- The Washington Times - Sunday, October 28, 2018

Every little thing he does is magic.

Ryan Fitzpatrick re-opened the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ quarterback controversy Sunday by doing everything in his power to bring the Bucs back against the Cincinnati Bengals, forcing Cincinnati to win the game on a last-second field goal.

The Buccaneers benched Jameis Winston late in the third quarter after he threw his fourth interception of the day, which the Bengals returned for a touchdown to go ahead 34-16.

Fitzpatrick subbed in and led three scoring drives: field goal, touchdown, touchdown. After the second touchdown, he twisted around defenders and popped in a throw to convert a two-point play and tie the game at 34.

But the Bengals drove down the field and made a 44-yard field goal to win the game.

Fitzpatrick finished 11-for-15 for 194 yards and two touchdowns, including this beauty to a wide-open Mike Evans:

Fitzpatrick has a knack this season for second-half recoveries coming up just short.

In a Week 3 home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, he rallied the Bucs from 30-10 down at the half to 30-27. For the game, he went 30-for-50 with 411 yards and three touchdowns, but his three first-half interceptions and three sacks had dug too deep a hole and Pittsburgh won.

But that happened only after Fitzpatrick got Tampa off to a 2-0 start while Winston was suspended by the league to start the season.

• Adam Zielonka can be reached at azielonka@washingtontimes.com.

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