Baker Mayfield went 29-of-33, Sam Darnold threw four touchdowns, and 68,804 people at Lumen Field watched it all come down to one throw with 58 seconds on the clock.
With the score tied at 35, Darnold dropped back and threw off his back foot toward the middle of the field. The ball clipped the top of defensive end Logan Hall’s helmet, redirected just enough, and settled into the hands of Lavonte David, who had been reading the quarterback’s eyes since the snap. David returned it to the Seattle 38. Rachaad White ran three times. Baker Mayfield took a knee. Chase McLaughlin hit a 39-yarder as the clock expired.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 38, Seattle Seahawks 35.
That victory made the Buccaneers the first team in NFL history to win four games by three points or fewer in the first five games of a season. They improved to 4-1. The Seahawks dropped to 3-2.
“I think this was the fourth two-minute drive that we’ve had this year out of five games. You have to have someone at quarterback that has that capability, and Baker has that for sure,” wide receiver Emeka Egbuka said.
Table of Contents
Game Information
- Date: October 5, 2025
- Venue: Lumen Field, Seattle, WA
- Attendance: 68,804
- Weather: 61°F, 73% humidity, 8 mph wind
- Line: SEA -3.5
- O/U: 44.5 (Over)
Scoring Summary
| Time | Team | Play | TB | SEA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 — 7:57 | TB | Chase McLaughlin 30-yd FG | 3 | 0 |
| Q2 — 14:08 | TB | Chase McLaughlin 36-yd FG | 6 | 0 |
| Q2 — 2:09 | TB | Rachaad White 7-yd rush (McLaughlin kick) | 13 | 0 |
| Q2 — 0:06 | SEA | Jaxon Smith-Njigba 6-yd pass from Darnold (Myers kick) | 13 | 7 |
| Q3 — 13:01 | SEA | Zach Charbonnet 5-yd rush (Myers kick) | 13 | 14 |
| Q3 — 7:52 | TB | Emeka Egbuka 20-yd pass from Mayfield + 2PT conversion | 21 | 14 |
| Q3 — 4:12 | SEA | AJ Barner 2-yd pass from Darnold (Myers kick) | 21 | 21 |
| Q3 — 0:19 | TB | Rachaad White 1-yd rush (McLaughlin kick) | 28 | 21 |
| Q4 — 9:48 | SEA | AJ Barner 6-yd pass from Darnold (Myers kick) | 28 | 28 |
| Q4 — 3:18 | SEA | Tory Horton 21-yd pass from Darnold (Myers kick) | 28 | 35 |
| Q4 — 1:08 | TB | Sterling Shepard 11-yd pass from Mayfield (McLaughlin kick) | 35 | 35 |
| Q4 — 0:00 | TB | Chase McLaughlin 39-yd FG | 38 | 35 |
How the Game Unfolded
Tampa Bay built a 13-0 lead and looked in control for most of the first half. Two McLaughlin field goals and a White rushing touchdown did the damage. Then Darnold found Jaxon Smith-Njigba for a 6-yard score with six seconds left in the second quarter, and the entire complexion of the game shifted.
Seven touchdowns were scored in the second half alone. Seattle took the lead at 14-13 early in the third quarter on a Charbonnet 5-yard run set up by Kenneth Walker III’s 31-yard carry and a 36-yard Dareke Young reception on the same drive. Tampa Bay answered with a 9-play, 77-yard drive that ended with Egbuka hauling in a 20-yard Mayfield touchdown and then catching the two-point conversion to put the Bucs up 21-14.
Darnold pulled Seattle level again on a Barner touchdown. White answered with a 1-yard plunge. Barner scored again in the fourth quarter. Then Horton’s 21-yard catch from Darnold, coming off a 99-yard drive that started at Seattle’s own 1-yard line, gave the Seahawks a 35-28 lead with 3:18 remaining.
