It doesn’t take a seasoned NFL veteran to tell the Tampa Bay Buccaneers came in flat and paid for it in their 26-7 loss at the hands of the previously winless Denver Broncos.

All but handing Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix his first career win in the NFL, the Buccaneers offense — which averaged over 25 points per game to start the season — scored just seven points against a team that was allowing an average of nearly 20 per game coming in.

Defensively, Tampa Bay gave up 216 yards through the air to Nix and another 47 on the ground along with a touchdown run and a long gain of 22 yards. Bottom line, the Bucs got beat up by a team that simply wanted it more.

READ MORE: 3 Up, 3 Down From Bucs’ Crushing Loss to Broncos

“I think the biggest difference was the Broncos were pissed off for a week and we were happy for a week,” Buccaneers cornerback Zyon McCollum told BucsGameday after the game. “And we have to figure out a way to create a mentality that every week we’re going to play the same, that every week we’re going to grind the same, that every week we’re going to stay pissed off until the job is finished, which is (the) Super Bowl.”

McCollum came up with six tackles in the game but was also targeted early by Nix and the Denver offense.

On the first drive alone McCollum was targeted on completions that gained Denver six, 31, and two yards respectively. The drive ended with a three yard scramble by Nix for a touchdown.

“My mind just wasn’t there at all,” McCollum said of the 31-yard completion. “My technique was just absolutely terrible. That’s pretty much all it. My feet got caught up and yeah, he got behind me.”

It’s somewhat refreshing to hear an NFL player admit what onlookers essentially knew all along, that the team came out flat and it would appear fell in love a little too much with their headlines.

This isn’t the first time a Todd Bowles coached Tampa Bay squad fell guilty to ego, and the last time it happened it took a few weeks for it to get rectified.

If it doesn’t get fixed in the next week, the Buccaneers may find themselves dropping back-to-back home games with the 2-1 Philadelphia Eagles coming to town next Sunday afternoon.

Stick with BucsGameday for more coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throughout the 2024 season.

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