ClutchPoints
On Sunday afternoon, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ freefall continued with a frustrating 20-17 road loss at the hands of the Miami Dolphins. The Buccaneers now sit at 7-9 on the season, but thankfully for them, the Carolina Panthers lost at home to the Seattle Seahawks, meaning next week’s game between Tampa Bay and Carolina will decide who wins the lowly NFC South and gets to host a playoff game.
After the game, Baker Mayfield, who threw for 346 yards but had two interceptions in the loss to Miami, had a confident take about that upcoming rubber match against the Panthers.
“Like Todd said — ‘Erase it.’ It’s about us, it’s about executing. Listen, to have a chance at home to get into playoffs and win the division, wouldn’t have it any other way. Obviously the things leading up to it — yeah, we’d love to change them, but still have a chance…playing for the division at home, and I’ll get this group ready,” said Mayfield, per Jenna Laine of ESPN on X, formerly Twitter.
“Out of bullets, out of lives. And that’s alright with me,” he added.
The Buccaneers have had a strange season, starting out the year strong with some impressive wins, before falling back to Earth in epic fashion over the last several weeks. Meanwhile, Mayfield has gone from looking like a potential fringe MVP candidate to a below-average quarterback, and the injuries that have been piling up on offense haven’t helped Tampa Bay’s cause.
Still, amazingly, all of the Buccaneers’ goals for the 2025 season are still in front of them, and they’ll have a chance to clinch the NFC South at home next week against a Panthers team that has been a model of inconsistency this year.
The starting time for Carolina against Tampa Bay next week has yet to be announced.
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