Buccaneers Fall to 0-4 as Jalon Daniels' First Start Ends in 17-14 Loss to Packers

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are 0-4 for the first time since 2013. Undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels threw two interceptions that led to 10 Green Bay points in his first NFL start, and the Packers held on for a 17-14 win on Sunday, Oct. 4, at Raymond James Stadium despite turning the ball over twice in the fourth quarter.

Jordan Love threw two short touchdown passes for Green Bay (2-2). Daniels, starting in place of injured Baker Mayfield, kept Tampa Bay close with his legs and a late touchdown pass, but the Buccaneers' final drive died on a fourth-and-11 near midfield with 1:25 left.

Daniels' debut: two picks, a touchdown and a record

Daniels completed 19 of 27 passes for 148 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions, and he ran eight times for 55 yards. According to the team, that rushing total set a Buccaneers record for a rookie quarterback, and his 10-yard touchdown pass to running back Kenny Gainwell was the first touchdown pass by an undrafted rookie quarterback in franchise history. He was sacked three times.

The mistakes were costly. Packers safety Evan Williams intercepted Daniels at the Green Bay 32, and linebacker Edgerrin Cooper picked him off at the Green Bay 38 and returned it 18 yards, according to the Buccaneers' game summary. The two turnovers produced 10 points for Green Bay in a game decided by three.

Daniels was thrust into the job after Mayfield dislocated the thumb on his throwing hand in the Week 3 loss to Minnesota. Mayfield was hit by Vikings linebacker Blake Cashman on a fourth-and-1 throw in the fourth quarter of that game. An MRI showed no ligament or tendon damage, and coach Todd Bowles said on Sept. 28 that Mayfield would miss at least three weeks. Sunday was the first game Mayfield has missed in more than three seasons in Tampa Bay, according to The Associated Press.

How the game unfolded

Green Bay scored first when Love found receiver Matthew Golden for a 2-yard touchdown on fourth down. Tampa Bay answered with a 2-yard touchdown run by Sean Tucker to tie the game at 7.

After Daniels' first interception, Packers kicker Trey Smack made a 58-yard field goal to put Green Bay ahead 10-7. Love then opened the third quarter by leading an 80-yard drive that ended with a 2-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tucker Kraft for a 17-7 lead.

The Buccaneers cut it to 17-14 early in the fourth quarter on a 12-play, 84-yard drive, their longest of the season by both plays and yards, capped by Daniels' scoring throw to Gainwell.

Two Packers turnovers, no Tampa Bay comeback

Green Bay twice had chances to put the game away and twice handed the ball back. Running back Kaleb Johnson fumbled near the goal line, and cornerback Zyon McCollum recovered inside the Tampa Bay 5. Later, with under five minutes remaining, Buccaneers cornerback Jacob Parrish intercepted Love at the Tampa Bay 26, his first interception of the season and third of his career.

Tampa Bay could not cash in either gift. On the final possession, the Buccaneers reached the Green Bay 46 before the drive stalled. On fourth-and-11, Williams came off the edge unblocked and forced an incompletion with 1:25 to play.

Bowles said afterward he had considered a 65-yard field goal attempt but judged it too far given the wind, according to the team's postgame report. He also pointed to a recurring problem. "We've been here a couple weeks now at the end of ballgames and we're not finishing," Bowles said. Asked about his own role, he told reporters, "I can always do more," the AP reported.

Green Bay escapes

Love completed 22 of 30 passes for just under 200 yards with two touchdowns and an interception, and he was not sacked. Packers coach Matt LaFleur said his team was "never going to be satisfied with scoring 17 points" and called the turnovers unacceptable, according to the AP. Love said the same: "Two turnovers is unacceptable."

Cooper finished with nine tackles, a sack and an interception, but the AP reported that he suffered an Achilles tendon injury, a potentially serious loss for the Green Bay defense.

Bright spots in a lost September

Tampa Bay's defense gave the offense chances. Rookie linebacker Josiah Trotter made nine tackles and, according to the team, has 26 tackles in his first three career games, breaking the franchise mark of 23 set by safety Antoine Winfield Jr. in 2020. Winfield had six tackles before leaving with an abdomen and rib injury, according to the team.

The offense was thin. Tampa Bay managed 275 total yards and converted 5 of 12 third downs. Chris Godwin caught six passes for 31 yards and tight end Cade Otton had four for 37.

The losses have come in every form. Tampa Bay has dropped a shootout, a rain-delayed game, a game in which it lost its starting quarterback, and now a three-point game with a rookie under center:

Tampa Bay is one of four winless teams in the league, alongside the Los Angeles Chargers, the Houston Texans and the Miami Dolphins, who lost 15-10 at Minnesota on Sunday.

What's next

There is little time to regroup. The Buccaneers play the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday Night Football at 8:15 p.m. ET Thursday, Oct. 8, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on three days of rest.

Mayfield's minimum three-week timeline, announced the day after the Minnesota game, runs past the Dallas trip, which puts Daniels in line to make his second career start on national television. The short week leaves the rookie and the coaching staff little practice time to clean up the turnovers that decided Sunday's game, and Tampa Bay will also be watching Winfield's abdomen and rib injury.

The Buccaneers' defense has kept them in the last two games, holding Minnesota to 23 points and Green Bay to 17. The question for the next two to three weeks is whether an offense without its starting quarterback can do enough to take advantage. Sunday showed both sides of that: Daniels' legs produced a team rookie record and extended drives, while his two interceptions handed the Packers the 10 points that made the difference.

Green Bay returns home to host the Chicago Bears next.