The Tampa Bay Buccaneers nearly pulled off another stunning comeback, but their late-game magic ran out against the undefeated Philadelphia Eagles, who escaped with a 31–25 win to move to 4-0. The Bucs suffered their first loss of the season, falling to 3-1.

Tampa Bay found themselves in a deep hole early, trailing by 21 points in the first half. A bright spot came as time expired in the second quarter, when kicker Chase McLaughlin drilled a career-long 65-yard field goal, cutting the halftime deficit to 18 points. It was a momentum shift the Bucs hoped to capitalize on—and they nearly did.

The Buccaneers came alive in the third quarter with two massive touchdown strikes: a 77-yard bomb to Emeka Egbuka and a 72-yard connection with Bucky Irving. McLaughlin added a 58-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter to pull the Bucs within 31–23 with 12:16 to play.

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Then came Tampa Bay’s best opportunity. With just under eight minutes remaining, they reached the Eagles’ 11-yard line, threatening to take the lead. But a Baker Mayfield pass tipped by Reed Blankenship was intercepted in the end zone by Jihaad Campbell, killing the drive.

After forcing a punt, Tampa Bay made one last push, getting to the Philadelphia 40. However, a 9-yard sack by Moro Ojomo derailed the drive, and the Bucs turned the ball over on downs. The Eagles took an intentional safety on the final play to secure the six-point win.

Philadelphia’s offense wasn’t sharp in the second half, finishing with -2 total yards after halftime, including a 34-yard loss on the final play. But they did just enough to win thanks to a blocked punt return touchdown by Sydney Brown, two receiving touchdowns by Dallas Goedert and a Saquon Barkley TD run on a fake “tush push”.

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Jalen Hurts finished 15-of-24 for 130 yards and two scores, while Barkley was held to just 43 yards on 19 carries. Mayfield ended 22-of-40 for 289 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Bucky Irving led all Bucs with 63 yards on the ground in this air dual. Irving also posted 102 yards through the air on five catches and a score, while rookie Egbuka finished with 101 yards on four catches with a touchdown.

Despite the loss, the Buccaneers outgained the Eagles 376–200, continuing a trend of gritty, high-effort performances. But this time, the final play didn’t go their way.