Tampa Bay Buccaneers 2026 Team Rankings and Ratings

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78.6PFM Team Score

PFM Verdict

Why PFM Ranks the Buccaneers Here

Baker Mayfield, Chris Godwin and Emeka Egbuka give Tampa Bay enough top-end talent to keep the offense aggressive. The Buccaneers rank No. 20 because replacing Mike Evans’ reliable production leaves a real test, while coverage busts still expose the defense. Todd Bowles has a team with a clear identity, but the depth behind the starters is not strong enough to hide both problems.

NFL Rank#20Current PFM ranking

NFC Rank#10Among NFC teams

QB Stability#19Baker Mayfield · Not the Problem

Season OutlookIn the Playoff Mix

Head coachTodd Bowles

Offensive coordinatorZac Robinson

Defensive coordinatorTodd Bowles

Offense81.4No. 18

Defense79.2No. 18

Coaching Direction76.6No. 18

Regular-Season Baseline

PFM Trend

Baseline September 8, 2026

Current stateBaseline set

Tampa Bay starts the regular season with a 78.6 PFM Team Score and the No. 20 spot in PFM’s NFL rankings. Movement will appear after the first published weekly ratings update.

PFM Team Score78.6

Score movementStarts here

NFL RankNo. 20

Rank movementStarts here

See Latest NFL Ranking Changes

PFM Team DNA

Tampa Bay Buccaneers Team DNA

View all NFL team rankings

PFM category scores · 0–100 scale

QB Stability80.1No. 19 in NFLWatch

Offense81.4No. 18 in NFLWatch

Explosiveness81.9No. 9 in NFLWatch

Roster Strength79.1No. 15 in NFLWatch

Franchise Direction75.1No. 19 in NFLConcern

Coaching Direction76.6No. 18 in NFLConcern

Defense79.2No. 18 in NFLWatch

Identity

Big-Play Upside

Tampa Bay asks Baker Mayfield to attack downfield off aggressive play action. Todd Bowles answers with a blitz-heavy defense that can create negative plays but also places stress on the coverage.

Pressure Point

Tampa Bay's Blitz Has to Get Home

Vita Vea and Antoine Winfield Jr have to turn the defense’s best snaps into finished drives and punts. The pressure starts with replacing Mike Evans’ reliable production and limiting coverage breakdowns.

Week 1 matchup

AwayTB0-0

HomeCIN0-0

Pick the winner.

PFM ROAD AHEAD

2026 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Remaining Strength of Schedule

Tampa Bay has one of the league’s more favorable remaining roads at No. 26, with opponents averaging 78.6. Atlanta Falcons, Chicago Bears and Detroit Lions still give the schedule a real test, but 3 games against current top-10 teams keep the full road from looking as heavy as most.

Difficulty Rank#26No. 1 is toughest

Remaining Opponent Avg.78.6Average across opponents

Next 3 Avg.76.6Upcoming opponents

Top-10 Matchups3Games vs. current top 10

Away games left8

Top-10 road opponents1

Week 1

at Cincinnati Bengals79.5 PFM · #16

Sep 13 · 1:00 pm

Away

Week 2

vs. Cleveland Browns71.4 PFM · #31

Sep 20 · 1:00 pm

HomeBottom 10

Week 3

vs. Minnesota Vikings79.0 PFM · #17

Sep 27 · 4:05 pm

Home

Toughest remaining opponent: Los Angeles Rams at 90.2 PFM.

See all 32 NFL strength of schedule rankings View Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ full schedule breakdown

PFM ReporterReportedAugust 30, 2026

Buccaneers Turn Backup Quarterback Job Over to Jalon Daniels

Tampa Bay is releasing Jake Browning and moving forward with undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels as Baker Mayfield's backup.

This does not affect the Buccaneers' offensive outlook today, but it materially changes the contingency behind Mayfield. Daniels' preseason earned him the job, yet the lack of regular-season NFL experience increases the uncertainty if Tampa Bay needs its QB2 to step in.

By Justin Fuhr

Sources: NFL news roundup: Packers trading QB Kyle McCord to Dolphins for draft pick

Around the League

League Context

Closest Team DNA Match

Built Like Jacksonville Jaguars

Jacksonville JaguarsMatch distance: 2.20 rating points

Shared profile: Offense and Roster Strength.

Tampa Bay builds downfield pressure around the offensive line; Jacksonville builds matchup leverage around the offensive line. Offensive Rating and Roster Strength line up because each offense has enough support around its primary creator to keep the call sheet open. Coaching is the main separator, with the coaching staff giving Jacksonville more continuity from the opening script to the counterpunch.

Where they separate: Coaching Direction. Jaguars hold the stronger current rating.

View Jaguars dashboard Compare the teams

Division Pressure

NFC South

Carolina is rising, Atlanta still has a quarterback question and New Orleans is rebuilding around Tyler Shough. Baker Mayfield and Todd Bowles keep Tampa Bay in front, but coverage busts and the loss of Mike Evans' reliable production could erase that stability.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers78.6