CBS Sports Reveals Best-And Worst-Case Scenario For Buccaneers In 2026
CBS Sports Reveals Best-Case and Worst-Case Scenario For Buccaneers In 2026
The farthest and the lowest the Bucs can go, predicted by CBS Sports. River Wells|
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Tampa Bay BuccaneersThe Tampa Bay Buccaneers had held domain over the NFC South since 2021, but that changed last season. The Bucs went 8-9 after a 6-2 start, missed the playoffs and relinquished the crown to the Carolina Panthers.
Naturally, the team looked to make some big changes after that, and that started with a complete overhaul on defense. The Bucs drafted players like edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr. and linebacker Josiah Trotter and added free agents like Alex Anzalone and A'Shawn Robinson to help rectify this, and they also shored up their outside cornerbacks room by moving defensive back Jacob Parrish there.
The team is also doing some work on its offense, hiring former Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator Zac Robinson and signing running back Kenny Gainwell in free agency. The team lost wideout Mike Evans, but Chris Godwin, Emeka Egbuka and Jalen McMillan could all step up in that room.
Obviously, the Bucs are hoping all of these things will work out, but there's a decent chance they don't. CBS writer Tyler Sullivan went over the best-case and worst-case scenarios for every NFL team, and he honed in on Tampa Bay's young players being a big deciding factor.
Best-Case Scenario
"Following an 8-9 season that saw Tampa Bay's five-season playoff streak and four straight division titles come to an end, the Buccaneers get back on track," Sullivan wrote. "Even with Mike Evans gone, the passing game spearheaded by Baker Mayfield is strong, especially with Emeka Egbuka making a Year 2 leap for the ages. He becomes the new go-to weapon on offense, while rookie pass rusher Rueben Bain Jr. and rookie linebacker Josiah Trotter help usher in a new era on defense. Tampa Bay takes back the NFC South and returns to the playoffs."
This would mean every change the Buccaneers made in the offseason clicked, and it would make ownership quite happy. If Egbuka made a leap in Year 2 and Bain impressed as much as everyone thinks he will in Year 1, Tampa Bay should win a lot of football games.
Robinson's hire is still an inherent risk by Tampa Bay, given how his two years in Atlanta went, but more offensive talent and a change of scenery could help him tremendously with the Bucs. Mayfield is also looking for a new contract, and if he gets one before training camp, he could come into the season rejuvenated.
Licht would be very pleased if every gamble he and Bowles made paid off like this, but that isn't often how it goes.
Worst-Case Scenario
"The second-half struggles from Baker Mayfield (14 touchdowns and 10 interceptions over his final 11 games in 2025) persist in 2026. The young pieces the Buccaneers were hoping would rise up —like Egbuka and Bain Jr. — aren't ready for that responsibility just yet," Sullivan wrote. "That allows the rest of the division to continue closing the gap, with Atlanta and New Orleans both catching lightning in a bottle in their respective quarterback rooms. For the second straight year, the Bucs miss the playoffs, putting Todd Bowles' job firmly at risk."
This is more likely than many think. Mayfield's back-half slide is partially why the Bucs are hesitant in extending him this very moment, and Egbuka had a similar slide in the second half of the year last year. Bain will be a rookie, so it would be perfectly normal for him to struggle in his first year in the NFL.
If the Bucs weren't able to make the playoffs in 2026, there would certainly be questions about Bowles' job security. He's currently 1-3 in the playoffs and 36-36 overall in Tampa Bay, and the Glazers are likely hoping for something far more spectacular from Bowles this upcoming season.
If this scenario comes to pass, there would likely be sweeping changes across the entire organization, and things would look a lot different for Tampa Bay in 2027.
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Published 53 minutes ago
RIVER WELLSRiver Wells is a sports journalist from St. Petersburg, Florida, who has covered the Tampa Bay Buccaneers since 2023. He graduated with a journalism degree from the University of Florida in 2021. You can follow him on Twitter @riverhwells.
