The sun shone on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when they defeated the Philadelphia Eagles, 32-9, at Raymond James Stadium on Monday in the wild card round of the NFL playoffs.
In the warmest game of the historically-cold weekend, Tampa Bay, the No. 4 seed, scored 13 unanswered points to open while the Eagles offense struggled to get things going. The Buccaneers defense even stopped the infamous Tush Push when No. 5 seed Philadelphia attempted to go for a two-point conversion after they finally got their first touchdown late in the second quarter. Nick Sirianni’s team failed to score in the second half.
Baker Mayfield went 22-of-36 for 337 yards and three touchdowns as he played through ankle and ribs injuries. Tight end Cade Otton had eight catches for 89 yards. Rachaad White added 18 carries for 72 yards in the ousting of the defending NFC champions.
“We fought so hard to get to this point, to get a chance to be in the playoffs, and I’m so proud of this team tonight,” Mayfield said on the ABC broadcast after the game. “The way we came out and started fast, I’m so proud.”
Jalen Hurts, who was playing with a finger injury on his throwing hand, finished 25-of-35 for 250 yards and a touchdown. DeVonta Smith had eight catches for 148 yards. Julio Jones left the game in the second quarter and was evaluated for a concussion.
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The Buccaneers will face the No. 3 seed Detroit Lions at Ford Field in the divisional round. The Lions defeated the Los Angeles Rams in their own wild-card matchup to win their first playoff game in more than 30 years. — Victoria Hernandez
Todd Bowles, Tampa Bay’s defense: Todd Bowles and the Bucs effectively dialed up the blitz all night, and the Eagles did little to stop it. The blitz was working so the Bucs appropriately kept sending the heat.
Jalen Hurts had trouble finding open receivers outside of DeVonta Smith. Hurts routinely tried to escape the blitz with his legs. However, much like most of the regular season, Hurts’ speed and acceleration weren’t there.
The Bucs blitzed on 40% of their defensive snaps during the regular season. They likely blitzed on more than half of their defensive snaps on Monday night.
Linebacker Lavonte David had five tackles and two tackles for loss.
Baker Mayfield, Tampa Bay’s passing attack: Mayfield managed the game well and played winning football.
Mayfield picked apart Philadelphia’s leaky secondary. The Bucs quarterback finished 22-of-36 passing for 337 yards and had three touchdown passes. Nine different players had receptions.
Five players had at least 45 receiving yards. David Moore, Trey Palmer and Chris Godwin each caught touchdowns.
Bucs kicker Chase McLaughlin: McLaughlin converted all three of his field goals, including one from 54 yards out.
Eagles WR DeVonta Smith: Smith was the lone bright spot for the Eagles.
Smith was the only player Jalen Hurts seemed to trust. The Alabama product and former Heisman Trophy winner tallied eight catches for 148 receiving yards. No other Eagles player had more than 34 receiving yards.
A.J. Brown was out Monday due to a knee injury. The Eagles missed Brown, but Smith tried to do his part.
Cornerback James Bradberry, Eagles secondary: Bradberry’s poor regular season carried over into the postseason. The Bucs picked on him for most of the game.
Bradberry played a big role in Philly’s leaky secondary. But the veteran corner was hardly the only one getting beat. Cornerback Darius Slay was also subpar in the loss. Unfortunately, Slay was carted off the field in the fourth quarter due to injury.
The entire defensive back group played with poor angles and had an abysmal night tackling.
The Eagles had the second worst pass defense in the NFL during the regular season, and it showed in their playoff exit.
Eagles' MIA run game: The Eagles had a top five rushing attack last year. They never found consistency in their running game this season. The club rushed for 41 yards in the loss. Even the Eagles’ patent Tush Push (a.k.a. Brotherly Shove) didn’t work on a two-point conversion try.
Fall of this Eagles team: The Eagles’ demise was rapid. It’s almost hard to remember that the Eagles began the regular season 10-1.
Inept pass defense, a missing pass rush, combined with a stagnant and predictable offense ultimately led to Philly’s downfall.
The Eagles lost six of their last seven (including the playoffs) to end the year. — Tyler Dragon
Baker Mayfield threw for three touchdowns to lead the resurgent Buccaneers to a wild-card playoff victory over the defending NFC champion Eagles.
