And they beat the Falcons on a rainy day at home where they would have lost had the Falcons not jumped offsides on a 4th and inches fake snap play. They won against the Saints when the Saints lost their head coach due to a fluke broken knee in the first quarter. This whole year was nothing but garbage for the Bucs. I must have been nuts thinking they would win 6 games.
Ya know, I still won't concede that they wouldn't have won those games anyway. Payton still doesn't play and you're assuming the Bucs wouldn't get an inch in the Atlanta game, which we don't know. But that's not really the point. The point is that they did a lot of good in those two games ... and yet haven't grown in any way (other than Clayborn and Bowers' pass rushing) since. That they regressed so dramatically is historic. It's like aliens abducted the team that went to London and substituted an inferior, delusional team in its place for the last nine games. To beat the Saints under ANY conditions is a feat. Had they lost a string of close games and then faded, I could understand it. But they have melted down like NO team I have ever seen. They lost McCoy and virtually no one else too. It's like EVERY decision the coaches made was wrong. It's very very tough to win 14 of 22 going back to the start of last year and then not only lose nine in a row, but do it so pathetically without a slew of major injuries. IMHO you couldn't justify a head coaching firing MORE than this one. And yet my sick gut feeling feels more of it ahead. I hope I'm wrong. It's like a nightmare only Rod Serling could dredge up.
