.

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