So here come the Falcons in a game that is almost a must-win for the Bucs to win the NFC South for the fourth straight year.

It’s a day when you can rely on your franchise quarterback.

The cliche “put the team on your back” is in full effect. But this is not an empty saying.

Great quarterbacks find ways to play spectacularly perhaps two or three times in a regular season and elevate the performance of their teammates.

Call it leadership or “being a winner” or something else. Whatever the special thing is, Baker Mayfield needs to pull it out of his pocket – or sniff it out of his ZYN bag – immediately.

Joe can’t put it more simply.

It has to be a mistake-free day for Mayfield and a day full of great decisions, many of which come at the crucial moment.

Mayfield has a lot of freedom to change plays, and Joe suspects that will be in the spotlight today as he finds out in real time which receivers are capable of following in the footsteps of the Bucs’ top two offensive players.

Good luck, baker!

Ira Kaufman takes a deep dive into the Bucs defense, another angle from Chris Godwin, Atlanta matchup and predictions, locker room mood and more