More stressed over playoff loss.
So how are the Bucs looking at the Dixie Chicks, their Week 1 opponent, when the Bucs kick off the 2025 season Sunday in Atlanta?
Depends who you talk to.
Yesterday, Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield confessed he has hardly thought about Atlanta until recently, when the Bucs kicked their Week 1 game prep into high gear.
Mayfield did say he stewed over the offseason with the stinging memories of the playoff loss to Washington much more than he dwelled on two losses to Atlanta.
Left tackle Charlie Heck wasn’t around last year. So the sweep at the hands of the Dixie Chicks doesn’t mean much to him. He’s just worried about doing his best, likely facing a rookie on Sunday.
New multi-millionaire right tackle Luke Goedeke noted he’s still peeved at last year, getting swept by Atlanta. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t respect Atlanta. He very much does.
> “We kind of gave away two games to them last year,” Goedeke said. “I think we are all coming in with a little chip on our shoulder.
>
> “We know what we were last year. We’ve only elevated from that.”
So how can the Bucs reverse history and beat Atlanta on Sunday? Don’t turn the ball over. The Bucs had a critical turnover late in the game in Atlanta last year when Bucky Irving coughed up a ball that likely would have otherwise turned into a field goal.
With three minutes left, Irving fumbled on the Dixie Chicks-32
The Bucs lost in overtime.
Protect the ball and score points and the Bucs should win this game. Simple.
_#BeatAtlanta_