Are the Bucs the worst team in football? Are they back to being the Yucks? I don’t know if that last one is quite true. It’s still early, but so far this season they’ve been one of the worst teams in professional football for sure.
There’s plenty of blame to go around, and a lot of these are interchangeable (especially 1-3), but I just sort of threw them in the order I thought was best.
We’ll start at the most obvious one, but unfortunately also probably the least likely and hardest to replace:
1. Baker Mayfield
God, this guy has really been bad. He has the most throws behind the line of scrimmage this season. He just can’t push the ball down the field anymore with any accuracy, and it really sucks.
He went from a fun little chip-on-the-shoulder guy to being an annoying, overpaid QB who gets outplayed by Deshaun Watson and Quinn Ewers over a 4-game stretch spanning 2 seasons.
It’s been egregious to watch. His horrid performance Sunday was capped off with an overthrow of Emeka Egbuka, who was open in the end zone.
This is not to say he’s the only reason the Bucs have been bad (trust me, we’ll get to the others), but when you’re making $55 million a year and complained about not being labeled a “franchise QB” in the offseason, the standards and expectations change.
2. Todd Bowles
He’s probably the easiest guy on this list to replace, and the most likely to go. Even the Glazers and Jason Licht have to begrudgingly admit things have been going south for far too long now.
He might not get let go during the season, although if things keep going this poorly, who’s to say? But he’d be a very likely candidate to be fired pretty much right after the end of the season.
There’s still a small chance the Bucs turn things around and somehow make the playoffs, but of course that’s unlikely, and if they just miss the postseason, maybe the team convinces itself to keep him around. But after last season’s meltdown, I highly doubt it.
Back to Bowles being bad, though: he’s got the defensive head coach label, and his defenses have never been good. I can’t say with absolute certainty it’s always been his fault, as the team has run some truly horrid rosters out there on that side of the ball, but this is the first season where it seems like a failure across the board.
The players aren’t playing well, yes, but Bowles is now crossing the line of incompetence. He’s not just bad at developing defensive talent; it’s gotten to the point where he’s now actively putting players in positions to fail.
3. Alex Anzalone
He’s the WORST LINEBACKER IN FOOTBALL. He’s making SIRVOCEA DENNIS look like a valid option. Honestly, he could be number one on this list; he’s been THAT bad.
The Bucs have been getting picked apart over the middle of the field. For once, their secondary seems actually competent! Benjamin Morrison has been one of the best cornerbacks in football; that should be a fun story!
Instead, all anyone can talk about on the defense is how Anzalone is going to go down as one of the worst free agent signings in Bucs history, and that’s saying something. They’ve had some real stinkers, like Anthony Collins.
What’s such a bummer about Anzalone is that it seemed like the Bucs got a real steal at a position of dire need. He was a good coverage guy who could provide some veteran leadership alongside the young additions to the front seven.
Instead, he’s got Bucs fans losing their minds, and in some cases (emphasis on SOME) it’s justified.
3. Ben Bredeson
I know it seems harsh putting the left guard at number 4 on this list. Yeah, it’s not kind of me, sorry Ben, but he’s been one of the worst offensive linemen in football.
The Bucs’ o-line last year was bad, with Cody Mauch being out all season and them having to rotate guys across the line and in and out of the lineup due to injuries.
And now, they have everyone there. There aren’t any excuses. They’ve just been bad. Mauch is no longer the beast I worry about the Bucs being able to re-sign. He’s been a problem, too, but Bredeson is outright awful.
So it sucks. Bredeson was brought in as a valuable veteran to anchor what is still a somewhat young offensive line, but he’s now the guy dragging everyone else down.
5. The pass rush
I’m going to just have a whole position group because they’ve sucked shit. Rueben Bain Jr. is either hurt or showing people why he fell to number 15 (or both). It’s tough, because he’s a young rookie who still has time, but he was considered a dark-horse DROY candidate. Nope.
YaYa Diaby hasn’t been helped by Bain’s lack of presence, but he hasn’t been good either. The Bucs entire defensive line, what was thought of as a group with a really high ceiling, has shown what their floor looks like (below the floor, not quite the core, but probably the lower mantle).
It’s a bummer, because a good pass rush could’ve covered up for some of the holes throughout the rest of the defense (like that former Gator they’ve got running around the middle of the field like a chicken with his head cut off).
Ah, well. It’s a Bucs life.
Pitch in to help make the Tampa Bay Journalism Project a success.
Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.
Follow us: Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | BlueSky
This article appears in Sept. 24 – 30, 2026.
