For Tampa Bay, the season is still alive, but only barely. A team that once controlled its own path now needs help, discipline, and a cleaner performance than it showed last Sunday. After another collapse, the head coach didn’t dodge the truth. He pointed straight at the offense and the mistakes that continue to define the Buccaneers’ season.

After the 20-17 loss to the Miami Dolphins, Todd Bowles made his message clear.

“We weren’t making any plays,” Bowles said after the game, as per The Pewter Plank on X. “Obviously turning the ball over three times doesn’t help. That’s three-nothing in the turnover battle. They’re going to win that game every time.”

The comment landed squarely on the offense led by Baker Mayfield. Mayfield threw two interceptions and lost a fumble on a sack. Tampa Bay is now 0-7 this season when he throws at least one interception. The Buccaneers have lost seven of their last eight games and are guaranteed to finish with a losing record.

The game started with promise. Mayfield hit Chris Godwin for a touchdown on the opening drive. Then everything stalled. The Dolphins scored the following 17 points. Tampa Bay didn’t find the end zone again until Mike Evans scored with 50 seconds left. With no timeouts, the comeback ended on a recovered onside kick.

Bowles didn’t sugarcoat the bigger picture.

“Everything’s possible and you always got a chance to play,” he said. “We just need to put it together… we got to look ourselves in the mirror and work on the books.”

Despite the loss, Tampa Bay still has life. The Seattle Seahawks beat the Carolina Panthers, keeping the NFC South door open. A win over Carolina in Week 18 gives the Buccaneers the division.

But the issues run deeper. Since Week 9, the defense ranks last in passing yards allowed and near the bottom in points and total yards. Even special teams faltered again with a blocked kick before halftime.

Bowles knows the stakes. One more game. One more chance.

Bowles put the spotlight on accountability. What followed from the quarterback, however, revealed a growing disconnect as the season hangs by a thread.

Baker Mayfield’s message sparks concern for Buccaneers 

Hope can keep a season alive, but it can also mask some harsh realities. For weeks now, Tampa Bay has been clinging to the same comforting thought: the playoffs are still within reach. Technically, that’s true. But after another collapse, the message is starting to sound hollow. With everything on the line, the Buccaneers are still talking about opportunity instead of accountability.

The Buccaneers are now 1-7 since Week 10. They should have wrapped up the NFC South long ago. Instead, they enter the final week of the season needing a win just to survive. Even that chance only exists because Carolina failed to beat Seattle. Tampa Bay didn’t earn breathing room. It was handed to them.

After the loss to Miami, Baker Mayfield repeated the familiar refrain.

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“Here’s the thing, we still have a chance next week,” Mayfield said. “We’ve been blessed with a chance next week… we gotta respond.”

Unfortunately, those words didn’t resonate well. Not because they were incorrect, but because they missed the bigger picture. The Buccaneers have dropped their last four games, and seven of their last eight have ended in defeat. Three of those losses came against teams that are already out of playoff contention. Most recently, they fell to a Dolphins team led by a seventh-round rookie quarterback.

Across the league, struggling teams have stepped up to the challenge. Cleveland managed to beat Pittsburgh. Other teams with less at stake have shown real grit. Meanwhile, Tampa Bay’s performance on the field remains in decline.

The Buccaneers sound grateful to be still alive rather than angry about how they got here. That mindset doesn’t align with a team that has preseason Super Bowl goals.

At this point, the reality is uncomfortable, and Tampa Bay doesn’t look like a division champion.