Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield ostensibly understood the importance of their 20-17 win over the Arizona Cardinals. That's why he made the bold (and borderline irresponsible) decision to play through a left shoulder injury he suffered in the team's previous contest.
Mayfield's availability speaks to the palpable sense of urgency of a Buccaneers group that dropped three straight games before beating Arizona. Tampa Bay's midseason slump has made the idea of missing the playoffs entirely feel more realistic than the dark horse early-year Super Bowl LX momentum.
To make matters worse, the Carolina Panthers continue to surprise everyone and find ways to prevail. They've gone 6-3 since the calendar flipped to October, putting the Buccaneers in serious jeopardy of falling out of the top seven in the conference.
Updated NFC standings after Buccaneers beat Cardinals, Panthers upset Rams
- Chicago Bears (9-3, first in NFC North)
- Los Angeles Rams (9-3, first in NFC West)
- Philadelphia Eagles (8-4, first in NFC East)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-5, first in NFC South)
- Seattle Seahawks (8-3, second in NFC West)
- Green Bay Packers (8-3-1, second in NFC North)
- San Francisco 49ers (9-4, third in NFC West)
- Detroit Lions (7-5, third in NFC North)
- Dallas Cowboys (6-5-1, second in NFC East)
- Carolina Panthers (7-6, second in NFC South)
- Minnesota Vikings (4-7, fourth in NFC North)
- Atlanta Falcons (4-8, third in NFC South)
- Washington Commanders (3-8, third in NFC East)
- Arizona Cardinals (3-9, fourth in NFC West)
- New Orleans Saints (2-10, fourth in NFC South)
- New York Giants (2-10, fourth in NFC East)
There's a clear divide between clubs with a shot of reaching the postseason and those with their sights on 2026, with Carolina being the cutoff. The Panthers are the No. 10 seed in the NFC after Week 13, but they're also within striking distance of the Bucs for divisional supremacy.
Carolina pulled off an upset of what many consider to be the NFL's best squad, the Los Angeles Rams, to keep pace with the Bucs. The shocking result put the Panthers one step closer to dethroning Tampa Bay and hosting a win-or-go-home game.
With that in mind, even taking care of business against an inferior opponent like the Cardinals can't be overstated. The Bucs' margin for error has become razor-thin as Carolina breathes down their neck, so they must keep the foot on the gas.
Tampa Bay fittingly looked a little more like itself versus the Cards with some familiar faces back in the mix. They still have some kinks to work out, but having standout running back Bucky Irving and veteran wide receiver Chris Godwin Jr. healthy certainly helps.