Tampa Bay has had two winning seasons over the last eight years, and those came in 2010 when Raheem Morris’ “yungry Buccaneers” went 10-6 and failed to make the postseason, and in 2016 in Dirk Koetter’s first year as head coach when the team finished 9-7 and missed the playoffs by one win. The Bucs had a shot at making the postseason this year if they could finish 9-7, but Tampa Bay blew an 11-point halftime lead to go from a stunning upset to another ignominious defeat when it fell to New Orleans, 28-14.

Now with a 5-8 record, even winning the last three games – starting with this Sunday’s contest at Baltimore – won’t likely be enough to get the Bucs into the playoffs. Despite technically being alive for playoff contention, the team has about a one percent chance of winning out and making the postseason and need an awful lot to go right for that to happen.

The enigmatic Jameis Winston had an unremarkable game with 213 passing yards, including two touchdowns and one deep heave with seconds remaining that not surprisingly got picked off to mercifully end the game. But perhaps the most concerning aspect of his performance was the fact that he connected on less than 50 percent of his attempts.

The sad part is that if you made a bet on the Bucs with the sportsbook of your choice, you got nearly 10 points on the home team and even that wasn’t enough to get you paid. It would be hard to blame you if you were counting your cash after the first half with this sizeable underdog up 14-3 and only two quarters remaining but this is Tampa Bay football – where hopes and dreams come to die.

The question on anyone’s mind who gives even half a hoot about the Bucs is how long until we know whether Winston is here for the long-term and will Dirk Koetter be coaching the team next year?

It might be easy for fans to want Winston gone because expectations as the No. 1 overall pick in the draft are only truly met if that player becomes Hall of Fame worthy. Anything short of that leaves us all a little disappointed, even if said player has made a Pro Bowl or two – just like Winston did as a rookie in 2015. It should be noted that even serviceable quarterbacks are a rare breed at the NFL level, and elite quarterbacks even harder to find. The thing with Winston is that he has the potential to be a top-tier talent but oftentimes misses the mark, as he did last Sunday.

Nevertheless, Winston is worth the $20.92 million for next season because the Bucs have no Plan B for 2019 other than the unproven Ryan Griffin, as Ryan Fitzpatrick will likely retire at age 35. However, entering into another four or five-year pact with the mercurial Winston is ill-advised at this point. If next year his performance conjures images of his Pro Bowl heyday back in his rookie season then a long-term extension can be in order.

However, there is one thing that must be considered in all of this – the state of the Bucs’ offensive line. Last week the group surrendered four sacks and 10 quarterback hits and was tagged with five penalties. Pro Football Outsiders rank the unit as the worst run blocking line in the league. Big changes need to be made on the offensive line, but who will be calling the shots? Will Koetter be back or will it be a new coach? Will general manager Jason Licht return? A big offseason with lots of questions lies ahead of this team and the answers could start coming on December 31 because the Bucs won’t be in the playoffs.