The Buccaneers' win streak ended against the Chicago Bears, who won 27-24 in the final seconds. While Tampa Bay's defense played well, the offense was nowhere near up to the task. The Bucs defense forced five turnovers, including four interceptions by Caleb Williams, while generally stifling the Bears offense for most of the game.
Tampa Bay's offense reverted to its ineffective ways, as it could no longer simply run the ball down their opponents' throats. Baker Mayfield and the pass offense struggled mightily and even actively sabotaged the defense's stellar work, committing two turnovers of their own, including a pick-six.
Here are the studs and duds from the Bucs' Week 9 loss to the Bears:
DUD: Baker Mayfield
Outside two big throws to Tez Johnson and Kenneth Gainwell,
Mayfield looked just as bad as he did before his thumb dislocation. Both of his interceptions were badly telegraphed as he stared down his receiver. He simply isn't seeing the field and has returned to his jumpy ways in the pocket, leading to the turnovers and four sacks. The pick-six he threw to Bears cornerback Jaylon Johnson proved the difference in a game where the Bucs lost by just four points, much like his pick-six against the Cincinnati Bengals in Week 1.
STUD: Zyon McCollum
The Bucs cornerback had a rough start, but he became the catalyst for Tampa Bay's defensive resurgence. McCollum gave up Chicago's first touchdown to Rome Odunze and appeared to be targeted by the Bears offense.
Then midway through the second quarter, McCollum exploited an ill-advised throw from Caleb Williams, toe-tapping his first interception of the night. McCollum got his second on another errant Williams throw, this time diving for the ball and appearing to take it back for a touchdown. However, the initial call had the ball hitting the ground, but replay overturned it and gave McCollum the first multi-interception game of his career.
DUD: Todd Bowles' fourth-down calls
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles called a masterful defensive game, but his fourth-down decisions bear scrutiny considering how close the game was. The Bucs kicked three field goals, two inside Chicago's 10-yard line and another from the 17, but only after taking a five-yard delay of game on fourth-and-four.
While the defense played well for much of the game, it gave up 14 points early and had to dig out of a hole. The pass offense was largely ineffective, but Bucky Irving proved effective near the goal line, scoring two red-zone touchdowns. This game may have ended much differently if Bowles had been a little less conservative.
STUD: Reuben Bain Jr.
The Bucs' 2026 first-round pick had a slow start to the season, but he is starting to make more of an impact with each passing week. He led the Bucs with four pressures per PFF, which helped keep Caleb Williams off balance and throwing numerous interceptions. Bain also secured the Bucs' final chance to tie the game, forcing the Luther Burden III fumble that led to a Bucky Irving touchdown and tied the score 24-24. With Yaya Diaby out with a knee injury for an indeterminate amount of time, Bain stepped up and kept the Bucs' defense on its dominant track.
DUD: The offensive line
Reality came back to bite Tampa Bay's offensive line as it faced its biggest test in weeks. While the offensive line was not necessarily bad against the Bears, it was nowhere near as good as it had been against the Falcons or Panthers. The run lanes weren't as open, and the pass protection broke down, particularly late in the fourth quarter. However, the biggest issue was pre-snap penalties, with the offensive line committing four false starts. With the pass offense already struggling to gain yards and convert downs consistently, the line's mental lapses only made things worse.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Studs and duds from the Bucs' Week 9 loss to the Bears
