Wirfs is the first offensive lineman to catch a touchdown pass in 2025, and the first since Lions’ Dan Skipper in Week 15, 2024. He’s the first Bucs O-lineman to score a TD since Leonard Wester in 2017 (from Jameis Winston).
Prior to Sunday, Wirfs had zero career catches, with his only 9 yards of recorded offense coming off an end-of-half lateral play last season.
While it was the All-Pro’s inaugural TD, it wasn’t the only time Mayfield has hit an O-lineman for a score. The Bucs QB also found Kendall Lamm for a touchdown in 2020 with the Cleveland Browns. Mayfield joined Patrick Mahomes (2) as the only players with multiple regular-season passing TDs to an O-lineman since 2018, when Mayfield entered the league.
“It’s crazy, all week he was giving me floaters, and he kind of threw me a bullet, so I was kind of nervous, I was like, ‘Don’t drop it,'” Wirfs quipped. “But I was excited, I saw (Cardinals safety) Budda Baker run to the right and was like, ‘Oh my gosh he might throw it to me.’ I was kind of nervous that Budda was going to [hit] me. I thought he might have shot right out of it. But no, it was awesome, you know, catching a touchdown in the NFL, it’s a pretty cool feeling.”
The score wasn’t some blowout-capper either. It was a crucial TD early in a contest that saw both sides get off to a wobbly start. It also came in a game that Tampa desperately needed to win, as the Carolina Panthers sit a half-game back in the NFC South.
The 7-5 Bucs face the New Orleans Saints (2-10) and Atlanta Falcons (4-8) the next two weeks before finishing up against Carolina (7-6) in two of the final three weeks (with the Miami Dolphins sandwiched in between).