With 45 seconds left in regulation in the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Week Five game at Seattle and the scored tied 35-35, Baker Mayfield put the ball in Rachaad White's hands on a critical third-and-seven. White quickly cut to the edge, with Luke Haggard, Charlie Heck and Cade Otton flowing to the right with stout blocking at the point of attack. Tristan Wirfs sealed off the edge and White got the critical first down to set up the Chase McLaughlin game-winning field goal and slid down inbounds to force Seattle to use its last timeout.
"I thought Rachaad played really well," said center Graham Barton via the Players’ Table Show. "He had some good hits and Rachaad has great vision and really understands the scheme and where the holes are going to be. It could be slow developing but he knows roughly where he needs to go, and it is impressive and I think he does a great job – all of our backs do. Bucky [Irving] is out but for Rachaad to be able to step up and have two touchdowns and to get that crucial first down to give Chase the game-winner, that was a big run too. Really proud of him."
White totaled 71 yards from scrimmage in Week Five (41 rushing, 30 receiving), tallying his second and third rushing touchdowns of the season. With 24 career touchdowns from scrimmage, White surpassed Leonard Fournette and Reggie Cobb (22) for the seventh-most, and tied Cadillac Williams for the sixth-most, scrimmage touchdowns by a running back in franchise history.
On White's first touchdown in the second quarter, tight end Cade Otton kicked out and cleared the edge for White. Mayfield tossed the ball to No. 1, who quickly accelerated around the left end and squeezed through the tight crease to find the end zone, providing the Bucs with a 13-0 lead. His second score came in the third quarter to give the Bucs a 28-21 advantage over Seattle. Payne Durham motioned to the right to draw defenders' eyes to the flat, Wirfs pulled out in front and White ran in behind the left tackle.
In the NFC Clash, White showcased outstanding cuts on gap plays, read alignments in short-yardage and vision at the line of scrimmage. With Leonard Williams manning the middle for Seattle, most of the Buccaneers' success came off getting White to the outside. He was patient in letting his blocks develop and displayed his balance and various maneuvers to avoid tacklers. White had his breakout game of the 2025 season on Sunday, elevating the offense against the Seahawks. He played 81% of the Bucs' snaps and ran routes on 63% of the team's pass plays, spearheading the unit at Lumen Field.
