For as bad as things have been over the last four weeks, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers started to right the ship on Sunday.
Despite being on a four-game losing streak, the Bucs were still well within striking distance of getting back into the NFC South race, something they did with a win on Sunday. It was a cathartic win in every aspect, as the offense started to click again and the defense buttoned up after last week's disaster against C.J. Stroud and the Texans.
Only one rookie quarterback would get the best of the Bucs this month, and it wasn't Will Levis.
Tampa Bay's defense held Tennessee to six points and forced a late interception that helped snuff out any sort of comeback. It was the polar opposite of what we saw last week and it was exactly the type of game the team needed to get its head straight.
With the win, Tampa Bay is not only back in the win column but right back in the thick of the NFC South race.
NFC South Standings after Week 10
The Bucs win was made even sweeter with the Saints laying a dud up in Minnesota. The Vikings smoked the Saints, with Derek Carr leaving the game in the second half after suffering an injury. Jameis Winston came in and scored a touchdown almost immediately, but things slowed for the Saints after that.
What makes the loss even better for the Bucs, as Tampa Bay's win over Minnesota could end up being important later in the season as part of a tiebreaker. That's assuming the Bucs lose their next matchup against the Saints, which would give them a full tiebreaker should Tampa Bay pull off another win.
Atlanta plays the in the late window against the Arizona Cardinals, so we won't have complete standings until after, but things are falling into place for the Bucs to make a surge back up the NFC South standings.
Here's a look at where things stand after the early window games:
Team | Record | GB | Week 11 Game |
|---|---|---|---|
Saints | 5-5 | -- | Bye Week |
Falcons | 4-5 | -- | Bye Week |
Buccaneers | 4-5 | 1 | vs. 49ers |
Panthers | 1-8 | 6 | vs. Cowboys |
Next week the Bucs have a matchup out west with the 49ers, but the Saints and Falcons are both on their bye week. That means after next Sunday the three teams will be even in terms of games remaining and we'll have the best idea of what the standings are week in and week out as the race tightens.