Tue. Oct 15th, 2024
NFL: Tampa Bay Bucs at Minnesota Vikings
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports

How Baker Mayfield, Chris Godwin, Mike Evans and others fared in the Bucs’ season-opening win.

– The Tampa Bay Bucs defeated the Minnesota Vikings, 20-17, on Sunday to secure their third consecutive Week 1 win, tying the longest-such streak in franchise history (joining the 1979-1981 teams).

Chase McLaughlin matched his career long by connecting on a 57-yard field goal with 5:10 remaining to give Tampa Bay the 20-17 lead, which propelled the team to the victory. He made all four of his kicks in his Bucs’ debut and is now 18-of-22 in his career on field goal tries of 50+ yards. The 57-yarder also tied for the fifth-longest field goal made in Bucs history.

Mike Evans led the team with six receptions for 66 yards, including a 28-yard touchdown strike from Baker Mayfield. Evans’ 82 career receiving touchdowns tie him with Anquan Boldin and Reggie Wayne for the 28th-most in NFL history. In addition, Evans made his 137th career start for the Bucs, tying Mike Alstott for the sixth-most in franchise history.

– In his Bucs debut, Mayfield completed 21-of-34 passes for 173 yards and two touchdowns, with no interceptions, earning a 94.4 passer rating.

Chris Godwin contributed five receptions for 51 yards, surpassing Michael Pittman (5,723) and Doug Martin (5,724) for the fifth-most yards from scrimmage in team history.

SCRIMMAGE YARDS LEADERS – TEAM HISTORY

Rank Player Yards

1. Mike Evans 10,435

2. James Wilder 9,449

3. Warrick Dunn 7,690

4. Mike Alstott 7,372

5. Chris Godwin 5,751

6. Doug Martin 5,724

7. Michael Pittman 5,723

8. Mark Carrier 5,018

9. Kevin House 4,969

10. Cadillac Williams 4,586

– In addition, Godwin extended his streak to 15 consecutive games with five-or-more receptions. His streak of five-catch performances is the longest active streak in the NFL and ties Keyshawn Johnson for the longest such streak in team history.

– Rookie WR Trey Palmer’s first career reception was a 7-yard touchdown grab, making him the ninth player in team history with a receiving touchdown in the player’s first game played.

– In his NFL debut, undrafted rookie DB Christian Izienpicked off Kirk Cousins on the goal line to record his first career interception. Izien is the first Bucs player since 2010 to record an interception in his first career game and just the sixth to do so in franchise history.

Joe Tryon-Shoyinka picked up his first career fumble recovery on a botched snap by the Vikings in the opening quarter, securing Tampa Bay’s first takeaway of the 2023 season.

Antoine Winfield Jr. recorded his 10th career sack, while also forcing and recovering a fumble on the play. His 10.0 sacks are the most by a safety in franchise history and the most by a defensive back since 2020.

DEFENSIVE BACK SACK LEADERS – SINCE 2020

Through Sunday’s 1 p.m. Games

Rank Player (Team) Sacks

1. Antoine Winfield Jr. (TB) 10.0

2. Jamal Adams (SEA) 9.5

3. Donovan Wilson (DAL) 8.5

4. Brandon Jones (MIA) 8.0

5. Isaiah Simmons (ARI) 7.5

Winfield Jr. is the only defensive back since at least 2000 with 10+ sacks, five-or-more forced fumbles and five-or-more fumble recoveries in their first four career seasons.

– Tampa Bay has been among the league’s best at creating takeaways since Head Coach Todd Bowles took over the defense in 2019, ranking fifth in total takeaways (105).

TAKEAWAY LEADERS – SINCE 2019

Through Sunday’s 1 p.m. Games

Rank Team TA

1. New England Patriots 118

2. Pittsburgh Steelers 111

3t. Buffalo Bills 106

3t. Dallas Cowboys 106

5. Tampa Bay Bucs 105

POINTS OFF TAKEAWAYS LEADERS – SINCE 2019

Through Sunday’s 1 p.m. Games

Rank Team Points

1. Tampa Bay Bucs 393

2. New England Patriots 381

3. Dallas Cowboys 379

4. Green Bay Packers 361

5. Indianapolis Colts 340

– As a defense, Tampa Bay limited Minnesota to just 41 rushing yards, marking the 16th time since 2019 that the Bucs held their opponent to under 50 yards rushing, the most-such games in the NFL during that span.

– LB Devin White finished with 12 tackles, marking his 21st game with 10-or-more tackles, the sixth-most such games since White entered the league in 2019. White had seven of his tackles in the opening quarter, marking the third time in his career he has had seven-or-more tackles in a single quarter (8, twice, 9/20/20 vs. Carolina – fourth quarter, and 11/8/20 vs. New Orleans – first quarter).

Anthony Nelson raised his sack total to 12.5 with a second-half sack of a Vikings QB Kirk Cousins. He has three sacks in his last four regular season games played. In addition, Nelson led the team with a career high-tying three quarterback hits. As a team, the Bucs totaled eight quarterback hits and six tackles for loss.

Jake Camarda averaged 54.5 yards per punt on six punts on Sunday, pinning two inside the opponents 20-yard line. His 54.5 yards per punt average is the second highest in team history among players with at least five-or-more punts in a game, trailing only his 59.5 yards per punt mark that he set on 11/6/22 vs. the Los Angeles Rams. In addition, Camarda’s 48.2 net yards per punt on Sunday also rank second-best in franchise history behind his 54.2 net yards per punt clip in the same Nov. 6, 2022 matchup with the Rams.

– The Bucs did not have a turnover in Week 1 and committed just three penalties. It marked the team’s first game with no turnovers and three-or-fewer penalties since 1/9/22 vs. Carolina.

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