It’s been a month since the Bucs’ last victory, with their Oct. 26 win in New Orleans preceding their bye week and then three straight losses. Now, 6-5 Tampa Bay has to find a way to bounce back and finish the regular season strong, with the stretch run beginning Sunday afternoon at Raymond James Stadium against the 3-8 Arizona Cardinals.
While the Bucs are still clinging to a half-game lead in the NFC South with the Panthers’ loss on Monday Night Football, they badly need to right the ship, and they need to do it fast. The good news for Tampa Bay is that the schedule now lightens up after an eight-game stretch that featured seven games against potential playoff teams (the Eagles, Seahawks, 49ers, Lions, Patriots, Bills and Rams). In Weeks 13-18, the Bucs will face the 3-8 Cardinals, 2-9 Panthers, 4-7 Falcons, 6-6 Panthers, 4-7 Dolphins and 6-6 Panthers again.
Not to mention, as consistent as this team has been in terms of falling into midseason slumps under Todd Bowles, it has also been consistent when it comes to putting together strong finishes. Granted, the 3-3 finish between Weeks 13-18 in 2022 was barely enough to win the NFC South in Tom Brady’s final year, but the Baker Mayfield era has seen the Bucs become a different team over the final six weeks of each of the last two seasons. In Weeks 13-18 between 2023 and 2024, Tampa Bay went 10-2.
Bucs HC Todd Bowles and QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
But as much hope as there might be between the upcoming schedule and this team’s penchant for getting hot down the stretch, it’ll be much tougher to keep that going if they are without Mayfield, whose status for Week 13 is up in the air due to the AC joint sprain he suffered in his non-throwing shoulder this past Sunday. If he is unable to suit up, it would mark the first time a Tampa Bay starting quarterback has missed a game due to injury since 2017 when Jameis Winston dealt with a shoulder injury, and it would mean Teddy Bridgewater’s first regular season start as a Buccaneer.
Sunday will also be a special day in Bucs history, as Simeon Rice will be inducted into the Ring of Honor inside Raymond James Stadium. Rice began his career with the Cardinals, spending five seasons with them before coming to Tampa in 2001 and ultimately becoming one of the most prolific pass rushers in team history while also helping the organization to its first-ever Lombardi Trophy.
Before we dive further in our “What to Watch For” preview later this week, here’s a general preview of Sunday afternoon’s game at Ray Jay:
The Last Time…
The Bucs and Cardinals last met on Christmas night in 2022, when Tom Brady and Tampa Bay squeaked out a crucial 19-16 overtime win over Trace McSorley and Arizona in Glendale. It was a hideous game all the way throughout. In other words, it was a 2022 Bucs game.
A Ryan Succop field goal gave the visitors an early 3-0 lead before Matt Prater booted a 56-yard field goal to even things up at the end of the first quarter. The second quarter went the same way, with Succop giving the Bucs a three-point lead before Prater hit from 53 yards out just before halftime.
After a scoreless third quarter that ended with a Brady interception at the Arizona 19-yard line, Prater got the Cardinals their first lead with a field goal early in the fourth. The Buccaneer offense then went three-and-out, then a 28-yard punt return by Pharoh Cooper set up the game’s first touchdown, a 22-yard run by James Conner to put the Cardinals up 16-6.
Former Bucs QB Tom Brady – Photo by: USA Today
But Brady somehow had a fourth-quarter comeback in him on a night when very little went well for the offense. A 44-yard catch and run by Leonard Fournette sparked the ensuing Bucs possession and after a big third-down conversion into the red zone, Brady found Rachaad White for a 3-yard touchdown to get Tampa Bay within 16-13.
A McSorley fumble then set up a game-tying field goal from Succop that would eventually force overtime. Tampa Bay got a stop to start the overtime period, then a couple of chunk plays for Russell Gage and Mike Evans set up a 40-yard game-winning field goal by Succop, who finished the night 4-of-4 on field goals with 13 total points.
