Mayfield-led Buccaneers sputter offensively in 26-7 loss to previously winless Broncos

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Todd Bowles rejected the notion that a 26-7 loss to the Denver Broncos was a wakeup call for his Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

“You don't use that as an excuse. We're already awoke. They just beat us,” the coach said after Sunday's loss spoiled the team's bid to begin a season with three consecutive wins for the first time since 2005. “They beat us, and we have to go back to the drawing board.”

The Bucs sputtered offensively Sunday and didn't get the job done on defense, either.

The Broncos (1-2) set the tone from the beginning, winning the toss and electing to receive the ball instead of deferring until the second half.

Rookie quarterback Bo Nix struggled for the Denver the previous two weeks, but coach Sean Payton wanted to send a message that the Broncos were going to be aggressive against the Bucs.

“I wasn't necessarily shocked by it. But whatever he wanted to do, that's what we were doing,” said Nix, who completed passes of 22, 6 and 31 yards on the first three plays from scrimmage to position Denver to take a 7-0 lead on the quarterback's 3-yard touchdown run.

Tampa Bay never fully recovered. The Baker Mayfield-led offense was outgained 352 yards to 223 and never got into a rhythm, finishing 3 for 11 on third-down conversions and only reaching the end zone once — on Mayfield's 6-yard TD throw to Chris Godwin in the second quarter.

Mayfield finished 25 of 33 for 163 yards. He threw an interception that was returned 37 yards to the Tampa Bay 9 and sacked seven times.

The Bucs' offensive line, playing without starting right tackle Luke Goedeke (concussion) for the second straight game, yielded five sacks the previous week in a win at Detroit.

“There were a few pressures this week that were actually on me,” said Mayfield.

“Luke is a hell of a player. We do miss him, but we expect everybody in there to be able to execute. That's why I'm going to take ownership of this,” the quarterback added. “The ball needs to be out and delivered to the right people.”

The Broncos also did a good job of defending Bucs star receiver Mike Evans, who primarily was covered by cornerback Pat Surtain II. Evans was only targeted three times and had two receptions for 17 yards.

“We just have to do a better job at getting the ball in his hands," Mayfield said. “Offensively, he's one of our best players, so I have to do a good job of trusting him to win these matchups and go from there.”

Above all, Bowles stressed, it's not a time to overreact.

“We never lost confidence,” the coach said. “We just have to play better. We have to execute better. We have to coach it better.”

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AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Fred Goodall, The Associated Press