With the 2020 NFL schedule finally released, here is a look at the five toughest opponents for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in their upcoming season.
The Buccaneers have one of their most important seasons in decades approaching in 2020, and the stakes have never been higher.
Tampa Bay has gone all-in in almost every way. From free agency to trades, the Bucs have constructed a team with the sole purpose of making the playoffs and going beyond in Bruce Arians’ second season.
With a playoff or bust mentality present in full force, the season will likely be defined by a handful of games. Mediocre teams beat the bad teams, but great teams, playoff teams, are able to compete in their toughest matchups.
The Buccaneers have struggled with mediocrity for years now as their ceiling, but the tides are starting to turn, and the outlook for the future is as optimistic as it can be for a team that has missed out on the playoffs since 2007.
In an effort for the Bucs to live up to their expectations, staying competitive with their most formidable competition will be pivotal. Tampa Bay was able to play some of their better opponents close in 2019, but that goal becomes much more critical in 2020.
While there are rarely ever easy opponents in the NFL, Tampa Bay is usually not blessed with an easy schedule. 2019 was known for the longest streak without a proper home game in the NFL for the Bucs, and 2020 won’t be a walk in the park either.
With opponents in the AFC West and the NFC North, the Buccaneers have numerous playoff-ready opponents to play several times.
Here is the official schedule that was released on the Buccaneers Twitter page:
Week 1: Away vs. New Orleans Saints
Week 2: Home vs. Carolina Panthers
Week 3: Away vs. Denver Broncos
Week 4: Home vs. LA Chargers
Week 5: Away vs. Chicago Bears
Week 6: Home vs. Green Bay Packers
Week 7: Away vs. Las Vegas Raiders
Week 8: Away vs. New York Giants
Week 9: Home vs. New Orleans Saints
Week 10: Away vs. Carolina Panthers
Week 11: Home vs. LA Rams
Week 12: Home vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Week 13: BYE
Week 14: Home vs. Minnesota Vikings
Week 15: Away vs. Atlanta Falcons
Week 16: Away vs. Detroit Lions
Week 17: Home vs. Atlanta Falcons
At first glance, this schedule looks much better than the one for last season, but there are still several difficult matchups. Here are the five hardest matchups for the Bucs in 2020.
Kansas City Chiefs (Week 12)
Without a doubt, the most challenging game of the season will be against the Kansas City Chiefs at home. Any game against a defending Super Bowl champion is already an uphill battle, but the Chiefs’ stellar offense and solid defense will be hard for anyone to topple.
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The Chiefs and the Buccaneers are constructed in similar ways, but Kansas City has several distinct advantages over Tampa Bay.
First and foremost, the clear advantage that Kansas City has over the Bucs and every other team in the NFL is quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes is the clear best quarterback in the NFL and looks poised to maintain that title for years to come.
The Bucs have “The Quarterback Whisperer” Bruce Arians as their head coach, but Andy Reid is still a step above. As a likely lock for the Hall of Fame with his recent Super Bowl win, Reid is one of the best coaches in the NFL.
While the Chiefs do have several advantages, the Buccaneers get the nod with their receiver corps. Tampa Bay has the best wide receiver room in the NFL. Chris Godwin and Mike Evans have no equal on the Chiefs roster despite how talented Tyreek Hill is.
The other advantage that the Bucs have could be their defense. Tampa Bay’s defense was solid at the end of 2019, and if improvements are made over this Summer, the Buccaneers could field a top-10 defense in the NFL in 2020.
Despite the specific improvements across the roster, the Bucs will still be facing an uphill battle in this matchup. Kansas City will be the toughest matchup of the entire year, but this will be a great test of the playoff readiness of Tampa Bay.
New Orleans Saints (Week 1)
The Saints have been the best team in the NFC South for several years now, and that seems unlikely to change just yet. Any game against New Orleans is challenging, but an away game for the Buccaneers against the Saints is that much harder to win.
The Saints are such a well-constructed team that even when their Hall of Fame starting quarterback goes down, they can still beat a team like Tampa Bay with their above-average backup.
From top to bottom, the Saints are one of the best teams in the NFL, and they lock up all of the crucial positions. Shutdown corner? Check. Dominant pass rusher? Check. Good offensive line? Check. New Orleans brings a wealth of talent to both sides of the ball at all of the keystone positions, and that’s not even to mention Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara.
