The Bucs will play their final game of the 2022 calendar year on Sunday night when they square off with the Cardinals in Arizona. This primetime matchup was supposed to be a marquee headliner of the NFL’s Christmas slate, but both teams have fallen below expectations this season. Nonetheless, Tampa Bay has plenty to play for as it looks to set up a chance to clinch the division to start 2023.
Last week, the Bucs played two completely different halves of football. Over the first 30 minutes of the game, they took it to the AFC North-leading Bengals. They looked competent on offense, matching their points per game average in the first two quarters. The defense held Cincinnati under 100 total yards as well, which had Tampa Bay leading 17-3 at halftime. But over the final 30 minutes, everything unraveled for Todd Bowles’ team. A botched fake punt and then turnovers on four straight drives doomed them as they dropped to 6-8 on the season.
So, heading into Christmas night, the Bucs are hoping to avoid a three-game losing streak. The Cardinals come in at 4-10, plus they’re down to their No. 3 quarterback. It’s a favorable matchup for the visitors, but that hasn’t meant much this season. Despite being two games under .500 with three weeks left in the regular season, though, Tampa Bay is in control of its own destiny in the NFC South. Beating Arizona would mean that a Week 17 win over Carolina puts the Bucs in the playoffs — with a first-round home game, too.
With those implications aside, there’s always time to dive into some of the individual milestones and records that are on the line. Last week, Tom Brady passed Josh Freeman for third-most passing yards in team history, Leonard Fournette passed Doug Martin for sixth-most receiving yards by a running back in franchise history and Chris Godwin passed Kevin House for fourth-most receiving touchdowns all-time.
Where do things stand heading into Week 16? Let’s get into it.
Tom Brady
After passing Josh Freeman for third-most passing yards in Bucs history last week, Brady has his sights set on moving into second before the season comes to a close. He needs 975 more yards to pass Vinny Testaverde (14,820) for second-most in franchise history.
A win over the Cardinals would make Brady the first player in NFL history to reach 250 regular season wins, plus it would leave him two wins away from tying Doug Williams (33) for second-most by a quarterback in team history.
Leonard Fournette
Fournette hasn’t found the end zone since the Bucs’ win over the Seahawks in Germany on Nov. 13. If he can do so against Arizona, he’ll tie Ronald Jones II (18) for eighth-most rushing touchdowns in franchise history.
With one more receiving score, Fournette can tie Adger Armstrong, Michael Pittman and Charles Sims (six) for fourth-most by a running back in team history. He would also tie Sims (four in 2015) for the most by a running back in a single season.
Rachaad White
White has 41 catches this season, which means he is just seven away from tying James Wilder (48 in 1981) for third-most by a Bucs rookie running back.
Mike Evans
Evans looked more like himself in the first half of last week’s loss to the Bengals, but he still hasn’t reached the end zone since Week 4. He is 21 points away from passing Michael Husted (502) for the second-most in team history.
Sunday will mark Evans’ 135th career start, leaving him two behind Mike Alstott (137) for sixth-most in franchise history.
And finally, the 1,000-yard mark is within reach for Evans. He already owns the NFL record for most consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons to begin a career, and he can extend that record to nine straight seasons with 112 more yards. He needs to average 37.3 yards per game over the final three weeks of the season to get there.
Chris Godwin
With his touchdown catch last week, Godwin is now one touchdown of any kind from passing Cameron Brate (33) and tying Jimmie Giles (34) for fourth-most total touchdowns in team history. One more receiving touchdown will tie him with Brate (33) for third-most in franchise history.
Godwin is also eight catches away from passing James Wilder (430) for second-most in Bucs history.
Cameron Brate
Brate remains one touchdown away from tying Jimmie Giles (34) for fourth-most total touchdowns and second-most receiving touchdowns in team history. He also needs just seven more catches to pass Giles (279) for the most by a tight end in Bucs history.
Cade Otton
Otton needs only four more receptions to tie Alex Smith (41 in 2005) for second-most by a Bucs rookie tight end.
Donovan Smith
With his 124th career start on Sunday, Donovan Smith will be six behind Warren Sapp for eighth-most in franchise history.
Will Gholston
Sunday will be Gholston’s 151st game as a Buc, leaving him seven behind Mike Alstott (158) for eighth-most in team history.
Lavonte David
David will play his 164th career game on Sunday, tying him with John Lynch for fifth-most in team history. It will also be the veteran linebacker’s 164th career start, leaving him 19 behind Paul Gruber (183) for third-most all-time.
With a sack against the Bengals, David is now 10th in franchise history with 29 career sacks. He needs 4.5 more to pass Jason Pierre-Paul and Brad Culpepper (33) for eighth-most.
David is now five passes defended behind Carlton Davis (63) for fifth-most in Tampa Bay history.
Carlton Davis
With his monster game against the Bengals last week in which he recorded four passes defended, Davis needs just one more to tie Donnie Abraham (64) for fourth-most in team history.
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