Buccaneers Have Must-Win Game Against NFC South Rival in Week 6

Getty Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield.

The sting (and stink) of an overtime loss to the Atlanta Falcons in an NFC South Division showdown on October 3 has lingered around the Tampa Bay Buccaneers since .

If they don’t shake it off before facing the New Orleans Saints in another NFC South road game on October 13, it could define the Buccaneers’ season.

While mathematical elimination isn’t applicable this early in the season as far as the playoffs, it’s hard to look at the game against New Orleans as anything but a must-win scenario.

Tampa Bay is 3-2 and faces a monthlong gauntlet of games after facing the Saints, including 3 legitimate Super Bowl contenders before a bye in Week 11. New Orleans will also be without starting quarterback Derek Carr and has rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler making his first NFL start.

“It’s been a roller coaster, and I don’t see that letting up,” Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon wrote on October 11. “(The Buccaneeers) get a break against the Carr-less Saints in Week 6, but then it’s Baltimore, Atlanta, Kansas City and San Francisco. Brutal.”

Buccaneers Have Left Wins On The Table

While the loss to the Falcons was genuinely soul-sucking, it also exposed an already-vulnerable Bucs’ secondary as quarterback Kirk Cousins set a franchise record with 509 passing yards and 4 touchdowns.

If Tampa Bay doesn’t have either of its starting safeties against New Orleans, that could continue to be a problem — both NFL All-Pro Antoine Winfield Jr. and Christian Izien were limited in practice on Wednesday and Thursday ahead of the game against the Saints.

It wasn’t the first eye-opening loss for the Buccaneers this season. There was also a 26-7 loss to the Denver Broncos at home in Week 3.

In an interesting twist, the Buccaneers defeated the Commanders and rookie QB Jayden Daniels in Week 1 — the only loss of the season for Washington so far. The Broncos’ win over the Buccaneers after an 0-2 start kicked off a 3-game winning streak for Denver and rookie quarterback Bo Nix.

Buccaneers Have Yet to Field Complete Lineup

If you’re looking for the storyline that’s defined Tampa Bay’s season so far it’s probably the play of quarterback Baker Mayfield, who has looked like a Top 10 QB so far and is playing the best football of his career.

After that, though, it’s been injuries that have kept the Buccaneers from fielding anything resembling the lineup they were projected to have in the preseason.

The most noticeable absence has been Winfield, who has missed 4 games in a row after suffering a foot/ankle injury in Week 1. Offensive right tackle Luke Goedeke has also missed 4 games in a row after a concussion in Week 1 — notable because the Buccaneers have given up at least 5 sacks in 2 games this season and Goedeke started all 17 games in 2023. Defensive lineman Calijah Kancey, the Buccaneers’ first round pick in 2023, has yet to play this season because of a calf injury.

Even though Goedeke and Kancey look like they’ll play against the Saints, those inadequacies might mean the Buccaneers could be pressed into making some moves before the November 5 NFL trade deadline or bringing in veteran free agents on the offensive line or possibly even in the secondary.