The Tampa Bay Buccaneers concluded their 2026 preseason slate on Friday evening with a 19-0 loss in Jacksonville. That means the next time they take the field it will count as the regular season begins.
That won't happen immediately. Since paring its preseason down to three weeks in 2021, the NFL has had an extra week in the schedule between the final exhibition contest and the first set of regular-season games. The Buccaneers and all other NFL squads will use the next week to get their 53-man rosters and 16-man practice squads in shape before Week One begins. Once that happens, the Buccaneers will be ticketed for an opener in Cincinnati on Sunday, September 13 to take on Joe Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase, Dexter Lawrence and the Bengals. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. ET at Paycor Stadium.
The Buccaneers will be looking for a 1-0 start to their regular season for the sixth year in a row, but it will be against a Cincinnati team that boasts a high-powered offense and is hoping for much better defensive results after the offseason trade for Lawrence and the free agency additions of safety Bryan Cook and edge rusher Boye Mafe. Since going to the Super Bowl in the 2021 season and the AFC Championship game in 2022, the Bengals have missed the playoffs for three straight years, but that has largely been due to injuries to Burrow and a cratering defense.
When healthy, Burrow is clearly one of the most productive quarterbacks in the NFL. He played all 17 games in 2024 and led the NFL with 4,918 passing yards and 43 touchdown passes. He is surrounded with elite playmaking talent in Chase (6,837 receiving yards and 54 touchdowns in five seasons), fellow wideout Tee Higgins and running back Chase Brown. The Buccaneers will hope that their efforts to significantly amplify their edge rush rotation have paid off, giving them a chance to disrupt Burrow's timing.
After the additions of Lawrence and Mafe, the Bengals appear to have a more dangerous defensive front of their own, also now featuring defensive tackle Jonathan Allen and second-round edge rusher Cashius Howell. The Bucs will counter with an offensive line that, after a severely injury-plagued 2025 season, is back to the starting five that produced very impressive results in 2024, anchored by All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs. The Bucs will also be unveiling a new offensive coordinated by Zac Robinson and now featuring a stacked receiver room and a new running back tandem with Kenny Gainwell joining Bucky Irving.
The Buccaneers won four straight NFC South titles from 2021-24, and that was after capturing the Super Bowl LV title in 2020, but they missed the playoffs last season on a tiebreaker. The team is aiming to get back into title contention in 2025, and it starts in Cincinnati.
