Coming off their first multi-possession win of the 2025 season, the 5-1, NFC-leading Bucs have yet another tough task ahead of them in Week 7 as they head to the Motor City for a fourth big-time NFC showdown in the last four weeks. They’ll be looking for just the second 6-1 start in franchise history, but they’ll have to beat the 4-2 Lions in a tough environment – and in primetime on Monday Night Football – to get it.

Tampa Bay has already accomplished two big feats in recent weeks. After a 3-0 start, it felt like the team needed to go at least 2-2 over its next four-game stretch, which was a gauntlet that included Philadelphia, Seattle on the road, San Francisco and Detroit on the road. The loss to the Eagles in Week 4 got that stretch off to the wrong start, but since then, the Bucs have beaten the Seahawks and 49ers to get to the top of the NFC.

Those wins against two potentially playoff-bound NFC West teams could come in extra handy late in the season when it comes down to playoff seeding. Plus, those wins set up a scenario where they could split these next two games before the bye week and still head into that week off with a strong 6-2 record.

Bucs head coach Todd Bowles – Photo by: USA Today

The other feat that Todd Bowles and the Bucs accomplished with those two wins? Avoiding the October slump that plagued them in 2023 and 2024. They’re 2-0 in October with two more games to go in the month. Now, finishing this October 2-2 would be a big disappointment given the 2-0 start. But even in that worst-case scenario, a .500 mark would be the best the team has put together in the month since 2021.

With the 2-1 record in this current gauntlet and those two wins to start what has been a problematic month for this squad in recent years, it’s time to get greedy. Another big win against the Lions, especially on the road and in primetime, would be a huge message to the rest of the NFC and the entire NFL that this is a Super Bowl-contending team. A win in Detroit would also mean there’s likely to be very good odds for Bowles and Co. to ride into their Week 9 bye at 7-1. First things first, though, and that’s beating a very good Dan Campbell-led team.

Before we dive further in our “What to Watch For” preview this weekend, here’s a general preview of Monday night’s primetime matchup between Tampa Bay and Detroit at Ford Field:

The Last Time…

These two teams have become plenty familiar with one another in recent years. Back in 2023, the Lions came to Tampa and handed the Bucs a 20-6 loss in their creamsicle game. Then, to make matters worse, the Lions won the rematch in the NFC Divisional Round that season as well, ending the Bucs’ season.

But the most recent meeting between the two sides went the other way, with Tampa Bay getting a small measure of revenge during a Week 2 trip to Detroit last season. Two early field goals by Chase McLaughlin and a Zyon McCollum interception had the visitors up 6-0 early, then after the home team tied the game up, Baker Mayfield found Chris Godwin Jr. for a 41-yard touchdown to take a 13-6 lead.

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

The Lions took a 16-13 lead late in the third quarter, but Mayfield and the offense answered right back with a six-play, 70-yard drive that ended with a phenomenal 11-yard touchdown run by Mayfield.

The Bucs defense closed it out in the fourth quarter, first forcing a punt and then getting a Christian Izien interception before two fourth-down stops finished off a 20-16 win.

Tampa Bay overcame 4.5 sacks by Aidan Hutchinson to win the game, with the defense coming up with enough crucial stops to get the job done and get the Bucs to 2-0.

The Lions lead the all-time series between the two teams 33-30, though the Bucs have won three of the last five matchups, all since 2019.

How The Bucs And Lions Are Trending

There’s a lot of buzz around the Bucs these days, and rightfully so. Tampa Bay has overcome several key injuries over the first six weeks of the season to start 5-1, getting to the top of the conference. Not only that, but four of those five wins came in the final minute, which has also helped create some buzz around this group as one of the league’s most entertaining teams.

It’s been a collective effort, obviously, but some of the key figures in this hot start are getting some national love. Anyone who has followed this franchise for a long time knows how rare that can be. But it’s happening right now, as head coach Todd Bowles is getting mentioned in early Coach of the Year conversations, Baker Mayfield is the current MVP frontrunner and Emeka Egbuka, while injured now, has been considered the Offensive Rookie of the Year favorite for much of the season thus far.

And perhaps the best part for Tampa Bay is that sooner or later, some of those key injured players will be on their way back. Egbuka going down with a hamstring injury last week was another tough blow, but he should be back before long. Mike Evans could be returning Monday night against the Lions, and Zyon McCollum could be back after a one-week absence, too. Rookie cornerback Benjamin Morrison also returned to practice Thursday, which is a good sign for his impending return.

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: USA Today

In the coming weeks, Chris Godwin Jr., Bucky Irving and Luke Goedeke should all be back as well. And later in the season, Jalen McMillan should be returning from the neck strain he suffered in the preseason, too. That’s an exciting thought for the Bucs, as they’ve gotten off to this 5-1 start on hard mode. If they can get to the bye at 6-2 or even 7-1, it’ll be a massive win. That way, they’d have another week to get healthy before what promises to be yet another difficult stretch out of the bye, with the Patriots, Bills (away) and Rams (away) looming.

Offensively, the Bucs have simply found a way to get it done no matter who has been on the field. Offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard has seen his unit put up 30-point games in back-to-back weeks. In the first one, the offense did it without Evans, Irving and Goedeke. Then, last week, Evans, Irving, Goedeke and Godwin were all out, plus Egbuka missed the second half. Yet players stepped up at each position to keep the offense producing.

