TAMPA, Fla. — The NFL playoffs are shaping up as a redemption (or revenge) tour of sorts for Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The NFC South champions pummeled Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles 32-9 in a wild-card matchup, advancing to next weekend’s divisional round against the Detroit Lions, another team that beat the Bucs handily during the regular season.
Coach Todd Bowles reiterated Monday that the Bucs, who have gone from having one of the oldest rosters in the league to one of the youngest following the retirement of Tom Brady, have embraced the role of being underdogs all season long.
The Eagles, who collapsed after a 10-1 start to the season, beat Tampa Bay by two touchdowns in Week 3. Three weeks later, the Lions (13-5) traveled to Florida and shut down Mayfield and a sputtering Bucs offense 20-6.
Next Sunday, offers another opportunity to redeem themselves.
“It is what it is, man. They are just the team that’s in our way right now, and we’re in the way,” linebacker Lavonte David said. “We’re all trying to get to the same goal, so we’re just going to go up there and play the best game we (can) play.”
A victory at Detroit would set up a possible rematch with No. 1 seed San Francisco in the NFC championship game. The 49ers, who face the Green Bay Packers on Saturday, also defeated Tampa Bay earlier this season.
“I think back about the Lions game … we just didn’t play our best game offensively. We’ll look back at the tape once we get into the game plan, but we’re very different than we were early on in the year," Mayfield said. "That’s something to be proud of, that we’ve continued to improve. We haven’t reinvented the wheel. We just stuck with it and gotten better at the little things.”
Bowles made a number of adjustments to counter what the Eagles were able to do successfully against the Bucs in the regular season, at times employing a six-man defensive front to stop Philadelphia’s running game.
Hurts threw for 250 yards and one touchdown, however a relentless Tampa Bay pass rush created three sacks and a safety that put the Bucs up by nine points in the third quarter. Two plays later, rookie Trey Palmer turned a short reception into a 56-yard TD to break the game open.
The Bucs have now won six of seven following a stretch in which they lost six of seven to damage their playoff hopes.
“It says a lot about the growth of our team from where we were in the beginning to the middle, toward the end and now — playing with confidence, playing team football,” Bowles said.
“We have a great locker room. … We lean on each other. We trust each other. Just doing your job and knowing the guy next to you is going to do his,” Mayfield added. “That’s accountability for yourself and for your teammates. It’s just amazing to see the growth.”
