Tampa Bay Buccaneers' playoff chances midseason: Can Baker Mayfield and his teammates make a dramatic breakthrough to maintain their position in the NFC South?
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn’t look the part in their 23-3 victory over the New Orleans Saints on Sunday, particularly the offense, but they’re now 6-2 headed into their bye week before gearing up for the second half of the season.
The Bucs have gotten off to one of the best starts in franchise history, and are well in control of their playoff hopes as they currently hold the third overall seed in the NFC and a strong grasp on the top spot in the NFC South.
With Tampa Bay trending towards being one of the NFL’s top playoff contenders, it got us thinking about what their chances would be to make the playoffs now that we are at the midway point of the 2025 season.
According to PlayoffStatus.com, the Buccaneers have some of the highest odds to make the playoffs at 92 percent.
Oct 26, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers outside linebacker Lavonte David (54) Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
92% is a great percentage for the Buccaneers. They have faced adversity head-on and have come through on the other side fairly unscathed (as far as losses are concerned, at least).
The Bucs will have a tough stretch immediately after the bye with the Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots and Buffalo Bills on the docket, but things should lighten up for them after that with a bunch of teams that are fighting to stay alive. So, with all things considered, it is hard to see a path where the Bucs don’t reach the playoffs, albeit if they avoid any serious issues the rest of the way.
Per the site, the Buccaneers not only have a great chance to reach the playoffs, but they also have a great chance of moving through the playoffs. Currently, the Bucs have a 61 percent chance to reach the second round, a 33 percent chance to make the conference championship, a 16 percent chance to reach the Super Bowl and the third-highest chance of being named the winner of Super Bowl LX.
The Buccaneers are trending upward, and it might take injuries to finally get the best of them or unforeseen circumstances for them to miss out on their postseason goals.
NFL Expected to Hand Down Punishment on Cowboys Troubled Linebacker
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Sam Williams of the Dallas Cowboys.
One week after scoring 44 points while allowing just 22 against the Washington Commanders, the Dallas Cowboys saw any momentum they may have gained from that inspiring win evaporate on Sunday when they walked away with almost the exact opposite result.
The Cowboys fell to the Denver Broncos, allowing 44 points this time while scoring just 24.
“The blame starts at the top in the front office and trickles down to the coaching staff,” wrote commentator Maitland Rutledge of the Cowboys site
Cowboys Player No Stranger to NFL Discipline
One of the three players who should be held most accountable, according to Rutledge, may also be expecting to face accountability not only from the Cowboys’ coaches and, of course, fans — but from the league itself.
That player is fourth-year edge rusher Sam Williams, who is no stranger to discipline handed down by the NFL.
“Williams also once again could not control himself after plays. He was seen mouthing off at opposing players after plays, and it came to a boiling point in the second quarter,” Rutledge recounted. “After the Broncos scored another touchdown to go up 20-10, Williams was called for an unnecessary roughness penalty. Due to the ball being moved closer to the goal line, Denver went for two.”
The penalty came after a one-yard touchdown carry by Broncos running back RJ Harvey with 3:47 remaining in the second quarter.
After the scoring play, Williams somehow got into a brief altercation with Denver offensive tackle Garrett Bolles and in the course of the skirmish, the 2022 second-round draft pick out of Ole Miss took a swing at the face mask of the Broncos lineman.
Penalty May be Seen as Repeat Offense
Williams was quickly flagged for an unnecessary roughness penalty, which was applied on the extra point — which brought the Broncos close enough to the end zone to attempt a two-point conversion.
The two-point try failed, but Williams now appears likely to face a fine. The question remains, however, of whether league officials will consider the penalty a face mask call.
If so, it would count as a second offense because on October 4, Williams was slapped with an $11,002 fine for a face mask on what would have been his first sack of the season when he took down Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love in Week Four.
If the NFL hits Williams with another face mask fine, as a second offense the punishment would set him back, according to the table of fines posted by the NFL Operations Office, another $17,389 against his salary this year of $1.6 million.
Last season, despite the fact that he spent the entire year on injured reserve, Williams was suspended three games for violations of the NFL’s personal conduct policy. Though he obviously was not going to play those three games anyway, Williams still saw his salary docked for those games — costing him $211,807, according to
The unnecessary roughness penalty against the Broncos was Williams’ fourth flag of the season, and 16th of the three seasons he has played.
In 2023, his last full season, Williams was called for eight penalties including another face mask call, a roughing the kicker penalty, another for running into the kicker and one for interfering with a fair catch.
