
What did social media think of Tampa’s big win?
The Buccaneers won their fourth straight game and in impressive fashion. They beat the Los Angeles Chargers 40-17 as the defense pitched a shutout in the second half and the offense rolled against one of the better defenses the NFL has to offer.
Sitting at 8-6, Tampa Bay is primed to win the NFC South once again. Let’s take a look and see what Twitter thought of the big performance out on the west coast.
Vintage Mike Evans
Wide receiver Mike Evans has battled through injuries this year but made his presence felt multiple times on Sunday. Grabbing a pair of touchdowns including a 57 yarder to give the Bucs the lead.
BAKER MAYFIELD TO MIKE EVANS TD!
: #TBvsLAC on FOX
: https://t.co/waVpO8ZBqG pic.twitter.com/PJekNHYcal— NFL (@NFL) December 15, 2024
Evans would later have another big touchdown to extend the Bucs lead. He is chasing 1,000 yards receiving for the 11th consecutive season and a performance like the one on Sunday definitely helps that cause.
A lock for Canton and a gold jacket whenever he decides to hang it up.
I don’t think the question is if Mike Evans is a first ballot Hall of Famer.
I think the question is how many receivers in NFL history are in front of him. It ain’t many.
— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) December 16, 2024
Baker Mayfield continues his success
While he did have an interception in this game, Mayfield bounced back in a big way the rest of the game. He finished with four touchdown passes and made critical play after critical play to ensure a Bucs victory. There are ups and downs with Baker at the helm, but he’s been pretty much everything the Bucs could have asked for when they signed him.
QBs with 3,500+ passing yards and 30+ passing touchdowns this season:
Joe Burrow
Jared Goff
Baker Mayfield
Lamar Jackson pic.twitter.com/8CedKVkwO7— StatMuse Football (@statmusefb) December 17, 2024
Bucs defense bounces back
Credit to Todd Bowles and the defensive staff for this one. Tampa Bay was short handed on defense heading into this game and admittedly, things did not start off well. However the second half adjustments made allowed them to shut down the Chargers and leave no doubt on the scoreboard.
The defense has come under fire quite often throughout this season and for good reason, but they have rebounded nicely since the bye week.
Facing lesser opponents helps, but over the last four weeks, Bucs have the NFL’s No. 1 scoring defense:
Bucs 15.0
Chiefs 17.0
Eagles 17.0
Saints 17.3
Packers 18.8— Greg Auman (@gregauman) December 16, 2024
Will Liam Coen get a Head Coaching shot?
Bucs offensive coordinator Liam Coen is simply put, cooking right now. This offense is humming and has been for most of the season. Coen and the players deserve a lot of credit. They just put up 40 on what was the number one scoring defense in the entire NFL heading into the game and that was with the offense still committing two turnovers.
We see you, coach!
506 total yards
40 points
0 punts https://t.co/8tsltUHxNb pic.twitter.com/3GWV7Gyh4Y— Tampa Bay Buccaneers (@Buccaneers) December 16, 2024
The success though does bring up the question if Coen will be in Tampa Bay much longer. He surely has made a name for himself and might generate some legit head coaching interest from other teams this offseason.
Bucs OC Liam Coen should absolutely be on every teams NFL head coach short list.
Top 5 offense in every major category & put up 37 points today vs one of best defenses in football
— Chase Daniel (@ChaseDaniel) December 16, 2024
Let’s hope Tampa Bay can find a way to retain Coen for another season.
The Bucs are rolling right now and are looking to wrap the division up sooner rather than later. They have a date with the Dallas Cowboys this upcoming Sunday and hope to come one step closer to clinching the division for the fourth straight season.