Hope-O-Meter
September 7th, 2026
Bucs coach Todd Bowles.
“When I first started coaching, one of the worst things that I think I heard was, ‘It will be OK.’ I would wonder, ‘How the hell is it going to be OK?’ The worst word in the English language is ‘hope.’
— Bob Knight
There’s an old saying in football that hope is not a strategy. Sometimes, Joe wonders if shot-callers at One Buc Palace are aware of this.
It’s common — especially when it comes to edge rushers — to hear someone with the Bucs say of Player-X, “We hope… “
And invariably that’s exactly what happens. They’re left hoping the light comes on for Player-X (and Player-Y and Player-Z, etc., etc.). The next season, it’s rinse and repeat. Joe hates “hope” in the NFL.
In a cool study of NFL fanbases, Adam Coleman of The Athletic determined the 2026 “Hope-O-Meter” for each team.
Despite all the hype for Rueben Bain being the next Lawrence Taylor, enough Bucs fans have doubts the direction of the franchise, Coleman found. So in The Athletic’s Hope-O-Meter, the Bucs are No. 20.
20. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 68.2 per+cent optimism
Optimist: Because Baker has a chip on his shoulder. We have one of the best O-lines in the league, and our receivers are looking great. Also, our defense is young and coming together beautifully. Now that we have Vita, I’m confident we can do well.
Pessimist: Definition of mushy middle.
Optimist: Think we can regain the NFC South, the only real metric for success in our division.
Pessimist: Losing Mike Evans hurt. I am hopeful but not optimistic.
Joe thinks there is a lot to be proud of with the Bucs. Baker Mayfield is capable of leading the Bucs deep in the playoffs. Hey, if Sam Darnold can, so too can Mayfield.
Joe has been on the bandwagon for years that the Bucs have a strong offensive line. And while Mike Evans left, name a deeper receiver room than the Bucs’.
It is the defense where Joe loses optimism. The defense has been underwhelming for too long, and Joe is skeptical that will drastically change overnight. Maybe it’s a year away when the rookies get a season under their belts and an offseason in an NFL weight room.
At cornerback, don’t get Joe started on this fine holiday.
Joe does believe the Bucs could be the best team in the NFC South landfill. But doing anything past winning the division? Well, Joe’s not overly optimistic.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:11 am
We’re really good. Pessimistic views on this team are way out of whack with reality.
Last years injury debacle just fueled the fire of these glass half empty shlt bags.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:13 am
What’s that old saying?
“Dookie in one hand and place your play-off wins in the other and see which one fills up first”
Something like that…
September 7th, 2026 at 8:16 am
@ kunton
Here you go again with your lame name calling again…
Don’t you ever learn boy?
September 7th, 2026 at 8:18 am
Marine Buc. No. You twit.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:19 am
As my old man told me when I was a teenager.. “you can wish in one hand and sh*t in the other. Let me know what you have in your hands when you’re done.” Same logic applies here, we’ll start seeing what comes out starting this week.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:20 am
@ kunton
You started it little man…
Here is your logic – “The Bucs will win the SB this season because they won’t have any injuries”
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!
Seriously dude – are you a real person?
September 7th, 2026 at 8:36 am
Happy Labor Day Bucs fans!
Joes says: “Joe does believe the Bucs could be the best team in the NFC South landfill.” That is akin to saying, “Yea, but he IS the best inmate in the asylum.”
Look no futher than Todd Bowles. He is a mediocre coach..always has been and until he proves otherwise, always will be.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:39 am
Hope that is nothing more than a dream. It’s just a wish really. It’s verbiage for not being very good at something or not having faith in what you have. Good teams don’t start the season and hope to win their division, they play to win their division and control of their own destiny. I hope it rains today, hope it’s something you have no control over. I HOPE that if Todd is the coach of the Bucs next year it’s because they punched teams in the mouth and took it deep into the playoffs. That’s my hope.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:42 am
The Bucs secondary has turned “hope” from an emotion into a coverage scheme.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:46 am
@ Todd
BOOM!
That was a good one bro.
Bravo.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:49 am
So by this definition of “hope”, why draft anyone? Trade all your picks every year for players who have already done something in the league.
Unless of course you want to draft a qb to replace Baker, right? Then hope is ok.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:49 am
I wonder what the optimists would be saying if this team played in the NFC West?
Predictions of how good a team will be shouldn’t be based on how much the trash heap around it stinks.
