The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ night went from bad to worse in their 34–7 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. Their quarterback, Baker Mayfield, suffered a shoulder injury during the game. Fans, who were waiting for the QB, came to the bitter realization at halftime that he wasn’t returning.

After the game, head coach Todd Bowles shared a concerning update on Mayfield. “He has a shoulder sprain. He’ll get an MRI tomorrow,” he said.

So, as of now, there’s no information on the severity of Baker’s injury. Mayfield sustained the injury at the end of the second half. As the QB made a Hail Mary attempt, he hurt his non-throwing left shoulder.

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He immediately knelt to the ground, holding his shoulder. Later, he left the game with several questions surrounding his condition. During the press conference, Coach Bowles was further probed on the situation.

It was revealed that Baker injured his shoulder early in the game and aggravated it later. Coach Bowles also admitted that the team should have done a better job at protecting the quarterback.

“Obviously, we’ve got to protect him a lot better. Not the ideal situation to be in when they’ve got a big lead and they’ve got their ears pinned back every play, but he performed well under pressure,” he said.

This issue also came up at the team’s 28–23 loss to the New England Patriots in Week 10. He urged the offense to improve, and while the unit did perform better in the following game, they still fell 44–32 to the Buffalo Bills. These struggles continue to weigh heavily on the Buccaneers, and now there is a risk that Mayfield could be sidelined for an extended period.

However, Coach Bowles appeared confident in backup quarterback Teddy Bridgewater.

“Well, Teddy will play if he’s out for some time. Obviously, we’ll bring up Connor  (Connor Bazelak) from behind, and we’ll go from there. from there. Very confident in what Teddy can do. With a full week of practice, taking every snap and every play, you know, we think he’ll be fine,” he said.

After Mayfield’s injury, Bridgewater took over the job and completed 8 of 15 passes for 62 yards. But he was sacked twice under heavy pressure.

With their QB down, there’s another problem for the Bucs.

The Bucs’ struggles could cost an NFC playoff spot

This was a highly anticipated game with the Bucs against the Rams for the NFC No. 1 seed. And it ended with the Rams getting close to the top spot. This has made the playoff situation much more difficult for Tampa Bay.

Other teams, like the Philadelphia Eagles and Chicago Bears, are ahead in the standings. The Bucs are currently in fourth place, but they could drop further if teams like the Carolina Panthers win their upcoming games. The Tampa Bay seems to be in a position where more slip-ups could push them out of the playoffs entirely.

Now, the Bucs have bounced back from such a situation in the past. Moreover, the Bucs’ schedule becomes easier in the coming weeks, with most of their remaining opponents being teams with losing records. So, while there is still hope, it remains to be seen if the team is able to keep up.