Bucs are staring down the barrel of a harsh truth after beating the Saints

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are 6-2 after beating the New Orleans Saints in Week 8, and while it's the franchise's best start since the 2021 season, there are some major questions surrounding Baker Mayfield and the offense.

For the second straight week, Mayfield and Co. were completely off. It goes from top-down, too. Josh Grizzard's play-calling, especially in the Bucs' two goal-to-go situations, has been questionable over the last two weeks, and there wasn't much improvement, if any, from Week 7 to Week 8. In fact, one could argue he regressed.

Mayfield wasn't on for most of the night, and the offensive line certainly had its issues with the Saints' pressure schemes. Even Tristan Wirfs was off, having one of his worst nights in recent memory.

"Offensively, that wasn't nearly good enough or close to what we want it to look like," Mayfield told reporters after the game.

The Bucs go on bye in Week 9, and it's clear they need to recalibrate on offense or else they will struggle with the rest of their schedule.

Have injuries finally caught up to the Bucs offense?

Mayfield's accuracy issues are his own problems, but it's logical to think the surplus of injuries has finally caught up to the Bucs offense.

Backups still man the entire right side of the line. Emeka Egbuka, while electric, hasn't yet shown he can consistently carry the passing attack as WR1. Bucky Irving's absence obviously takes away a dynamic element in the run game that can also help make up for the deficiencies up front.

All of these injuries certainly affect not only what the Bucs can do on offense, but what Grizzard can call. For instance, he can't dial up a play where Tez Johnson or Sterling Shepard are the main options against press-man coverage because that's not what they're best at. He could call something where Mike Evans helps shoulder the load and also offers a top option in terms of the progression because he can beat man coverage like a drum.

The same goes with Irving. Rachaad White, while good in his own right, isn't as explosive or shifty. Plays that get him in space simply don't work like they would with Irving. Charlie Heck's pass protection isn't as effective as his run blocking, which affects what Grizzard can do in that regard.

It's become quite the mix of circumstances that are clearly starting to add up after the Bucs' offense struggled against a below-average Saints defense. This is now two weeks in a row where Grizzard's crew has gone from looking like one of the NFL's better offenses to one of the worst.

If you take away Anthony Nelson's pick-six, the Bucs offense has put up just 25 points over the last two games after averaging nearly 28 points per game through the first six weeks.

And don't forget that came against a depleted Lions secondary and again, a bad Saints defense. Yes, this is the NFL, and no game is a "gimme." Still, the Bucs are on the precipice of a trend they don't want to undertake.

They have the bye week coming up to help get right. After that, it's an ascending New England Patriots defense coming to town. The Bucs have to get right on offense or else the rest of the 2025 season is going to be a long, hard road that could go one way or the other.