18. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Buccaneers play Monday night vs. Chiefs
It’s been an up-and-down year for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, to say the very least. There have been times when this Bucs team has looked like an absolute unit in the NFC, even pulling off a win on the road earlier this season against the mighty Detroit Lions. That was Detroit’s only loss leading into Sunday’s action.
The issue for the Bucs this year has obviously been the injury bug. They have had to deal with losing their best players on both sides of the ball. Tristan Wirfs has dealt with injury issues. Antonie Winfield Jr. has missed time. Vita Vea has missed time. Now they’re looking at extended absences for both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
And those losses could be detrimental. They are certainly coming at the worst possible time as the Bucs head to Kansas City to face off against the Chiefs in Week 9. It’s going to be an uphill climb in the NFC South for the Bucs this year. We’ll see if this is one of the teams that tries to go after receivers at the 2024 NFL trade deadline.
17. Los Angeles Rams
The Kam Kinchens game.
Two trips into the red zone with goal-to-go situations for the Seahawks late in this past week’s game against the Rams – playing at home – and the Rams were the ones who made plays on the football. Specifically, Kam Kinchens with two INTs.
Los Angeles continues to be one of the most fun teams in the league right now, especially when they are healthy offensively. We saw Puka Nacua get tossed from this game and the Rams were able to grind it out defensively to come away with a win.
The Rams now have back-to-back games looming against the Dolphins and Patriots as they look to get above .500. And I’ll continue to say about this Rams team what I have said all year long – if this team is healthy, they are a legitimate threat in the NFC.
There just aren’t many teams in the NFC who have a head coach and quarterback combination that has won a Super Bowl. There is still so much football to be played and things are going to continue to heat up in the NFC West.