First quarter
Buccaneers field goal (10:02) — Chase McLaughlin, 28 yards
Buccaneers TD (5:47) — David Moore, 44-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Chase McLaughlin extra point
Second quarter
Buccaneers field goal (14:03) — Chase McLaughlin, 54 yards
Eagles field goal (11:31) — Jake Elliott, 47 yards
Buccaneers field goal (5:35) — Chase McLaughlin, 48 yards
Eagles touchdown (3:06) — Dallas Goedert, 5-yard pass from Jalen Hurts (two-point conversion attempt fails)
Third quarter
Buccaneers safety (2:16) — Jalen Hurt incomplete pass, intentional grounding penalty in end zone
Buccaneers touchdown (1:19) — Trey Palmer, 56 yards from Baker Mayfield (Chase McLaughlin extra point)
Fourth quarter
Buccaneers touchdown (5:42) — Chris Godwin, 23-yard pass from Baker Mayfield (Chase McLaughlin extra point)
Dagger.
Facing a third-and-7 from the Philadelphia 23-yard line, Baker Mayfield dropped back and found Chris Godwin for his third touchdown toss of the game. It capped a 12-play, 83-yard drive that ate six minutes, 15 seconds off the clock.
The Buccaneers led 32-9 with 5:42 remaining in the game. The Philadelphia defense has allowed at least 25 points in seven of its last nine games; in four of those instances, the opposing team has scored more than 30 points. — Chris Bumbaca
The Eagles have not scored in 21 minutes and time is ticking away for them to come back against the Buccaneers.
Philadelphia marched down the field and had Jake Elliott kick a 40-yard field goal, which he made. Tampa Bay’s Zyon McCollum committed an offsides penalty on the kick, which wiped out the three points and gave the Eagles fourth-and-five. Philadelphia decided to go for it.
Jalen Hurts took the snap and threw downfield to DeVonta Smith in the end zone. The wide receiver was covered by Carlton Davis III, who jumped up in front of Smith. The ball slipped through both of their hands along with Philadelphia’s hope for a comeback — for now.
The Eagles turned the ball over on downs with the score 25-9 and 11:57 left in the game. — Victoria Hernandez
The Eagles have 15 minutes to save their season. They didn’t do much in the previous 15 to stop that from happening.
Jalen Hurts committed an intentional grounding penalty in his own end zone, which by rule, is a safety. Two plays later, Bucs receiver Trey Palmer caught a short pass and zoomed half the field for another long Tampa Bay touchdown. Philadelphia’s inability to tackle was once again an issue on the play. The Eagles were 0-for-3 on third down in the third quarter but started the fourth on the Tampa Bay side of the field. — Chris Bumbaca
The Buccaneers are taking all the air out of the Eagles toward the end of the third quarter.
After getting a possession from a safety, Baker Mayfield tossed the ball to the side and found rookie Trey Palmer. The receiver shook off a tackle attempt by Eagles cornerback James Bradberry and then scurried all the way downfield for a 56-yard touchdown. — Victoria Hernandez
The Eagles started with the football at their own 10-yard line on their third possession of the second half and went backwards.
On first-and-10, running back Kenneth Gainwell was tackled for a six-yard loss. Two plays later, Jalen Hurts held on to the football too long and was corralled in the end zone. Hurts tossed the football out of the end zone just before being tackled to the ground, but it was ruled intentional grounding. The play resulted in a safety since it took place inside the end zone. — Tyler Dragon
Former Buccaneers and Arizona Cardinals head coach Bruce Arians joined the “Manningcast” during the first half of the Eagles-Bucs matchup. A few highlights were:
— Chris Bumbaca
The Bucs scored on four of their five drives and have a 16-9 lead at halftime.
Tampa Bay jumped out to a 16-3 advantage in the second quarter behind its passing attack. But the Eagles got within one score after Jalen Hurts found DeVonta Smith deep for a 55-yard catch. Philadelphia scored one play later.
However, Philadelphia’s offense was stagnant for much of the first half. While the team’s poor pass defense reared its ugly head.
Baker Mayfield has 174 passing yards and one touchdown in the first half.
Smith leads the Eagles with four receptions for 111 receiving yards.
Bucs cornerback Jamel Dean and Eagles linebacker Nicholas Morrow have six tackles apiece. — Tyler Dragon
Eagles wide receiver Julio Jones is being evaluated for a concussion, the team announced during their wild-card matchup. He was later ruled out of the game.
The All-Pro star was taken out of the game in the second quarter after being hit when he grabbed a catch from Jalen Hurts. He was initially pushed by Buccaneers cornerback Zyon McCollum and then pancake tackled by linebacker Lavonte David.
Jones was slow to get up and his teammate, tackle Jordan Mailata held him up.
