Improving Bucs?
November 4th, 2026
Bucs coach Todd Bowles.
One would hope a team can improve as a season progresses.
We’re at midseason for the Bucs (3-5). Good thing they play in a trash division.
Bucs radio play-by-play man Tony Castricone had an interesting nugget on Twitter tied to the Bucs’ recent offensive improvement. The Bucs have been better than just scoring more. Their margin of scoring versus opponents the past month has skyrocketed.
In fact, in the past four games, the Bucs have had the highest scoring margin of any NFL team. But here is where it gets, um, interesting.
In the past four weeks, the three immediate teams that trail the Bucs in highest margin of points are all teams the Bucs lost to: Pittsburgh, Green Bay and Cincinnati.
Now, now, Joe knows what you are thinking. The three teams the Bucs beat are trash: Dallas, Carolina and Atlanta.
Well, at least the Bucs beat them. Isn’t that the first goal, beat the teams you are supposed to beat?
Joe hopes this doesn’t turn out to be like 2010, when the Bucs won 10 games and not until the final game of the season, when they beat the slimy Saints, did the Bucs beat a team with a winning record.
And that same year, the Bucs lost to a team they should have beaten (Detroit). As a result, they lost a wild card tiebreaker to the eventual Super Bowl winner, Green Bay.
Over the last 4 weeks (Weeks 5-8), the @Buccaneers lead the NFL in scoring margin.
A point behind them is the team that beat them in OT.
1. Tampa Bay (+47) 3-1-0
2. Pittsburgh (+46) 4-0-0
3. Green Bay (+39) 3-1-0
4. Cincinnati (+36) 3-0-0— Tony Castricone (@Castricone) November 3, 2026
November 4th, 2026 at 12:09 am
the Bucs SHOULD lose to CHI DET to end at 3-7
the Bucs SHOULD beat CAR LAC BAL NO to end at 7-7
the Bucs SHOULD go 2-1 against ATL LAR NO to end at 9-8
what the Bucs actually DO is a crapshoot
defense is good – ST is good – running game is good – receivers are good
what is Baker Robinson Bowles gonna do ? dunno
November 4th, 2026 at 12:23 am
It’s a little skewed because we beat Carolina by 30.
November 4th, 2026 at 12:25 am
I’ll believe improvement when they win a game where they have to throw a bit. Yeah, the running game is better and the defense is better special teams too. But if you can’t throw it, your ceiling is low.
November 4th, 2026 at 12:42 am
I don’t caare if we run the ball, throw the ball or eat the ball. I don’t care who we play. I don’t care if we play the blind school. As long as we win!!
November 4th, 2026 at 1:15 am
This seems to suggest good things for the improved Bucs going forward into what seems to the easier part of their schedule albeit with a tough looking Chicago just ahead.
Over the past four weeks noted in the article:
Pittsburgh has averaged winning by 11-1/2 points; they beat the Bucs by 7.
Green Bay has averaged winning by 9-3/4 points; they beat the Bucs by 3.
Cincinnati has averaged winning by 9 points; they beat the Bucs by 6.
One might infer from this that the Bucs are better than the average team beaten by these three teams that beat the Bucs.
Should the Bucs really have lost against any of these three teams?
Considering the one score differential in each game, would the Bucs lose to any of them now that the Bucs seem to have found their identity running the ball and now that Anzalone and the defense seem to have settled into the scheme?
The odds might be against the Bucs winning against all three of these teams in rematches. But, the Bucs have improved enough that they should win against – two out of three?
November 4th, 2026 at 1:35 am
This post by Joe is titled Improving Bucs.
The Bucs should have this playin on a loop for inspiration.
Starting around the 7:50 mark, there is a Baker moment that makes me just love the guy – most of the time. The DB Baker abused probably needs therapy. And, thankfully, despite being totally wiped out, the ref did not appear to be injured.
YouTube FILM SESSION | The Bucs DIDN’T EVEN TRY To Throw The Ball Against The Atlanta Falcons…
Talkin’ Tampa
November 4th, 2026 at 1:41 am
Refs robbed the Bucs of the Lions win in 2010.
November 4th, 2026 at 4:27 am
toopanca … ‘Should the Bucs really have lost against any of these three teams?’
Answer is Yes, because at the end of the game, all 3 of those opponents had more points than the Bucs had and you don’t get rematches (well, except potentially in the playoffs). I’m as guity as anyone toopanca of playing COULDA, WOULDA, SHOULDA but that still doesn’t change the outcome.
We’re not quite halfway thru the season, and our biggest questions deal with what lies ahead, not behind. SHOULD we expect great defense every game going forward? As in ‘Great defense that includes a league-leading advantage (#1) in Takeaways (16) and a near-league-leading advantage (#5) in 3rd Down Conversion Percentage (only 32.0%)’.
Those 2 numbers, combined with our #1 Run Game, have allowed us to hold an almost 5-minute advantage (ranked #3) over our opponents in Time of Possession (32:20 to 27:40), DESPITE the Bucs currently having a 3-5 record. Sunday’s game was beautiful in 1 respect (we won a slugfest & everyone loves a good beatdown), but it was also ugly in another respect (the sloppy-weather dictated too much of what happened).
Bucs MUST develop some semblance of a Passing Game IF we expect to win the NFC South and make the playoffs. Doesn’t have to be pretty, but it does have to be ENOUGH to complement our Running Attack to keep defenses off-balance.