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What’s worse than losing to a divisional rival?
Doing it twice in a month.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Atlanta Falcons faced off in Week 5 in a critical NFC South contest. The Falcons won.
Twenty-four days later, they met up again — and the Falcons won once more.
In a Week 8 matchup to potentially define the NFC South going forward, Atlanta ruined Tampa’s month, notching a second victory 31-26.
Strong Offenses Early
On a partially sunny October afternoon where they donned their Creamsicle uniforms at home, the Buccaneers got off to a fast start against Atlanta. The only issue was the Falcons did, too.
To open the game, the Falcons (5-3) and Buccaneers (4-4) traded points at a consistent rate. After an opening-drive fumble by the Bucs, the Falcons immediately capitalized with a 42-yard touchdown reception by Kyle Pitts. Moments later, the Bucs returned fire, matching the Pitts touchdown with a 5-yard touchdown reception from Cade Otton. The two tight ends served as the focus of their respective squad’s offense, finishing with two touchdowns and over 80 receiving yards each.
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After the pair matched each other’s score, the floodgates opened. The two teams scored on five of the next seven drives, ending the first half with 41 points. The Falcons had an early edge, 24-17.
Critical Mishaps
The Bucs didn’t have the same success in the second half. Leading a prolific offense this season, quarterback Baker Mayfield had been efficient and intelligent in critical situations. That didn’t show in the waning moments of Sunday afternoon’s contest.
While attempting to pull the Bucs back into contention, Mayfield made a few uncharacteristic mistakes, the first of which was a costly interception.
The Buccaneers’ defense forced a much-needed stop to begin the second half, but Mayfield turned the ball over only five plays later.
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— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) October 27, 2024
That continued on the Bucs’ next two drives, with Tampa Bay failing on a fake punt attempt and Mayfield adding another interception only moments later.
NFC South Hold
With the Falcons’ second victory over the Bucs in four weeks, Atlanta has a tight grasp on the NFC South entering November. The Falcons are 5-3, while the Buccaneers sit one game behind them 4-4. Tampa has three more divisional matchups remaining in its schedule to Atlanta’s two.
The pair of head-to-head victories will serve Atlanta well come playoff time, as the Falcons are set up well to host a potential Wild Card game. It will be an uphill battle to win the division, but the Buccaneers are still set to make a playoff push, albeit likely facing a road bout in the Wild Card round following Sunday’s loss.
The Buccaneers will face the Kansas City Chiefs (7-0) on Monday Night Football this coming week. Meanwhile, the Falcons will welcome the Dallas Cowboys (3-4) to Atlanta on Sunday.
