Yeah, yeah, we heard it all last year, too — and what they got was a 5-11 record.

The Buccaneers were sort of picked as the media darlings of the upcoming 2017 season back in August last year. It had been years since the Buccaneers had even fielded a roster that warranted any kind of hype, so whether or not you were a no nonsense person or not, that part was at least encouraging.

The actual results were not encouraging.

But, as much as Bucs fans might not want to hear it, many of the same things that gave this team hype are still around and those that aren’t have been massively upgraded — on paper.

Thus, ESPN’s Mike Clay says that, on paper, the Bucs are a Top 12 team in the league.

Clay goes on to say that the NFC is the conference with most of the good teams, so even if the Bucs are better than they were last year and, in fact, actually good, that still might not warrant a playoff spot in such a stacked conference.

But, Clay is saying there’s hope.

If the Bucs play up to their on paper potential, do you think the playoffs are a possibility with head coach Dirk Koetter and the rest of the coaching staff? Who are their biggest threats in the NFC?