Bucs Ranked in Mid Tier of NFC Contenders By CBS Sports

Caleb Skinner | Aug 9, 2024

Dec 10, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Cade Otton (88) catches a touchdown pass over Atlanta Falcons safety Richie Grant (27) in the second half at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Those who doubted the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023 ate crow once the season was over, as many of those doubters had the Bucs missing the playoffs and owning one of the top picks in the NFL draft. Instead, that Bucs team wound up winning the NFC South before making it to the divisional round of the playoffs where they got oh-so close to reaching the NFC Championship.

Now, after returning a large portion of the same roster from a season ago, the Buccaneers are once again being doubted. Many don't even have the Bucs as favorites to win the NFC South, one of the weakest divisions in all of football, but they have also disrespected the franchise over and over again in different rankings from players to the whole club.

This has continued to be the theme when it comes to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and in a recent tier ranking of the NFC by CBS Sports' Garrett Podell, that disrespect once again rears its ugly face — he has the Buccaneers listed in tier three of the conference, "Happy to be here division winners" along with the Atlanta Falcons.

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"It's been a long time since winning the NFC South resulted in a Super Bowl appearance. The 2016 Atlanta Falcons, led by NFL MVP quarterback Matt Ryan, are the last champion of that division to win the NFC. Yes, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, or rather the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, did win the Super Bowl in the 2020 season, but they did so as a wild card. That's all to highlight that the winner of this division typically hasn't factored into the NFC race in a meaningful way in a few years," wrote Podell.

"The Buccaneers doubled down on quarterback Baker Mayfield's 2023 resurgence, signing him to a three-year, $100 million deal, and they re-signed Mr. Tampa Bay, wide receiver Mike Evans, to a two-year, $41 million deal. They were only the fifth team in NFL history to win a playoff game after a 4-7 start last season, but the front office is banking on the back end of the season to become the standard and not an aberration."

The tiered ranking by CBS Sports has the Buccaneers slotted behind the likes of the Eagles, Rams, and Cowboys — all of whom the Buccaneers could be on the same tier as. The top-tier teams of the NFC, according to Podell, are the Lions, Packers, and 49ers.

The Buccaneers ended up being the third or fourth-best team in the NFC last season, as evidenced by their exit from the playoffs, but for some reason, they are being looked down upon in 2024. This is nothing new to the Bucs and they will do what they always do, carry that on their shoulders and use it to fuel themselves into proving the doubters wrong.

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