The all-time series between the Bucs and Cardinals is tied at 11-11 coming into Sunday’s game. Tampa Bay has won the last two meetings and is 7-5 when the two teams meet in Tampa.
How The Bucs And Cardinals Are Trending
The Bucs’ 2025 stock hit a new low in Week 12, and not just because they lost 34-7 to the Rams on Sunday Night Football for their third straight loss and their fourth in the last five games. Baker Mayfield suffering a sprained AC joint in his left, non-throwing shoulder suddenly casts doubt on where Tampa Bay is going this season. Yes, the severity of the injury being what it is made for relatively good news, as it’s about pain management. Knowing Mayfield, he’s going to give it everything to play on Sunday against the Cardinals and make the second half of the Rams game the only action he’ll miss as a result of this injury.
But if he’s less than 100% on Sunday and as the weeks go on or if it’s Teddy Bridgewater stepping in for him and starting, it’s going to affect the Buccaneer offense’s ceiling, which has already been more limited in 2025 under offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard than it was in 2024 under Liam Coen. And considering how poorly Todd Bowles‘ defense is playing in recent weeks, the offense can’t afford to continue trending downward.
Bucs QBs Baker Mayfield and Teddy Bridgewater – Photo by: USA Today
After all, an offense operated by a banged-up Mayfield or a clearly limited Bridgewater combined with a subpar defense makes it tougher to run with the idea of Tampa Bay reviving its season with a strong finish against lesser teams. A healthy Mayfield and a healthier offense paired with at least some improvement from the defense would make it easier to pencil in wins against teams like the Cardinals, Saints, Falcons, Panthers and Dolphins. But that’s not the reality for the Bucs right now, and their half-game lead in the NFC South feels shakier than ever.
Yes, Carolina has a tough schedule to finish out the season and hasn’t been a consistent team week-to-week. But unless Tampa Bay goes on a run the rest of the way, the division is very likely going to come down to the head-to-head matchups between the two teams in Weeks 16 and 18. A struggling, banged-up Bucs team is no guarantee to beat the good version of the Panthers, should they show up. So, yes, there has to be some level of concern inside the walls at One Buc Place right now.
With all of that said, though, there is at least some help on the way. Running back Bucky Irving is expected to play this Sunday for the first time since Week 4, which could keep the positive trajectory going for the Bucs’ run game. Adding Irving back into the mix with Sean Tucker and Rachaad White could be a huge boost while the offense weathers the storm with Mayfield’s shoulder. Left guard Ben Bredeson could be back soon as a well, plus there’s still some hope that Mike Evans makes his way back later in December.
Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
Defensively, some help could be on the way, too. Haason Reddick could be nearing a return, and the hope is that Jamel Dean is also back soon. And as poorly as Tampa Bay’s defense has played since its Week 9 bye, it has faced the No. 7, No. 5 and No. 6 scoring offenses in the league. The fact that the unit can’t match up with top-tier offenses is a concern in its own right, sure, but as far as getting back on track over the final six games, it should help that Bowles and Co. will be seeing the No. 18, No. 32, No. 26, No. 28 (twice) and No. 24 scoring offenses in the NFL.
On the Cardinals’ side, everything has been spiraling out of control for 10 weeks now. They started the season 2-0 with narrow wins over the Saints and Panthers, but they’ve lost eight of their nine games since. After a five-game losing streak before their bye week, they beat the Cowboys in Dallas to stop the skid. But after that, they lost 44-22 and 41-22 to divisional opponents in consecutive weeks. Though, to their credit, they did give the 7-4 Jaguars a scare last week, taking them to overtime before losing 27-24.
Arizona is 3-8 and is currently slated to be picking in the top 10 of the 2026 Draft. And the team’s future is unclear right now. Jonathan Gannon is nearing the end of his third season as the Cardinals’ head coach and is currently 15-30. He currently has the third-best odds to be the next NFL coach fired, trailing only Atlanta’s Raheem Morris and Cincinnati’s Zac Taylor. It doesn’t help that there looks to be a reset coming at the quarterback position and the organization may want to pair up their potential quarterback of the future with a new head coach in 2026.