September 7th, 2026 at 8:52 am
Well Louis, we actually went 3-1 in the NFC West last year so that may be a bad example
September 7th, 2026 at 8:53 am
“Because Baker has a chip on his shoulder.”
The only thing on Baker’s shoulder is a curse…
He has suffered shoulder injuries 4 times during his NFL career so far.
Yeesh.
Hey Mr. “Grits and Moxy” – maybe you should stop pretending to be a fullback.
We all know you are just overcompensating for your lack of abilities elsewhere.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:00 am
Keep in mind we have two defensive coaches named Bowles this year.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:00 am
Defenses win championships. If the Bucs continue to improve though out then we can evaluate their season
September 7th, 2026 at 9:06 am
Deep receiver room? I thought J-Mac and Ebuka have been out the last 3+ weeks? I guess we will see how deep they are on Sunday.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:09 am
where do the bucs rank in the nfc is the discussion that should be had.
this south stuff is just an infomercial for the marketing dept.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:11 am
And Mari_e in her usual form this morning…anal of regret
September 7th, 2026 at 9:16 am
The least you can do in this life is to figure out what you hope for.
The most you can do in this life is to live inside of that hope. Not admire it from a distance, but live right in it, under its roof.
Credit goes to some poet. Hope is a great thing.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:21 am
And Bobby Knight was an idiot. That oughta piss off our pessimistic Joe.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:22 am
All any fanbase has at beginning of season is hope. The Rams have arguably the best roster, yet L.A. can only hope that all of the trades and moves this offseason translate into a Super Bowl this season. If not, pushing all their chips in for Matt Stafford’s last season will be considered a failure.
NFC North: Detroit, Green Bay, Chicago all hope their defenses will improve enough to keep each other’s offense off the field. Minnesota is hoping Kyler Murray still cares.
NFC East: NYG hope Harbaugh is the answer and Malik Nabers can get on the field. Dallas hopes a complete overhaul of defense with new coordinator realize that tackling is permitted. Washington hopes that Jayden Daniels regains form + their defense grew a pair since both crashed down to earth last year. Eagles fans hope their new offensive coordinator doesn’t freeze on 4th downs; and team chemistry is more “brotherly love” than “Real Housewives of Philadelphia”
NFC South: Tua lost the QB competition to…nobody on the Falcons. They sure do hope Michael Penix can come back soon. NOLA hopes late surge last year wasn’t a mirage. Carolina hopes Bryce Young grew six inches.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:30 am
Nope to hope. This is the NFL.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:31 am
Nothing wrong with word hope. As long as it’s contextualized properly. Hope can be a motivator. Again, in the right context. Try to tell a cancer patient doing all the right things to overcome their plight that hope is meaningless. Now hoping in a mindless way, as if you think it’s some magic elixir, is problematic. But I’ve seen you use the hope trope so many times now. And Bobby Knight says something doesn’t make it gospel.
September 7th, 2026 at 9:49 am
Hope is better than no hope at all. As a fan that is all we have. Hope our team plays well. Hope our coach learns to read a clock. Hope the planes land safely. Hope the Bucs have a great season. I hope the Internet stays connected on a Sunday. Ahh yes the illusion of control. Go Bucs!
September 7th, 2026 at 10:02 am
Scotty in Fat Antonio Says:
Deep receiver room? I thought J-Mac and Ebuka have been out the last 3+ weeks? I guess we will see how deep they are on Sunday.
****************
Egbuka looked good in the side field work he was doing last week. He was making the kind of moves someone with an aching turf toe wouldn’t bother with. I’d be suprised if he misses Sunday.
September 7th, 2026 at 10:10 am
The more I look back at Bobby Knight’s history, the more I realize some folks just idolized a very bad man.
Not sure in the end, why he is still praised on this site.
September 7th, 2026 at 10:23 am
Play one game at a time and never lose more than two games in a row. Normally I’d say never lose two games in a row. But after the past several seasons I have to adjust accordingly.
September 7th, 2026 at 10:52 am
Marine Buc Says:
September 7th, 2026 at 8:16 am
@ kunton
Here you go again with your lame name calling again…
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As you know, I don’t always agree with your takes. But here I do. It is the world we live in that people are so disrespectful of one another. Why? Because they are cowards acting brave bc they hide behind a keyboard. (but I did like the nickname you came up with for Kenton, lol
Rod Muncher is one of the worst. Constantly calling ppl ignorant and stupid when his takes are the some of the dumbest. So I guess we can laugh at his stupidity.
September 7th, 2026 at 11:05 am
Senor Harry. Point taken. Thanks.