With seven games remaining in the season, the Bucs have a highly winnable schedule down the stretch to help them climb back into the postseason picture. After the bye, Tampa Bay faces the Giants, the Panthers, the Raiders at home, the Chargers and Cowboys on the road, and two home games against divisional opponents, the Panthers and the Saints.
Except for the Chargers, all of these clubs have losing records and are focused on their draft seeding rather than the possibility of making a postseason run. While the Bucs should have an advantage against all of these teams, Tampa Bay’s game strategy may need to change for the most of them depending on what’s going on with each of their quarterback situations.
QB Questions Loom For Teams Facing Bucs
Many of the teams the Bucs will face, especially their next two opponents, have had quarterback issues. Ironically, the Giants and Panthers played each other in Germany last Sunday and, like the Bucs, have a bye this week. On paper, when the schedule was released, the Bucs expected to face New York’s Daniel Jones, who made his NFL debut for the Bucs in 2019.
However, due to Jones’ poor performances, Giants head coach Brian Daboll has been hesitant to stick with him after the bye week. Daboll was asked directly if Jones would start coming out of the bye.
“We’re going to spend a lot of time here watching our tape and evaluating things,” Daboll told reporters. “We’ll do that as a coaching staff over the next week.”
This is hardly exactly a vote of confidence. Jones signed a four-year, $160 million contract two seasons ago but has not lived up to it. However, there would be an incentive not to play Jones anymore because they could cut him after this season, absorb a $22 million cap charge in 2025, and not owe him anything after that. He has eight touchdowns, seven interceptions, and a 2-8 record this season.
The Panthers are also debating who they want to be their quarterback moving forward. Bryce Young, a second-year player, had a terrible start to the season and was benched after going 0-2 in favor of veteran Andy Dalton, who won his first start in Week 3 as Carolina beat Las Vegas. Dalton remained the starter, but a car accident three weeks ago held him out of the game, forcing Young back in. After losing to the Broncos, Young and the Panthers won their next two games, marking their first winning streak since 2022.
So, who is starting to emerge from the bye? Head coach Dave Canales, who was the Bucs’ offensive coordinator last season, likewise declined to provide a direct response.
“We’ll take all the information; we’ll do everything,” Canales stated. “But Bryce certainly is making a statement to all of us.”
Carolina plays the Kansas City Chiefs after their bye week, so the Bucs may not have to predict who will start depending on the circumstances.
The Bucs may still have to guess who will play in their home game against the Raiders. Head coach Antonio Pierce appears to be upset with quarterbacks Gardner Minshew and Aidan O’Connell, as he has routinely benched one in favor of the other in several games. Minshew has started seven games and played in eight, while O’Connell has started two and participated in four. O’Connell was placed on injured reserve after fracturing his thumb a few weeks ago and has missed the past two games.
This week, the Raiders have a bye. They lost against the Bengals on November 3, and former Falcons quarterback Desmond Ridder replaced Minshew, completing 11 of 16 throws for 74 yards and a score. Who knows who will be at quarterback in Las Vegas when the Bucs and Raiders meet?
Unplanned Moves At Quarterback
The next three opponents’ quarterback decisions are very unknown. The following opponents know who their starter will be, but it’s mostly because things didn’t go as planned.
After playing Justin Herbert and the Chargers, the Bucs fly to “Jerry World” to face the Dallas Cowboys. They won’t be facing Dak Prescott, who recently suffered season-ending hamstring surgery. Instead, it will be Cooper Rush, who had a lackluster effort in their 34-6 loss to the Eagles, in which Trey Lance also played. Maybe they’ll see Lance during that game.
Tampa Bay’s final game is against the Saints. The difference in their second clash of the season is that they’ll face Derek Carr rather than youngster Spencer Rattler. The Buccaneers defeated the inexperienced Rattler 51-27. They had two interceptions, forced a fumble, and sacked him five times.
Carr is obviously susceptible to turnovers, but he also has the potential to score points and keep the Saints in the game. Tampa Bay has struggled at home versus New Orleans recently.
Bucs Have Made Other Teams’ QBs Look Like Stars
From the start of the season to the bye, the Bucs faced several quality quarterbacks. They’ve faced top quarterbacks like Jared Goff, Jalen Hurts, Kirk Cousins, Lamar Jackson, and Patrick Mahomes, as well as talented rookies like Jayden Daniels and Bo Nix.
In many ways, the Bucs have provided the ideal highlight reels for these quarterbacks, as Tampa Bay has suffered significantly on defense. Perhaps playing against inferior competition will benefit the Bucs down the stretch. However, if they make these quarterbacks look like stars, Todd Bowles will be unable to make excuses.
There’s a new episode of Scott Reynolds’ Pewter Pulse video series on Pewter Report’s YouTube channel, PewterReportTV. These brief videos, which normally last five to eight minutes, allow Reynolds to provide expert analysis and commentary on a specific Bucs or NFL topic.
If the Bucs fail to make the playoffs, will former Patriots coach Bill Belichick replace Todd Bowles as coach? Belichick has a history of working with Bucs GM Jason Licht, dating back to their time in New England. Scott Reynolds delves into this topic in a new Pewter Pulse video.
