New List Disrespects Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Puts Team Bottom Half of NFC South

Football season may be about to start, but there are still plenty of doubters left.

Jan 15, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) runs during warm ups before a 2024 NFC wild card game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports / Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

Is it ever going to end?

That is the question many Buccaneers fans are asking themselves regarding the outlook of the team heading into the 2024 season.

The Bucs have been doubted for years, and in return, they have put their noses to the grindstone and proved those doubters wrong. They will once again be in that same position as all offseason, despite quietly putting together one of the more solid offseasons in the league, as the team and its players are being disrespected and doubted.

In the most recent sighting of the Buccaneers being doubted, USA Today released their NFL record projections as training camps get underway, and the national outlet has the Bucs not even finishing in the top half of the NFC South, finishing 3rd behind the Atlanta Falcons and the New Orleans Saints — ultimately signaling that they won't be headed to the playoffs in 2024.

READ MORE: Jay Gruden Criticizes Previous Buccaneers Offense Under Dave Canales

NFL record projections are here!

What do you think about your team's outlook for 2024?https://t.co/han6zDtNp1 pic.twitter.com/EtfepzE7t0

— USA TODAY NFL (@usatodaynfl) July 22, 2024

Per USA Today's Nate Davis:

"Let’s first salute an organization that hasn’t missed postseason since 2019 and hasn’t finished outside first place in the division since 2020. Let’s also be realistic about a squad that’s 18-19 over the past two seasons, playoffs included, and has benefited from its station in the NFC South," wrote Davis. "The Bucs literally allocated hundred of millions into continuity this spring, specifically a three-year, $100 million reinvestment in QB Baker Mayfield. But staying on top, even amid this quartet, won’t be easy. Between Week 2 and 10, Tampa Bay will have three divisional games and four more against all of the teams that reached last season’s conference championship round."

There are definitely concerns when it comes to this Buccaneers team, but when looking at what they have been able to accomplish along with the improvement made this offseason, you can't completely write them out as losing the NFC South just based on a difficult schedule — especially with the unknowns surrounding the rest of the South.

The Buccaneers know who they are and what they have in their locker room, so for the players, it will be easy to block out the outside noise that doesn't believe in them. They have spoken openly about worrying about what they have in Tampa Bay rather than listening to what others are saying, but this team has and will continue to carry a chip on their shoulder to prove the doubters and haters wrong.

READ MORE:Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2024 Training Camp Preview: Nickel Cornerback

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