Philadelphia wins as defense clamps down on Tampa Bay late In a battle between two undefeated NFC teams, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Philadelphia Eagles played a tale of two halves that came down to the wire. After the Eagles took a 24-6 lead into halftime, the Buccaneers mounted a comeback, but Philadelphia's defense clamped down late to win 31-25 in triple-digit temperatures. Jalen Hurts and the Eagles' offense went to work early. A blocked punt on special teams, which was returned for a touchdown, and a 2-yard flip from Hurts to tight end Dallas Goedert gave the defending Super Bowl champs momentum early. Hurts found Goedert for another TD to close out the first half with a comfortable lead, as Tampa Bay was held to two field goals by kicker Chase McLaughlin. One of McLaughlin's field goals was a franchise-record and career-high 65-yarder to close the half. The Buccaneers, though, woke up in the second half. Baker Mayfield connected with Emeka Egbuka on a 77-yard TD, and despite running back Bucky Irving's fumble halting the Bucs' momentum, he responded with a timely 75-yard TD after Mayfield found him in stride. That came after the Eagles ran a fake tush push, with Saquon Barkley rushing in from 6 yards out. Hurts had an MVP-like first half, but offense waned It's hard to envision a better first half from Hurts. It's hard to envision a more listless second half. Hurts went 15-for-16 for 130 yards and two touchdowns with 42 rushing yards before halftime. It was the best completion percentage of his career in the first half. That was a major reason why the Eagles had an 18-point halftime lead. He looked like an MVP. In the second half, that offense from minutes earlier looked like it was run by a different team. The Eagles' first six drives of the second half included five three-and-outs and another drive that went five plays but totaled minus-10 yards. They scored a touchdown on a short field (the drive started at the 25-yard line), but otherwise they struggled to move the ball. It was a prolonged period of underperformance, and it sullies the feelings from the game. Are the Eagles the offense from the first half or the second half? The answer is probably somewhere in between, but they need to channel the first-half excellence to be a Super Bowl-caliber team. Eagles' defense withstands Bucs' surge Sturdy first-half play by the Eagles' defense helped them build a 24-6 halftime lead. The Buccaneers were averaging 3.1 yards per play at the break. That gap proved to be enough when the Buccaneers eventually broke through. The Eagles hadn't surrendered any play of over 70 yards since Nick Sirianni was hired in 2021. They allowed two on Sunday. Mayfield threaded a 77-yard touchdown pass to Egbuka between safeties Reed Blankenship and Drew Mukuba. Two drives later, Irving broke past Eagles rookie linebacker Jihaad Campbell along the sideline and hauled in a 72-yard touchdown reception. Campbell's up-and-down play involved increased responsibilities in the system. With Zack Baun blitzing off the edge, Campbell often held back as the off-ball linebacker a role typically reserved only for Baun. That suggests Campbell has earned defensive coordinator Vic Fangio's trust to handle the off-ball spot. Campbell also delivered two of the game's deciding plays. He forced a second-half fumble that immediately produced an Eagles touchdown that maintained a two-score lead. Then, late in the fourth quarter, Campbell corralled in a tipped ball for an interception in the Eagles' end zone. Mayfield made big plays when offense found a rhythm Playing without Mike Evans, it took time for Mayfield and the Bucs to find momentum. However, the big-play offense shows what's possible when Mayfield buys time to connect with his talented skill players. Egbuka continued a brilliant start to the season with his first 100-yard performance. He now has four touchdowns. Irving set a career high for receiving yards. The pair added to their marks because of the plays of 70-plus yards. It was not as if they had long sustained drives, but when they get the ball in their playmakers' hands, good things can happen. Bucs' turnovers finally caught up with them The Bucs entered the game as one of three teams without a turnover this season. That's why they've stayed undefeated while winning games by narrow margins. The turnover luck caught up to them against the Eagles. An Irving fumble led to an Eagles touchdown. A Mayfield interception came in the red zone and took points off the board. When you win three games by six combined points, you realize there's little margin for error. That was evident Sunday. Would Eagles be here without special teams play? One week after a game-saving blocked field goal was returned for a touchdown to seal the dramatic victory over the Rams, the Eagles opened Sunday's game with a blocked punt by Cam Latu that was scooped by Sydney Brown and returned 35 yards for a touchdown. The Eagles have not scored a special teams touchdown under Sirianni until this season. They also have more blocked kicks than at any point in the Sirianni era. Special teams coordinator Michael Clay spoke earlier this week about how diligent the Eagles are about finding vulnerabilities in an opponent's protection. That's been apparent in back-to-back weeks. The results of the games might have been different otherwise. The Athletic, published 29 September 2025