Mayfield went back to work. He hit Egbuka for 25 yards, Cade Otton for 25 more, Egbuka again for 9, and then Shepard for an 11-yard score to tie it with 1:08 left.
Then David did the rest.
Quarterback Stats
These two quarterbacks shared a locker room in Carolina before their careers diverged. On October 5, 2025, they combined for 720 passing yards on just 10 incompletions between them.
Mayfield’s 87.9% completion rate was the highest posted by any quarterback in a single game through the first five weeks of the 2025 NFL season. He operated cleanly under pressure, took one sack, scrambled four times for additional yardage, and found a different receiver on nearly every possession.
Darnold was equally precise until the final throw. He posted a 135.4 passer rating, threw no incompletions for large losses, and was not sacked once. The interception came on a pass he knew immediately he should not have thrown.
“At the end of the day, I got to protect the football in that situation and can’t give them a short field to put the game away like that,” Darnold said.
Passing
| QB | Team | CMP | ATT | YDS | TD | INT | RATE | SACKS | CMP% | SCR YDS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baker Mayfield | TB | 29 | 33 | 379 | 2 | 0 | 134.7 | 1 (-9) | 87.9% | 15 |
| Sam Darnold | SEA | 28 | 34 | 341 | 4 | 1 | 135.4 | 0 | 82.3% | 0 |
Receiving Stats
Egbuka was the standout pass-catcher in this Buccaneers vs Seahawks matchup. The rookie from Ohio State caught all seven targets for 163 yards and a score, including a 57-yard reception in the third quarter that broke the defense before White’s go-ahead touchdown run. His 445 receiving yards led all NFL rookies at that point in the season.
“He’s well-rounded, and not just in football but in life. He’s grounded, and he’s genuine in everything he does. He’s intentional, and you just don’t see that often,” Mayfield said.
For Seattle, Smith-Njigba finished with eight catches for 132 yards and a touchdown on nine targets. Tight end AJ Barner caught all seven passes thrown to him, scored twice, and raised his season total to four touchdowns, matching his full output from his rookie year.
Receiving
| Player | Team | TGT | REC | YDS | AVG | TD | LG | YAC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emeka Egbuka | TB | 7 | 7 | 163 | 23.3 | 1 | 57 | 42 |
| Cade Otton | TB | 5 | 4 | 81 | 20.3 | 0 | 27 | 46 |
| Tez Johnson | TB | 4 | 4 | 59 | 14.8 | 0 | 27 | 30 |
| Rachaad White | TB | 4 | 4 | 30 | 7.5 | 0 | 14 | 48 |
| Chris Godwin | TB | 4 | 3 | 26 | 8.7 | 0 | 13 | 18 |
| Sterling Shepard | TB | 5 | 4 | 24 | 6.0 | 1 | 11 | 8 |
| Sean Tucker | TB | 3 | 3 | -4 | -1.3 | 0 | 3 | 9 |
| Jaxon Smith-Njigba | SEA | 9 | 8 | 132 | 16.5 | 1 | 53 | 35 |
| Cooper Kupp | SEA | 9 | 6 | 59 | 9.8 | 0 | 24 | 21 |
| AJ Barner | SEA | 7 | 7 | 53 | 7.6 | 2 | 11 | 42 |
| Tory Horton | SEA | 4 | 3 | 39 | 13.0 | 1 | 21 | 11 |
| Dareke Young | SEA | 1 | 1 | 36 | 36.0 | 0 | 36 | 1 |
| Zach Charbonnet | SEA | 2 | 1 | 12 | 12.0 | 0 | 12 | 8 |
| Elijah Arroyo | SEA | 1 | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 0 | 10 | 4 |
| Kenneth Walker III | SEA | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Rushing Stats
Seattle won the ground game 122 to 56. Walker III’s 86 yards on just ten carries, with 51 of those coming before contact, gave the Seahawks consistent field position in the second half. Charbonnet complemented him with 36 yards and a rushing touchdown.