Rachaad White has been huge in Irving’s absence. Egbuka’s hot start to his rookie year has made up for the absences of Evans, Godwin and McMillan, and even when Egbuka went down, it was Tez Johnson and Kameron Johnson who made huge plays to spark the offense. Sterling Shepard has been a constant source of reliability, too, and it obviously doesn’t hurt that Mayfield has been playing like an MVP with 1,539 yards and 12 touchdowns to one interception, as well as the several crucial scrambles he has made in key moments.

Bucs CB Zyon McCollum – Photo by: USA Today

As for the Tampa Bay defense, it’s been a weird kind of year, with a lot of good with some bad mixed in between. The group allowed 35 points two weeks ago and gave up some big plays, particularly to Kendrick Bourne, last week. But the Bucs also notched two takeaways in the win over the Seahawks and then did it again last week in the win over the 49ers. And they ran up six sacks against the 49ers, too. So while the overall numbers make it somewhat hard to get a read on this defense, it has largely been a solid unit through six weeks.

On the other sideline, there’s a Lions team that has been pretty fascinating this season in their own right. Coming into the season, there was a lot of talk about how they’d respond to losing offensive coordinator Ben Johnson to the Bears’ head coaching job and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn to the Jets’ head coaching job. And after all of that talk, they came out and lost 27-13 to the Packers in Week 1.

But in Week 2, the Lions bounced back and beat Johnson and the Bears, putting up 52 points in a 52-21 win. After that, there was a 38-30 Monday night win over the Ravens, a 34-10 win over the Browns and a 37-24 win over the Bengals. But then came last week’s hiccup, which saw Detroit go to Kansas City and lose 30-17.

Where things are most concerning for Dan Campbell‘s team right now has to be on the defensive side of the ball. Cornerbacks Terrion Arnold, D.J. Reed and Khalil Dorsey are all dealing with multi-week injuries, and Avonte Maddox missed last week’s game with an injury as well. Reed and Dorsey are on injured reserve, and neither Arnold nor Maddox practiced on Thursday. It doesn’t help either that do-it-all defensive back Brian Branch started a brawl following last week’s loss to the Chiefs and will serve a one-game suspension on Monday night.

Lions S Brian Branch – Photo by: USA Today

The Detroit defense can hang its hat on the fact that it will be getting Alim McNeill back this week, plus Aidan Hutchinson has returned to form with six sacks over the first six games after coming back from the broken leg that ended his 2024 season. The Lions are 18th in scoring defense, allowing just north of 25 points per game, but in they’re a top-half unit in just about every other category.

The other big help for the home team on Monday night is the fact that it has one of the most prolific offenses in the league, Ben Johnson or no Ben Johnson. New offensive coordinator John Morton has picked up right where Johnson left off, with quarterback Jared Goff continuing to play exceptional football. Through six games, he has completed 75.9% of his passes (first in the NFL) for 1,390 yards (10th) and 14 touchdowns (first) to two interceptions.

Goff has a three-headed monster of pass-catchers to throw to, with Amon-Ra St. Brown leading the way as always with 44 catches (tied for third in the NFL) for 452 yards (sixth) and six touchdowns (tied for first). Tight end Sam LaPorta is off to a good start, too, with 26 catches for 324 yards (12.5 avg.) and two touchdowns, while Jameson Williams is the big-play threat with a yards-per-catch average of 17.

Bucs ILB SirVocea Dennis and Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs – Photo by: USA Today

And there’s no forgetting the backfield duo of Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery, which is as dangerous as ever. Gibbs is averaging 4.5 yards per carry, going for 390 yards and four touchdowns on 87 carries in the first six games while adding 23 catches on 25 targets for 112 yards and another touchdown. Montgomery is averaging 5.1 yards per carry with 334 yards and four touchdowns of his own on 65 carries.

Here’s how the Bucs and Lions stack up heading into Week 7:

Bucs Offense: 6th in scoring offense (27.5 PPG), 12th in total offense (353.5 yards per game), 7th in passing offense (244.2 yards per game), 20th in rushing offense (109.3 yards per game)

Lions Offense: 2nd in scoring offense (31.8 PPG), 11th in total offense (353.7 yards per game), 14th in passing offense (225.0 yards per game), 8th in rushing offense (128.7 yards per game)

Bucs Defense: 24th in scoring defense (25.2 points allowed per game), 14th in total defense (319.5 yards allowed per game), 21st in passing defense (231.3 yards allowed per game), 5th in rushing defense (88.2 yards allowed per game)

Lions Defense: 18th in scoring defense (23.7 points allowed per game), 9th in total defense (308.2 yards allowed per game), 14th in passing defense (212.7 yards allowed per game), 11th in rushing defense (95.5 yards allowed per game)

As of Thursday night, the Bucs are 5-point underdogs, with the Over/Under set at 53 (per Hard Rock Bet).

Bucs at Lions Game Information

When: Monday, October 20
Where: Ford Field (Detroit, MI)
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN – Joe Buck (Play by Play), Troy Aikman (Analyst), Laura Rutledge & Lisa Salters (Reporters)
Bucs Radio: 98Rock – Gene Deckerhoff (Play by Play), Dave Moore (Color), T.J. Rives (Reporter)
Spanish Radio: 96.1 Caliente – Martín Gramática, Santiago Gramática