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"What I will never do is give up" – Kimmich rules out international retirement after Germany's World Cup exit
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Germany captain Joshua Kimmich is not considering retiring from international football after Monday's heartbreaking World Cup exit to Paraguay.
"I'll always have the determination to make another attempt. What I will never do is give up," Kimmich told MagentaTV after the match.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe 31-year-old, who was also part of the squads that crashed out in the group stage at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, converted his penalty in the shootout. However, it wasn't enough to prevent another disappointing tournament exit.
"I grew up in Germany watching the national team on television, and it always seemed to be the semifinals or the final. Of course, you want to give today's children, the people, and this generation that same experience. The fact is, we weren't able to give the people back home that," Kimmich said.
According to Kimmich, everyone in the team must take full responsibility for the latest failure.
“It's a real shame, especially at a time when it would do us so much good to have something in Germany we can be proud of. Unfortunately, the national team isn't that right now, and we all share responsibility for it,” he said.
"We have to take responsibility – no one can distance themselves from it. We have to own it, because we, the players who were on the pitch, are the ones who messed it up."
Taylor Swift won over Kelce's skeptical friend in backstage encounter
Taylor Swift won over another new fan in Travis Kelce's friend Taylor Lewan, days before the American power couple are expected to get married at New York's Madison Square Garden.
Swift joined Kelce last week for his annual 'Tight End University' - an event he helps plan for practice and networking with players who play in the position where the Kansas City Chiefs star made his name.
Swift has sprinkled some stardust over the last two events with a brief performance at the concert they host each year and this time, ex-NFL man turned podcast host Lewan got to witness Swift preparing to perform backstage.
Speaking on his popular Bussin' With The Boys podcast, Lewan explained: 'I'll just tell you this, dude - I was kind of into her music when I was younger. I haven't been super into it since then. It is just not my genre.
'The girl is incredible. What a performer. We are sitting backstage for a moment and she's about to go out. She's got a cluster, she's got a gaggle of individuals with her. But she's in the back before she walks out and you can see her just getting in the zone.
'I remember just looking at her being like "it is so cool that somebody who is as successful as she is, as famous as she is, she just handles her business the correct way at all times".
Taylor Swift stunned fans with a surprise performance at Travis Kelce's Tight End University
Swift joined Travis Kelce (left) alongside Claire Kittle, George Kittle, Greg Olsen and Talbot Olsen (L-R) at the opening event of Tight End University on Monday
Bussin' With The Boys host Taylor Lewan was impressed by Swift's performance last week
'And for her to sit back, get in the zone and go out and put on a performance, whether it was three minutes or five minutes, it was a very short amount of time, but the pop from the crowd... everybody in that moment felt like she was singing individually to them. And I thought that was just awesome.'
Swift joined Lainey Wilson on the stage to perform her hit 'Love Story' and dedicated it to Kelce's friend and rival tight end George Kittle, who plays for San Francisco 49ers.
'She probably misses ball!' Lewan joked about the lengthy NFL offseason. 'She misses ball a little bit, dude! But she was awesome. It was just really cool to watch people who are outliers in their craft perform.
'And I thought she is clearly that, the biggest superstar in the world. It is just awesome to see all that going down, all while our boy Trav is just bobbing around, stoked to kind of like be there.'
Swift and Kelce are expected to tie the knot this weekend in New York at the city's most iconic venue.
There were people in the industry who wondered if their plans to marry at MSG were a high-profile decoy but Daily Mail earlier this week shared pictures of equipment getting loaded into the venue, seemingly in preparation for the big day.
It remains to be seen if Lewan is going. He has known Kelce for around 10 years but the guestlist has been kept quiet and those attending have been sworn to secrecy.
And if, as Lewan suggested, Swift is missing football then she doesn't have too much longer to wait.
Kelce's Chiefs team start the season with a Monday Night Football showdown against AFC West rivals Denver Broncos on September 14 at Arrowhead Stadium.
