After a weekend of watching how the rest of the NFL Playoff Picture would settle, it's time for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to step up to the plate.
There's something that feels so much more earned about this trip to the postseason, maybe because it's so unexpected. Almost nobody picked the Bucs to do much more than tank for a high draft pick this year, but instead, the team went out and won the division with a better record than it had last year.
Granted, the bar was low but it went even lower given how poorly everyone expected the Bucs to do this year.
From Baker Mayfield injecting new energy into the locker room to the team figuring out a way to climb out of a 1-6 midseason slump, things have gone unexecptedly well. Monday is a chance for those good times to keep rolling, as a banged up Eagles team comes to town for a Wild Card showdown.
Philly beat the Bucs earlier in the year, but both teams are vastly different now. Tampa Bay's defense is in an even better spot than it was in Week 3, with key players fully healthy and rookies succesfully stepping into important roles. Carlton Davis, Calijah Kancey, and Yaya Diaby are three players the Eagles didn't see much of back in September who all could have a massive impact on the game.
Meanwhile the Eagles come to Tampa a shell of the team that showed up in Week 3. Jalen Hurts is banged up and key players like A.J. Brown, Reed Blankenship, and Sydney Brown all out with injuries.
Tampa Bay needs to prove it can stay out of its own way in a big game, but the stars are aligning for Wild Card weekend to end with yet another upset.
What time is the Tampa Bay Buccaneers game today? (January 14th)
Here's everything to know to catch tonight's game:
- Date: Monday, January 14th
- Start Time: 8:15 pm ET
- Location: Raymond James Stadium | Tampa, FL
- TV Channel: ABC | ESPN | ESPN2
- Announcers: Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Lisa Salters
- Radio: WXTB 97.9 FM | More Radio Affiliates
- Live Stream: ESPN+ | Fubo
There will be two broadcasts of the game, with the main one airing on ABC and ESPN with Joe Buck and Troy Aikman in the booth. That's the traditional broadcast, and the one most nervous Bucs fans watching at home will probably tune into.
The other broadcast will be on ESPN2 and feature another edition of the Manningcast. This was the case last year when there was a Manningcast alternate broadcast for the Bucs-Cowboys game, but hopefully things turn out a little better this time around.