For the seventh time in eight games, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were masters of their own demise. The team has been in control of its own playoff destiny all season and has had a clear path to clinch since Week 14, but once again, the season will come down to the final game.
Everything has fallen exactly into place for the Bucs to have clinched with a week to spare, but the team hasn't been able to stay out of its own way. Sunday's 20-17 loss to the Dolphins might have been the most sour of the bunch because it's the one that shouldn't have happened.
Losing to division rivals is always tough but understandable, but losing to a Dolphins team that hasn't had anything to play for in weeks is an indictment. Who that falls on is being hotly debated, but according to head coach Todd Bowles there are a few players he thinks should at the front of the line.
Todd Bowles calls out Buccaneers players for not pulling their weight after loss to Dolphins
After the loss, Bowles tersely called out "certain guys" who he believes are still failing to pull their weight in critical moments and are hurting the team. He once again refused to drop specific names, but this isn't the first time we've heard Bowles call his players out during this losing streak.
“It’s not the leadership failing, it’s the execution at certain times and certain things by certain guys," Bowles said. "The leadership has been great, the message has been great by the leaders, we’ve just got to execute at critical times.”
Baker Mayfield backed Bowles up with somewhat of a cryptic message in his own postgame remarks.
He revealed that Lavonte David delievered a message to the locker room after the loss, but refused to get into details of what was said. Instead, Baker said he'd like to "keep that in-house", which is notable after hearing what Bowles had to say about how he thinks not everyone is pulling their weight.
We might not ever hear those names, but this offseason might give us some clues. Jason Licht has been very adamant about his "no assholes" rule, something he brought to light when discussing the sort of players the Bucs look for when drafting or signing players.
That rule seemingly applied to Devin White, who has made it clear that his exit from Tampa was not one that anyone has any lost love over, and could come in handy when looking at who returns in next season and who doesn't.
Of course, what happens next weekend will go a long way in helping color that picture. Despite loud calls from fans that Bowles needs to be fired, it's looking increasingly likely that he'll be back for one more season under the guise of injuries not allowing this coaching staff a fair shake this season.
Whether that's justified or not is debatable, but a win over the Panthers and another NFC South title will certainy help him internally. The question is whether or not "certain guys" step up to help or if it'll once again be a collection of the team's greatest mistakes this season piling up to cave in the roof.