TAMPA, Fla. — The Buccaneers are 6-8, which is good enough for first place in the NFC South division. But Tampa Bay admittedly isn't playing like a first-place team.
Quarterback Tom Brady has seven turnovers in his last three games, and the Bucs defense only has 13 takeaways this season, the third-fewest in the league.
"Turnovers hurt any team. It’s hurting us big time," head coach Todd Bowles said Monday. Whether it’s the quarterback, whether it’s a fumble by the running backs, whether it’s special teams, defense not getting them. Turnovers are big for us not winning right now because they’re crucial in keeping a short field."
Brady's solution to the team's problems isn't very complicated.
"Yeah, just work hard. Work hard," he said after Sunday's 34-24 loss to Cincinnati. "We’ve got a huge game coming up, so I know we keep saying it, but it’s the reality – we’ve got to go make it better."
The Bucs haven't clinched a playoff spot yet. They know have to make some major changes if they want to get there.
"We’ll worry about that when we get there. Right now we gotta figure out how to start getting wins and stacking ‘em," said receiver Chris Godwin. "Getting to the playoffs doesn’t matter if you’re playing terribly. We gotta grow in a lot of areas. We gotta be able to come together as a team and execute when it matters."
"We’re not really focusing on 'Oh, we’re in first place,'" added offensive lineman Nick Leverett. "We’re focusing on becoming a better team and hopefully making this playoff run."
The 2010 Seattle Seahawks (7-9), the 2014 Carolina Panthers (7-8-1), and the 2020 Washington Football Team (7-9) are the only teams in NFL history to make the playoffs with a losing record.
Tampa Bay (6-8) heads to Arizona this weekend for a Christmas Night match-up with the Cardinals (4-10). Kickoff is set for 8:20 P.M.
