A fab finish, a special record and what the future holds for the Bucs The game was kind of like the season. Equal parts thrilling and infuriating. Often sloppy, but occasionally brilliant. And impossible to turn away from until the relief of the final whistle. The Bucs set new franchise standards with their fourth consecutive NFC South title and fifth consecutive playoff appearance by coming from behind to beat the Saints 27-19 on Sunday. Tampa Bay will face Washington in the first round of the playoffs next week at home. The Bucs lost the turnover battle, had a season-high 90 yards in penalties and trailed for nearly 40 minutes, but the defense stood tall in the second half and quarterback Baker Mayfield was 7 of 7 for 125 yards and scrambled four times for 55 yards as the Bucs came from behind in the fourth quarter with two touchdown drives. Game ball Do we even need to say his name? While the victory belonged to all of Tampa Bay, the day belonged to Mike Evans. With an assist from his friends on defense, the future Hall of Famer tied Jerry Rice's NFL record of 11 consecutive seasons with 1,000 receiving yards or more. It took a defensive stand for the Bucs to get the ball back and set Evans up to gain the necessary 5 yards in the final seconds. Purists might scoff at the lengths the Bucs went to for Evans, but it's indicative of how respected he is in the Tampa Bay locker room. Play of the day Considering it might go down as the play of the season, this was an easy choice. The Bucs were losing 19-13 with a little more than 10 minutes remaining when they decided to go for it on fourth and 8 from the New Orleans 42. Mayfield was looking for Evans across the middle but quickly adjusted when the free safety did not budge from his spot in the middle of the defense. Mayfield went over the top on the right side to rookie Jalen McMillan for a 33-yard reception that kept the offense on the field and the playoff hopes alive. Minutes later, the Bucs went ahead on another Mayfield/McMillan hook-up. Keep an eye on Minutes after the Bucs game, word came down that the Patriots had fired head coach Jerod Mayo. Why is that important? Because offensive coordinator Liam Coen is expected to get some interest in head coaching positions this offseason, and New England could be an intriguing possibility. The Patriots might want an offensive guru in charge of up-and-coming quarterback Drake Maye, and Coen grew up as a New England fan. Former Patriot linebacker Mike Vrabel is probably the leading candidate, but it's still worth following the news out of Foxborough. NFC South update Prior to 2021, the Bucs had won six division titles in 45 years of football and never in consecutive seasons. With Sunday's win, they've now won four in a row. Todd Bowles and Jon Gruden are tied with three division championships each as head coach. John McKay won two, while Bruce Arians and Tony Dungy each won one. Up next So the postseason begins the same way the regular season did: with the Commanders heading to Raymond James Stadium to face the Bucs. Tampa Bay beat Washington 37-20 in the season opener, but it's not going to be so easy this time. The Commanders have since gone 12-4 with all but one of their losses coming against playoff teams. Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels made his NFL debut against the Bucs and has only gotten better. John Romano, Tampa Bay Times, published 6 January 2025