Did Baker Mayfield call out Todd Bowles after Buccaneers OT loss to Chiefs?

For the second time in three weeks the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost a Monday Night Football game in which everyone is questioning what in the world Todd Bowles was thinking. Unlike the loss to the Ravens, in which he was unfairly called out for leaving Chris Godwin in a game the Bucs were trying to win, Bowles' end-of-game management is ripe for critcism.

With less than 30 seconds left in the game, Tampa Bay scored a touchdown to come within a point of the Kansas City Chiefs. It seemed like they might get aggressive and go for two to take the lead, but instead the Bucs kicked an extra point to tie and force overtime.

Tampa Bay's defense stopped Patrick Mahomes from getting the Chiefs into position to win the game in regulation but failed to do so in overtime. Kansas City won the coin toss and never gave the ball back to the Bucs, winning the game with a touchdown on the opening drive.

Bowles' decision to not go for two is being almost universally slammed, and those looking for blood in the water are reading into Baker Mayfield's postgame comments about what happened.

Baker Mayfield gets brutally honest about Buccaneers overtime loss to Chiefs

After the game, Baker spoke with the media and had some comments that will be sliced up and served in a number of different ways based on who is trying to dictate their meaning.

"Against a team on the offense like that, you can only give them so many chances," Mayfield said. "When you win the coin toss, that's what happens. I'm proud of all the guys on offense we had that stepped up."

There's a lot that could potentially be unpacked there, especially by a furious fan base looking for a smoking gun. Take, for instance, the lack of mention Baker gives the defense when calling out who made him proud and who stepped up which could be seen as a shot at Todd Bowles, among others.

Mayfield's comment about not giving a team like the Chiefs extra chances is the one that will stick out and be read into whichever way someone wants. One reading is that it's a swipe at Bowles' decision to not go for two and put the Bucs up by one with less than 30 seconds left in the regulation. Anyone wanting this interpretation will lean into how he jumps right to calling out the game being decided on the coin toss.

This could also be Baker calling out how dumb the NFL's overtime rules are since it doesn't allow both teams to possess the ball. He was visibly upset on the field after losing the coin toss, which seems to align with this reading of his quote.

Anyone thinking that he's calling out Bowles needs to listen to what Mayfield said next. He jumped right into what the head coach told his team in the locker room after the loss, and credited it as a good message worth repeating.

"Todd had a great message, we're that close. Don't get used to losing but find a way to turn this thing around," Mayfield said.

That's not going to make anyone feel better about how the game ended, but it does prove that the locker room isn't as fractured as the fan base is. While there are very loud calls being made for Bowles' job, none of them have so far from from inside the house.

Baker and the locker room seem to still be fully behind Bowles, but the way things go from here will be telling. While Bowles hasn't lost the locker room the Bucs are losing games and if his decision-making is deemed to be holding the team back it might not matter how much the guys he coaches like him. For now, though, it seems they have his back.

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