Where the Bucs Rank Statistically Heading Into Week 8

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a dynamic offense and a very bad defense.

Oct 13, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles arrives before a game against the New Orleans Saints at Caesars Superdome. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images / Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are facing off against the Atlanta Falcons for what should be a crucial matchup for the future of the NFC South. And while they were once one of the best teams in the NFL in the first few weeks of competition, things have taken a drastic turn.

It's a throwback week for the Buccaneers, and using Team Rankings' stats database, we're taking a look at some overall stats from the Bucs and where they rank among the rest of the NFL.

To start, we'll look at the offense. The Bucs remain a top-10 offense in the NFL, even boasting the league's very best third-down conversion rate. They're also top five in points per game, yards per game, points per play, yards per play and touchdowns per game and are a top 10 offense in red zone percentage. They put up points, and that's shown over the last few weeks, even if some of those points came in garbage time against the Ravens on Monday night.

Buccaneers Offense	Value (Rank)
Points per game	29.9 (4th)
Yards per game	383.4 (5th)
Points per play	0.476 (4th)
Yards per play	6.1 (5th)
3rd down conversion %	50.59% (1st)
4th down conversion %	50.00% (17th)
Red zone scoring %	64.29% (9th)
TDs per game	3.6 (3rd)

READ MORE: Buccaneers Best Bets vs. Atlanta Falcons in Week 8

That being said, there's a big problem. And it's with Todd Bowles' defense.

Tampa Bay's defense is among the very worst in the NFL. They are bottom five in points per game, yards per game and yards per play and are 26th in touchdowns per game. Bowles has prided in a "bend, not break" style defense, but the defense has been shattering at an alarming rate recently. Bowles is sometimes slow to make adjustments, but he will have to do something to figure out just why Tampa Bay has struggled so much on defense as of late.

Buccaneers Defense	Value (Rank)
Opp Points per game	26.0 (28th)
Opp Yards per game	386.0 (31st)
Opp Points per play	0.396 (22nd)
Opp Yards per play	5.9 (28th)
Opp 3rd down conversion %	37.21% (19th)
Opp 4th down conversion %	68.75% (26th)
Opp Red zone scoring %	53.33% (13th)
Opp TDs per game	2.9 (26th)

The last time out, Tampa Bay gave up 509 passing yards to Kirk Cousins. They can't do that again this time around with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin out of the picture and Tampa Bay's top 10 offense not nearly as potent.

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