TAMPA (SNN-TV) – Amidst all the Antonio Brown saga, the Bucs still have one game to go before the playoffs, and its important, because a win would set the franchise record for victories in a season.
The 2021 Tampa Bay Buccaneers have matched the 12-4 regular-season record of their 2002 Super Bowl-winning team, tying for the most wins in team history, with a 13th being historic.
The NFL went to 17 games this year, which means the Buccaneers will unusually finish either 13-4 or 12-5. Either one will be good enough for the NFC South title, which they clinched two weeks ago, and even with a loss the Buccaneers are likely to be at least the third seed in the conference playoff field. A win on Sunday coupled with a loss by the Rams would move the Buccaneers up to the NFC’s second seed.
Standing in the way of a team-record 13th win is the Panthers, a team the Buccaneers beat in Charlotte by 26 points just two weeks ago.
Coach Arians commented on the events leading up to this game and how it stood out in his career timeline. “There’s a been a bunch of them worse and there’s been a hell of a lot better. It’s just a part of the job and you just have to go with the flow. I really hated missing last week with COVID, and the rest of the weekend – it was a great win.”
Kickoff for the Bucs regular season finale is set for 4:25pm from Raymond James Stadium on Sunday.