The Tampa Bay Buccaneers gave fans plenty to cheer about Monday night, but unfortunately, they're still left with a bitter taste. Just ask Baker Mayfield. Despite a gutsy touchdown drive with just 27 seconds on the clock, the Bucs opted to kick the extra point and go for overtime against Kansas City.
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They put it all on the line, but sometimes it just comes down to a coin toss. And this time, it fell Kansas City's way, with Patrick Mahomes and company sealing the game before Mayfield even had a shot in OT.
For Mayfield, who's been working hard to steady the ship after a rough stretch, this one stings. He was blunt in his postgame comments.
"Right now, it's about us," Mayfield said, via Jenna Laine of ESPN. "It doesn't matter who we play. We need to focus on doing our job and finding ways to win. That's all that matters. We just have to stop the skid. We have to look at the things of why we lost when we look at the tape and go from there."
For a team that's now lost three of its last four, those words couldn't ring truer. The Bucs didn't come to Kansas City for a moral victory, and Mayfield's no stranger to the fact that the NFL isn't kind to teams that don't finish.
And as if things weren't tough enough, here come the 49ers next week — another squad with Super Bowl experience and a win-at-all-costs mentality. Mayfield knows Tampa Bay's got to take a hard look in the mirror if they're going to make a real push this season. They've got the pieces, but now it's all about turning close calls into actual wins. Right now, it's simple: they need results, and they need them in a hurry.
