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Baker Mayfield made NFL history without completing a single pass against Falcons
Atlanta Falcons v Tampa Bay Buccaneers Getty Images
(Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images)

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Atlanta Falcons by a final score of 16-0, to improve to 3-5 on the season and crawl right back into the fight at the top of the NFC South.

But along the way, the Buccaneers accomplished something NFL fans have not seen since Gerald Ford was the President of the United States, back in 1974.

Tampa Bay knocked off the Falcons despite not completing a single pass in the game. Baker Mayfield attempted just three passes in the game — all of those coming in the first half — and all three fell incomplete. The game began in difficult weather conditions, with a soaking rain making throwing the football extremely difficult, and as Tampa Bay held on in the second half, they leaned into the running game. Buccaneers running backs Bucky Irving and Kenny Gainwell combined for more than 300 yards on the ground, with Irving gaining 170 yards and Gainwell running for 133 of his own.

That made the Buccaneers the sixth team in league history to win without completing a pass. The first team to pull that off was the Pittsburgh Steelers, who defeated the Brooklyn Dodgers 14-7 on November 16, 1941 despite not even attempting a pass. Pittsburgh beat Brooklyn 7-0 the following season, despite passers Bill Dudley and Andy Tomasic combining to go 0-for-7 passing.

The next time a team won a game without completing a pass was again the Pittsburgh Steelers, who defeated the Chicago Cardinals 23-0 on November 11, 1945. Dudley and teammate Buss Warren combined to go 0-for-8 passing, but the Steelers won behind a pair of TD runs from Dudley, and a TD run from Warren.

In 1950 the Cleveland Browns became the next team to win without completing a pass, as they knocked off the Eagles 13-7 on December 3, 1950. Cleveland did not attempt a pass that day.

The last time a team won an NFL game without completing a pass? That came back in 1974, when the Buffalo Bills beat the New York Jets 16-12 on September 29 of that year. Heavy rain and wind limited the passing game that day, and Bills QB Joe Ferguson went 0-for-2 passing, while Jets quarterback Joe Namath finished the game 2-for-18 for 33 yards and three interceptions.

Similar to Namath in that game, Falcons quarterback Michael Penix Jr. threw four interceptions on Sunday against Tampa Bay.

Meaning the Buccaneers caught more passes from Atlanta’s quarterback in the win, than from their own.

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