Technically, Benjamin St-Juste played Mike Evans exactly how he should have played the 6-foot-5, 231-pound receiver with Baker Mayfield targeting him in the first quarter. He was physical at the line of scrimmage, stayed engaged and had tight coverage. The problem was that Evans has made a career out of making catches like that.

Evans, who finished the day with 61 yards, made the contested grab look routine as he scored his 95th career touchdown to put the Tampa Bay Buccaneers up 13-0 in an eventual 37-20 loss for the Washington Commanders. It was also another drop in the bucket of cold water that washed over the team, showing them that while it has made several important steps towards being the playoff contender the Buccaneers have become, it is still Year 1 of a rebuild with plenty of work left to do.

Washington, who falls to 0-1 to start the season for the first time since 2021, made several moves to improve a roster that was 4-13 a year ago. It revamped the defense with leaders like Bobby Wagner and Frankie Luvu, supplied the offense with a quarterback and gave him weapons to help ease him into the life of a professional player.

There were certainly moments where it looked like some of those acquisitions could be foundational pieces, particularly when it came to quarterback Jayden Daniels. He was largely efficient as a passer, completing 17 of his 24 attempts for 184 yards, but most of his explosive plays came as a runner -- something that he didn't show much of in training camp. He led the team on the ground with 88 yards through a mix of designed carries and scrambles, averaging 5.5 yards per carry.

But the growing pains, as well as the problems that irked Washington last year, were there, too. The secondary struggled mightily against Mayfield, who had just six incompletions in a 289-yard day, and the defense as unit had few answers on third down. The Buccaneers had a conversion rate of 69% on the afternoon, and just like last year, several of their most explosive plays came in those situations. Tampa Bay didn't need to punt until midway through the third quarter.

If there was a word to describe how the Commanders started on both sides of the ball, it would sloppy. Both of Tampa Bay's opening drives ended with field goals, but there could have been more points on the board. Mayfield simply missed on two passes to McMillan, both of which could easily have been touchdowns.

Washington's offense, meanwhile, struggled to get itself comfortable. The first play of the day went behind Brian Robinson Jr. and was called a fumble on the field. That put Washington in a second-and-23, which ultimately led to a punt.

Adding to that frustration was a failure by Washington to put points on the board. Cade York missed both of his field goal attempts, which wiped away the momentum built on drives of 41 and 32 yards.

When the offense did gain traction, there were hints of what it could eventually look like with Daniels at the helm. A 12-yard run by the rookie in the second quarter, plus an 11-yard unnecessary roughness penalty, put the Commanders at Tampa Bay's 11-yard line. Robinson powered across the goal line two plays later to give Washington its first score of the season.

Later in the second half, Daniels and the offense orchestrated a six-play, 60-yard drive, highlighted by a 32-yard catch-and-run from Robinson. Daniels scored on a one-yard run right after that.

Tampa Bay, however, continued to distance itself from Washington by scoring on all but one of their possessions. The Buccaneers' first drive of the second half resulted in another score, this time coming from Chris Godwin on a four-yard catch. At the start of the fourth quarter, Mayfield tried to connect with McMillan again, this time being successful on a 32-yard pass to the end zone on third-and-7.

Then came the drive that ultimately made it too difficult for Washington to attempt a comeback. Tampa Bay put together a 12-play, 91-yard drive that ended with a one-yard score by Evans.

Washington will head back to the DMV with a chance to bounce back against the New York Giants, who also lost their Week 1 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings. If this season is about growth and providing hope for the future, getting a win over an NFC East opponent who has gotten the better of them for the last two seasons would certainly provide some of that.