Bucs head coach Todd Bowles addressed the media after Sunday’s 27-20 loss to the Colts in Indianapolis.bucks quarterback baker mayfield He injured his ankle early on, but managed to continue playing. The Colts ran for 155 yards and scored three rushing touchdowns, but the Bucs had to make two field goals early on as their drive stalled inside the red zone.
Todd Bowles’ team fell to 4-7, despite suffering its sixth loss in its past seven games. Tampa Bay is still one game out of first place in the NFC South.
Todd Bowles talked about the team’s position heading into the second half of the season with a limited number of games remaining.
“Well, we all have to get together and stop making stupid mistakes. We know we can’t try any harder, right? Working hard. We’ve seen things a thousand times at this point. Young players can’t afford to make mistakes and we had to make plays. You know. We still understand where we are. We’re trying to win. We’re not worried about anything else. We’re trying to win. It’s crazy. As cliché as it may sound, we are one game out of first place. But the way we play has to change. It feels like 10 games in and one more to go. But we are one game out of first place. We have to play well and we understand that as a team.”
Regarding QB Baker Mayfield’s ankle injury:
Bucks QB Baker Mayfield – Photo courtesy of USA Today
“We’ll have to wait until he gets checked out and see how bad his condition is after the game. Once he puts it up, that’ll be the proof.”
On the impact of linebacker Lavonte David’s absence:
“You always miss a starter, but at the same time we had players who could play. We failed in certain areas that he didn’t need to be involved in. But always the best player We’re going to miss one of them.”
Who had most of Baker Mayfield’s six sacks (him or the offensive line):
“I’ll have to watch the tape to find out. I have no idea what happened.”
On No. 4 shortstop’s explosive play against Colts tight end Mo Arie Cox:
Bowles: “I missed the coverage. Everyone was sold out, so I missed the coverage.”
On whether Cox was to blame for linebacker Sarvosia Dennis (who ultimately made the tackle):
“No, it wasn’t.”
As for whether the injury has had a big impact on his play, considering Devin White struggled in this game:
Bucs ILB Devin White and Colts QB Gardner Minshew – Photo courtesy of USA Today
“He’s no more beat up than anybody else who’s played every game he’s ever played. Everybody on the team is beat up. Everybody on the team is beat up. So you have to play. No. He’s a warrior. He’s going to play.”
On whether the Colts did anything special to limit Vita Vea’s impact:
“No, they didn’t do anything at all on the Vita. They multiplied it several times. But I’m sure other players were making plays that they could have played too. And [they] I didn’t. ”
On why the offense continues to struggle to score points:
“We’ve got to hit it. We’ve got to execute. We’ve got to execute.” Whether it’s a penalty or a missed pass. Whether it’s a bag, we all need to be on the same page at the same time. Parts of the game look very functional. This is not the case in other parts of the game. In order to win any more ballgames, we need to connect that. ”
On whether he thinks Mayfield will be able to play next week:
“Right now, there’s hope even without X-rays and tests like that. We’ll see how he feels, but if he can play, he’ll probably play.”
As for whether there is an update on Servosia Denis’ injury status, here’s what you need to know:
“At this time, that is not the case.”
As for whether he can say what injuries Dennis sustained:
“At this time, that is not the case.”
If a drive where the Bucks score first and then fail to score is an example of a team failing to finish a drive:
“We’re not done driving yet, but today we had a leak in the middle of the run game. I mean, everyone had stages where they could have been better. We lost the ball game. It was a whole team effort, but we had to start hitting them. You know, that’s what good teams do. If we want to be a good team, we have to start hitting them. .And we have to stop that trend.”
On what went wrong with the Bucs defense on Jonathan Taylor and Gardner Minshew’s TD runs:
Bucks CB Christian Isien and Colts RB Jonathan Taylor – Photo courtesy of USA Today
“Obviously, we didn’t make plays. I think some of the plays the tackles weren’t outstanding, but you had to watch the tape to see what happened. But we made a few plays. We had some mismatches with guys on our runs. Some guys got unblocked. And you know we’ve got to play better defensively tonight.”
On whether the crowd contributed to the Bucks’ offensive struggles:
“No, it definitely wasn’t the crowd. You’re going to get a penalty at the wrong time. I don’t know. There weren’t that many overall today, but the ones we beat were .”
On whether Lavonte David and Jamel Dean (out with injury) will be able to play next week, he said:
“At this time, that is not the case.”
When Antoine Winfield Jr. drops an interception and Trey Palmer drops a pass:
“And at this point in the year, you have to make those plays to win ballgames. There are a lot of other plays like that that we could have made, should have made, to win ballgames. We had a chance, but we have to make plays.”
The most frustrating part about going 4-7:
“Yeah, it’s frustrating because we’re losing. But you know, we play hard. And nobody’s keeping their heads down. And nobody’s getting down. [The] It’s frustrating that we can’t play, but we have a chance to play. And we’ve seen things thousands of times. And we just make them. ”
On the impact of Mike Evans, who scored two touchdowns against the Colts:
Bucks WR Mike Evans – Photo courtesy of USA Today
“Mike’s going to perform. I mean, Mike shows up every week, and Mike’s a warrior. He’s one of those guys that’s going to lead us. He’s been that way his entire career. [I] I can’t say enough about this guy. ”
On Payne Durham’s catch near the goal line:
“It’s a great catch. You know, Payne is a big man. He’s a big red zone target. He was that way in college and I hope that’s the start of things to come.
On why Yahya Diaby will start and whether it’s because he gets the chance:
“He definitely took that opportunity.”
On Diaby’s brief absence from the game due to injury and subsequent return:
“He’s back, so I think he’s okay.”
