The Buccaneers were at home for Monday night’s game against the Eagles, but they weren’t favored to beat a team that lost five of their last six games in the regular season.
Oddsmakers got that call wrong. The Bucs rolled to a 32-9 win behind a big night from quarterback Baker Mayfield. Mayfield went 22-of-36 for 337 yards and three touchdowns and referenced the team’s underdog status as well as his own rollercoaster ride through the NFL over the last few years while speaking to reporters after the win.
“It’s always fun to be counted out,” Mayfield said, via Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. “Obviously, I’m pretty comfortable in it, but our team has completely embraced that.”
The Bucs will now head to Detroit to face the Lions and they’ll be on the wrong side of the point spread once again. Mayfield won’t be bothered by that and head coach Todd Bowles said he doesn’t think that’ll be an issue for anyone else either.
“They were ready to play,” Bowles said. “We’re not going in there trying to play for a tie, we were going for the win. We knew we were underdogs, and we will be underdogs next week, too. We understand that, and we embrace it. We like it. Guys come up play after play.”
The Lions will come into the divisional round on much better footing than the Eagles were on this week. That should make for a far more difficult task for the Bucs, but it’s one they’ll gladly take on since it means their season will last a little longer.
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/baker-mayfield-always-fun-counted-125115969.html
Author : ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports
Publish date : 2024-01-16 12:51:15
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