The protection held up better than anyone had reason to expect. Green Bay played without guards Aaron Banks and Kevin Zeitler and center Jacob Monk. It got 30 throws out of Love without the game turning into the 21-pressure mess Atlanta made of it. Most of the credit goes to the run game. Against the Falcons, MarShawn Lloyd and Kaleb Johnson combined for 17 yards on 8 carries. Here Johnson alone had 42 yards on 8 carries, and that was enough to keep Tampa from teeing off on Love.
Bucky Irving was the player Tampa Bay needed to carry a rookie quarterback, and he got the work: 16 carries for 61 yards. That's under 4 a carry, which isn't enough to take over a game. The Bucs finished with 275 total yards and converted 5 of 12 third downs. That kind of offense keeps you close and almost never wins you anything, and it's how all 4 of their losses have gone.
Nobody scored in a 1st quarter played in 87-degree drizzle. Green Bay got 10 points in the 2nd and Tampa answered with 7. The 3rd quarter decided it: the Packers added a touchdown and Tampa Bay's offense came up empty, so it was 17-7 heading into the 4th. The Bucs scored a touchdown to get within 3, but they never got the ball back in a position to tie it. Green Bay was shut out in the 4th quarter and still had enough.
Green Bay's worst news came from the injury report. The preview had Edgerrin Cooper clear of the concussion protocol, but he was ruled out for the rest of the game with an Achilles injury, on a defense that's already playing without Micah Parsons and Anthony Campbell. Chris Brooks left with an ankle injury and was listed as questionable to return. Devonte Wyatt also hurt his ankle but came back in. Tampa Bay lost SirVocea Dennis to an ankle injury, and Antoine Winfield Jr. was listed questionable during the game, adding to a defense that was already missing Rueben Bain Jr. and Benjamin Morrison.
This win doesn't do much for the Packers beyond the record. They went to 2-2 by beating a winless team starting an undrafted rookie, and they scored 0 points after halftime's 3rd-quarter touchdown, so the questions about Matt LaFleur aren't going away. For Tampa Bay it's 4 losses, each by 1 score, and this one is easy to pin on the 2 interceptions. The Bucs' defense did its part. Daniels at least showed he can complete passes, but Todd Bowles needs fewer giveaways from him to keep the season alive until Mayfield returns.