Thomas was the best receiver in the NFL in 2019, leading the league in receiving yards and receptions despite playing with Drew Brees injured for five games. Teddy Bridgewater was the best backup quarterback in the league last season, but it was still an impressive feat for Thomas.
As for Alvin Kamara, the Buccaneer run defense is set to remain one of the best in the league for 2020, but it will still be difficult to shut Kamara down as a receiver.
To make matters worse, Sean Payton is one of the best coaches in the NFL and mixed with the other weapons on the Saints, this matchup is extremely tough for the Buccaneers, especially for the first game of the season.
Green Bay Packers (Week 6)
The Packers are coming off of one of the worst drafts ever. Instead of giving one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL more weapons, Green Bay drafted backup players with their first two picks. This isn’t to say that the Packers didn’t have any weapons already, but a proper draft class could’ve taken them from NFC contenders to Super Bowl favorites.
Much like the Saints, the Packers have a solid defense and a good offense with stars like Davante Adams, Aaron Jones, and Aaron Rodgers. Adams is very good when healthy, Jones is one of the best running backs in the league, and Aaron Rodgers is Aaron Rodgers.
The biggest issue that Green Bay is facing comes from within. There is very clearly a massive rift forming between Rodgers and head coach Matt LeFleur as evidenced by the draft.
This power struggle could be the undoing of the Packers. LeFleur is not the right coach for Rodgers, but to be fair, there aren’t many coaches in the NFL that are a good fit for Rodgers.
If the relationship is as bad as it seems, Green Bay could be playing against themselves for the whole season. Jordan Love isn’t a viable replacement for Rodgers just yet, but this narrative will be fun to watch for non-Packers fans for the next few years as it continues to unravel.
Despite the growing feud, the Packers still have a championship-caliber team that can push forward regardless of who the coach is and whether or not the quarterback is happy. Green Bay will always be a tough battle, even if it is a home game for the Bucs.
La Rams (New Orleans Saints at home) (Week 11)
The next hardest game that the Buccaneers will play is against the Saints again, just at home. All of the same things apply, but the game is a home matchup for the Buccaneers. Nothing new.
In an effort to look elsewhere, the next most challenging matchup is versus the Rams at home. LA didn’t live up to expectations last season, but a team that has Aaron Donald and Jalen Ramsey is already going to be frightening.
The Rams also made the difficult but smart decision to cut ties with Todd Gurley this offseason. This immediately makes the offense better as the Rams won’t be hamstrung by one of the most expensive players on their team who can only play a massively reduced role.
With the run game on the right track, the Rams will spend the majority of their offseason on their passing attack. Jared Goff has shown greatness at times but also struggles to wow, especially seen over the course of the 2019 season.
The biggest things going for the Rams is their coach, Sean McVay, and their defense. If LA can just figure out how to put it all together, they will become a very dangerous opponent. The Buccaneers were able to win the matchup in 2019, but it will be hard to repeat in 2020.
Minnesota Vikings (Week 14)
As far as home schedules go, the Bucs have one of the most difficult schedules at home in the NFL. Tampa Bay is playing four opponents that made the playoffs last season, including the Super Bowl champs, and that is not including the Rams who were in the Super Bowl just two years ago.
The Vikings are next on this list and will be yet another problematic home matchup.
Like every other team here, Minnesota has a healthy balance of talent between their offense and defense. The pass rush and the offensive line are both taken care of, Kirk Cousins is a consistent quarterback, and there are no glaring question marks going into the start of the season.
The Vikings leaned heavily on their run game in 2019 with a big emphasis placed upon Dalvin Cook. Cook exploded onto the scene in his sophomore season and is staking his claim to the title of one of the top backs in the league.
The departure of Stefon Diggs and an injury-plagued 2019 for Adam Thielen could lead to the run game being more prominent for the Vikings in 2020, but this would be to the benefit of the Buccaneers.
Despite the apparent advantage for the Buccaneers, the Vikings have been a consistent playoff team as of recent and have beaten the Saints in the last two seasons in the playoffs.
Minnesota is a well-coached team with great depth, and this matchup will be no walk in the park for Tampa Bay, even at home.