Mike Tannenbaum: Bucs On Same Level As Eagles, Lions
July 14th, 2025
Has a fan at BSPN.
A former NFL shot-caller triggered some folks at BSPN recently. He spoke well of the Bucs.
The hah-rah!
Former Jets and Dolphins big-shot Mike Tannenbaum was on BSPN this week and let the nation know the Bucs are right up there with the Eagles and Lions. For Tannenbaum, it’s because of Baker Mayfield.
“If you look head-to-head with the Rams and start at the quarterback position, Baker Mayfield thoroughly outplayed Matt Stafford, who’s had obviously a Hall of Fame career [and a] Super Bowl winner.
“But if we just look at the way Baker Mayfield is playing in Tampa, hey, there’s a reason. Liam Coen is a head coach, like Baker Mayfield has worked his way back into the top 10 conversation.”
Tannenbaum is not off base. Mayfield has led the NFL the past two seasons combined in touchdown passes. How can anyone argue Mayfield hasn’t played better than the injury-prone Stafford?
Good guy Kevin Clark tried. He scoffed at Tannenbaum invoking the Bucs in the same sentence with the Eagles and Lions, who Clark said are the class teams of the NFC. The Bucs, Clark said, are a “cut below.”
Joe isn’t sure about that. The Bucs played toe-to-toe with the Lions on the road in the playoffs and then last season beat them in Detroit.
The Bucs, the week prior to the close playoff loss to the Lions, blasted the Eagles and then followed that up by hammering the Eagles in the 2024 regular season.
How can they not be on the same level as the Eagles and Lions?
July 14th, 2025 at 5:23 am
There’s never a shortage of doubters. Keep that disrespect going.
July 14th, 2025 at 5:49 am
Mayfield has pinpoint accuracy on short throws. Maybe Stafford has an edge on deeper throws, but their chance of success is still a lot lower for either one. The Bucs have a significantly better roster top-to-bottom than the Rams- especially at full strength with Wirfs and Godwin. It’s not just a battle of QB’s.
July 14th, 2025 at 6:27 am
Bucs could be at the same level if they finally fixed the defense this season? Of course injuries always play a big part.
July 14th, 2025 at 7:07 am
Rewatched the Lions game the other day. Not only did we beat them, we did it being very short handed. We whipped the Eagles, and that wasn’t the first time we beat them. So anybody who thinks the Bucs aren’t good enough to make it to the SB hasn’t been paying attention.
July 14th, 2025 at 7:07 am
How has Stafford “obviously” had a HOF career and clowns keep saying they are not sure of Eli Manning is HOF worthy?
July 14th, 2025 at 7:21 am
Yeah ModHairKen gotta agree
July 14th, 2025 at 7:39 am
Would the Bucs have won 10 games and the Division in the NFCN or NFCE?
Eagles logged 4 more wins with the exact strength of schedule as the Bucs. lions 15 with an even harder schedule.
A lot of good teams drop an early season game to a lesser team so I wouldn’t put too much stock in a week two win against a team that averaged 20 points a game for the first 3 weeks and 42 points the 4 weeks following.
Catch a team at the right times as the Bucs did the Eagles in 2023 W.C. and Commanders did the Lions in 2024 and you might just catch a win.
July 14th, 2025 at 8:06 am
Baker is the King maker. It’s not the other way around .
July 14th, 2025 at 8:08 am
I’m kind of surprised that Detroit is still considered one of the top 2 teams in the NFC considering they lost both their OC and DC. I personally think they’ll take a big step backwards and not even win their division this year.
July 14th, 2025 at 9:16 am
The Bucs barely won their own division. They are a miracle play away from having a new head coach. In hindsight maybe Anthony Nelson did us a disservice.
July 14th, 2025 at 10:01 am
Alung Thanks for your daily dose of negativity. You should publish a book called “The Power of Negative Thinking” to stack right next to Norman Vincent Peales wmpy Positive thinking book.
Meanwhile IMHO the Eagles and Bucs are a virtual if not realistic tossup. They are well matched. I would be tempted to say the same things about the Lions but if we’re posting daily about concerns over Griz’s playcalling how about those Lions? Not just one but TWO coordinators replaced!
The Lions are now rumored to be close to reaching a deal with Cincy for Hendrickson. IF that happens and Hutchinson returns to form after his injury the Lions will certainly be formidable.
July 14th, 2025 at 11:17 am
We are on the same level. It’s just the consistency that’s lacking.
July 14th, 2025 at 11:52 am
I like my cupcakes with sprinkles on them. And, it’s a fact, if Anthony Nelson doesn’t strip Chubb Hubbard, Bucs lose that game, miss the playoffs, and the idol of the sunshine and roses club is fired.
The truth doesn’t go well with a cupcake.
July 14th, 2025 at 12:35 pm
Aqualung, you know I can put up with alot of your stuff. You’re a good dude in there somewhere. But you don’t need to bald face lie. Even if the Panthers beat us that first game we still win the division. We won the division by 2 games and beat Carolina by about 40 points 2 weeks after that outlier game. And Aqualung, I know you know that. So stop the lying.
July 14th, 2025 at 12:37 pm
The lack of consistency…the mid-season losing streaks are exactly why we are NOT on the same level. Oh, and the coach would rather play it safe than go for it.
NOT on the same level until proven otherwise.
