TAMPA, Fla. -- Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles called his team's 26-7 home loss to the Denver Broncos on Sunday a "complete team collapse."
The Bucs were looking to go 3-0 for the first time since 2005 and just the fifth time in franchise history, but instead surrendered seven sacks and allowed Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix and his offense to score two touchdowns within the first 12 minutes.
The 19-point loss was their worst loss at home since Week 9 of the 2020 season -- ironically also against Broncos coach Sean Payton when he was leading the New Orleans Saints.
"We got our asses kicked," quarterback Baker Mayfield said. "Physicality-wise, execution-wise, all over the board for us. It's a good lesson for our team, for the young guys who haven't seen it before or what you need to be prepared for, how detailed we need to be."
Bowles emphasized that they didn't overlook the Broncos despite their 0-2 record heading into the game. Wide receiver Mike Evans said they had a "great week of preparation." But he and others said they did not match the Broncos' energy.
"It felt like they wanted it more when they was out there," Evans said. "I mean, they were talking trash, being physical, and we were just a little flat."
On the opening drive, starting cornerback Jamel Dean surrendered a 22-yard reception to Courtland Sutton and his counterpart, Zyon McCollum, got beat on a 31-yard pass to Josh Reynolds along the right sideline, setting up a 3-yard scramble for a touchdown from Nix.
"I don't think we had time to be surprised," McCollum said. "Bo Nix got out to a fast start, and it set the tone for the entire game and us as DBs and us as a defense -- we have to do a better job of stepping up on the first drive, from the start. Because if they get out to a rhythm and they start getting confidence, it becomes really hard to stop offenses."
Then after a three-and-out on their opening possession, Mayfield attempted to hit Evans on a corner route, but instead, it was picked off by safety Brandon Jones, who ran it 37 yards to the Tampa Bay 9-yard line. Then on fourth-and-1, Jaleel McLaughlin raced to the edge, putting the Broncos up 14-0, and then 17-0 on a 43-yard field goal by kicker Wil Lutz.
The Bucs' lone touchdown came after inside linebacker Lavonte David and safety Jordan Whitehead forced a Javonte Williams fumble that defensive lineman Logan Hall recovered. With left tackle Tristan Wirfs pulling to the right side, rookie running back Bucky Irving slashed his way to a 32-yard run before Mayfield found Chris Godwin in the corner of the end zone for a 5-yard touchdown.
"They did a really good job of squashing any momentum we were trying to gain," Godwin said. "They caught us in a lot of third-and-long situations by negative plays, whether it be a sack or a penalty on our part, and it's tough to overcome third-and-long consistently."
The Bucs could not protect Mayfield in the absence of starting right tackle Luke Goedeke, who has missed the last two games with a concussion, and they've now given up 12 sacks over the last two weeks. Mayfield ended Sunday as the third-most sacked quarterback this season at 13.
"I feel like from the very first snap of the ball, that they were going -- punching us in the face, firing off the ball, doing everything that they can to win the game," McCollum said" and we were just kind of out there, thinking things were gonna go our way, which you can't do. You have to have the intensity that it's the Super Bowl every single game or else you will get humbled very quickly."
The difference between the two pass rushes couldn't have been more stark. In the absence of defensive tackles Vita Vea (knee) and Calijah Kancey (calf), they failed to effectively pressure or sack Nix, who also rushed for 47 yards.
Nix came into the game with a Total QBR of 36.4 through the first two games -- 27th in the NFL -- with a 59.7 completion percentage. Against the Bucs, he registered an 80.5 Total QBR -- sixth best in the league for Week 3 -- with a 69.4% completion rate.
There won't be any let-up, with Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles (2-1) coming to Tampa on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, FOX). The first game of arguably their most daunting stretch of the season that also includes the Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs, two divisional battles with the Atlanta Falcons and one with the Saints.
"Just take a deep breath and understand that we've been here before," outside linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka said. "It's the NFL. You're gonna take punches and it's really how you respond, having that mindset, mental toughness, grit, attitude, just going at 'em again ...because we're gonna take our punches, but we've gotta throw our punches three times, four times as hard and understand the mental strength that it takes to play this game."
Last year they also started 2-1, as they did in 2022 and 2021. They did so in 2020 as well, but that was after they lost their first game. They're trying to avoid a collapse like last year, where a Week 6 loss to the Lions snowballed into losing six out of seven games and needing to win five out of their last six to reach the playoffs. And speaking of the playoffs - the Eagles will most certainly want to avenge their 32-9 loss to the Bucs in the opening round last season.
"I think what people need to realize like, there's a reason the saying is 'any given Sunday,' right?" Godwin said. "The NFL is such a difficult league. There's so much parity. Like regardless if a team is 0-2 or not.
"It's a long season. If we were just like throwing in the towel after one loss, like what kind of people and what kind of a team would we be? "So we're gonna go back to work, and we'll be back here fighting next week."