There's not a lot of outside noise anymore in the Bucs' quest for a sixth straight playoff berth, as it is all coming down to a showdown for the NFC South, but there are still some reasons to have rooting interests in other games this weekend//
After a roller coaster weekend, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are right back where they started in Week 15: tied with Carolina atop the NFC South with two head-to-head matchups looming against the Panthers in the next three weeks.
On one hand, that makes the reduces the mathematics of how the Buccaneers can make the playoffs for a sixth straight season from calculus to simple addition. Both Tampa Bay and Carolina have effectively been eliminated from Wild Card contention, so there is only one postseason spot for the two of them, via the NFC South title. So when it comes to deciding which teams to root for in Week 16, with the Buccaneers' best interests in mind, it mostly just boils down to Sunday's game at Bank of America Stadium at 1:00 p.m. ET. That said, we can still find reasons to pull for certain teams in a number of games this weekend.
If you're also interested in the overall drama of the NFC race, well, there's plenty of that left too, and some critical matchups in Week 16. In fact, it starts off with a bang on Thursday night when the Rams visit Seattle for a battle for first place in the NFC West as well as the inside track to the conference's top seed. On Saturday, we have the Bears and Packers again, this time in Chicago, just two weeks after Green Bay knocked off Chicago to regain first place in the NFC North. That will be on the line again this weekend.
So who should we, as Buccaneers fans, be rooting for this weekend, beyond our own team? Let's dig into that, knowing that a Wild Card spot is virtually impossible but seeding in the final playoff picture is still a bit in flux. This is your 2025 Week 16 Viewing Guide.
Los Angeles Rams (11-3) at Seattle Seahawks (11-3), Thursday, 8:15 p.m. ET
If we are looking at this from the scenario that the Buccaneers win the NFC South – I know that's far from guaranteed, but we can look ahead to how things would shake out if they do – then this game very likely will determine Tampa Bay's opponent in the Wild Card round. The winner of this one will be heavily favored to win the West, while the loser has a good chance of taking the top Wild Card spot (San Francisco and the Bears-Packers loser would be in that mix, as well). The Buccaneers' most likely spot if they make the playoffs is the fourth seed, which means they would play host to the fifth seed, which is the top Wild Card team. So do we have a preference? Well, the Rams beat the Bucs by 27 points in Week 12 while Tampa Bay won in Seattle in Week Five. Yeah, that was a long time ago and the Seahawks are playing even better now, but I guess it makes sense to root for a rematch with a team you've already defeated. Maybe it's the memory of that 2021 playoff game against the Rams at home that's coloring my view here, as well. Seattle is pretty scary, too, but it's the playoffs and you're not supposed to have easy games. (And no, it's not lost on me that if the Bucs faced the Seahawks in Round One and beat them, they would probably be headed to L.A. in the Divisional Round. But you can't get to that second game without winning the first one. We'll cross that bridge when and if we get to it.)
Verdict: Go Rams, by the slimmest of margins!
Philadelphia Eagles (9-5) at Washington Commanders (4-10), Saturday, 5:00 p.m. ET
Barring an epic collapse (plus three Dallas wins), the Eagles are going to win the NFC East, which makes them the division leader closest to the Buccaneers in the standings. Is there a seeding opportunity here, a chance to move from fourth up to third? Well, in addition to having a two-game lead over the Buccaneers, the Eagles also won in Tampa in Week Four, so that is effectively a three-game lead with three to go. So again, we're back in "epic collapse" territory. Still, with no real reason to pull for the Eagles, we might as well root for Washington.
Verdict: Go Commanders!
Green Bay Packers (9-4-1) at Chicago Bears (10-4), Saturday, 8:20 p.m. ET
Do we have any reason to prefer one of these teams over the other in the NFC North race? The winner of this one is going to be in first place, and that Green Bay tie with Dallas earlier in the season is going to prevent any tiebreaker situations at the end. If the Buccaneers win the South, they might end up playing whichever team comes in second in the North in the first round of the playoffs. I guess after the loss of Micah Parsons the Packers might be a little less formidable, though that's still a talented roster overall. Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams seem to be figuring it out in Chicago; they could be the proverbial team that gets hot at the right time, like the Commanders last year. I might change my mind next week, but for now let's root for the Bears to take over the North.
Verdict: Da Bears!
Buffalo Bills (10-4) at Cleveland Browns (3-11), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
Cincinnati Bengals (4-10) at Miami Dolphins (6-8), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
Kansas City Chiefs (6-8) at Tennessee Titans (2-12), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
Three early-afternoon all-AFC teams, and only one team among the six that has not been eliminated from the playoff hunt. Still, there is something for Bucs fans to keep an eye on here. The Dolphins have elected to bench quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, and rookie seventh-rounder Quinn Ewers will make his first NFL start against Cincinnati. In the long run, we can wish young Mr. Ewers a very successful NFL career, but for now we wouldn't mind seeing some growing pains. That's because the Buccaneers are headed to Miami next week and, depending upon what happens in Charlotte on Sunday, their whole season could be on the line. If Ewers comes out of the gates hot against Cincy, that would be a bit of a concern.
