After riding high on a phenomenal primetime upset against the Dallas Cowboys, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers absolutely crashed in Week 6, proving their season is already a wild ride. They led the entire game, then got outscored a brutal 16-3 in the fourth quarter, followed by a 7-0 punch in overtime, snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Now, they’re limping north for a massive divisional matchup against the first place Carolina Panthers, who are sitting pretty at 3-2.
The Baker Mayfield Question That Could Change Everything
Here’s the kicker for this Week 7 battle: what if Sunday marks Baker Mayfield’s first game back under center? This isn’t just a minor lineup change. If Mayfield suits up instead of Jalon Daniels, it throws a wrench into everything. We’re not talking about a guaranteed win for the Bucs, or suddenly making them the favored team, but it absolutely changes how their offense can attack the game.
Mayfield was reportedly throwing this week, even with a glove on, which means for the first time in almost a month, seeing him out there feels like a real possibility. But hey, for the sake of this preview, we’re going to operate like it’s Jalon Daniels calling the shots for Tampa Bay on Sunday. There’s a quiet quote floating around, “Even when I don’t see, I still believe.” You gotta wonder who said it and what they were truly believing in, because the Bucs have given fans little to hold onto.
The Hard Truth: This Buccaneers Team Is Just Not Good
Six weeks into the 2026 season, and let’s be real: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a bad football team. They’re sitting at 1-5, and it’s not pretty. They just aren’t well coached, they roll into games with poor strategy and gameplans, and frankly, the players haven’t been able to overcome those massive shortcomings. The result? Five losses in six games.
It’s not just the record, either. They don’t do much particularly well. The rushing attack is wildly inconsistent, though it has its moments. Pass protection? Largely optional. Even when the offensive line does give the quarterback time, accuracy isn’t a given, and when a well-placed pass finally arrives, drops are running rampant. Their defense is solid, sometimes, but then completely not solid at other times. They’re ranked top five in both rush yards allowed and total yards allowed, which sounds great on paper, but they’re also bottom-half of the league in points allowed. Talk about inconsistent stats!
And special teams? Chase McLaughlin is the undisputed best individual player on the team right now. No contest. But then you look at the other side of the coin: a highly inconsistent, unreliable, and somehow still well-paid punter. It’s a snapshot of the whole squad.
Heading into this divisional clash against a formidable opponent, the Buccaneers really don’t have a clear path to victory. They’re the underdog, they *should* be the underdog, and honestly, they’ll need to play way “above their skis” just to hang around and maybe, just maybe, steal a win this Sunday.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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