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BUCCANEERS vs. STEELERS

WHEN: Sunday, October 18, 2026 | WHERE: Raymond James Stadium | KICKOFF: 1:00 p.m. ET | TV: CBS

PLAY-BY-PLAY: Andrew Catalon | ANALYST: Logan Ryan | SIDELINE: 

RADIO: 98 ROCK 97.9 FM | PLAY-BY-PLAY: Tony Castricone | ANALYST: Dave Moore | SIDELINE: Jay Recher

Game day is approaching, and it’s time for the Pewter Report staff to make its weekly game predictions and offer up our game preview of this week’s matchup. Let us know what you think in the article comments section and add your prediction, too.

Scott Reynolds: Bucs Compete, But Lose A Heartbreaker To The Steelers

This could be a winnable game for the Bucs under certain conditions. First, Tampa Bay has to win the turnover battle. That’s a must. This team isn’t good enough to win games while committing more turnovers than its opponent. Second, the Bucs must work on eliminating some penalties. Tampa Bay had 14 last week, including seven along the offensive line. Cutting that down to five team-wide feels like another must.

Bucs OLB Yaya Diaby – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

If the Bucs do those things and run for 110 yards or more against the Steelers I could see Todd Bowles and Co. moving to 2-4 on the year with back-to-back wins. Yet there is another element that could cause Tampa Bay some problems. This team struggles scoring touchdowns in the red zone and Pittsburgh has the league’s No. 3 red zone defense. Chase McLaughlin kicking too many field goals and not enough extra points won’t get the job done.

Unfortunately, that’s what I see happening on Sunday. Aaron Rodgers will out-duel Jalon Daniels and the Steelers will be slightly more successful than the Bucs in the red zone, likely with a key touchdown to one of the Steelers’ dangerous tight ends – either Pat Freiermuth or Darnell Washington. I also see Pittsburgh Pro Bowl outside linebacker T.J. Watt intercepting a screen pass and taking it in for a critical defensive touchdown. The Bucs lose another close game and fall to 1-5 on the year while remaining winless at home.

REYNOLDS’ GAME PREDICTION: Steelers 20, Bucs 19
REYNOLDS’ SEASON RECORD: 2-3

Matt Matera: Bucs Play Tough, But Won’t Be Enough

This game has the feel of a low scoring contest. The Bucs’ defense has played much better as of late, and I believe they’re going to lean on their secondary of corners Jacob Parrish and Zyon McCollum along with safety Tykee Smith to get the better of the matchup against Pittsburgh’s wide receivers. How much they can slow down their opponents’ tight ends will also factor in.

I’m also banking on Tampa Bay getting the better of the Steelers’ run game with Jaylen Warren. The Bucs are second in the league in stopping the run, and they’ll continue to do as such on Sunday. They should get good production from inside linebackers  Josiah Trotter and Alex Anzalone. This also means it’ll be up to Tampa Bay to generate pressure on the pass rush to dominate the game.

Bucs ILB Josiah Trotter and Cowboys QB Dak Prescott – Photo by: Jeffrey Jones/PR

Where the Bucs will ultimately falter is with their offense. They’ll face a lot more pressure up front and Jalon Daniels won’t be ready for it. The Bucs haven’t gotten the passing game going all season, so why will this be the start? Bucky Irving won’t be able to bail them out either.

MATERA’S GAME PREDICTION: Steelers 20, Bucs 17
MATERA’S SEASON RECORD: 2-3

Adam Slivon: It’ll Be A Close Game, But Another Game The Bucs Lose

The Bucs’ Week 5 win over the Cowboys assured that this squad won’t go 0-17. The picture is murky from here on out in projecting just how many wins Tampa Bay will muster in 2026, though. The 3-2 Steelers come to town having gone through ups and downs, which makes me believe this will be a hard-fought matchup. With that being said, Pittsburgh has started to get into a rhythm with 42-year-old Aaron Rodgers under center.

Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

Say what you will about Rodgers at this point in his career, but the four-time MVP has seen every type of defense. “A-Rod” has thrown nine touchdowns to three interceptions over the past three games, and his calling card is how quickly he gets the football out. That will pose problems for Todd Bowles’ defense if they refuse to play closer to the line of scrimmage. The Bucs’ pass rush has underwhelmed, and the Steelers boast an above-average offensive line. Stopping leading rusher and receiver Jaylen Warren will also prove difficult.

To Tampa Bay’s credit, the defense has figured out and fixed some of its issues, but the offense is in a different boat. Zac Robinson’s wrinkles have not produced substantial results, save for Bucky Irving returning to form. I believe Jalon Daniels can competently manage a game, but Pittsburgh’s defense is littered with veterans who present challenges at each level. I’d expect Robinson to lean on the run, but the pass game can’t just be screens. Daniels has the arm to make throws, and Chris Godwin Jr., Emeka Egbuka, and Ted Hurst III must be more involved.