Verdict: Go Bengals defense!
Los Angeles Chargers (10-4) at Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
If you think there's a little fun to be had rooting for a team with the tiniest bit of playoff hopes left to keep that alive, then by all means pull for the Cowboys in this one. Really, though, that would be akin to a wasted vote. Just stick with the tried-and-true strategy of rooting for the AFC team over an the NFC team.
Verdict: Go Chargers!
New York Jets (3-11) at New Orleans Saints (4-10), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
After doing the Bucs a solid last weekend with that last second win over the Panthers, the Saints should get our support for another week, right? Just a bit of a thanks? Well, actually, yes! Hear me out. Yes, our default setting as Buccaneers fans is to root against the Saints, and that's almost always correct. You can apply that here if you want, especially against an AFC team. However, New Orleans is eliminated from the playoffs and has no more games left against the Bucs or Panthers. Their work here is done and their remaining results are irrelevant to us…except when it comes to the draft. Right now, the Saints have the seventh-overall pick in the 2026 draft. How about they add a couple more meaningless wins down the stretch and fall down that order a bit. There are two other 4-10 teams, a 5-9 team and three 6-8 teams, all reasonably within reach.
Verdict: Go Saints' draft position…in the wrong direction!
Minnesota Vikings (6-8) at New York Giants (2-12), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
The Vikings got eliminated from the playoff race before their encouraging win in Dallas last Sunday. Young quarterback J.J. McCarthy (a.k.a. Nine) looked pretty good for the second week in a row. If you are a fan of playoff-race drama, things will be a lot more interesting in the NFC North if Minnesota keeps playing well. They finish with home games against Detroit and Green Bay and are definitely in position to have a say in how the division plays out. That's enough for me.
Verdict: Go Nine! Go Vikings!
Atlanta Falcons (5-9) at Arizona Cardinals (3-11), Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET
I'd like to apply the same reasoning here as in the Saints section up above. The Falcons have been eliminated and have already finished with the Bucs and Panthers, so any Atlanta victories can't hurt us anymore, but they can hurt their draft positioning. However, the problem with that logic is that the Falcons don't own their 2026 first-round pick; they sent it to the Rams in the trade up to get edge rusher James Pearce (who, by the way, had two sacks in Atlanta's win over the Bucs in Week 15). So with that off the table, we can reset to that default position of rooting against the Falcons, and especially Kirk Cousins.
Verdict: Go Cardinals!
Jacksonville Jaguars (10-4) at Denver Broncos (12-2), Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET
Las Vegas Raiders (2-12) at Houston Texans (9-5), Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET
Jaguars at Broncos is an absolutely great game in the late-afternoon window. Raiders at Texans? Not so much. If you'd like to see the AFC South go down to the wire, then you would prefer a Broncos win and a Texans win. That sounds good to me. Sign me up.
Verdict: Go Broncos, Texans and AFC South chaos!
Pittsburgh Steelers (8-6) at Detroit Lions (8-6), Sunday, 4:25 p.m. ET
As noted earlier, the Bucs' Wild Card hopes are virtually nonexistent, but with no other reason to root for an NFC team against an AFC squad, we might as well pull for Pittsburgh. Plus, a Steelers win would clinch a winning record in 2025 and extend Mike Tomlin's incredible run of never having a losing record as Pittsburgh's head coach to 19 seasons. Maybe that's something you are actually rooting against, I don't know. Personally, I think it's pretty cool.
Verdict: Go streak!
New England Patriots (11-3) at Baltimore Ravens (7-7), Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET
The Buffalo Bills will be rooting for Baltimore, that's for sure. New England's final two games after this one are against the Jets and Dolphins, so this is Buffalo's best chance to pull even in the NFC East. The Patriots would still have the tiebreaker edge if both teams are 11-4, but at least the Bills would still be alive. Do we care? Not as Bucs fans, really, but maybe we're still a little salty after that Week 10 loss to Drake Maye and company. I've got a bit of that feeling, and I'll personally be rooting for the Bills to overtake the Patriots.
Verdict: Go Ravens!
San Francisco 49ers (10-4) at Indianapolis Colts (8-6), Monday, 8:15 p.m. ET
San Francisco's playoff fate won't affect that of the Buccaneers, so the outcome here isn't particularly important to us. However, it's possible the 49ers could at some point overtake the Rams/Seahawks for the top Wild Card spot, which would send them to Tampa in the first round if the Bucs end up winning the South. Which team do you want to face the least? Probably the Rams, but it's a tough call between the Seahawks and 49ers. I guess because the Buccaneers have already beaten San Francisco in Tampa this year, and it was by a larger margin than they beat the Seahawks in Seattle, you could root for another visit from the 49ers. In my heart of hearts, do I really believe there's much of a difference in how difficult either matchup would be? Not really, but we'll just go by the numbers here.
Verdict: Go 49ers!
