Buccaneers vs Chiefs Recap: Comeback bid falls short, Bucs lose 27-24

When you dig yourself a hole in the first quarter to the defending Super Bowl champions, the chances of winning the game are slim to none. That didn’t stop the Buccaneers from giving it their best effort, but they fell short in the end losing to the Chiefs 27-24.

It was all Patrick Mahomes and Tyreek Hill early on as the two linked up on two touchdowns and Hill finished the quarter with over 200 receiving yards including touchdown receptions of 75 and 44 yards.

The Bucs, on the other hand, had three consecutive three-and-outs that helped lead to that hole that was dug so early on. After that, the defense began to tighten up a little and give the offense a chance.

Unfortunately, the offense couldn’t take advantage until their fifth possession of the game when Ronald Jones caught a short pass from Tom Brady then tiptoed down the sideline for a 37-yard score making it 17-7. On their ensuing drive, the Chiefs were able to answer and kick a field goal with just fourteen seconds remaining in the half.

The Buccaneers were able to take their opening possession of the second half 67 yards - thanks to a 48-yard catch and run by Rob Gronkowski - but once it was goal-to-go, the play calling yet again came into question. Leonard Fournette replaced Ronald Jones and ran on first down for no gain. On second down he caught a pass for a four yard loss. Then, on third down, Brady threw it too tall for Gronk and the Bucs settled for a field goal to cut the lead to 20-10.

The Chiefs answered right back, orchestrating a seven play, 75-yard drive that was capped off by Tyreek Hill’s third touchdown of the game and the Chiefs extended their lead to 27-10.

The Bucs offense would turn the ball over on their next two drives, seeing Tom Brady throw an interception on a pass intended for Scotty Miller then another interception where the ball was deflected at the line of scrimmage and floated in the air to the hands of Tyrann Mathieu.

The Bucs’ defense stood tall, continuing to force Kansas City to punt. Brady and the offense were able to put together an eight play drive that saw Brady find Mike Evans for a 31-yard touchdown on 4th-and-3 to cut the lead to 27-17. After a nine play Kansas City drive that netted only 25 yards thanks to all the penalties by the Chiefs, Brady and the offense had the ball again.

They would go on to march 73 yards on ten plays, capped off by Evans’ second score of the game, cutting the lead down to 27-24 with just 4:10 remaining. However, Patrick Mahomes did Patrick Moahomes things. He was able to scramble for two first downs and found Hill for a third to ice the game as the Bucs fall to 7-5 on the season.

The Buccaneers will now get a much needed week off as they hit their bye before finishing the season against the Vikings, Lions, and Falcons twice.