Jones has three catches for 22 yards in the game. — Victoria Hernandez
Bruce Arians, the retired NFL coach, made a guest appearance on the ManningCast and used some colorful language when recalling his coaching days at Temple in the 1980s.
"When I was a head coach, I was only 30 years old," Arians said. "Man, I thought I knew everything. I didn’t know (expletive)." — Josh Peter
The Eagles were desperate for a big play. Jalen Hurts and DeVonta Smith provided it.
Trailing 16-3 and at their own 40-yard line, Hurts found a streaking Smith deep down the middle of the field for a gain of 55 yards. Now five yards from the end zone, the Eagles scored on the next play, a Dallas Goedert touchdown reception.
The Eagles attempted a normal extra point, but the Buccaneers jumped offside. Nick Sirianni put the offense back on the field for the two-point try via the Eagles’ patented “Tush Push.” The Tampa Bay defense stood Hurts up short of the goal line, however, and dragged the Eagles quarterback backward. — Chris Bumbaca
The Buccaneers boosted their lead back to 13 with a field goal in the second quarter.
Baker Mayfield made throws and ran for nine yards to get one of the first downs in the drive. Tampa Bay’s offense slowed when Eagles linebacker Zach Cunningham tipped a pass.
On fourth-and-5, Chase McLaughlin lined up and made the 48-yard field goal. — Victoria Hernandez
Ahead of the Eagles’ “MNF” game against the Seattle Seahawks on Dec 18, news of head coach Nick Sirianni’s decision to replace defensive coordinator Sean Desai with Matt Patricia as the play-caller on defense. The Eagles lost that game on a game-winning drive by Seattle backup QB Drew Lock that featured more than one blown coverage.
The Eagles’ defense had surrendered 42 points to the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys in back-to-back losses to start December. The Seattle loss was actually the least amount of points the Eagles allowed since Patricia took over.
On Monday against the Bucs, "MNF" analyst Troy Aikman said Sirianni’s decision to change coordinators at that point in the season was unwise.
"I thought it was an overreaction after a couple of losses,” Aikman said on the broadcast, “and it has not improved at all." — Chris Bumbaca
The Eagles offense finally got something going on their third possession.
Jalen Hurts passed to wide receiver DeVonta Smith in the middle of the field for a 31-yard gain. The Eagles’ 45-yard drive stalled in Tampa Bay territory, but kicker Jake Elliott was able to convert a 47-yard field goal to make the score 13-3 early in the second quarter.
The 45-yard drive was by far Philadelphia’s best thus far.
Smith has two receptions for 43 yards to lead Philly. — Tyler Dragon
The Buccaneers have scored 13 unanswered points, the latest being a 54-yard field goal.
To start the second quarter, Baker Mayfield was sacked by Eagles defensive end Josh Sweat. He then threw an incomplete pass and Tampa Bay was left with fourth-and-13.
Chase McLaughlin nailed the kick to further the Buccaneers lead to 13-0 over Philadelphia. — Victoria Hernandez
The Bucs dominated the opening quarter, much to the delight of the home crowd.
Tampa Bay has a 10-0 advantage at the end of the first quarter.
The Bucs converted a field goal on their first drive and entered the end zone on their second possession.
Wide receiver David Moore has the game’s only touchdown thus far. Moore, who is celebrating his 29th birthday, had a nice 44-yard touchdown reception in the opening quarter.
Tampa Bay produced 178 total yards in the quarter compared to just 26 yards by a sluggish Eagles squad. The Bucs had 10 first downs in the first quarter, and Jalen Hurts and the Eagles were only able to pick up one first down. — Tyler Dragon
The Eagles’ secondary woes have shown up early.
On the Bucs secondary drive, Baker Mayfield passed to a wide open David Moore. Moore maneuvered by multiple Eagles defenders on the way to a 44-yard touchdown. Tampa Bay now has a 10-0 midway through the first quarter.
Moore navigated by Philadelphia’s secondary easily on the touchdown catch and run.
Moore’s playoff touchdown came on his 29th birthday. — Tyler Dragon
The Eagles took the ball second in their wild-card matchup against the Buccaneers and didn’t quite go three-and-out, but were forced to punt quickly.
After D'Andre Swift got a first down with two rushing plays, Jalen Hurts connected on two short passes. Then, a toss to Dallas Goedert was batted down by Buccaneers safety Antoine Winfield Jr.
Philadelphia was left with fourth-and-two and opted to kick the ball away. — Victoria Hernandez
The Buccaneers offense had little trouble moving the ball against the Philadelphia defense on its first drive.
