The Tampa Bay Buccaneers found themselves as home underdogs heading into last week’s game against the Houston Texans, who were desperate for a win to secure the AFC South title and clinch a spot in the playoffs.
The Bucs, meanwhile, were without their top two wide receivers in Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, both of whom were sidelined with hamstring injuries. Quarterback Jameis Winston was also battling a fractured thumb, which might explain (in part) why he threw four interceptions in the team’s 23-20 loss to Houston.
The loss ended the Bucs’ four game winning-streak, but given the injuries on the offensive side of the ball, it looks like Tampa Bay got a pass in this week’s USA TODAY NFL Power Rankings. The Bucs fell just one spot this week, dropping from 13 to 14.
Here’s the blurb writer Nate Davis had for the Bucs this week.
“Bruce Arians has said pending free agent Shaq Barrett ‘ain’t going anywhere,’ yet Jameis Winston’s contract is also expiring. Hmmm.”
Davis brings up a great point here, one that should not be overlooked. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported on Saturday that the Bucs were planning on bringing Winston back in 2020, but after their loss to the Texans, in which Winston threw four interceptions, head coach Bruce Arians refuted the report, saying no decision has been made on any player, and that those decisions dont get made until the end of the season. Yet Arians had no problem saying Barrett wasn’t going anywhere.
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.