Season Predictions (It's Long!)

Here is my season prediction, game by game.

Bucs At Saints:

The Bucs will come out with just enough firepower on offense to score points and hold onto the ball. The defense will hound Brees and stuff the running game. In the end, the Bucs will be a just good enough to get a tough win on the road.

Bucs 24 Saints 17
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Falcons At Bucs:

With the Bucs opening up the season with a win, they get to have a little dessert when the Falcons roll into town. The Falcons will be outgunned, out manned, and out classed. The Bucs will roll to victory in this game.

Bucs 28 Falcons 10
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Bucs At Bears:

With two straight wins the Bucs will go into pretty hostile territory where a let down is waiting them. While the Bucs will be the better team, some poorly timed turnovers will cost them points, and the Bucs’ offense will sputter at times putting more pressure on the defense. The Bucs will lose a defensive battle on the road.

Bears 10 Bucs 7
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Packers At Bucs:

Welcome to the NFL’s best defense Mr. Rodgers. You’ll soon see that we really don’t want to be your neighbor. The Bucs’ offense will regain some of it’s form, but the defense will rock the Green Bay offense and show Rodgers what they can do.

Bucs 20 Packers 6
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Bucs At Broncos:

The Bucs have to turn around and go to Denver after defeating the Packers. The altitude and the time zone team will have an affect on the Bucs, and they will struggle a little on offense, and the defense will wear down a little late in the game costing them the win.

Broncos 17 Bucs 10
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Panthers At Bucs:

The stinkin’ Panthers come to town. While they will be improved from last year, it’s clear that Delhomme is not as good as he was a couple of years ago, and the Bucs’ defense will punish the Panthers quite a bit. The Bucs’ offense will be able to exploit a defense that still isn’t living up to what it was a few short years ago. In the end, the Bucs get the win over the hated kittens.

Bucs 16 Panthers 14
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Seahawks At Bucs:

The Seahawks have had the Bucs’ number the last few years, but the Bucs nearly blew Seattle out at Seattle last year, just failing to punch the ball into the endzone a couple of times and letting them get back into the game. This time, the Bucs will have an even more potent offense and better defense, and the result will be a Bucs win, their first over Seattle since the 1999 season.

Bucs 21 Seattle 13
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Bucs At Dallas:

Unlike the last time these two teams met, the Bucs will be a much better and deeper team rolling into Dallas. This could also be a preview of the NFC Championship game. The Bucs’ offense will move the ball and score a lot of points, but the Bucs’ defense will have an uncharacteristically sloppy game and allow Romo to get just enough points to win the game late.

Cowboys 28 Bucs 27
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Bucs At Chiefs:

The Bucs will meet another former Bucs’ assistant coach and, unlike the Bears game, come out a winner. The Bucs will simply have too much offense and defense for the Chiefs to contend with and will win this game going away.

Bucs 30 Chiefs 10
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Vikings At Bucs:

In another potential NFC Championship match-up, the Bucs will play host to the dynamic Vikings. They will also be inundated with the familiar sounds of “how can they stop player x”, which will be AP in this case. Well, that will get this defense fired up and the Vikings’ offense will find themselves uncharacteristically unable to score a lot of points. The Bucs’ offense will grind it out on the ground and do what’s necessary to pull out a tough win.

Bucs 13 Vikings 7
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Bucs at Lions:

A third match-up against former coaches will lead to a head scratching loss. Similar to last year, the Bucs will outplay the Lions in every phase of the game, but some poor turnovers will lead to points for the Lions, and the Bucs will fail to score enough points to win the game.

Lions 17 Bucs 14
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Saints At Bucs:

The Saints will come to Tampa with revenge on their minds, but the atmosphere, and a dominate defense will lead to a Bucs’ blow out. The offense will hit several big plays and rack up the points.

Bucs 35 Saints 10
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Bucs At Panthers:

The Bucs will go up to Carolina for a hard fought contest. The Panthers will give the Bucs all they can handle in a tight game that will go down to the wire. In the end, the Bucs will pull out a tight contest and be one game away from completing a sweep of the NFC South.

Bucs 23 Panthers 20
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Bucs At Falcons:

Tampa north will be a welcome atmosphere for the Bucs as they look to all but sew up the NFC South crown and be the first repeat division champ. The Falcons, whose season will already be in the toilet by now, will offer up very little resistance as the Bucs get a tune up game for the playoffs, and win their 10th game of the year.

Bucs 24 Falcons 9
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Chargers At Bucs:

In a match-up that could possibly represent the Super Bowl, the Bucs will fight a back and forth contest, losing the game late. The game will be low scoring as both offenses struggle to get it done, but the Chargers will make a few plays down the stretch to secure the victory.

Chargers 16 Bucs 12
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Raiders At Bucs:

At this point the Bucs will be looking for a BYE in the playoffs and will get to feed on the Raiders. This will be Gruden’s chance to really rub it in again versus his former team. The Bucs’ offense will be tuning up for the post season, as will the defense. The net result is another blow out game giving the Bucs 11 wins and a BYE.

Bucs 31 Raiders 9

And that’s my season prediction: The Bucs will go 11-5 and get a first round BYE in the play offs. They will also make it to the NFC Championship game. From there? Who knows? But this is clearly one of the deepest, most talented teams the Bucs have ever fielded, but they still have receiver questions, and the pass rush still needs to assert itself. If they do, this team could easily be Super Bowl bound.