Bread cook Mayfield tossed for 337 yards and three scores to lead the resurgent Tampa Sound Pirates to a 32-9 trump card season finisher triumph over Jalen Damages and the safeguarding NFC champion Philadelphia Birds.
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — All Cook Mayfield and the resurgent Tampa Straight Pirates believed that was an open door should make some commotion in the end of the season games.
A solid completion to the ordinary season gave one. Their 32-9 trump card season finisher triumph over Jalen Damages and the protecting NFC champion Philadelphia Hawks on Monday night ensured they’ll have another.
Mayfield tossed for 337 yards and three scores, and Tampa Straight’s safeguard never permitted Damages and Philadelphia’s faltering offense to get into a cadence before a horde of 63,397 at Raymond James Arena.
The Bucs (10-8) won for the 6th time in seven games to progress to a NFC divisional round matchup out and about next Sunday against the Detroit Lions (13-5), another group — like the Falcons — that hindered Mayfield during the ordinary season.
“We endeavored to be able to be in the end of the season games and we simply needed an open door. Our folks emerged and played super well. … By and by, the protection played lights out. We’re cheerful, yet we’ve actually got more to go,” Mayfield said.
“We were longshots, we will be dark horses one week from now, as well,” mentor Todd Bowles added. “We figure out that. We embrace it. We like it.”
David Moore scored on a 44-yard gathering in the principal quarter. New kid on the block Three pointer Palmer tore the game open with a 56-yard catch-and-run for a TD that put the Bucs up 25-9 late in the second from last quarter. The two beneficiaries exploited a permeable, poor-handling Falcons optional to advance toward the end zone.
Mayfield, the 2018 No. 1 by and large draft pick who’s playing with his fourth group in under two years, finished 22 of 36 passes without a capture. He covered his most memorable season finisher appearance since the 2020 season with a 23-yard TD pass to Chris Godwin.
“We were somewhat noticeably off. That beginnings with me,” Hawks mentor Scratch Sirianni said. “I wasn’t sufficient. I didn’t set them in sufficient positions.”
Mayfield said the correspondence by the Bucs’ offense all through the week caused things to feel open to during the game.
“Everyone was in total agreement, understanding what we planned to do obnoxiously, schematically,” Mayfield said. “Emerged and gone after. Clearly, got to make a couple of additional plays in general on offense, yet we made all that could possibly be needed to win this evening.”
It was a frustrating completion for Philadelphia (11-7), which lost to Kansas City in last year’s Super Bowl and afterward spent quite a bit of this season looking like a club not entirely set in stone to return to the title game.
The Birds played without driving collector A.J. Brown, who harmed a knee in the standard season finale. Harms began notwithstanding separating the center finger on his tossing hand the earlier week, and was 25 of 35 for 250 yards and one TD prior to being supplanted by reinforcement Marcus Mariota in the last moment.
“Actually we must be better, and it begins with me,” Damages said.
The Bucs, who lost to the Lions 20-6 in Week 6, refocused following a stretch in which they lost six of seven games to go 5-1 throughout recent long stretches of the standard season to win their third consecutive NFC South title and secure an establishment record fourth back to back season finisher billet.
The Hawks entered Monday late evening searching for an answer for what distressed them during a staggering about-face that saw them go 1-5 down the stretch after a 10-1 beginning to the season that incorporated a prevailing 14-point triumph over Tampa Straight in Week 3.
“The very much dried up a little the most recent a month and a half,” Falcons tackle Path Johnson said.
Philadelphia outgained the Bucs 472 yards to 174, running 78 plays to Tampa Narrows’ 44 in the principal meeting. With Mayfield getting off to a fast beginning against a permeable, poor-handling Falcons optional, the Bucs acquired 178 yards in the principal quarter alone Monday night.
Pursue McLaughlin kicked field objectives of 28, 54 and 48 yards, the last option stretching out Tampa Cove’s lead to 16-3 late in the subsequent quarter. The Birds cut into their shortfall with Damages utilizing a 55-yard finishing to DeVonta Smith to set up a 5-yard scoring pass to Dallas Goedert.
However, the score stayed 16-9. Sirianni took Jake Elliott’s change start off the board after the Bucs were punished for offsides. The Hawks arranged to go for 2 focuses from the 1-yard line, however Tampa Straight halted Damages for no addition.
Smith got done with eight gatherings for 148 yards for the Hawks.
Huge DOM RETURNS
Falcons security boss Dom DiSandro was back in the group’s sideline after he was banished for the last five rounds of the normal season after a sideline squabble with 49ers linebacker Dre Greenlaw on Dec. 3. The Falcons were fined $100,000 for the occurrence. DiSandro was allowed to travel and play out any remaining work obligations during the sideline boycott.
Privileged Skippers
Three individuals from the group of the Fire up. Martin Luther Lord Jr. filled in as privileged group skippers for the Pirates.
Martin Luther Lord III, Arndrea Waters Ruler, and Yolanda Renee Lord went to the game as exceptional visitors and partook in the pregame coin throw. It’s the initial time individuals from the Lord family have partaken in the celebration of MLK Day at a NFL game.
Wounds
Birds: WR Julio Jones passed on in the second quarter to be assessed for a blackout and didn’t return. … CB Darius Kill, who returned subsequent to being sidelined for a month with a knee injury, was hauled away with six minutes remaining. There was no quick declaration on the idea of his physical issue.
Marauders: RB Rachaad White limped off the field in the subsequent quarter, yet returned and got done with 72 yards surging on 18 endeavors.