For the second straight week, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers found a way to get in their own way after a hot start. It's so painfully fitting for how the season as a whole has gone, as the Bucs lost four straight games after getting out to a 3-1 start and are only now digging themselves out.
There's a lot that has gone into the team's struggles this season, but one of the most notable is how frustratingly bad Tampa Bay has been in the second quarter of games. It's been something that has plagued them all season, and we saw it again on Sunday in Los Angeles against the Chargers.
Baker Mayfield masterfully led an opening drive touchdown that gave us all the best versions this team is capable of being. Jalen McMillan was featured prominently and came through with some big catches and the offense looked exactly the way it should when mistakes aren't gumming up the works.
That's what happened shortly after.
Buccaneers second quarter struggles continue to be their biggest flaw
Just like last week, the Bucs committed two turnovers that swung all of the momentum to the otherside of the field. After scoring on back-to-back drives to start the game, the Bucs followed things up with a Baker interception and a Rachaad White fumble that was turned into a seven-point swing for the Chargers.
It'd be one thing if this was just a rough game for the Bucs, but this is a troubling pattern that has long been established.
Earlier this year the Bucs jumped out to a 17-0 lead in New Orleans but allowed 20 unanswered points. That game thankfully ended in a 51-27 blowout but that nightmare second quarter is a vibe that has hung around ever since.
Last week the Bucs forked over a 14 point lead as three turnovers from Baker Mayfield allowed a two-win Raiders team to make more of a game out of things than should have been the case. Two turnovers after a pair of scoring drives put Tampa Bay right back in a familiar hole against the Chargers.
So much has been made about Todd Bowles struggling to run the defense but the struggles of Tampa Bay's offense in the second quarter is one of the biggest things holding the team back. It's stunted drives and allowed teams to hang closer than they should, and it's the type of flaw that will sink the Bucs in the playoffs if not sooner.
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