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Gameday Preview: Bucs Must Fight for Their Playoff Lives Against Cardinals

It's now or never for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense.
Collin Haalboom|
Gameday Preview: Bucs Must Fight for Their Playoff Lives Against Cardinals
Gameday Preview: Bucs Must Fight for Their Playoff Lives Against Cardinals

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers

The last couple of weeks have not been kind to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

But truth be told, it's more like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers haven't been kind to themselves. 

After barely managing to squeeze out a victory at home vs. the New Orleans Saints in week 13, the Bucs were facing their toughest stretch since the beginning of the season, with back-to-back games against the surging San Francisco 49ers and Cincinnati Bengals.

So how did they respond to that challenge? 

Well, the Bucs lost both games... by a combined total of 39 points. The result of which has them clinging to their position atop the NFC South by a thread, with just a single game separating each team in the division.

Even worse, the Buccaneers' offense has scored the least amount of points of any team in the NFC South. Yes, that's right. The Saints, led by Andy Dalton, the rebuilding Falcons, and Panthers, led by the likes of (in some combination) Marcus Mariota, Desmond Ridder, Baker Mayfield, P.J. Walker, and Sam Darnold — have scored more points this season than the Buccaneers, led by Tom Brady.

That said, if the Bucs can manage to secure two wins in their final three regular-season games, they will be set to host a playoff game at Raymond James Stadium on Wild Card Weekend.

Barring something catastrophic happening to the Philadelphia Eagles, the winner of the NFC South will host the Dallas Cowboys (10-4) in that game. 

But the last thing the 2022 Tampa Bay Buccaneers want to do is get ahead of themselves. And the first order of business is to secure a victory on the road vs. the Arizona Cardinals on Christmas Day.

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It's been a struggle for the Cardinals this season. 

Despite signing their young quarterback, and former number one overall pick, Kyler Murray, to a contract extension this past offseason, things have been anything but stable in Arizona. The team has struggled mightily on both sides of the ball in 2022, and with Kyler tearing his ACL on the third play of their game vs. the Patriots on Monday Night Football in week 14, any outlook for the Cardinals is far from optimistic at this juncture.

Both head coach, Kliff Kingsbury, and general manager, Steve Keim, have rightfully received a significant amount of blame for the team's struggles in recent years, and could both be on the hot seat once this season is done. 

As it stands — despite the presence of Deandre Hopkins, and a punishing running back in James Connor — the Cardinals' offense doesn't exactly strike fear in the hearts of opponents. And now, with journeyman backup quarterback Colt McCoy at the helm, the Buccaneers' defense should be able to keep this group at bay as long as they can continue to execute Todd Bowles' game plan as they've done for the vast majority of the season.

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The biggest concern for the Buccaneers continues to be on the offensive side of the ball where Byron Leftwich's group has been stuck in the mud all season long. And when we get even just a glimpse of what they're capable of — such as the first half vs. Cincinnati — they always seem to come crashing back down to earth in embarrassing fashion. 

As I've already written so many times this year, the Bucs need to be aggressive through the air, they need to use play action more throughout the course of a game, and they need to let Tom Brady and his talented receivers do the rest. 

If you're going to go down, you may as well go down swinging. 

And when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers travel to State Farm Stadium in Arizona for a special Christmas Day matchup vs. the Cardinals on Sunday Night Football, they may as well come out of the gates swinging.

Because not only will most of America be tuning in, but there's a good chance they're going to need to win this game in order to remain atop of the NFC South and hold onto their current playoff position. And to take it a step further, if they have plans on becoming a true contender, they don't have much more time to waste. 

For continuing coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, make sure to follow Collin Haalbooom on twitter, and subscribe to the Bucs Banter YouTube channel! 

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Collin Haalboom
COLLIN HAALBOOM

Prior to joining BucsGameday and Sports Illustrated, Collin's written content was provided through Bucs Banter, and NFL Draft Lounge. He is also the creator and host of the Bucs Banter Podcast. He is a graduate of the Communication Studies program at McMaster University, where he was also a varsity basketball player, and later an advanced scout. He lives with his wife and two children in Hamilton, ON. You can follow Collin on YouTube and Twitter.

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