National Football League

'Unbelievable' Shaq Barrett leads Bucs defense in 27-17 win over Bears

Published Sep. 17, 2023 7:51 p.m. ET

TAMPA, Fla. — Seconds after his game-clinching touchdown, after his teammates piled all over him in celebration, Bucs outside linebacker Shaq Barrett looked into a TV camera, thought of his 2-year-old daughter, Arrayah, and said aloud: "I love you. I miss you. I wish you were here."

Barrett had played just his second game back from a torn Achilles tendon last year, a remarkable comeback in itself, but Sunday was also his first home game since April, when his family suffered an unimaginable tragedy when Arrayah drowned in their backyard pool. There is no consolation for such a loss, but he found some small joy in helping his team pull out a 27-17 win over the Bears.

"It was divine intervention to be able to just get that spotlight for my baby girl," Barrett said after the game, a heart-shaped pendant with her picture in it hanging from his neck.

The Bucs are 2-0 for the third year in a row — a franchise first — but this feels different. Instead of Tom Brady and all the high standards that came with him, this is a Bucs team that entered the season with very low outside expectations, seen as potentially one of the league's worst teams. Yet here they are with wins over the Vikings and Bears, and their defense has led the way.

"It was a great play for Shaq," coach Todd Bowles said. "We put him inside to give him a position to make one of the drop calls and twist them underneath and sit there and wait for something. They threw right to him. Shaq is a very heady guy. I think he had a sack along with it. It's good to see him back to normal."

It was one day short of a year since the Bucs' last defensive touchdown, and this was the first score in Barrett's 10 seasons in the NFL, though the last few seconds felt like the longest.

"I couldn't be denied," Barrett said of finally finding the end zone. "It was three yards. I've got to find a way to get in there. My teammates came to rally behind me and help me get into the end zone. It was just a great way to end the game. The offense did it for us last time, and it was our time to return the favor."

The Bucs offense has made these two wins possible, first and foremost, by not turning the ball over. The last time a Tampa Bay team went its first two games without a turnover was 1994 — 29 years ago, nearly Barrett's lifetime — and no team in the NFL pulled that off last season, and only the Eagles did it in 2021.

Quarterback Baker Mayfield, who entered the season with as many interceptions as anyone in the league since he arrived in 2018, played another mistake-free game. He built on a growing connection with receiver Mike Evans — the two connected on a 70-yard pass in the second quarter, setting up a touchdown, and had a 32-yard touchdown in the third for a 10-point lead. Evans finished with 171 yards, and Mayfield threw for 317 yards on 26-for-34 passing, the highest completion percentage of his career with that many attempts.

It seems hard to imagine an offense improving with Brady's departure, but it can be better. Last year's Bucs struggled mightily in third-and-long situations, going 0-for-41 when needing 11 yards or more, but Mayfield had two such conversions Sunday, both to Evans, including their touchdown.

Tampa Bay's defense kept Chicago and Justin Fields in check most of the day. The Bears had 147 yards of total offense with just over 10 minutes left to play, and Fields was held to a career-low three yards rushing. But Chicago woke up and drove 90 yards for a touchdown to pull within three points with 6:17 to play.

The Bucs offense nearly went three-and-out again, but Mayfield converted on third down with a throw to Rachaad White, who had a strong game with 73 yards in 17 carries, including a touchdown. Mayfield was at his best on third down Sunday, going 12-for-13 for 141 yards and a touchdown. Still, the Bucs had to punt with 2:38 left, trusting in their defense to close out the win.

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Barrett's touchdown did that emphatically, and rookie nickel Christian Izien picked off a deflected Fields pass on the next drive to put it away. Tampa Bay is 2-0 heading into next Monday's home showdown with defending NFC champion Philadelphia, with Barrett and their defense leading the way.

"It's unbelievable," Bowles said of Barrett's triumphant return from such injury and hardship. "You can't even fathom going through something like that. To see him go through it and come out on the other side, I am sure he still has days, but to play like he is playing right now, to be where he is right now, it's unbelievable."

Greg Auman is FOX Sports' NFC South reporter, covering the Buccaneers, Falcons, Panthers and Saints. He is in his 10th season covering the Bucs and the NFL full-time, having spent time at the Tampa Bay Times and The Athletic. You can follow him on Twitter at @gregauman.

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