Monday gave a historical night for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield. He became the second quarterback on the team to throw for more than 300 yards in a playoff game. Who is the first player? It is none other than the legendary Tom Brady.
The Bucs successfully beat the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFL Wildcard Round and marched on to the next stage. The Tampa Bay team completely bulldozed the Eagles in the must-win game. Both their offense and defense performed pretty well as the team scored 32 points by giving away just nine. The defense kept Jalen Hurts in check while the offense kept on penetrating the Eagles’ fragile defense with loaded attacking opportunities.
Mayfield had a great game with 337 yards and three touchdowns. In addition, he completed 22 passes from his 36 attempts. His performance outclassed Jalen Hurts, who was still considered the favorite ahead of the game. Nonetheless, Mayfield proved the analysts wrong.
Ahead of the season, Mayfield did not have the trust of the fans. Fans expressed their disgrace in choosing him as the quarterback for their team. The Bucs had the legacy of the legendary quarterback Tom Brady earlier and the fans disagreed when Mayfield’s name was announced.
But the quarterback slowly proved his worth as the Bucs quarterback. Despite having a slow start earlier this season, his perseverance brought him back to the league. Back-to-back good games brought him and the Bucs to the playoffs.
Things will get difficult for the Eagles after the losing to Bucs
If the Bucs are having a gala time on the field then it is just the opposite for the Philadelphia Eagles. With the loss in the Wildcard round, their 2023 journey came to an abrupt end. The team showed a horrible display in the latter half of the season after starting 10-1.
In their last seven games, they lost five and won two. It had a restructuring in the squad with Sean Desai getting demoted. However, the step did not help. Their poor form continued in the playoffs as well and as a result, the Eagles suffered an embarrassing loss.
With the continuous suffering and underperformance, there are speculations that Nick Sirianni, the head coach, might step down from his position. However, there are no reports of him stepping down or getting sacked.
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