Sep 23, 2026 · 27 min
Tampa Bay’s 0-2 start puts Bowles and Mayfield under pressure
Vikings face a Bucs team hungry for a win Sunday. How could Tampa Bay tip the scales in their favor?
The matchup tests whether Tampa Bay can reverse its defensive decline and avoid an 0-3 start against Minnesota’s aggressive defense.
- 1Tampa Bay’s nine losses in its last eleven games have intensified scrutiny of Baker Mayfield, Todd Bowles and the team’s defensive regression.
- 2Greg Auman identifies touchdowns, takeaways and a stronger pass rush as the Buccaneers’ clearest routes to upsetting Minnesota.
- 3Minnesota’s defense has emerged as the matchup’s defining challenge, with Dallas Turner among its developing playmakers.
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Greg Auman lays out Tampa Bay’s clearest upset formula: score touchdowns, win turnovers and generate defensive takeaways.
The brief
Emily previews Minnesota’s Week Three meeting with Tampa Bay alongside Greg Auman, who frames the Buccaneers’ 0-2 start as a broader decline rather than a single bad loss.
Auman traces Tampa Bay’s trajectory from Todd Bowles’ division-title run through the transition from Tom Brady to Baker Mayfield and last season’s late collapse.
The discussion connects Mayfield’s contract, a fading pass rush and defensive pressure to nine losses in eleven games, while Alex Anzalone’s difficult start adds concern.
Tampa Bay’s upset formula is direct: finish drives with touchdowns, win the turnover battle and create the defensive takeaways Minnesota has made difficult to find.
Minnesota’s aggressive defense and emerging playmakers, including Dallas Turner, give the Buccaneers little margin for error as Bowles faces mounting job pressure.