Not many people are giving the Buccaneers much respect in their off-season rankings.
Yes, the Bucs had Tom Brady the last three seasons under center, but as we saw last season, it takes more than a Hall Of Fame quarterback to win a playoff game.
Although we witnessed the diminishing skill of Brady right before our eyes last season, the play of the offensive line, the overall play of the defense, and the running game struggled all season, finishing last in the NFL.
Now that Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask will fight it out in training camp to be the starter, Tampa has fallen to one of the worst teams in the league, according to Peter King and many others.
Peter King Ranks The Buccaneers 31 Out Of 32 Teams
Peter King has the Bucs ranked number 31 in his off-season power rankings. Mr. King gave us no reason why he thinks the Buccaneers are that bad of a football team. If you are going to make a statement like that, the least you can do is back it up with some thought and analysis. Peter King gave us neither.
I can think of at least 16 teams right off the top of my head that the Buccaneers are than right now.
In the NFC, this Tampa team has better rosters than the Giants, Washington, Green Bay, Chicago, Arizona, the LA Rams, Atlanta, and Carolina.
In the AFC, the Buccaneers have better rosters than New England, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Houston, Tennessee, Indianapolis, Denver, and Las Vegas.
A team with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Lavinte David, Devin White, Tristan Wirfs, Ryan Jensen, Jamel Dean, and Antoine Winfield Jr. is not one of the worst teams in the NFL.
Yet many Sportsbooks and prognosticators are giving the Buccaneers a snowball’s chance in hell of winning five games this season, let alone challenging for the division title in the NFC South.
According to Ceasars Sportsbook, the Buccaneers are not favored in any game this season.
The closest the betters come to the Buccaneers winning a game is at home against the Falcons, at Houston, at Tennessee, and at Carolina. But, unfortunately, the Bucs are a -1 in those games.
The Buccaneer’s win total is 6.5. only Houston and Arizona have lower win totals at 5.5.
Buccaneers Should Win Nine Games This Season
The Bucs will surprise some people this season. Looking at the schedule, I have the Bucs winning nine games in a best-case scenario and seven in a worst-case scenario.
The Buccaneers will have two home games in the preseason, taking on the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens. The Bucs will also visit the New York Jets. The Buccaneers will kick off the regular season on September 10th in Minnesota against the Vikings.
