Photo by Tori Richman/Tampa Bay Buccaneers
It's become a chore to watch Tampa Bay play whatever version of football Todd Bowles tells them is acceptable.
- They're 1-10 for the season
- They just fired their first-year head coach Frank Reich
- They brought in interim coach Chris Tabor
- Many NFL insiders are labeling the Panthers' coaching vacancies one of the least attractive in football, with one of the least talented rosters in football and no first round pick next year and no second round pick in the 2025 draft
So... yeah, if you're sitting around feeling mopey about Tampa Bay being 1-6 over its last seven games, at least the Bucs have all their draft picks. And at least the weather has been gorgeous around here lately. And, well, that's all I've got.
Two miserable teams take the field Sunday afternoon in Tampa to see who can suck the least, with the Bucs coming off of a tough 27-20 loss to the Garner Minshew-led Indianapolis Colts. Panthers for their part just turned in a 17-10 loss to the Tennessee Titans.
Is there a world where the Bucs lose to these pathetic Panthers? You bet your ass there is.
Follow @ctbrantley12 on Twitter and listen to him on the RBLR Bucs podcast
The Bucs have one of the worst defenses in football in regards to stopping the pass. And sure, Panthers rookie quarterback Bryce Young is dealing with no real threats to throw to and standing behind a very below-average offensive line. But if anyone can make aging Carolina wideout Adam Thielen and his partner in receiving DJ Chark Jr. look like Randy Moss and Cris Carter, it's a Bucs defense that could potentially be without Lavonte David and Jamel Dean for a second consecutive week. Add in Carlton Davis III and Devin White dealing with their own myriad of injuries, and Sunday could very well be a troubling matchup for the Bucs. I still have Tampa taking home a 16-9 win, but I wouldn't bet any sort of money on it. The Bucs have proven time and again that they can and will lose to just about anybody. They've lost all momentum that their 3-1 start built, and it's become a chore to watch Tampa Bay play whatever version of football Todd Bowles tells them is acceptable.
Hopefully this game can be a chance to turn things around. Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield is still playing admirably well, ranking near the middle of the pack in nearly every passing statistic, both advanced and traditional.
Tampa running back Rachaad White is still trying to prove he's more than just a stellar receiving back, coming off a 100-yard performance against the Colts last week in the loss.
And Antoine Winfield, Jr. is playing like one of the best safeties in football.
Defensive lineman Calijah Kancey has shown a lot of promise in his rookie season, proving that maybe sometimes Jason Licht knows what he's doing in the draft.
And hey, Mike Evans is still that dude, as he's chasing 1,000 receiving yards for, like, the 30th straight season.
So there are still bright spots to this Bucs team. It's a bummer that the majority of those bright spots will be free agents this offseason (hence why they might have extra motivation to be playing so well), but it's still maybe a fun reason to tune into Sunday's 4:05 p.m. kickoff and watch some mediocre football teams compete for the top bunk inside the cellar of the worst division in the league.
Hey, things could be worse. The Bucs could have a miserable rest of the season only to watch the Chicago Bears take their No. 1 overall pick. Subscribe to Creative Loafing newsletters.
Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed
