Bucs Are Watchable And Maybe Fun
August 28th, 2026
If healthy, Bucs will be fun.
You may have heard: Joe celebrated starting a 19th season banging on a keyboard covering all things Bucs. It’s been a wild ride. Still is, in fact.
The only time the Joe typing this here post ever thought about walking away from this here corner of the interwebs was back in the dreadful, lousy Lovie Smith days. There were so many things wrong.
Very bad coach. Bad! Very arrogant coach. Boring coach. Heinous quarterback. Prehistoric offense. Bad, boring football all around. It was like Joe was back in detention in high school. Like selling aluminum siding or new windows.
It was a Vikings-Bucs game. The Vikings were winning 3-0 in the third quarter. Joe had to leave the press box and start walking around the common area behind the press box. The game was boring, grotesque.
Joe actually paced back and forth, thinking, “Is this really what Joe should be doing with his football Sundays for decades until he’s too old and gray to do anything?”
A week later, former Bucs beat writer Mark Cook came up to Joe in the locker room and said, “This team is so boring. It needs a jolt of drama bad.”
Thankfully, that drama came a few months later when the Bucs drafted America’s Quarterback, Jameis Winston. This Joe was rescued from the brink.
Joe brings this up because Ben Solak of BSPN crafted a fun ranking slotting each and every team based on a fun/watchable meter.
Solak thinks the Bucs are both watchable and maybe even fun at No. 14.
It’s a “nobody believes in me” year for quarterback Baker Mayfield, which means you have to tune in. Mayfield is at his best when he’s proving the doubters wrong, and because he and the Buccaneers failed to get an extension done before this season, that means the whole front office is now among his doubters. Mayfield has perhaps never been more doubted.
In all seriousness, a healthy Mayfield behind a healthy offensive line should produce a pretty exciting passing attack. The Bucs were fifth in explosive pass rate through five weeks last season before the offense deteriorated. Still, they played 12 one-score games as they gritted it out. After the additions of Rueben Bain Jr. and Josiah Trotter, the defense should be faster and more capable of producing splash plays.
Oh, the Bucs are very much watchable and fun when Mayfield is healthy. Just go see what he did last year before the bye. That was some of the most entertaining football you can find, mostly thanks to Mayfield.
But when the Bucs played defense last year, specifically after the bye, it was time to go out to your backyard and play catch with your dog while nursing a cold beer. Or worse, go drop a No. 2 because that’s exactly what the Bucs defense was doing.
The Bucs’ front-seven now looks rejuvenated. And yes, Rueben Bain and Josiah Trotter and Keionte Scott are fun!
That No. 14 ranking might even be a bit low.
August 28th, 2026 at 9:10 am
Look this team should not only be fun to watch, but should be pretty darn good. Health is always Key, but overall if this team doesn’t make a semi deep playoff run then the coach will have to answer. And boy, what a waste it will be because these windows of winning close very quickly…
August 28th, 2026 at 9:12 am
The Winston years made us sell our season tickets!!
August 28th, 2026 at 9:28 am
Most experts have a healthy Bucs defensive line in the top 10. I think we will match up well with a stationary Burrows and a below average Bengals offensive line. While everyone under the sun predicts them to light up the scoreboard, I think it will be more of a defensive battle than an offensive one. Should be fun!
August 28th, 2026 at 9:33 am
I love watching Baker almost as much as the GOAT. If I have stuff to do around the house, I’m not capable of doing it if the Bucs have the ball
August 28th, 2026 at 9:47 am
Coming from Ben Solak, it is more than a little bit low. The whole front office are among Mayfield’s doubters? I thought they did offer him an extension at more than 50 million a year.
August 28th, 2026 at 10:09 am
Let it go, Joe. Raheem, Schiano, and Koetter were just as bad and Jay-Miss nearly sunk this franchise. For all the complaining people do about Todd Bowles, he’s far closer to Arians and Gruden than the aforementioned failed coaches.
August 28th, 2026 at 10:22 am
The thing I noticed about Baker on this board is Baker brought new posters,who were immediately attacked by Winston fans,as being hopelessly blind to any faults of Baker. Then they did the,exact same thing floating some pretty absurd QB solutions,such as Mr. Watson and now, un drafted kid this camp. They are even more irrationally biased then Baker fans,from Oklahoma or Cleveland.
August 28th, 2026 at 10:30 am
Whoa D-Rome.
Koetter was much better than Lovie! Koetter just had a turnover machine at QB and a terrible DC in Mike Smith (other than that 1 season).
August 28th, 2026 at 10:31 am
Bowles has never exceeded 10 wins as a head coach, so by that measure he’s closer to Smith, Morris, Schiano, and Koetter than he is to Gruden or Arians. And Bowles has better player talent to work with that the Malaise Four. There should be some entertaining moments, while games even, but until he proves otherwise Bucs will have another Bowles Slump that sinks them to 10 wins or less.
August 28th, 2026 at 10:44 am
Personally, I think winning is fun. More specifically, playoff wins. Looking at the entirety of last season, I didn’t see anything fun about it. When watching the Bucs play in primetime, where’s the fun? Especially in the 4th quarter. But thats Bucs fans and media for you. They’re entertained by flashy losses. Its a Bucs life.
August 28th, 2026 at 10:50 am
Nope, nope, nope.
Koetter actually had a nine-win season and the Bucs lost a wild card berth on a tiebreaker.
Schiano actually had the Bucs, briefly, contending for a wild card berth until Josh Freeman went mental.
Raheem actually won 10 games once. But his third and last season was close to a disaster.
Nope. Only Lovie (who WAS a disaster) guided the Bucs to the No. 1 overall pick. He’s the same moron that CUT a Hall of Fame corner.
Lousy Lovie WAS that bad. Joe honestly doesn’t think there was a worse judge of talent than Lovie. Drunks in a dive bar on Madeira Beach could have done a better job.
August 28th, 2026 at 10:53 am
Mayfield choking when the game is on tte line is not fun to watch he’s hustling not a winner
August 28th, 2026 at 11:04 am
Even tonight when Jalon Daniels is the QB!! He has some potential. Of course if he takes hits the way Browning was it may be short lived!!
August 28th, 2026 at 11:18 am
“watchable and fun”
The Bucs are always “watchable” the “fun” part is when/if they win…
I’m sticking to my guns.
7-10.
It will be a blast!
August 28th, 2026 at 11:20 am
Winston was a bust…but he pulled off a few plays per game that made you tune in. The way he sometimes escaped sacks and threw for completions blew minds.
Unfortunately, those instances of lightning mostly stayed in the bottle.
I nearly walked away the year before Arians was hired. The only thing that kept me dedicated was honoring my father’s legacy of being a fan.
Even when Brady was grought in I struggled. Unlike the first SB team, his team was not home-grown. I had no emotional attachments to the Brady team…but I did eventually buy in. Just in time.
I gave Baker a hard time at first. Mostly because of the lies Bowles told. But Baker has earned my support. No…I do not feel he is a blockbuster QB…but he is above average…and that’s good enough.
Trent Dilfer was below average and he got a ring. Brad Johnson was barely average and he got a ring. Baker Mayfieldis much better than either of them.
August 28th, 2026 at 12:01 pm
Say what you will about Jamies (an a lot has been said)… but at least he made the games interesting.
The only QB I can remember that stood an equal chance at throwing a TD to the other team’s CB as he did to his own WR.
August 28th, 2026 at 12:35 pm
The only time the Joe typing this here post ever thought about walking away from this here corner of the interwebs was back in the dreadful, lousy Lovie Smith days. There were so many things wrong.
Joe…You should have lost it with the Leeman Bennett years
August 28th, 2026 at 12:35 pm
Joe is getting excited. So is this fan.
August 28th, 2026 at 12:41 pm
JoeBucsFan.com did not exist during the Leeman Bennett years.
In fact, the internet did not exist during the Leeman Bennett years. Certainly not the “internet” we have come to know it as since roughly 1994.
August 28th, 2026 at 12:46 pm
buccaneer bonzai: exactly honoring my dad being a die hard fan took him to 80s games bud liked the bucs me well the brady covid years were say interesting and AB has CTE saw brady gronkowski on Mon nite football 2020 like the twilight zone
August 28th, 2026 at 1:05 pm
Joe Says:
JoeBucsFan.com did not exist during the Leeman Bennett years.
*************
The writers did – nice job escaping print before everything fell completely apart.
Appreciate the Mark Cook story. A great guy who departed way too soon.
August 28th, 2026 at 1:39 pm
Playing a winning brand of football is the most fun, actually doing it for the entirety of a game is equally as fun.
Never forget, this team owes us for all the incomplete games it played last season, health be damned. The early to mid game lulls, stalling on offense, not getting off the field on defense, & giving up the booty in all 3 phases-none of these things are fun nor entertaining.
I want to see how well our defense can control the LOS and how well they handled the opposing pass game, not too worried about run defense.
I’m looking for our offense to find/establish an identity and have SOMETHING they can hang their hats on in terms of getting the ball upfield and renewing downs. I want all punting & FG kicking we did last year to be converted into touchdowns this year.
Special teams just needs to not be the opposite of special, but I will admit part of me wants to see this team respond/swing a game either covering kicks or seeing a kick returned to the house. We’re past due on plays like this.
That’ll be exciting to me, a winning brand of football+turning those performances into wins is what will be fun & exciting.
August 28th, 2026 at 2:04 pm
@b. Bonzai
says
Trent Dilfer was below average and he got a ring. Brad Johnson was barely average and he got a ring. Baker Mayfieldis much better than either of them.
Might want to luck up Brad Johnson’s overall stats my friend. He had a career similar to Baker, with some really good years and some really bad ones when he got hurt. (Baker is better)
He was the guy that was slinging the rock to Randy Moss and Chris Carter in MN.
August 28th, 2026 at 2:17 pm
THANK YOU, Warren Brooks Lynch, for a great response that tells what we all need from the team this year. So much more refreshing than people who just want to argue and be right fighters. Go Bucs!
August 28th, 2026 at 4:58 pm
Not one head coach set us as far back as Lovie did. Easily the worst HC Bucs have had in the last 30 years at least, maybe all time.
August 28th, 2026 at 5:05 pm
AK Bucs Fan Says:
“Look this team should not only be fun to watch, but should be pretty darn good.”
.
.
Hey we already have the “Southest Bucs Fan” who comments occasionally from Argentina. You might be the “Northest.”