Mike Evans had a 21-yard gain for his first catch of the game and the drive’s first game. Rachaad White had three carries for 19 yards.
The Tampa Bay drive stalled at the 10-yard line, however, and Chase McLaughlin converted a 28-yard field goal for the game’s first points four minutes, 58 seconds into the contest. — Chris Bumbaca
Philadelphia native and noted Eagles fan Rob McElhenney is stuck at the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony on Monday night, but has found a way to watch his beloved NFL team.
McElhenney is most famous for his role in "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," which he also co-created. McElhenney, along with actor Ryan Reynolds, are co-owners of the Welsh soccer team, Wrexham AFC, which has been covered on a documentary series, "Welcome to Wrexham." — Jim Reineking
Kickoff for Eagles vs. Buccaneers is set for 8:15 p.m. ET on Monday, Jan. 15.
Eagles at Buccaneers will be broadcast on ABC and ESPN. The game is also available to stream for free on Fubo.
ESPN2 (with streaming available on ESPN+) will be home to the "ManningCast" featuring Peyton and Eli Manning. Guests for Monday night's game include former NFL head coach Bruce Arians and Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis.
The Eagles are favorites to defeat the Buccaneers, according to BetMGM NFL odds.
USA TODAY Sports’ staff picks for this game:
After the Green Bay Packers upset the Dallas Cowboys and the Detroit Lions won their first playoff game in more than 30 years, that meant that the winner of Monday night's NFC wild-card playoff game would be going to Detroit for the divisional playoff round.
The seventh-seeded Packers will face the top-seeded San Francisco 49ers on Saturday (8 p.m. ET on FOX), while the Lions will host the Eagles-Buccaneers winner on Sunday (3 p.m. ET on NBC).
Martin Luther King III, Arndrea Waters King and Yolanda Renee King will be special guests of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, as well as honorary team captains and participate in the pregame coin toss, for the wild-card playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles, which is being played on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
It will mark the first time that Martin Luther King III and his family have joined in the commemoration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day at an NFL game.
"Having the King family in attendance to celebrate the remarkable legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on this special evening is an honor and a privilege," Buccaneers co-owner Darcie Glazer Kassewitz said in a statement. "The work being done by the Martin Luther King III Foundation is truly inspirational and aligns with the Buccaneers social justice mission to effect meaningful and positive change through purposeful dialog and impactful programs."
All six of the NFL's wild-card playoff games featured MLK and Be Love decals on player helmets, as well as end zone stencils with "It Takes All Of Us" and "Be Love." — Jim Reineking
All is not OK in Bird Land.
Entering December, the Eagles were 10-1. They were the defending NFC champions. They had lost four times dating back to the start of the 2022 season.
Five weeks later, and the fifth-seeded Eagles – who dropped five of their final six games to relinquish the NFC East crown – are unrecognizable from that previous form as they face the fourth-seeded Buccaneers in the NFC wild-card round. — Chris Bumbaca
Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown (knee) will miss Monday night's playoff game against the Buccaneers. Brown was hurt during the first quarter of last week’s loss to the New York Giants.
Brown led the Eagles in receptions (106) and receiving yards (1,456), while also scoring seven touchdowns. Brown — who didn't practice all week — had nine catches for 131 yards in the Eagles’ September win over the Buccaneers.
Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (ankle/ribs) had been questionable heading into the game, but will start for Tampa Bay.
Eagles' inactive players:
Buccaneers' inactive players:
The Eagles are 25-25 all-time in playoff games. The team has appeared in four Super Bowls (including last season's), winning one (Super Bowl LII). Prior to the Super Bowl era, the Eagles won three NFL championships (1948, 1949 and 1960). Philadelphia is in the playoffs for the third consecutive season.
The Buccaneers are 11-11 all-time in playoff games. The team has won both of its Super Bowl appearances (Super Bowl XXXVII and Super Bowl LV). Tampa Bay is in the playoffs for the fourth consecutive season, the longest such active streak in the NFC.
The Eagles and Buccaneers have some shared playoff history. Monday night will mark the sixth time that these two teams have met in the postseason.
Most recently, the Buccaneers defeated the Eagles in a wild-card game during the 2021 season. The most important playoff showdown between the Eagles and Buccaneers was the 2002 NFC championship game, which was won by the Buccaneers. Tampa Bay went on to win Super Bowl XXXVII after that victory.
Here are the results of the previous Eagles-Buccaneers playoff games:
Offense
Defense
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Defense
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