Rick, reporting from Chicago, and Steve react to the Bucs' 27-24 loss to the Bears on Sunday night, a game Tampa Bay lost even though its defense forced five turnovers. Caleb Williams and Ben Johnson's opening script put the Bears up 14-0, but the Bucs weathered it, tied the game, and had a shot to win until a Baker Mayfield pick-six and a late coverage bust on tight end Colston Loveland. Rick says the Bucs would have been alone in first place at 4-5 going into the bye. Instead they're 3-6, still 2-0 in the division. Steve credits a switch from man to zone coverage for confusing Williams, and they argue over Mike Tomlin's halftime comment on the Bucs kicking a field goal on fourth-and-goal (Rick would have gone for it, Steve says he understands the thinking). They also talk about the five false start penalties and Todd Bowles sounding defeated afterward.
The hosts keep coming back to the offense. Rick says Baker Mayfield hasn't been sharp since returning from his thumb injury, with too much staring down receivers (Cade Otton included) and not enough throws to open players. They talk about the drops and Ted Hurst's "yips," the lack of a true No. 1 receiver, Emeka Egbuka still coming back from an ankle, and Jalen McMillan being out. They wonder about a trade-deadline receiver, though neither expects Jason Licht to make one. On the positive side are the defense's takeaways (Rick calls Zyon McCollum an All-Pro candidate and cites Jacob Parrish's pass breakups), Bucky Irving's strong running, and a division so weak that Steve says eight wins will likely take it and the Bucs would need to go 5-3 the rest of the way. Rick says a 5-1 division finish would be elite, and both agree Antoine Winfield Jr.'s ankle is a concern. Rick also notes the Bears' fans were on edge after the fast start.
After a Breitling Boutique sponsor read, Steve recaps the Lightning's weekend: a comeback win in overtime at Minnesota after trailing by two goals late, then a 4-3 loss at Winnipeg after rallying from three goals down, when Winnipeg scored with 1.6 seconds left on a five-on-three. They talk about Nikita Kucherov's fired-up celebration, Yanni Gourde's return, Brayden Point leaving hurt, and the back-to-back at Buffalo and Columbus. After a look at Penix and the Falcons in Madrid, they run through the college weekend, including Florida State's road win without Mike Norvell, a disputed Miami-Notre Dame touchdown, USF's loss at ECU, Florida losing to Oklahoma, and Alabama over LSU.