How many times have the Bucs been in a win-and-in or lose-and-go-home situation in the final week of the regular season? What were the outcomes?
– @cjprescott2000 (via Instagram)
In 1979, the Buccaneers entered the last week of the regular season in a tie atop the NFC Central with the Chicago Bears, both at 9-6. They had not yet clinched a playoff spot at that point, as Dallas, Philadelphia and Washington were all 10-5 and there were only two Wild Card spots available. The Bucs could make sure they made the postseason for the first time in franchise history by beating Kansas City at Tampa Stadium…and they did so in one of the most memorable Bucs games ever. In a torrential downpour that turned stadium aisles into waterfalls and completely shut down both offenses, the Bucs won 3-0 on a 19-yard Neil O’Donoghue field goal with six minutes left in the fourth quarter.
In 1981, the Buccaneers went to Detroit on the final weekend for a winner-take-all game to decide the NFC Central title, as both teams were 8-7. The big play was a strip-sack by Hall of Famer Lee Roy Selmon, with David Logan picking up the ball and returning it 21 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter of a 20-17 thriller. The two Wild Card spots went to 10-6 Philadelphia and 9-7 Washington, so the Bucs would have been out without a win.
In 1982, the season was shortened to nine games by a players’ strike and the playoffs were adjusted into what was branded a “Super Bowl Tournament,” with the division lines erased and the top eight teams in each conference making it. This time, the Bucs were at home against Chicago in the final week, sitting at 4-4 and needing a win to lock up one of those eight spots. The game went to overtime thanks to a 17-point Bucs rally that included two Doug Williams touchdown passes to Jimmie Giles. Bill Capece won it in the extra period with a 33-yard field goal.
The Bucs clinched a playoff spot before the final week in 1997. In 1999, they did have a playoff spot in hand prior to the final weekend but did need to win at Chicago to take the NFC Central title. They did so quite handily, 20-6, in the process earning a first-round bye. In 2000, Tampa Bay clinched a spot a week early in that unforgettable Monday Night Football showdown with the Rams, which the home team won, 38-35. Unfortunately, the following week in Green Bay they had a shot to win the division again and earn another first-round bye but lost in overtime, 17-14….
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