Speaking of the quarterback position, it appears that the Kyler Murray era in Arizona is coming to an end. The 2018 Heisman Trophy winner and 2019 No. 1 overall pick out of Oklahoma signed a five-year, $230.5 million extension with the team that drafted him back in 2022. But while he remains under contract through the 2028 season, it’s looking like the two sides will go their separate ways, likely this offseason. Gannon announced earlier in the season that veteran Jacoby Brissett would be the team’s starting quarterback while Murray went on injured reserve, and while he’ll soon be eligible to be activated, that may not happen with an imminent split coming.
Cardinals HC Jonathan Gannon and QB Jacoby Brissett – Photo by: USA Today
Brissett, to his credit, has been playing some impressive football at 32 years old. He has completed 66.8% of his passes this season for 1,887 yards and 11 touchdowns to just three interceptions. He is only two weeks removed from a game that saw him go 47-of-57 for 452 yards and two touchdowns, though he also had two of his three interceptions on the season in that game and Arizona lost 41-22. But Brissett has largely kept the offense afloat despite getting very little help from his run game.
The Cardinals certainly have some young pass-catching talent for the veteran to throw to, with tight end Trey McBride leading all receivers with 80 catches for 797 yards (10.0 avg.) and seven touchdowns. Michael Wilson has emerged and is on his way to a career year with 47 catches for 534 yards (11.4 avg.) and a touchdown, while Marvin Harrison Jr. has showed some big-play ability as well with 15.4 yards per catch on his way to 34 catches for 525 yards and four scores. However, Harrison has been sidelined in recent weeks after undergoing an appendectomy, and his status for Sunday’s game remains unclear.
Arizona gave up 40+ points in Weeks 10 and 11 and is allowing 25.7 points per game this season, ranking 24th in the league. But with that said, Josh Sweat (nine sacks) and Calais Campbell (5.5 sacks) can get after the passer, plus the Cardinals rank sixth in the NFL with 17 takeaways, one more than the Bucs. Just last week, they intercepted Trevor Lawrence three times and got to him for a lost fumble while sacking him three times. So, this group is plenty capable of creating chaos and affecting opposing offenses, which is a scary thought considering the state of the Bucs offense right now.
Cardinals S Buddy Baker – Photo by: USA Today
Here’s how the Bucs and Cardinals stack up heading into Week 13:
Bucs Offense: 14th in scoring offense (23.5 PPG), 20th in total offense (319.5 yards per game), 19th in passing offense (208.4 yards per game), 20th in rushing offense (111.2 yards per game)
Cardinals Offense: T-18th in scoring offense (22.5 PPG), 15th in total offense (332.8 yards per game), 10th in passing offense (231.7 yards per game), 25th in rushing offense (101.1 yards per game)
Bucs Defense: 25th in scoring defense (25.8 points allowed per game), 21st in total defense (341.2 yards allowed per game), 27th in passing defense (243.5 yards allowed per game), T-8th in rushing defense (97.6 yards allowed per game)
Cardinals Defense: 24th in scoring defense (25.7 points allowed per game), 19th in total defense (337.0 yards allowed per game), 20th in passing defense (222.8 yards allowed per game), 17th in rushing defense (114.2 yards allowed per game)
As of Wednesday night, the Bucs are 2.5-point favorites, with the Over/Under set at 43.5 (per Hard Rock Bet).
Bucs vs. Cardinals Game Information
When: Sunday, November 30
Where: Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, FL)
Kickoff: 1:00 p.m. ET
TV: FOX – Kevin Kugler (Play by Play), Daryl Johnston (Analyst), Allison Williams (Reporter)
Bucs Radio: 98Rock – Gene Deckerhoff (Play by Play), Dave Moore (Color), T.J. Rives (Reporter)
Spanish Radio: 96.1 Caliente – Martín Gramática, Santiago Gramática