This has the makings of being a close game, one where the Bucs show heart and make it interesting. In the end, it’s hard to predict them coming away with a win.

SLIVON’S GAME PREDICTION: Steelers 24, Bucs 17
SLIVON’S SEASON RECORD: 1-4

Bailey Adams: Bucs’ Week 5 Win Not Enough To Fully Restore My Faith

This is a winnable game for the 1-4 Bucs, and that’ll make it all the more frustrating when they lose it and fall to 1-5 — and 0-4 at Raymond James Stadium this season. Tampa Bay’s Week 5 win was nice, but it wasn’t enough to fully restore my faith in this team picking itself up and making any kind of meaningful run this year.

Bucs HC Todd Bowles – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

The Steelers have a pretty significant edge in the coaching matchup, and while Aaron Rodgers isn’t the same guy he once was and has struggled in previous matchups against Todd Bowles’ defenses, I’d still lean in his favor in the quarterback matchup. I say that with all due respect to the job Jalon Daniels has done since stepping in for the injured Baker Mayfield, of course.

I actually do believe Daniels will give the Bucs a chance to win this game, as will Bucky Irving and the run game. And I think the Tampa Bay defense is playing well enough and will keep the team in it. But it’ll be another one-score game, and I have a hard time believing Bowles, Zac Robinson and the team as a whole can do the little things well enough to swing a close game in their favor.

ADAMS’ GAME PREDICTION: Steelers 24, Bucs 20
ADAMS’ SEASON RECORD: 2-3

Josh Queipo: Bucs Fail To Keep The Train Rolling

I expect a low-scoring game when the Bucs and Steelers face off on Sunday. Both teams sport below average offenses that rely on their run games and struggle to create explosives. But while Tampa Bay’s defense is technically the better unit to date, the Steelers pass rush is a formidable obstacle for rookie undrafted free agent Jalon Daniels.

T.J. Watt, Nick Herbig, Cam Heyward and Alex Highsmith will test Daniels’ faith in his offensive line to stay in the pocket and deliver smart, accurate throws. Compare that to the Steelers’ signal-caller, the aged veteran Aaron Rodgers. He has struggled with Todd Bowles’ defenses in the past, but ultimately, when this game likely comes down to which offense doesn’t make the costly turnover, I’ll bet on Rodgers to limit the damage.

If the protection can hold and Daniels trusts it, the Bucs’ playmakers can win against the Steelers’ secondary. But that’s been a struggle for Tampa Bay’s offense this year. Look for a late big swing play on defense to be the deciding factor. And how Bowles attacks a Steelers offense that likes to run out of 12 personnel but hasn’t been as successful as you might think will be key.

QUEIPO’S GAME PREDICTION: Steelers 17, Bucs 16
QUEIPO’S SEASON RECORD: 0-5

Nick Geddes: Another Close Game, Another Close Loss

Bucs and Steelers sounds like a big matchup on paper for Tampa Bay fans until you realize not much good has come from these meetings over the years. The Bucs are 2-10 all-time against the Steelers — .167 winning percentage — the franchise’s worst against any opponent.

Some of those Steelers teams the Bucs went up against were some of the best teams in the NFL at that given time; that is not the case in 2026. Pittsburgh, 3-2, is a solid football team with names you recognize such as T.J. Watt, Cam Heyward, and Aaron Rodgers, to name a few. Yet, they’re as inconsistent as they come, evident by a Thursday Night Football loss to the Browns which they followed up with a big win over the Colts last Sunday.

Offensively, Pittsburgh ranks 23rd in EPA per play — two spots ahead of the Bucs — and I do see a path where Bowles stays aggressive and gets to Rodgers on multiple occasions. Rodgers has lost most of his mobility and has shown he will crumble to the ground if you make him uncomfortable.

Bucs OLB Yaya Diaby – Photo by: IMAGN Images via Reuters Connect

The Bucs found something offensively in Dallas, leaning on the ground game to the tune of 241 yards. Pittsburgh is 13th against the run and 16th against the pass, essentially a league average defense.

Yes, there are some matchups I like for Tampa Bay, but everything comes down to trust for me. You know at this point there’s going to be at least one Todd Bowles decision that makes you scratch your head. Often times, those decisions have determined winning and losing the game. Bowles has struggled in close games and the Bucs play in a lot of them. This will be another, and give me the Steelers coming out on top.

GEDDES’ GAME PREDICTION: Steelers 20, Bucs 19
GEDDES’ SEASON RECORD: 2-3