Buccaneers somehow still on top of NFC South after Week 15 disaster

You never know what's gonna happen in the NFL. You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who thought the Buccaneers deserved to be atop the NFC South after a rough Week 15 showing that saw them blow a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter to the Atlanta Falcons, but that's exactly where we're at.

The Carolina Panthers had a crucial game against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday that could have put them in a huge position to win the NFC South, but now, that isn't the case anymore. Here's what the NFC South looks like, with the Buccaneers still atop the pile:

Buccaneers maintain razor-thin lead over NFC South

Team	W	L	Pct.	PF	PA	Home	Away	Strk.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	7	7	.500	327	354	3-4	4-3	L2
Carolina Panthers	7	7	.500	264	317	4-2	3-5	L1
Atlanta Falcons	5	9	.357	281	341	2-4	3-5	W1
New Orleans Saints	4	10	.286	226	332	2-5	2-5	W2

The Carolina Panthers had a chance to take the outright lead in the NFC South with a win over the New Orleans Saints, which would have required them to beat the Bucs just once in two tries in their remaining three games. They lost to the Saints 20-17, however, and the Bucs hold their tiebreaker, so Tampa Bay is back on top in the division despite losing 29-28 to the Falcons on Thursday Night Football.

As a result, the scenario for the Buccaneers to make the playoffs becomes simple. Tampa Bay needs to win two of its remaining three games in any order to win the NFC South and punch a playoff ticket — that's two games against the Panthers and one against the Miami Dolphins on the road.

The Panthers can win the NFC South over the Buccaneers if they sweep them, obviously, but they'd also win if they split the series, defeated the Seattle Seahawks in Week 17 and had the Buccaneers lose to the Dolphins that same week. The Bucs and Panthers will first play in Carolina before ending the season at home in Tampa Bay.

The Buccaneers took a tough loss on Thursday night that resulted in a controversial press conference from Todd Bowles and some downtrodden spirits in the locker room. The Bucs will have to get themselves together quickly before they play the Panthers in Week 16. They have the upper hand, but if they lose to the Panthers once, the Bucs could find themselves on the back foot yet again.

Stick with BucsGameday for more coverage of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers throughout the 2025 season.

Follow BucsGameday on Twitter and Facebook

More Tampa Bay Buccaneers News

• Buccaneers' loss to Falcons blasted as the worst of the 2025 NFL season

• Mike Evans seen leaving Bucs game in frustration after inexcusable loss

• Grading Buccaneers players and coaches after embarrassing 29-28 loss to Falcons

• Buccaneers fans boo Todd Bowles walking off after another embarrassing loss