The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a much-needed win come their way on Sunday in Week 13 against the Arizona Cardinals. From that win, they now have momentum heading into a tough part of their schedule that includes four divisional games in the final five of the season.
CBS Sports’ John Breech wrote about their performance in his weekly grades he dished out on Monday. For the Bucs, they earned an impressive B- despite them leaving a lot on the proverbial bone.
Breech explains the grade, writing, “Bucky Irving picked a good week to come back for the Buccaneers. After missing seven games due to injury, Irving came up big for the Bucs in his return with 81 total yards and a touchdown. With Baker Mayfield playing through an injured left arm, it was a performance that Bucs needed from Irving. The defense got gashed up by the Cardinals, but no one will remember that because the unit came up with a big play whenever Tampa bay needed one, including two fourth-down stops and two forced turnovers. The Bucs (7-5) have mastered the art of winning ugly and this one was ugly, but it still counts, and more importantly, it keeps Tampa on top of the NFC South for another week.”
The Bucs looked sluggish for sure, but not being able to play with a lot of your team for most of the year due to injury will do that. For Bucky Irving, especially, his return meant a lot to the offense, and as the workload ramps up, so should the continuity for the unit as a whole.