Tampa Bay Buccaneers Lose Ground in NFC

This was not a good weekend for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, despite yet another loss by the Carolina Panthers, this time to the Seattle Seahawks. The Panthers and Saints may look like a trainwreck and a dumpster fire respectively, the Bucs will struggle to make it to the playoffs this season, barring some miraculous turnaround. With just one win out of four games, the Bucs are in line behind a whopping 11 NFC teams for a playoff spot, and tied with a 12th. Every team in the NFC East and NFC West has a better record than the Bucs, while three of the four NFC North teams have a better record. Not only does a division title seem out of reach, even a Wild Card spot seems implausible given those numbers. The Bucs may have to win nine of their final twelve games to even sniff the playoffs.

Somehow, the NFC South is now the worst division in the NFC despite featuring the team with the best record in the NFL in the form of the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons now have a 3.5 game lead on the Bucs and appear to be running away with the division title. The Bucs, Panthers and Saints all have their own issues to solve before even thinking of the playoffs, however. The Saints have perhaps the worst defense in the entire NFL right now, giving up a ludicrous 164 points through five games, or 33 points per game. The Panthers have somehow lost the ability to run or throw the ball, while their defense isn't nearly talented enough to carry the team. Finally, the Bucs may have one of the worst pass defense in the NFL despite a multitude of interceptions and their offense looks absolutely disastrous.

Quite simply, the Atlanta Falcons are the class of the NFC South and perhaps the entire NFC at this point, and the Bucs may have to be content with another year of 'potential' and no playoff spots.