The Tampa Bay Buccaneers finally got a taste of what a season-saving win feels like, and now they get a chance to prove it wasn’t a one-off. Fresh off their first victory of the year, Tampa Bay will try to string together back-to-back wins for the first time since early last season when it hosts the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday.
The Bucs are 1-4 after opening 0-4 for the first time since 2014, but Week 5 brought a much-needed reset. Tampa Bay went on the road and knocked off the Dallas Cowboys 24-16 behind backup quarterback Jalon Daniels in his second career start.
Daniels will be back under center again with Baker Mayfield still recovering from a dislocated thumb on his throwing hand. The challenge gets sharper here, too: the Buccaneers haven’t beaten Pittsburgh since 2014.
The Steelers arrive with a similar mission. They’re 3-2 and coming off a 34-22 win over the Indianapolis Colts, but they’re also chasing their first back-to-back victories of the season.
Aaron Rodgers and Pittsburgh have been a study in extremes through five games. The defending AFC North champions have looked sharp in their wins and uneven in their losses, and Rodgers’ numbers reflect it.
In the Steelers’ three victories, they’ve averaged 28 points per game and 342.3 total yards while turning it over just twice. In their two losses, those numbers drop to 18.5 points and 298 total yards, with four turnovers.
Rodgers has still produced, throwing three touchdown passes in each of the last three games, but the consistency has come and gone. In Pittsburgh’s wins, Rodgers has completed 62 percent of his passes, averaged 249.3 passing yards per game and thrown seven touchdowns with one interception.
In the two losses, he’s completed 57 percent, averaged 243 passing yards and tossed three touchdowns against three interceptions. Rodgers, who said this season will be his last in the NFL, has also had to deal with a ground game that hasn’t given Pittsburgh much help.
The Steelers are averaging 101.2 rushing yards per game, which ranks No. 19 in the league. They’ve been held under 100 rushing yards as a team in three of five games and have only one rushing touchdown.
Tampa Bay, though, has a little momentum of its own after its most complete performance of the year. Against Dallas, the Buccaneers topped 400 total yards, piled up 241 rushing yards and didn’t turn it over once. Bucky Irving was the big breakout story, going for 165 yards and a touchdown on 7.9 yards per carry after averaging just 60.25 rushing yards and 4.3 yards per attempt over the first four games.
Daniels also turned in his best outing yet. He completed 76 percent of his passes for 189 yards, one touchdown and a passer rating of 110.2. He was sacked only once and did not throw an interception for the first time in his three appearances.
The defense did its part, too. Tampa Bay allowed more than 300 passing yards, but it held Dallas under 100 rushing yards for the fourth straight game and forced three turnovers. On the season, the Buccaneers rank No. 2 in the NFL against the run, giving up just 72.8 rushing yards per game.
History leans heavily toward Pittsburgh. The Steelers lead the all-time series 10-2 and have won the last two matchups, including a 30-27 win in Pittsburgh in 2018 and a 20-18 win in Tampa Bay in 2022. Those last three meetings have been close, decided by an average of just 2.7 points.
There’s also a strange split in the venue trends: Pittsburgh has not won on the road this season, while Tampa Bay is 0-3 at Raymond James Stadium.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET on Oct.
- The Steelers are 2.5-point road favorites, and the over/under is 40.5 points.
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Bucs Inactive List Creates One Big Problem Against Pittsburgh
The Buccaneers arrived for Week 6 already thin in a few key spots, and their inactive list only sharpened the edge of the matchup with Pittsburgh. Baker Mayfield and Antoine Winfield Jr. are both out with multi-week injuries, which keeps Tampa Bay without its starting quarterback and one of its most important defenders as it tries to navigate another difficult week.
Easton Stick is back as the backup quarterback for the third straight game, while the backfield got another shake-up with Sean Tucker inactive and Josh Williams elevated for the game. The Steelers brought their own list of absences into the afternoon as well, including receivers Ben Skowronek and Roman Wilson, while cornerback Jamel Dean was active and Sean Murphy-Bunting was not, leaving both sides to work around some familiar lineup uncertainty. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Face A Brutal Test If Two Problems Don't Improve
Bucky Irving gave Tampa Bay exactly the kind of spark it needed last week, piling up a career-high 165 rushing yards and adding a rushing-plus-receiving touchdown against Dallas. If the Buccaneers are going to keep up that momentum against Pittsburgh, they may need Irving to stay central to the plan while the offense also gets quarterback Jalon Daniels into a cleaner early rhythm.
The matchup gets even trickier if Tampa Bay cannot tighten up two areas that have been lagging. The Bucs have had trouble getting after the quarterback, with only six sacks in five games, and they are still waiting for a first-career sack from Rueben Bain Jr., while also having to deal with Steelers back Jaylen Warren and the usual turnover battle that can swing a close game fast. [Read more 🡒]
Luke Goedeke Is Becoming A Bucs Strength Where Fans Once Worried
Luke Goedeke has gone from an early source of concern to one of the more dependable pieces on Tampa Bays offensive line. After beginning his career with the Buccaneers at left guard and running into real growing pains, he found a better fit at right tackle and has settled in as a steady pass protector beside Tristan Wirfs.
The result has been a far more secure edge for the Bucs than many fans expected when Goedeke first arrived. His consistency has given Tampa Bay a valuable presence on the line and a reminder that development in the NFL is not always linear, especially for linemen who need the right position and the right role to show what they can do. [Read more 🡒]