What We Learned from Sunday’s 14 games

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Jeremy Bergman’s takeaways:

1. Unbeaten Bucs still not playing their best. Tampa Bay’s perfect start is only in the standings. For the third straight week, the Buccaneers won one at the buzzer, a sign that despite coming away victorious, they’re not hitting on all cylinders yet. Cody Mauch and Luke Goedeke‘s injuries on the offensive line left the Bucs down three of the starting O-line for their home opener. It showed on the field, as Tampa Bay saw five holding penalties on the line set the offense back in the first half. Both clubs struggled with penalties — 15 combined in the first half — but Tampa Bay finished with a ghastly 14 for 124 yards. Baker Mayfield did his best to maneuver the pocket and move the ball despite the encroaching pressure, throwing for 233 yards and running for 44. Tampa Bay leaned on Bucky Irving in the ground game, feeding him with 25 carries, but the running back wasn’t efficient (66 yards, 2.6 yards per carry). The only facet that was clicking early was the defense, which kept the Jets at bay in the first half and turned the tide with a Jamel Dean pick-six late in the first half to create some distance. Tampa Bay logged four sacks of Tyrod Taylor, who was scrambling for his life as the Bucs defense shut down the passing game. That was until New York’s furious second-half comeback. Tampa Bay will be truly tested next week, when it hosts the undefeated reigning Super Bowl champs.
2. Jets nearly complete improbable comeback. Through three quarters, New York looked left for dead, limping to an 0-3 start. Then, a slow comeback — and a sudden turn of events. Down, 23-6, to start the fourth quarter, Tyrod Taylor, filling in for the injured Justin Fields, led New York’s two best drives of the day. New York moved down the field in bits and pieces on consecutive 10-plus-play marches in under four minutes, punctuated with touchdowns passes to Garrett Wilson and Allen Lazard to cut Tampa Bay’s lead to six. The Bucs responded with what looked to be a game-sealing drive of their own. But on a fourth-and-1 42-yard field-goal attempt, Will McDonald IV hopped through the heart of Tampa Bay’s line, blocked Chase McLaughlin‘s kick and took it 50 yards to the house. The unthinkable return flipped the game on its head … but only for a minute or two. Gang Green’s defense was forced right back onto the field to attempt to thwart a Tampa Bay comeback — and failed. All Baker Mayfield needed was two chunk plays to Emeka Egbuka and Sterling Shepard to get into range for McLaughlin, who this time banged home a 36-yarder with ease. Aaron Glenn’s first win as a Jets coach will have to wait, and the spirit of Sunday’s comeback will have to be consolation enough for now.
3. Egbuka stands out again, as another Bucs WR injury looms. The star of Tampa Bay’s early season success has been Emeka Egbuka, and that was the case again on Sunday. Egbuka’s one-handed catch in the first half woke Tampa Bay out of its early funk and led to a Mike Evans TD. The early Offensive Rookie of the Year favorite paced all Bucs pass catchers with six catches for 85 yards, including a big 28-yard catch-and-run on the game-winning drive. Unfortunately, Egbuka’s breakout might be all the more necessary in the near future. The veteran Evans left the proceedings late in the fourth quarter with a hamstring injury and did not return, leaving Egbuka and Sterling Shepard to carry the load. Chris Godwin, who’s been out for the start of the season, could return in Week 4, providing a reprieve if Evans is to miss significant time. But regardless, Tampa Bay has a star in the making in Egbuka, already making game-saving plays on the regular.

Next Gen Stats Insight for Jets-Buccaneers (via NFL Pro): Yaya Diaby generated 11 pressures on 30 pass rushes (36.7%) against the Jets, including four quick pressures (pressures under 2.5 seconds), and a sack. Diaby’s 11 pressures and 36.7% pressure rate are both career highs in a game. Diaby matched up against Jets left tackle Olu Fashanu on 20 pass rushes, totaling seven pressures (35.0%).

NFL Research: Mike Evans, who left the game with a hamstring injury, has 140 receiving yards through three games in 2025 (14 receptions, receiving TD). The Buccaneers veteran is on pace for only 793 receiving yards in 2025, a total which would snap Evans’ record 11 straight seasons with at least 1,000 receiving yards.