The Buccaneers beat the Falcons 16-0 on Sunday without completing a pass. Yahoo Sports and ESPN both reported that Baker Mayfield never connected on a throw in wet, sloppy conditions at Raymond James Stadium. Yahoo's Ian Casselberry called Tampa Bay the first team to win with no passing yards since the Buffalo Bills in 1974, the second such game of the Super Bowl era. The Associated Press, via Sportsnet, framed it as only the third time in NFL history a team has won without completing a pass. The outlets don't count it the same way, and we can't reconcile the two framings from the material we have.
Our box score gives the exact line. Mayfield was 0 for 3 and was sacked once for 2 yards, so Tampa Bay's net passing figure was minus-2 rather than a flat zero. Chris Godwin Jr., Kenny Gainwell and Ted Hurst III were each targeted once, and none caught the ball. The Bucs ran 56 times for 324 yards, 5.8 a carry, and 15 of their 16 first downs came on the ground.
ESPN credited Bucky Irving and Kenny Gainwell for the win. Deadspin said Irving's 170 yards and a touchdown was a career high. By our count he carried 27 times, with a long of 46. Gainwell added 140 yards on 25 carries. Mayfield ran four times for 14 yards. Chase McLaughlin made all three field-goal attempts, the longest from 46 yards, and added the extra point after Irving's score. Tampa Bay scored in the first three quarters and none in the fourth.
The defense did as much as the running game. Atlanta's Michael Penix Jr. threw four interceptions and finished 8 of 24 for 125 yards. Alex Anzalone had two of them, and Zyon McCollum and Jacob Parrish each had one. The Falcons went 0 for 12 on third down and had 224 total yards. A 76-yard catch by Jahan Dotson accounted for most of their passing yardage. Tampa Bay was not clean either. Mayfield fumbled three times without losing one, and Irving lost a fumble. The Bucs also went 4 for 13 on third down and were 1 for 3 in the red zone.
Yahoo's recap said the loss was Atlanta's worst of the season and one of the worst a team can have in Week 8. Both clubs are 3-5, with the Bucs second in the NFC South and the Falcons third. Tampa Bay has won two straight after a 43-13 win at Carolina last week. In that game Mayfield was 7 of 11 for 64 yards and a touchdown, so the passing game was already modest before Sunday. Atlanta had beaten San Francisco 29-20 the week before.
Tampa Bay plays at Chicago next Sunday, Nov. 8. Atlanta hosts Cincinnati the same day.
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