Patrick Mahomes checkmate came several moves after Buccaneers’ fateful call

Baker Mayfield knew it the second he lost the overtime coin toss: The Buccaneers were cooked. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes was in the kitchen.

Kansas City took the opening possession and drove 70 yards in 10 plays. The Chiefs (8-0) beefed up their offensive line, reporting big Wanya Morris as a tackle eligible, then sent Kareem Hunt 2 yards through the Tampa Bay front to beat the Buccaneers, 30-24.

But had Todd Bowles played out the chess match a few moves before that Mahomes checkmate, the Buccaneers’ head coach might have altered the course of Tampa Bay’s season. With 30 seconds in regulation, Mayfield connected with Ryan Miller for a 1-yard touchdown that cut the Chiefs’ lead to 24-23. At that point, according to ESPN insider Jeff Darlington, Bowles had three choices and only one made sense.

“The Bucs had 3 possibilities vs. the Chiefs,” Darlington tweeted. “(1) Go for 2 after the TD & decide the game right there. (2) Win the coin toss & be forced to drive the whole field for a TD. (3) Lose the coin toss & give the best QB in the world the ball on home turf.”

Bowles eventually opted for Door No. 3 and sent Chase McLaughlin on the field to kick a game-tying extra point and send the game to overtime. After the Bucs lost the toss and then lost the game, the coach said he gave little thought to Door No. 1.

“Very minor. We wanted to get it to overtime,” he said. “With the wet conditions on the field, we wanted overtime instead of going for two. We had our shots, and we lost the game.”

They nearly won it. Playing without his top three wide receivers, Mayfield led Tampa Bay (4-5) on three second-half scoring drives, leaning on tight end Cade Otton and college buddy Sterling Shepard. Down 10-7 at halftime, Mayfield came out of the locker room and capitalized an Bucky Irving’s 46-yard kickoff return, throwing an 11-yard go-ahead touchdown to Otton.

Then, after Mahomes orchestrated a 15-play, 78-yard touchdown drive to break a 17-17 tie with 4:17 left in regulation, the defenses took over as conditions deteriorated. And when his defense stopped Kansas City on third-and-11, Mayfield got the ball back just before the two-minute warning. Accurately attacking Steve Spagnuolo’s scheme, Mayfield connected three times with Shepard, then found Trey Palmer on a 19-yard pass to set up his touchdown toss to Miller.

“Against a team with an offense like that, you can only give them so many chances,” Mayfield said. “They win the coin toss and that’s what happens. I’m proud of our guys on offense that stepped up. Coach had a good message … ‘We’re that close. Don’t get used to losing but just turn this thing around.’ We’ve got a home game next week against an NFC opponent and we’ve got to find a way to win. That’s it.”

That opponent is San Francisco (4-4) on Sunday, when running back Christian McCaffrey is expected to make his long-awaited 2024 debut. Tampa Bay needs a win to avoid falling farther behind Atlanta (6-3) in the NFC South. That Falcons lead will be difficult to overcome considering that two of the Bucs’ four losses are against Atlanta.