A rainy day in Tampa: Falcons get washed away in latest NFC South opportunity

TAMPA, Fla. — It’s appropriate that Halloween weekend concluded with a historically spooky game in the NFL’s spookiest division.

Wicked weather reigned supreme Sunday at Raymond James Stadium. So did the Buccaneers, 16-0, in a 60-minute drizzly cacophony with the Falcons.

Just as you were starting to wonder if the Falcons were the team to beat, here comes the monsoon.

“That was probably the craziest game I’ve ever been a part of, (at least) in the first half,” said safety Jessie Bates III, whose forced fumble on Bucky Irving at the goal line was the lone bit of sun to peek through the clouds for the Falcons.

This was a masterpiece as it relates to unwatchability. The Falcons missed a field goal on their opening drive. The Bucs converted their ensuing attempt, and the visitors trailed for the remainder of the afternoon as rain disallowed any semblance of a rhythm.

The numbers are ghoulish. The Falcons went 0-for-12 on third down (and 3-for-6 on fourth). They averaged 4.3 yards per play. They had just 3.5 yards per rush in a game where running was in vogue. They lost the turnover battle 4-1. They lost time of possession 35:16-24:44.

It is fair to wonder: A team with an offensive head coach, the game’s best running back and a sturdy interior offensive line should still produce enough in these conditions. The situation necessitated this team’s desired identity, yet the Falcons never asserted themselves.

Need we mention the fact that’s gone viral across the nation: The Falcons lost this game despite the Bucs never completing a pass. Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield went 0-for-3, spending his rainy day handing off to the running backs and throwing scuffle-inducing blocks on Bates. Not since O.J. Simpson’s Buffalo Bills in 1974 had a team won a game without its offense recording a completed pass.

Tampa Bay ran for a franchise-record 324 yards, gashing a once-proud run defense despite possessing zero passing threat. The Falcons were limited to only 99 yards on the ground.

Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski on his defense: “Credit to (the Bucs). They had good schemes, well blocked. When you’re stopping the run, it’s discipline. Schematically, we have to look at things that we can give the guys and simply tackling those types of things.”

Bucs coach Todd Bowles on their success slowing the run: “In those conditions, both sides are going to pack the line of scrimmage. It’s just about standing gaps and making the right gap control.”

They summed it up for you. The Falcons were outplayed at their own game. They want to be the team that runs wild and stuffs the opponent’s attempts to achieve the same. This was the type of game that can be illuminating on teams. It can challenge the fortitude of each individual. There’s no way to leave Sunday afternoon with any Falcons optimism.

Most discouraging, perhaps, was the quarterback play. Mayfield’s approach was much safer than that of Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who spent his day throwing the ball to the other team. Penix didn’t have more completions (four) than interceptions (three) until halfway through the third quarter. He went 8-for-24 with four interceptions overall.

There’s no doubt the weather contributed to his misery. He was clearly struggling to grip the ball and deliver rhythmic throws. But three of the four interceptions were horrific decisions (the other came on a fourth-down attempt). Penix is somewhat a microcosm of his team; just when one begins to buy in, a parade of misfortune follows.

“I’ve never thrown four picks in a game – was it four or five?” Penix said, losing count of his own giveaways.

He ensured his Tampa homecoming wasn’t a sign of what’s to come. He “promises” he’ll shake it off. And his succinct assessment of Sunday will be key: “I just have to protect the ball.”

That brings us back to this miserable division. These four teams have each recorded at least four losses. Three of the four have suffered a divisional setback. First place separates last place by one game.

The teams are a combined 3-13 at home. Tampa Bay has a positive point differential at plus-27. That puts them in rare air as the Saints (minus-32), Falcons (minus-18) and Panthers (minus-15) are in negative territory. The Bucs, though, started 0-4; only the 1992 Chargers have overcome that to reach the playoffs.

So, who’s the favorite? Tampa will be the flavor of the week after consecutive divisional wins in 2023 and 2024, but the perceived front-runner of this group seems to change with the wind.