The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ season is on the brink after an 0-3 start. Only one team in NFL history has made the playoffs after starting 0-4, so a loss on Sunday would leave the Buccaneers facing an enormous uphill battle to make a postseason run.
Starting quarterback Baker Mayfield suffered a dislocated thumb in Tampa Bay’s loss last week and will be out for a minimum of three games, according to head coach Todd Bowles. That means the fate of the Buccaneers’ season now rests in the hands of undrafted rookie quarterback Jalon Daniels.
If Daniels can string together some wins, the Buccaneers are very much alive in a wide-open NFC South. But if Tampa Bay continues to drop games, the mountain to climb when Mayfield returns from injury could become insurmountable. That’s a lot of pressure on a rookie quarterback, asking him to provide a spark and keep the team’s season alive. Fortunately, Daniels is embracing the opportunity, and the team is ready to rally around him.
Can Jalon Daniels keep the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ playoff hopes alive amid Baker Mayfield injury?
Daniels is expected to start at quarterback for the next three games — a stretch that includes a home game against the Green Bay Packers, a road game on Thursday Night Football against the Dallas Cowboys, and a home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
While the Buccaneers have had a nightmare 0-3 start, which would be a death sentence in most cases, they remain just one game out of first place with the rest of the NFC South sitting at 1-2.
Daniels’ performance over the next three weeks could determine whether the Buccaneers will still have a chance to compete for the division title when Mayfield returns, or if it’ll be time for Bucs fans to start looking ahead to the 2027 NFL Draft.
If the Buccaneers are 0-6 or 1-5 after this three-game stretch, naturally, it’ll be difficult to envision a realistic path back to the playoff picture. That would be an enormous hole to dig out of.
But if they are 3-3, or even 2-4, there will be plenty of reason for optimism. Mayfield is currently slated to return in Week 7 against the Carolina Panthers — the reigning champions of the NFC South.
If Daniels can lead the Bucs to one or two wins over the next three games and Mayfield can beat the Panthers in his return, this season suddenly has a very different outlook, with a chance for a playoff run in the second half of the year.
Daniels has earned the confidence of offensive coordinator Zac Robinson as a player who is capable of meeting this moment that will make or break the season.
“If there’s a guy that I’ve been around that’s been this young to go knock out an opportunity it would be JD… I know the rest of the team is excited for him and looking forward for a great moment for him. It’ll be really cool to see the guys rally around him," Robinson said.
All eyes are on Daniels. Can he give the Buccaneers a spark and keep Tampa Bay in the mix until Mayfield’s return, or will the season be over before the end of October?
Add us as a preferred source on Google