Through The Spyglass: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Vs San Francisco 49ers

We take at the matchup history between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the San Francisco 49ers and the additions San Francisco has made in 2024.

Nov 19, 2023; Santa Clara, California, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) and San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13) talks after the game at Levi's Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The Buccaneers are reeling coming off three straight losses after starting the season 4-2. Things don't get any easier for them either as they host the reigning NFC Conference champions this week in a clash against the 49ers. The Niners are coming off a bye week and getting their best player back off of injured reserve in Christian McCaffrey to make matters more difficult. The Bucs have their bye week after Week 10 and are at a crossroads and need to find a way to not fall into a similar losing streak as they did last season.

The 49ers, even without key playmakers, have one of the league's best offenses. Its going to be a battle in Tampa Bay but if the Bucs want to head into the bye with a .500 record they're going to need to pull out all the stops against the 49ers.

Matchup History

The Buccaneers and Niners have played each other 27 times throughout the team's existence since 1976. The history hasn't favored the Bucs. With 20 wins to just seven losses, San Francisco has had the upper hand when these two clubs meet including a disastrous 35-7 shellacking in 2022. Things were much closer last season when these two teams met and the Bucs were still in it through halftime, but a second-quarter collapse saw the 49ers pull away with Tampa Bay playing catch up.

Looking Back At 2023

After finishing with a 12-5 record the Niners secured the top seed in the NFC giving them a bye week before the Divisional round. Close wins over the Packers and Lions in the NFC Championship, in which they came back from a 21-point deficit at the half, propelled them into a Super Bowl rematch against the Kansas City Chiefs. The 49ers jumped out to an early lead but the Chiefs closed the gap, sending the game into overtime after a late fourth-quarter field goal as time expired. San Francisco scored first on a field goal but Mahomes and the Chiefs offense scored the walk-off touchdown to give them their third Super Bowl victory and back-to-back championships.

What's New In 2024

The 49ers returned most of their team from the 2023 season with the exceptions of defensive tackle Arik Armstead and edge rusher Chase Young. In their stead, they added defensive tackle Jordan Elliot from the Browns and edge rusher Leonard Floyd from the Bills on two-year deals and added Yetur Gross-Matos as edge depth from the Panthers. Backup quarterback Sam Darnold signed with the Vikings in free agency and Josh Dobbs was brought in as his replacement. As far as coaching changes, passing game coordinator Clint Kubaik left to become the offensive coordinator of the Saints and was replaced by his younger brother Klay.

The season started rough for the 49ers with the news the All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey would miss a large part of the season with Achilles and calf injuries. There were holdouts by receiver Brandon Aiyuk and left tackle Trent Williams, whose lasted until the day of their season opener, and the loss of running back Elijah Mitchell for the year prior to the season. Star defensive tackle Javon Hargrave was placed on injured reserve and back-to-back losses to the Vikings and Rams rounded out their September. October wasn't much kinder to the Niners. Two losses sandwiched by the losses of safety Talanoa Hunfunga, Gross-Matos, and Brandon Aiyuk have the team sitting at 4-4 and in third place in the NFC West.

Final Thoughts

While the 49ers have struggled this season, they are still a dangerous team. Head Coach Kyle Shanahan has the offense clicking as a top-five unit in the NFL. Undrafted running back Jordan Mason has stepped in for McCaffrey and produced this season and is fifth in the league in rushing yards. The Niners, like the Bucs, have also been dealing with a ton of injuries yet have been able to overcome them to still be in the mix for the playoffs. The Bucs stuck with this team last season and will need to avoid the three-peat from the 49ers with a win this season.

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Stick with BucsGameday for more coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throughout the 2024 season.

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