It was ugly, but it was a win.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers faced off against the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday for their Week 1 opener, and they barely got out of Atlanta alive with a 23-20 win. The win puts them on top of the NFC South, and it also gives head coach Todd Bowles the Week 1 win he was looking for.
It was a wild game until the end. Here are our three instant takeaways:
Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Emeka Egbuka (2) celebrates with wide receiver Mike Evans (13) after scoring a touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Emeka Egbuka’s NFL debut couldn’t have gone better. The rookie caught two of Baker Mayfield’s three touchdown passes in his debut, and he also netted 67 yards on the day. He caught two Baker Mayfield dimes, and it looks like the two of them will have good chemistry moving forward this year.
The Bucs will need Egbuka while wideout Chris Godwin gets back to full health, and they’re likely pleased with what they saw today — his rookie debut couldn’t have gone much better.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Yaya Diaby (0) and defensive tackle Calijah Kancey (94) tackle Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Yaya Diaby is primed to have a great year in 2025, partially because of the addition of Haason Reddick. Reddick got his on Sunday, bringing down Michael Penix Jr. for a sack, but Diaby’s tale was much the same — he faced a slew of near misses and wasn’t able to bring down the quarterback.
Diaby is still looking for his first sack, but his pressure rate remains excellent. He should have had the sack he was looking for midway through the game when he got to Michael Penix, but the play was negated by a Jamel Dean holding penalty. The Bucs will be pleased to see what he did when they look back at the tape, and if he keeps laying the pressure on, the sacks will come in due time.
Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson (7) reaches for the ball against Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker SirVocea Dennis (8). / Brett Davis-Imagn Images
The Buccaneers put a lot of trust in linebacker SirVocea Dennis this offseason to play alongside Lavonte David, and his first outing didn’t quite go as he’d like. He gave up a 50-yard touchdown at the hands of Bijan Robinson to start the game — Todd Bowles said he got “out-athleted” — and he also gave up another big gain to Robinson when he went hunting for a sack instead of covering him on a wheel route. At one point, he was benched for Deion Jones, but he came back in the game toward the end.
He made some plays at the end of the game, though, stuffing Atlanta’s run game and contributing to the win. There was at least a strong ending to his game, so hopefully he can ease into that as the season progresses.
The Buccaneers and Falcons also had a wild game last year in Atlanta when the Bucs seemingly grabbed the game-winning interception with under two minutes to play. A disastrous drive afterward gave the Falcons the ball back, though, and quarterback Kirk Cousins helped send the game to OT and then won it in OT on a pass to KhaDarel Hodge. This game almost went to overtime, but a Younghoe Koo missed kick let Tampa Bay walk away in regulation.
We don’t know what it is about the A, but this was another wild one, with Atlanta leading a nine-minute drive in the fourth quarter to take the lead and then the Buccaneers scoring a touchdown from a Mayfield shot to Egbuka. The Bucs were on the losing side of it last year, but this year, they came out on top.
