The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost to the Detroit Lions on Monday night, 24-9, in a game in which the offense struggled throughout to find a rhythm and wide receiver Mike Evans was lost to a broken clavicle. It was the Buccaneers' first road loss of the 2025 season after three wins away from home, and the team remains tied for the best record in the NFC at 5-2.
Though the Lions hit on several big plays early, including 27-yard touchdown catch by Amon-Ra St. Brown and a 78-yard breakaway scoring run by Jahmyr Gibbs, the Tampa Bay defense limited the damage by holding the home team to three third-down conversions in 13 attempts while adding an interception and four sacks.
Second-year safety Tykee Smith led the Bucs' defensive charge with 13 tackles, one sack and two tackles for loss. It marked the fourth time in seven games this season that he has led the team in tackles. With his performance on Monday night Smith joined just six other NFL defenders this season who have produced 10-plus tackles, a sack and multiple tackles for loss. The only other defensive back to accomplish that feat this year is the Chargers' Derwin James.
Smith is also the only player in the NFL through seven weeks who has racked up 50-plus tackles and seven or more passes defensed.
Smith was one of four Buccaneers to notch a sack against Detroit's Jared Goff on Monday night, joining outside linebackers Yaya Diaby and Anthony Nelson and linebacker SirVocea Dennis. Both Nelson and Dennis secured their first sacks of the 2025 season, while Diaby increased his 2025 total to a team-leading 4.0 sacks. Diaby, a third-round draft pick in 2023, now has 16.0 career sacks in 41 games. Diaby's career sack total is tied for the second most through a player's first 41 games in Buccaneers history.
Most Sacks, First 41 Career Games, Buccaneers History
1. Warren Sapp, 1995-97: 20.5
2t. Yaya Diaby, 2023-25: 16.0
2t. Santana Dotson: 1992-94: 16.0
2t. Stylez G. White: 2007-09: 16.0
5t. Ron Holmes: 1985-87: 15.0
5t. Devin White: 2019-21: 15.0
The Buccaneers' lone interception off Goff was secured by cornerback Jamel Dean in the second quarter. It marked Dean's third interception in his last four games played and gave him a career-high and team-leading three picks on the season. Dean is one of the NFL lead in interceptions in 2025 and is tied for third in that category. If he picks off one more pass he will be the first Buccaneer defender with four interceptions in a season since Carlton Davis in 2020.
Dean's interception set the Buccaneers up for their first score of the game, a 53-yard field goal by Chase McLaughlin as time expired in the first half. McLaughlin has now made all five of his attempts from 50-plus yards this season and is a remarkable 37 of 44 from that range in his career. McLaughlin's success rate of 84.1% from 50 yards and beyond is the second best in NFL history and the highest for any player with 40 or more attempts from that range.
Highest Field Goal Success Rate, 50-Plus Yards, NFL History
(minimum 25 attempts)
| Kicker | Team(s) | Made | Att. | Pct. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brandon Aubry | Cowboys | 29 | 32 | 90.6% |
| Chase McLaughlin | Seven teams* | 37 | 44 | 84.1% |
| Chris Boswell | Steelers | 46 | 56 | 82.1% |
| Matt Prater | Five teams* | 82 | 109 | 75.2% |
| Ka'imi Fairbairn | Texans | 47 | 63 | 74.6% |
(* McLaughlin has played for the Buccaneers, Colts, Browns, Chargers, Jaguars, 49ers and Jets.Prater has played for the Lions, Broncos, Cardinals, Bills and Falcons.)
The Buccaneers were held to a season-low nine points in the game, marking the first time this season they have failed to reach 20 points, and what many expected to be a shootout turned into more of a defensive struggle. Quarterbacks Baker Mayfield of the Buccaneers and Jared Goff of the Lions finished with just one touchdown pass each; still, those two remained tied for the most scoring passes in the NFL since the start of the 2023 season.
Most Touchdown Passes, NFL, 2023-25
1t. Baker Mayfield, Buccaneers: 82
1t. Jared Goff, Lions: 82
3. Lamar Jackson, Ravens: 75
4.. Josh Allen, Bills: 68
5t. Jordan Love, Packers: 67
5t. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs: 67
Mayfield's touchdown pass on Monday night went to rookie wide receiver Tez Johnson, who scored for the second time in as many games. Over the past three contests, Johnson, a seventh-round draft pick out of Oregon, has hauled in nine catches for 162 yards and those two scores. The Buccaneers' other rookie pass-catcher, first-round pick Emeka Egbuka, returned to action after missing the second half of the team's Week Six win over San Francisco and hauled in four passes for 58 yards. Even with his missed time last week, Egbuka leads all NFL rookie wideouts in receptions, receiving yards and touchdown catches.
Most Receptions, NFL Rookies, 2025
1. Emeka Egbuka, Buccaneers: 31
2. Tetairoa McMillan, Panthers: 30
3. Travis Hunter, Jaguars: 28
4. Elic Ayomanor, Titans: 19
5. Matthew Golden, Packers: 18
Most Receiving Yards, NFL Rookies, 2025
1. Emeka Egbuka, Buccaneers: 527
2. Tetairoa McMillan, Panthers: 413
3. Travis Hunter, Jaguars: 298
4. Matthew Golden, Packers: 249
5. Elic Ayomanor, Titans: 225
Most Touchdown Receptions, NFL Rookies, 2025
1. Emeka Egbuka, Buccaneers: 5
2. Tory Horton, Seahawks: 3
3t. Elic Ayomanor, Titans: 2
3t. Tez Johnson, Buccaneers: 2
3t. Tetairoa McMillan, Panthers: 2
3t. Isaac TeSlaa, Lions: 2
