At the midpoint of the 2026 NFL season, the Buccaneers have turned in one of the league’s strangest statistical lines: they’re the only team in football with more rushing yards than passing yards.
Through nine games, Tampa Bay has piled up 1,475 rushing yards and 1,277 passing yards. No one else is remotely close to flipping the usual NFL script, where the air attack almost always outpaces the ground game.
It’s been a weird path to get there, and it starts with the quarterback situation. Baker Mayfield has played some of the worst football of his career when healthy, and he also missed three games because of injury. In his place, the Buccaneers turned to undrafted rookie Jalon Daniels, which pushed the offense even harder toward the run.
Then came Week 8, when the weather took over. In a downpour against the Falcons, Tampa Bay ran for 322 yards and finished with minus-2 passing yards, a massive swing that helped create this unusual split.
The last NFL team to finish a season with more rushing yards than passing yards was the 2022 Bears. Chicago led the league with 3,014 rushing yards and finished last in passing with 2,219.
Justin Fields was the centerpiece of that offense, rushing for 1,143 yards while the Bears managed just 1,883 passing yards. David Montgomery added 801 rushing yards and Khalil Herbert chipped in 731, giving Chicago a ground-heavy identity that never translated into much through the air.
Tampa Bay’s version is different, but the end result is the same: a team winning with a run-first profile in a league built around throwing the ball. And even with that one-dimensional offense, the Buccaneers are still in the playoff mix because the NFC South has been the worst division in football.
If the standings break the right way, there could be a playoff game in Tampa in January. And if that happens, Bucs fans may be hoping for one more soaking rainstorm.
In Other News...
Bruce Arians Just Made Buccaneers Fans Revisit One Huge Possibility
Bruce Arians has been out of the Buccaneers sideline picture since retiring after the 2021 season, but he has not exactly closed the door on coaching again. After working through health issues that included open-heart surgery, Arians has said he feels ready to get back into the NFL if the right opportunity comes along, which is enough to get Tampa Bay fans thinking about old possibilities they probably assumed were gone for good.
The timing matters because Todd Bowles is reportedly under pressure and a coaching change is expected this offseason, putting the Buccaneers in a spot where every familiar name suddenly feels relevant again. Arians comments do not guarantee anything, but they do reopen a conversation that seemed settled, and for a franchise that has already lived through one dramatic coaching transition, that is the kind of thread worth watching. [Read more 🡒]
Tony Dungy Quietly Distances Himself From A Tampa Event
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Life Surge has been under scrutiny after recent reporting raised questions about customer complaints and pricey courses, along with the role of Tim Tebow in the groups orbit. Dungy is the latest notable figure to distance himself from the organization, joining others such as Tebow, Joe Mazzulla and Craig Groeschel as the event continues to lose some of the names that once gave it added weight. [Read more 🡒]
Suh Just Revealed The Bucs Super Bowl LV Turning Point
Ndamukong Suh recently revisited the biggest night of the Buccaneers championship run, and the conversation offered a fresh look at how Tampa Bays defense found its edge against Kansas City in Super Bowl LV. On a podcast, Suh said he pushed then-defensive coordinator Todd Bowles to rethink the game plan, and the Bucs ended up leaning into a front that could dictate the terms of the matchup.
Suhs role in that shift was more than just motivational. He finished with 1.5 sacks as Tampa Bay kept the Chiefs out of the end zone in a 31-9 win, a result that has only grown more impressive with time. The interesting part now is how much of that title-clinching performance came down to a midgame-level adjustment in philosophy, and how willing Bowles was to trust a veteran defenders read in the sports biggest moment. [Read more 🡒]