Still undefeated on the young season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will play the winless Denver Broncos on Sunday.
Tampa Bay surprised many fans and analysts alike in Week 2 by coming into Detroit and stunning the Lions in a 20-16 win. The Lions led all afternoon long until the 34-second mark of the fourth quarter, when quarterback Baker Mayfield ran for an 11-yard touchdown to put the Buccaneers on top.
The win was a close one, but Mayfield said he remained calm when his name was called.
#Bucs QB Baker Mayfield breaks down his consecutive runs against the #Lions and what was going through his mind when OC Liam Coen called his designed touchdown run.
“Take a couple deep breathes and let’s roll.” pic.twitter.com/CUSJ5pEjc9
— PewterReport 🏴☠️ (@PewterReport) September 18, 2024
Meanwhile, the Denver Broncos are looking to get back on track after a loss at home to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Broncos only scored six points and never led at any point in the game.
Despite a winless season thus far, Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix will not hold his head down nor get caught up on the team’s mistakes.
Broncos QB Bo Nix, on how he reacts when teammates drop passes: "I mean, when I miss a pass, they don't come up and harp on me. So I think I gotta treat them the same exact way. And, yeah, we're professionals, and we have a high standard, but we're allowed to mess up, too. And we… pic.twitter.com/9SiAvQJPUc
— Andrew Mason (@MaseDenver) September 19, 2024
While the Buccaneers have looked strong to start the season so far, they will not take the Broncos lightly. Tampa Bay wide receiver Mike Evans expressed this sentiment when addressing media on Thursday.
Mike Evans isn’t looking past the Broncos, calling them a tough team and says the Bucs need to match their energy. #WeAreThe813#WeAreTheKrewe pic.twitter.com/ZZ5y67jkhw
— The 813 | Tampa Bay's Premier #Bucs Content (@The813tv) September 19, 2024
Evans will match up against Broncos star cornerback Patrick Surtain II. Tampa Bay head coach Todd Bowles knows it will be a tall task to play a “dangerous” player like him.
https://twitter.com/PewterReport/status/1837165851977338959
Despite Tampa Bay’s 2-0 start, Bowles emphasized that his team still has a lot to prove and accomplish.
The Bucs will look to Mayfield, Evans and wide receiver Chris Godwin, the latter of whom has 200 receiving yards coming into the game, to continue their winning streak on offense.
After achieving a 2-0 start in four straight seasons, the Buccaneers hope to go 3-0 for the first time since 2005.
Tampa Bay open its Week 3 matchup as -6.5 point favorites, according to ESPN. The Buccaneers also currently have a 69.3% chance to win the game. However, they will make sure to not look past the Broncos in their quest to remain undefeated on the season.