July 14th, 2025 at 12:46 pm
Losing that first Panthers game would have changed how the Bucs finished, and how the Falcons finished. Bucs would have missed the playoffs if they lost that game because they would have cliff jumped under the expert coaching of the great flattener.
July 14th, 2025 at 12:53 pm
We all know that if the Bucs win the Super Bowl this year, the very next year we would not be the favored to repeat.
July 14th, 2025 at 12:54 pm
This team has a good shot to go a long way this year, but to quote that fool Tannenbaum as meaning anything is a waste of time. That idiot is not in the NFL now for a reason and he is a complete jackass. Every week he says ignorant crap all year.
July 14th, 2025 at 12:55 pm
Those aren’t sprinkles…. They’re poo crumbs 😢
July 14th, 2025 at 1:50 pm
BSPN will be eating crow at the end of the season.
Roster to roster our beloved BUCS matchup with anyone.
Fire them cannons and just you wait and see
In Baker we trust
July 14th, 2025 at 2:47 pm
Eagles deserve to be top dogs.
Lions have been overrated for a few years now… They’re everybody’s darlings (even some JBF commenters) but their window is closing.
Interesting that Washington isn’t mentioned in the conversation.
We can beat anybody on any given Sunday. Our issues is/will be consistency.
July 14th, 2025 at 4:40 pm
All I have to say about that title is …. SSSHHHHHH!
July 14th, 2025 at 5:07 pm
GoneGator Says:
“We can beat anybody on any given Sunday. Our issues is/will be consistency.”
Good call. We had a good team last year – but for instance, the effort was just not there vs Denver – and both Falcons games were faceplant city….
If your team has legit Super Bowl aspirations you MUST show up ready to kick ass week in and week out throughout the season – and not have games – especially not strings of games – where ‘mistakes’ are the deciding factor in losses.
Bucs beating Bucs as Arians called it can and will keep you from your goal.
Look no further than the playoff loss at home vs the Foreskins. Bucs were a better team and should have won that game by a score or 2….. But the defense kept choking on 3rd and 4th down all night and 4th quarter, the offense handed Washington the ball in scoring position to take a lead which flipped the whole outcome of the game….
Plays must be made cleanly in crunch time during the playoffs…. Mistakes will send you home in a hurry.
July 14th, 2025 at 6:28 pm
“A cut below” is definitely bulletin board material. If Jason ever runs short, he can always put up some of the comments from here. Jeez…I thought we were supposed to be fans.
July 14th, 2025 at 6:29 pm
GG and Pickgrin
As usual agree with your takes. The Bucs clearly squandered some opportunities last season with stupid plays and lack of focus even including the offsides and fumbles in critical situations. The Bucs lacked focus.
Now that could ALL be the fault of ONE COACH…or it could have PERHAPS been a combination. Lots of lineup changes due to the injury bug, inexperienced players out of position, too much youth or simply not enough talent to play less than mistake free ball.
THIS year should help answer WHICH of those reasons are most accurate. Talent has been improved, coaching is the same, QB entering 3rd year…
THIS year should tell us a lot about THIS Bucs team. It’s not the same team as last years.
July 14th, 2025 at 7:46 pm
stpetebucsfan, it’s not the same team as last year. Bingo. This nice article by our Joes points out that we may not be the only ones who think these Bucs may very well be top tier in the NFC. I happen to disagree. I think we’re clearly the cream of the crop in the NFC. Not long before vengeance is mine. Oops, I didn’t mean to imply that many of you are blind and we will soon see my optimism was in fact logic. I’ve seen alot of good football teams over the years. This is the year I call the 25 Buccaneers one of those teams.
July 14th, 2025 at 8:12 pm
I agree Kenton smith.These bucs are breaking the nfl This year and next
July 14th, 2025 at 8:32 pm
The Bucs always have been and always will be Paper Champions in the eyes of the pathetic talking heads. Haters gonna hate. We know better and that’s all that matters. I just hope they play more focused this season and not down to the talent level of the lesser opponents for a change
July 14th, 2025 at 9:05 pm
It’s funny because six of our eight losses (including the playoff game) were within one score, and easily could have gone the other way.
Meanwhile only three of our wins were within one score. I think we will be a better team than last year as long as Grizzard doesn’t screw up the offense.
July 14th, 2025 at 9:07 pm
Do you know how many different team fans would kill for 1 SB win , let alone 2!! Let’s make it 3 soon,, the Bills , Lions , Vikings fans will still be praying 1 day for their first
July 14th, 2025 at 9:22 pm
The Bucs will be easily in the same class this year if the defense remains relatively uninjured and plays more aggressive tuis year, which is what I fully expect. The more that doubt, the better!
I’m not worried about Wirfs at all. Godwin is more of a concern and even there, we’ve still got the bases covered. The Bucs averaged more points per game without Godwin (but WITH Evans) last year. Of course, the bottom half of the season was against far inferior competition that the front half.
July 14th, 2025 at 10:59 pm
Pickgrin is spot on in his observations. Looking underneath those crisp takes to the root cause, we find it’s poor coaching, lousy preparation, awful game management decisions, a void in situational awareness, and finally preparing the team to come out flat as pancakes in the most important games. The Great Flattener.
July 15th, 2025 at 8:32 am
We are cream of the crop with 2 caveats, minimal injuries and minimal dumb mistakes.