Atlanta Falcons Week 15 Opponent, Buccaneers, Suffer Another Injury Blow

The Atlanta Falcons are currently sitting at 1-1 and are in second place in the NFC South. The first-place Tampa Bay Buccaneers are 2-0, but in the last two days, they’ve lost two players to season-ending injuries. On Tuesday, it was announced that Buccanners’ defensive tackle Calijah Kancey would miss the rest of the 2025 season with a pec injury. 

On Wednesday night, it was announced that right guard Cody Mauch would miss the rest of the season with a knee injury that will require surgery. A big loss for a Tampa Bay offensive line that is also currently missing All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs. 

Mauch was selected 48th overall out of North Dakota State in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft. The guard has thus far started in all 36 possible games since he was drafted. Mauch is currently Pro Football Focus’s 28th-highest graded guard, out of 88 total, with a 63.4 overall grade. 

The right guard struggled as a rookie, with PFF crediting him with giving up 48 pressures, 35 hurries, six quarterback hits, and seven sacks. However, he improved drastically in his sophomore season. His PFF grade skyrocketed from a 44.7 in 2023 to a 75.4 last season. In 2024, the Mauch is credited with giving up only 18 pressures, 15 hurries, one quarterback hit, and two sacks. 

Mauch had a 69.9 run blocking grade per PFF last season, the 32nd-best mark out of 136 total guards. With the guard out, Tampa Bay’s run blocking could potentially take a hit. The Buccanners are currently ninth in the NFL in rushing yards per game, averaging 135 yards per game on the ground through the first two weeks of the season. 

In Tampa Bay’s Week 1 23-20 victory over Atlanta, Mauch is credited with giving up just one pressure. On the season, he’s surrendered three pressures and one sack. Mauch was getting better every season; he will be a big loss for the Buccaneers. 

The Buccanners are expected to sign guard Dan Feeney off the Buffalo Bills' Practice Squad.

The Falcons are currently 1.5 games behind the Buccaneers in the NFC South. Because of the Week 1 loss, the Buccaneers currently have the tiebreaker.  With injuries piling up for Tampa Bay, Atlanta will hope to surpass them in wins over the coming weeks.

It’s been a rough 48 hours for Tampa Bay, with the team losing two players, one on each side of the ball, to season-ending injuries. The Falcons don’t face the Buccaneers again until Week 15, a game late in the season could have serious playoff implications. However, this time Tampa Bay will be missing two players who had an impact in their Week 1 victory.