Baker Mayfield, resident magician of the Tampa Bay Bucs, dug deep into his bag of tricks late in the third quarter Sunday and produced yet another remarkable escape act. Then, for his encore, he dug deep into the Bucs’ wide receiver depth chart and once again pulled out the improbable.

You had to see it to believe it.

The sleight of hand – or hands in this case – also involved little-used rookie wideout Tez Johnson, who stepped up when the team’s first-year sensation, Emeka Egbuka had left the game minutes earlier with a hamstring injury. And Johnson's lunging, 45-yard touchdown grab of Mayfield’s pass at the goal line – his first NFL touchdown and just sixth catch as a pro – delivered a decisive blow in the Bucs’ 30-19 victory.

That one-two punch didn’t simply change the course of the game. It could also wind up as one of the most formative sequences of the Bucs’ season, keeping their confidence surging with a 5-1 record in time for a challenging Monday night road game in Detroit against the potent 4-2 Lions, who fell to the Chiefs Sunday night. 

“(Johnson’s catch) was huge, because it was right after Emeka came out,” said Bucs head coach Todd Bowles. “And Baker, every other week, it seems like he makes a heroic run play and you think he's going to get tackled, and he makes the extra yardage and gets the first down. And Tez, you know he can run, (and) we know he can run, but it was a heck of a catch by him. Outstanding hands. Really came into his own this game. Very proud of him.”

The win marked the sixth time in franchise history the Bucs have won five of their first six games  (1979, 1997, 2002, 2005, 2021 and now). And it settled a score with San Francisco – first time the Bucs have defeated the 49ers since 2018, following four straight losses. 

“I also haven’t beat the Niners (until now),” Mayfield said. “No matter what team I was on, starting in 2018. That’s a big one. The guys are doing their job and doing it well.”

Mayfield admitted he had a slow start Sunday, twice throwing behind Egbuka for incompletions in the first quarter. But by game's end, he had amassed an impressive passer rating of 139.0. Over the past two weeks, in fact, he has completed 82.1 percent of his passes – the highest among all  quarterbacks in that span as of Sunday’s games.

“Good complementary football all around,” Mayfield said. “I think, the first quarter for me was probably the sloppiest football of all season, but the defense is playing lights out, and the whole offense is sticking there with me. The guys ran the ball incredibly well .., just guys making plays and stepping up in a big way.”

Case in point: his jaw-dropping scramble  “I was in disbelief just like everyone else,” Bowles remarked.

The Bucs were clutching on to a tenuous 20-19 lead against a relentless 49ers offense. Facing a third and 14 from Tampa Bay’s 41, Mayfield was nearly buried in a swarm of San Francisco defenders. But then he ducked, dodged, juked and somehow broke free from three would-be tacklers, finally diving forward as if willing himself for a a 15-yard gain and critical first down.

After Sean Tucker lost a yard, Mayfield dropped back to pass, looked to his right but quickly pivoted when he noticed that Johnson had adjusted his short route to make a bee-line into the open deep down the middle. The pass seemed to be coming in just a bit high for the 5-9, 154-pound receiver, but Tex reached up and out and somehow managed the grab the end of the ball and secure it for the touchdown.

“Unbelievable catch,” Mayfield said. “Protection on that one was outstanding. And then normally Tez is supposed to go across the field but he recognized a little bit of a hole and void in the coverage so he took it, and you can see him put his hand up on, probably on the replay or whatever it is, and just a great adjustment by him. (I was) just t trying to give him a chance and he caught up to that ball and made a great catch.”

Johnson immediately celebrated with an impressive end-zone flip. And with that, the Bucs had crucial breathing room at 27-19, icing the win on kicker Chase McLaughlin’s 45-yard field goal with 1:55 remaining.

In a game that the Bucs were without their three standout pass-catchers – Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and eventually Egbuka – Mayfield turned to a Johnson & Johnson tandem to keep the aerial attack alive. Second-year receiver Kameron Johnson led Buc receivers with four catches for 64 yards and a 34-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter, putting the Bucs ahead 20-13. 

"Tez and Kam really stepped up tonight,” Bowles said. “They came into their own. The talent was always there, just understanding the offense more, those guys can play. We feel like we are very deep in that room. We cannot afford to lose any more (personnel), but we feel like we are very deep in that room, and I thought those two guys did a hell of a job tonight."

But the offense wasn’t the only story on this day. Tampa Bay’s defense rose the occasion in a big way. They started the game with cornerback Kindle Vidor’s interception of a Mac Jones pass at San Francisco’s 25 on its first drive. That set up a short scoring drive, ending in Rachaad White’s 2-yard touchdown run and a 7-0 lead.

Cornerback Jamel Dean essentially snuffed out the 49ers’ hopes when he intercepted Jones at the Bucs’ 14 with 5:43 left to play. And in between, the Bucs sacked Jones six times –  with Yaya Diaby leading the way with two, followed by Lavonte David and Dean with one each, and Vita Vea, Hassan Reddick, C.J. Brewer Elijah Robert each credited with a half sack.

“Hell of a game, man, hell of a game,” David said. “Both sides of the ball, special teams included. Everybody just playing a full four quarters. We know what this football team is capable of and they’re a great football team, well-coached football team, and even though they’re down a lot of guys, they’re going to give us their best, and that’s what they did today.

The defense bent during the afternoon:  Jones amassed 200 yards of passing in the first half and finished with 27 of 39 completions for 347 yards – connecting most frequently with Kendrick Bourne (five catches for 147 yards). However, he had no touchdowns and suffered those two interceptions. Predictably, tailback Christian McCaffrey was heavily involved, rushing 17 times for 54 yards and catching seven passes for 57 yards but the defense largely contained him. Defensively, the 49ers suffered a major blow when All-Pro linebacker Fred Warner suffered a leg injury in the first quarter and left on a cart, likely lost for the season.

You hate to see something like that happen and hopefully he has a speedy recovery,” Bowles said. “But that kind of breaks your heart no matter what side of the ball you are on."

No doubt losing Warner hurt the 49ers, though each team played without a handful of key players – including starting tailback Bucky Irving for the Bucs. And though they  continue to battle injuries, the latest being Egbuka, they keep finding ways to win. 

“I said it to you guys long ago, but this is a resilient group,” Bowles said. “It’s tough. It’s a hardworking group that loves playing for each other and playing with each other, and no matter what the circumstances are, we’re going to go fight. And that’s really what team ball is all about. The culture’s great, and we just have to keep it going.”

Even if it takes a little magic here and there.