On the eve of Election Night, what better way to distract yourself from potential impending doom than some football? Oh wait, you’ll still be bombarded with 5 million political ads, each more nauseating than the last.

Ah, well. Nonetheless, the Tampa Bay Bucs are taking on Kansas City’s undefeated, star-studded football team.

The defending champs are coming off another narrow victory against the lowly Las Vegas Raiders. If you’re keeping track, 5 of KC’s 7 games have been decided by one possession, and a couple have come down to, shall we say, controversial calls.

Remember the defensive pass interference against the Bengals, the no-call in their close game with the Falcons, or Mahomes taking full advantage of the refs treating him like this generation’s Tom Brady with his cowardly fake-running-out-of-bounds bit?

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It’s all been frustrating and makes me wonder why I watch this forsaken sport.

The even worse news is that while playing both KC and the refs, the Bucs are still without their two star wideouts, and their defense has been picked apart on a weekly basis for some time now.

The absence of starting cornerback Jamel Dean has forced some inexperienced players into prominent roles, such as practice squad rookie Tyrek Funderburk, whose name is cooler than his actual play, and late-round pick from the 2023 draft Josh Hayes.

Combine that with a team sporting below average pass rush metrics across the board and you get a defense primed to give up a Patrick Mahomes breakout game.

Because as much as KC has gotten bailed out on occasion, they’re still undefeated for a reason, and unlike most seasons, it’s not because of their legendary QB.

Mahomes and KC’s offense has been fine, efficient mostly, with high success rates and low average depth of target numbers. But it also lacks the usual explosiveness of the typical Mahomes-Reid offenses.

Are they holding back for the playoffs? Perhaps, but they’ve been undefeated, so it doesn’t matter all that much.

All of this is meant to say, the Bucs’ defense isn’t likely to have a repeat of their Super Bowl 55 performance, where they managed to grab a pair of interceptions off a banged up KC offense.

The remainder of their schedule should add some easier games, especially with Mike Evans due to return after their bye week.

So brighter days are ahead. Just not tonight.

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