The Tampa Bay Buccaneers came out on top in a prime-time showdown against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium. An 11-play, 80-yard scoring drive and late-game heroics by quarterback Baker Mayfield in the final six minutes of regulation sealed the win on the road for Tampa Bay. The Bucs improve to 2-0 on the season and are the first team to score a game-winning touchdown in the final minute of the fourth quarter in back-to-back games, with both games coming on the road, since the 1999 Miami Dolphins (Oct. 10-Oct. 17).
Offensive Review
Baker Mayfield led a game-winning drive for the second consecutive game and finished 25-of-38 for 215 yards and two touchdowns, with no interceptions, earning a 98.0 passer rating. With his second multi-touchdown performance in as many games, Mayfield overtook Josh Freeman (23) for the third-most games in franchise history with 2-plus passing touchdowns, trailing Jameis Winston (37) and Tom Brady (31). On the final scoring drive, Mayfield scrambled on fourth-and-10 for 15 yards to keep Tampa Bay in the driver's seat. The signal-caller willed the team to victory and laid everything on the field on Monday night to secure the win for Tampa Bay. The Bucs took an early 14-10 lead after Mayfield connected with Emeka Egbuka and Ryan Miller with the recipients making a little history of their own.
Egbuka continued his historic start to his rookie campaign, tacking on another touchdown reception, his third of the season. His three touchdown receptions through two career games are the most in franchise history. Additionally, Egbuka is tied for the NFL lead in touchdown receptions in 2025. Miller was on the receiving end of the team's first touchdown of the game, catching a 20-yard pass from Mayfield to record his third career receiving touchdown. Miller's three receiving touchdowns are tied for the second-most by an undrafted player for Tampa Bay in their first 14 career games played, trailing only Tim Wright (four).
The Bucs' rushing attack became the catalyst in the matchup. Rachaad White nabbed 10 carries for 65 yards (6.5) and the game-winning score on Monday. He took the handoff from Mayfield, capping off a stellar rushing output. White's 6.5 yards per rush was his fourth-highest average in a game with 10-or-more carries. With his touchdown, White tied Leonard Fournette and Reggie Cobb (22) for the seventh-most touchdowns from scrimmage by a running back in franchise history. With physicality, he pushed the pile and helped set the tone on the ground, along with his contribution in the passing game. Bucky Irving accumulated 121 yards from scrimmage to lead the team. He rushed 17 times for 71 yards (4.2 avg.) and brought in six receptions for 50 yards. His six games with 100-plus yards from scrimmage are the most among all members of the 2024 draft class. Both created a spark to help ignite the offense by chipping away at the Texans' defense.
Defensive Outlook
Tampa Bay's run defense held its opponent to under 100 rushing yards for the 64th time since Todd Bowles took over the defense in 2019 – the most-such occurrences during that span. The Bucs allowed conversions on just 2-of-9 third-down opportunities for Houston. The Buccaneers have allowed opponents to score a touchdown on just 1-of-4 red zone drives this season – tied for the best mark in the NFL. In the clash, Lavonte David split a sack with Elijah Roberts on C.J. Stroud and Greg Gaines dropped Stroud for an eight-yard loss, his first of the year.
Tykee Smith recorded his first career sack, taking down Stroud for a nine-yard loss. He flew off the edge on a blitz and pulverized the Texans' running back, powering through to sack Stroud. Smith also recorded his first career game with multiple tackles for loss and led the team in total tackles (six). Smith is 1-of-3 defensive backs this season with six-or-more tackles, a sack and multiple tackles for loss in a game (Brian Branch, Kam Curl). The Bucs outgained the Texans 169-84 on the ground and Stroud completed 13 of 24 attempts for 207 yards and a touchdown.