Tampa Bay’s run game was limited from the start. Lead back Bucky Irving, who had accumulated 237 rushing yards in the first four games of the season, was ruled out after sustaining foot and shoulder injuries in the previous week’s loss to Philadelphia. White carried the load, finishing with two scores on 14 carries despite averaging just 2.9 yards per attempt against a Seattle front that held up in the run game even as it struggled in coverage.
Rushing
| Player | Team | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LG | YBC/ATT | YAC/ATT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rachaad White | TB | 14 | 41 | 2.9 | 2 | 12 | 1.9 | 1.1 |
| Baker Mayfield | TB | 5 | 15 | 3.0 | 0 | 8 | 3.0 | 0.0 |
| Sean Tucker | TB | 3 | 3 | 1.0 | 0 | 3 | 0.3 | 0.7 |
| Kameron Johnson | TB | 1 | 2 | 2.0 | 0 | 2 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
| Sterling Shepard | TB | 1 | -5 | -5.0 | 0 | -5 | — | — |
| Kenneth Walker III | SEA | 10 | 86 | 8.6 | 0 | 31 | 5.1 | 3.5 |
| Zach Charbonnet | SEA | 9 | 36 | 4.0 | 1 | 8 | 2.0 | 2.0 |
| Jalen Milroe | SEA | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | — | — |
Defense and Turnovers
Tampa Bay generated two turnovers and gave the ball away zero times. That margin was ultimately decisive.
The first came in the second quarter when a botched snap from Jalen Milroe was recovered by Tykee Smith at the Tampa Bay 41, setting up the White touchdown that gave the Bucs a 13-0 lead. The second was David’s fourth-quarter interception off the Hall deflection.
Seattle’s defense entered this game ranked third in the NFL in points allowed. That unit was without cornerback Devon Witherspoon (knee), safety Julian Love (hamstring), and pass rusher DeMarcus Lawrence (quad). Tampa Bay converted seven of eleven third downs against a secondary running short of key personnel, and the Buccaneers held the ball for over 33 minutes.
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald absorbed full responsibility.
“I have to do better with our defensive game plan and execution and how we call it. When you put up a performance like that, it means that I didn’t prepare them well enough. It hurts. It stings,” Macdonald said.
Defense
| Player | Team | TOT | SOLO | AST | SK | TFL | INT | PD | QB HT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lavonte David | TB | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Jacob Parrish | TB | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SirVocea Dennis | TB | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tykee Smith | TB | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Kindle Vildor | TB | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Logan Hall | TB | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Zyon McCollum | TB | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Antoine Winfield Jr. | TB | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Deion Jones | TB | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yaya Diaby | TB | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Haason Reddick | TB | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Chris Braswell | TB | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Coby Bryant | SEA | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ernest Jones | SEA | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ty Okada | SEA | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Drake Thomas | SEA | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nick Emmanwori | SEA | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tyrice Knight | SEA | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leonard Williams | SEA | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Uchenna Nwosu | SEA | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Boye Mafe | SEA | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Josh Jobe | SEA | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Riq Woolen | SEA | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Byron Murphy II | SEA | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| D’Anthony Bell | SEA | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Derion Kendrick | SEA | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nehemiah Pritchett | SEA | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Special Teams
McLaughlin was on the illness report Saturday and went 3-for-3 on field goals, including the 39-yarder that ended it.
“He probably needs to be ill more often. It wasn’t quite the Michael Jordan flu game, but give Chase McLaughlin his flu game here in Seattle. He did a heck of a job,” coach Todd Bowles said.
Jason Myers missed the game’s only failed field goal attempt, a 44-yarder in the first quarter that would have given Seattle an early lead.
