A cupcake almost ended the Bucs’ playoff hopes

TAMPA — The world will never know how difficult that was.

Football fans will watch the Bucs beat the Raiders 28-13 on Sunday and assume the game was as boring as the result.

You’ll know better.

And the Bucs will have the bruises to prove it.

After a blistering start that saw Tampa Bay lead 14-0 barely 11 minutes into the afternoon, the Bucs survived more injuries, a series of turnovers and overall lackluster play before rallying in the fourth quarter to put the Raiders at bay hold.

And by the way: Tampa Bay is back at the top of the division.

For the first time in months, the Bucs can truly say they control their own destiny. While they would lose every tiebreaker with the Falcons, the Bucs could make that obsolete by winning their final four games.

Game of the day

This requires further clarification. It should be happy Game of the day.

Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell was chased by Calijah Kancey and Lavonte David as he threw a third-down completion to Jakobi Meyers.

After O’Connell released the ball, Kancey shoved the quarterback to the ground. Remarkably, there was no unnecessary harshness or severity in the quarterback penalty. Had the officials called the penalty, the Raiders would have taken first place at the Tampa Bay 29 while the Bucs led 14-10. I can’t say how the game would have ended if Vegas had scored on that drive.

game ball

Let’s hear it for Rachaad White. Staying ahead of Bucky Irving on the depth chart has earned him some reward, but White has quietly become a strong running threat. With 90 yards rushing against the Raiders, White is averaging 4.2 yards per carry after starting the season with a career average of 3.7.

Keep an eye on it

Forget the numbers, the focus is now on X-rays and MRI scans.

With Antoine Winfield Jr. out with a knee injury, the Bucs defense faces disaster.

Safeties Jordan Whitehead (torn pectoral muscle) and Mike Edwards (hamstring strain) have been out for the past two weeks. Now Winfield’s status is uncertain. In addition to injuries to linebackers KJ Britt and JJ Russell, the Bucs are digging deep into the practice squad to add 11 players on defense.

NFC South update

So the Bucs are all alone in first place. Currently. Although there were some worrying moments on Sunday, the end results were as expected. The Falcons lost to the Vikings in Minnesota while the Bucs sweated it out at Raymond James Stadium. However, the pendulum could swing next week. The Falcons travel to Las Vegas to take on the Raiders, while Tampa Bay has their toughest remaining game on the schedule.

Next

The JV portion of the schedule is taking a break. After playing the 2-8 Giants, 3-8 Panthers and 2-10 Raiders, the Bucs travel to Los Angeles to face the playoff-bound Chargers. The Bucs are 3-3 against teams with winning records this season.

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