PREGAME:
RB Sean Tucker, TE David Wells, G Matt Feiler, OLB Markees Watts, NT Vita Vea, and S Kaevon Merriweather are the Bucs' inactives.
S Damar Hamline, CB Kaiir Elam, LB Baylon Spector, G Germain Ifedi, T Alec Anderson, and TE Quintin Morris are the Bills' inactive players.
Initially quarter: After winning the coin toss, the Bills decided to start the second half. The ball will be in the Buccaneers' possession to begin play. White opens the contest with a 6-yard run. Mayfield connects with Trey Palmer for a 15-yard gain and the first down for the Bucs. Tristan Wirfs was called for a false start, which caused the Bucs to regress and end up in a third and long. Cade Otton's incomplete pass on third down ends the Bucs' first drive. The Bills will take the field at their own 4-yard line after Camarda punts. Allen completes a 13-yard pass to Shakir for the Bills' first down. Allen completes the game's second pass to Shakir, this time for a gain of 21 yards. The Bucs' defense stops the Bills' first drive on a third down, but Bass enters the game and drills a 37-yard field goal. Bucs trail the Bills 3-0. Godwin reverses for a gain of fourteen yards. Otton is impeded during a deep pass over the middle, resulting in a PI call that gives the Bucs a first down. Baker manages to catch the ball and toss it out of bounds even though the snap goes over his head. 9 and 3rd are coming up. Mike Evans is found by Mayfield for 7 yards, but it is not enough for a first down. McLaughlin is going to try a 50-yard field goal. McLaughlin's 50-yard field goal attempt is unsuccessful as it is tipped at the line of scrimmage. At their own 32-yard line, Buffalo will assume possession. Allen gains 17 yards after finding Stefon Diggs. The Bills have a first-and-goal at the Bucs' 8-yard line after Allen finds a wide-open Shakir for a gain of thirty yards. At the end of the first quarter, the Bills have a 3-0 lead over the Bucs, but they will soon face a fourth down at the goal line.
SECOND QUARTER:
Jamel Dean breaks up the pass to give the Bucs the stop as the Bills attempt a fourth-quarter drive. Mayfield's pass on third down is incomplete, resulting in a punt from the Buccaneers' end zone. Harty returns Camarda's line drive punt for 24 yards, deep into Bucs territory. On first down, YaYa Diaby successfully sacks Josh Allen. Josh Allen takes off and scores a 13-yard touchdown run. The Bills now have a 10-0 advantage over the Bucs. On third down, Mayfield connects with Godwin for a first down and a 31-yard gain. Mayfield's third down pass is nearly intercepted. Upon entering the game, McLaughlin attempts a 57-yard field goal and scores, giving the Bucs their first points. 10, Buccaneers 3. Bills 10. Winfield Jr.'s advice William Gholston intercepts Allen's pass after it is thrown high into the air. Bucs' sphere. Inside the Bills' 5-yard line, Baker screens White for a big gain of 20 yards. The Bucs tie the game at ten when Mayfield finds Godwin for a 3-yard touchdown pass, his first of the season. James Cook scuttles around for an eighteen-yard gain. There are 2:40 left in the second quarter when Josh Allen finds Dalton Kincaid for a 22-yard touchdown pass and catch, regaining the lead for the Bills 17-10. Mayfield is sacked on second down, and with 39 seconds left before halftime, the Bucs are forced to attempt a third and long. Baker gains twelve yards when he finds Otton over the middle. With 16 seconds remaining, the Bucs will rush McLaughlin on for a field goal, forcing Buffalo to take a timeout.
* There are eleven seconds left before halftime when the Buccaneers punt the ball back to Buffalo, who will take over at their own 20-yard line. Buffalo will start the half ahead of the Buccaneers, 17–10. The second half begins with a ball to the Bills.
THIRD QUARTER:
Allen finds Kincaid for an 18-yard gain to open the Bills' second half. Bills make quick passes and strong runs to get into the red zone. Right out of the second-half gates, Allen finds Gabe Davis in the endzone for a 4-yard touchdown. Bills ahead, 24–10, Bucs. Baker ducks under a sack and gains 11 yards on a first down. On third down, Baker tries to scramble for a first but fails, forcing the Bucs to punt once more. On third down, Allen finds Kincaid for fifteen yards and another first down for the Bills.- On third down, Allen targets Diggs, but Carlton Davis's excellent coverage forces the incompletion, forcing the Bills to punt. Buffalo will take control at their own 3-yard line and pin the Bucs deep in their own territory with a brilliant punt play.On third down, Mayfield connects with Godwin, but it is insufficient for the first down, and the Bills will reclaim the ball.On third down, Allen takes a snap and scores the first.Just before the third quarter ends, Anthony Nelson successfully sacks Josh Allen.
Bills ahead of the Bucs 24–10.
FOURTH QUARTER:
The Bills attempt to draw the Bucs offside on fourth and four, but they are unable to do so and will punt the ball. Once again, the Bucs' punting unit will be pinned deep in their own territory at their disposal because they allow the ball to go rather than field it. Baker nearly gets sacked for a safety in the end zone, but he manages to get the ball off, but it is incomplete. Poyer nearly picks off the ball as Baker attempts to pass to Godwin on a third down. Bucs punt will occur. Around the 50-yard line on third down, the Buccaneers force another stop on the Bills.Goedeke was called for a false start, which prevented Mayfield from passing the ball to Palmer on first down.Baker throws a short pass to Rachaad White, who gains 20 yards. Evans is found by Mayfield for a huge gain, but it is called back because Mauch was given a holding penalty.Mayfield returns some yardage when he finds Chase Edmonds for a 9-yard pass.For the third straight play, Mayfield finds an RB for a first down.Johnson sacks Mayfield again on third down after Epenesa sacks him on second. To stand a chance, the Buccaneers will need to go all in on fourth.Although Baker's fourth-down pass to Godwin was incomplete, the defense was called for illegal contact, which resulted in an automatic first down for the Bucs.On third down, Mayfield's pass is incomplete, forcing the Bucs to try a fourth down once more.On fourth down, Baker is sacked, but the Bills are called for a facemask, which gives Tampa Bay another first down.To reduce the lead to six, Baker finds Mike Evans on fourth down for a 24-yard touchdown and go for two.Otton to Mayfield is a good 2-point conversion.After Allen finds Diggs for the first down, the Bucs use their final timeout, and the two-minute warning allows them to stop the clock once more.With just over 30 seconds remaining in the game, the Bills are forced to punt the ball back to the Bucs. With just 21 seconds remaining, the Bucs will have the ball and try to tie or win the game from their own 20-yard line.Otton is found by Baker for a seven-yard gain.There are only eight seconds left in the game when Mayfield finds White for a gain of five yards. Evans receives a pass from Baker for eight yards, and Baker has a 60-yard haul to try to win or tie the game.Baker throws it to the end zone, where it hits the ground unfinished and no one touches the ball. Play.
END RESULT: Bills 24, Bucs 18.