Kicking
| Kicker | Team | FG | FGA | PCT | LONG | XP | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chase McLaughlin | TB | 3 | 3 | 100% | 39 | 3/3 | 12 |
| Jason Myers | SEA | 0 | 1 | 0% | — | 5/5 | 5 |
Punting
| Punter | Team | NO | YDS | AVG | LONG | IN 20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riley Dixon | TB | 2 | 91 | 45.5 | 51 | 1 |
| Michael Dickson | SEA | 1 | 38 | 38.0 | 38 | 1 |
Kick Returns
| Player | Team | RET | YDS | AVG | LONG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Williams | TB | 5 | 129 | 25.8 | 28 | 0 |
| Dareke Young | SEA | 5 | 154 | 30.8 | 50 | 0 |
| George Holani | SEA | 2 | 42 | 21.0 | 24 | 0 |
Full Team Box Score
| Category | Tampa Bay | Seattle |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 38 | 35 |
| Total Yards | 426 | 463 |
| Net Passing Yards | 370 | 341 |
| Gross Passing Yards | 389 | 341 |
| Rushing Yards | 56 | 122 |
| Total Plays | 58 | 54 |
| Yards Per Play | 7.3 | 8.6 |
| 1st Downs (Total) | 25 | 27 |
| Passing 1st Downs | 18 | 17 |
| Rushing 1st Downs | 5 | 6 |
| Penalty 1st Downs | 0 | 1 |
| 3rd Down Conv. | 7/11 (64%) | 6/9 (67%) |
| 4th Down Conv. | 0/0 | 1/1 |
| Red Zone (Scores/Att) | 4/6 (67%) | 4/4 (100%) |
| Total Touchdowns | 4 | 5 |
| Rushing TDs | 2 | 1 |
| Passing TDs | 2 | 4 |
| Total Turnovers | 0 | 2 |
| Fumbles Lost | 0 | 1 |
| Interceptions Thrown | 0 | 1 |
| Sacks Allowed | 1 (-9 yds) | 0 |
| Penalties | 4 for 37 yds | 7 for 56 yds |
| Explosive Passes (15+ yds) | 10 | 5 |
| Explosive Runs (10+ yds) | 1 | 3 |
| Time of Possession | 33:12 | 26:48 |
| Avg EPA Per Pass Play | +0.65 | +0.61 |
| Avg EPA Per Rush Play | -0.05 | -0.09 |
Injuries and Absences
Tampa Bay — Ruled Out:
- RB Bucky Irving (foot, shoulder) — 237 rushing yards in first four games before the injury
- WR Mike Evans (hamstring)
- CB Jamel Dean (hip)
- CB Benjamin Morrison (hamstring)
- S Christian Izien (quad)
Seattle — Ruled Out:
- OLB DeMarcus Lawrence (quad)
- CB Devon Witherspoon (knee)
- S Julian Love (hamstring)
- OT Josh Jones (ankle)
Left game with injuries:
- RB Josh Williams (TB) — concussion evaluation, did not return after the third quarter
- OLB Derick Hall (SEA) — oblique
- CB Riq Woolen (SEA) — concussion evaluation
What This Game Showed
Mayfield and Darnold combined to throw for 720 yards on 10 total incompletions. It was the kind of quarterback performance that happens rarely, and it came in a game that also involved seven second-half touchdowns, 889 total yards of offense, and a final margin of three points.
Tampa Bay won despite being outgained by 37 yards, outrushed by 66, and out-scored five touchdowns to four. The Buccaneers’ four wins of three points or fewer in five games stood as an NFL record at the time, and this game was the most complicated path to any of them.
David, who played through a knee issue all week, was asked what he saw on the play that ended it.
“Got a good read, and was able to make it to a good spot to read the quarterback. When I saw the ball coming in the air, I had to have it,” David said.
For a game that produced this many points, this many yards, and this many lead changes, it was a linebacker reading eyes on the final drive that made the Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Seattle Seahawks player stats box score look the way it does.
NFL Week 5 | October 5, 2025 | Lumen Field, Seattle, WA | Referee: Craig Wrolstad
