Two games into the season, the Buccaneers already find themselves in unfamiliar territory. Tampa Bay is 0 and 2 for the first time since 2014 following losses to Cincinnati and Cleveland. Now the question becomes how worried the Bucs should actually be. According to FOX Sports, quite a bit. FOX Sports rated Tampa Bay's panic level "high" after Week 2, citing the Bucs' home loss to Cleveland as particularly concerning. Tampa Bay entered that game as an eight point favorite and still walked away with a 23 to 19 loss. There is also history working against them, as over the last 10 seasons, only 12 of 84 teams that started 0-2 eventually reached the playoffs. That is just 14.3 percent.
The Bucs have plenty of issues contributing to their start. Baker
Mayfield has four turnovers, including three fumbles lost against Cincinnati. The offense has struggled to finish drives consistently, scoring only one touchdown against Cleveland despite reaching scoring range several times. The defense has not exactly erased those mistakes either. Tampa Bay allowed Deshaun Watson to complete 24 of 30 passes for 238 yards and two touchdowns Sunday. Cleveland also marched 68 yards for the game winning touchdown after the Bucs had taken a 19 to 16 fourth quarter lead.
FOX Sports specifically pointed to Tampa Bay's upcoming stretch against Minnesota, Green Bay, and Dallas, three games to be played within 12 days. Falling to 0-3 would make an already difficult situation considerably worse. Still, there are reasons not to completely hit the panic button. Both losses were winnable. Tampa Bay lost by six to Cincinnati despite turning the ball over four times and having a chance to win against Cleveland before coming up short in the red zone. The Bucs are also only one game back in the NFC South with all six division games remaining. So should Tampa Bay panic? Maybe not completely, but the concern is justified. The Bucs have spent the first two weeks making correctable mistakes. At some point, though, those mistakes have to actually be corrected. With Minnesota, Green Bay, and Dallas coming next, Tampa Bay does not have much time to figure it out.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Fox Sports believes panic meter is high in Tampa
