It’s safe to say a lot has changed since the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ first report card of the 2025 season came out back in October.

At that point, the Bucs were on top of the NFC with a 6-1 record and were coming off a big win over a San Francisco 49ers that had tortured them the past few seasons. That was Week 7, before the Bucs lost to the Detroit Lions in miserable fashion. Everything has gone downhill since then, as Tampa Bay is now in its third-straight midseason slump under Todd Bowles.

However, there have been a few bright spots amongst all the bad. So let’s dive in and hand out some dap in our second trimester report card of the year.

Offensive superlatives

MVP: RB Sean Tucker

Baker Mayfield held down this spot in the first trimester report card and for obvious reasons. It was a lot harder to pick an MVP this time around due to the decline of the Bucs offense, but Tucker eventually made the most sense.

Tucker rarely played against the Lions, but has been outstanding since Week 8. He leads the team in both rushing yards and total yards from scrimmage over that span. He even leads his teammates in total touchdowns with four and is averaging nearly 5.0 yards per touch that includes a very healthy 4.7 yards per rushing attempt. Tez Johnson is the only other player on offense who’s scored multiple TDs over the last six weeks.

It’s clear Tucker needs to be involved on offense, even with Bucky Irving’s return set for Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. He’s been the best player on offense, by far, and the Bucs need to keep him on the field as much as possible.

Glue guy: TE Cade Otton

Yes, Otton had a bad drop against the Los Angeles Rams, but he’s been a major contributor behind the scenes. He does a ton of dirty work in Josh Grizzard’s offense when it comes to blocking in both the run and pass game and he’s done a solid job over the last several weeks.

He’s also come to life in the passing game, to an extent. Since Week 7, Otton has 19 receptions for 171 yards and that includes four games with at least four receptions (he only had two in his first five games) and three games with at least 40 receiving yards (he had just one from Weeks 1-6).

It hasn’t been flashy by any means, but that’s exactly what a glue guy does — he helps hold things together by doing the work that often goes by unnoticed but is still integral to winning games.

Biggest surprise: The decline in Baker Mayfield‘s play

Mayfield was a legitimate MVP candidate when the first report card came out and now, he’s anything but. He’s also dealing with an AC sprain in his non-throwing shoulder, so who knows how that will affect the rest of his season.

He’s been dealing with oblique and knee issues over the last several weeks and while he won’t use it as an excuse — it’s definitely affecting his play. Still, at the same time, he’s been inaccurate, has made poor decisions, and hasn’t used his legs to make plays like he did during the first seven games.

One can argue he’s not even in the top-12 of QB play over the last month and change. He’s been average at best and it’s really held the Bucs back. No one would’ve seen this coming back in October, regardless of how we got here.

Biggest disappointment: Josh Grizzard’s stagnation as a play-caller

Grizzard got off to a hot start and it looked like the Bucs offense was on track to become a powerhouse once the injury issues subsided, but he’s completely stagnated as play-caller during the middle portion of the season.

Sure, a lot of it has to do with the fact he can’t run the offense the way it’s intended due to key injuries to guys like Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and all the shuffling with the offensive line. The constant back-and-forth with personnel has made it to where Grizzard basically has to come up with a new plan every week, especially when considering the natural change in opponent.

At the same time however, the Bucs don’t have an identity. Effective offensive coordinators/play-callers eventually find something to hang their hat on and Grizzard hasn’t done that. Can it be Sean Tucker? That would make sense, but happens when Irving likely returns this week and if not then, in Week 14? And of course, there’s Mayfield’s injury to factor in.

Either way, Grizzard has to find some continuity and identity somewhere over the the final six games of the season.

Turning point of the last six weeks: The loss to the Lions

The Lions provided the blueprint to containing Mayfield via QB spy, which defenses have been utilizing every week, since. That’s given the Mayfield and the Bucs offense a lot of issues and it’ll probably continue throughout the year. Then, there was the loss of Mike Evans which is nothing but a total gut punch for franchise as a whole. Very little has gone right since the Bucs lost in Motown.

Overall Grade: D. Tucker, Otton, Johnson, Tristan Wirfs, Luke Goedeke, and the performance against the Bills are the only reasons the Bucs offense doesn’t receive an F grade for the second trimester. It’s been hard to watch.

Defensive superlatives

MVP: CB Jamel Dean

I was so close to putting Tykee Smith, here, as he’s truly been a difference-maker for the Bucs, but Dean has been one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL all year long, as well as the best player on Tampa Bay’s defense.

I mean, we saw what happened without him against the Rams. Dean has locked down opposing wideouts since the first snap of the season and the only thing keeping him out of Pro Bowl discussions are the nagging injuries that have followed him throughout his entire career.

Regardless, he’s been excellent in all phases of the game and just needs to stay healthy so he can get his flowers at the end of the year.

Glue guy: S Antoine Winfield Jr.

You usually don’t see star players as glue guys, but AWjr. is the only factor keeping the defense from just bottoming out. It’s hard to imagine just how bad things can get without him in the picture so the Bucs better be stocking up as much goodwill as they can when it comes to keeping him on the field.

Biggest surprise: S Tykee Smith

Smith has to be on here somehow and this certainly fits the bill. While many figured Smith would play well at safety, I don’t think a lot of people thought he’d be playing this well so quickly.

He has ascended in 2025 and is a top-20 safety in the league, already. He’s good against and the run has shown some ballhawk-like skills in the secondary. He’s very instinctual and obviously studies his opponents because he’s always flying around and making plays.

There aren’t many bright spots on the defense, right now, but Smith is definitely one and may be the brightest of them all.

Biggest disappointment: Allowing the big play

The Bucs’ defense is a sieve, right now. It can’t stop the big play even if it wanted to and opposing offenses know this. Todd Bowles’ unit has allowed a league-leading 11 touchdowns of 25+ yards or more on the year and six of those came in the two games against New England and Buffalo.

Matthew Stafford and Co. walked all over the Bucs’ defense, just like Josh Allen and the Bills and even Drake Maye and the Patriots. Fortunately for the Bucs, they don’t face too many top offenses moving forward, but at this point it seems like anyone can have success against this defense and it has to get corrected if Bowles wants his fourth-straight division title as head coach.

Turning point of the last six weeks: Getting carved up by the Patriots’ offense

The Bucs’ defense just hasn’t been the same after playing the Patriots. They ripped off four plays of 50+ yards in that game and three went for touchdowns. It’s been nothing but yards and points, since.

Overall Grade: F. The only good performance since Week 7 was against the Saints and that’s nowhere near enough to save this grade. Something is seriously wrong with the Bucs defense and it’s unclear how it gets fixed.

2025 draft class superlatives

Overachiever: WR Tez Johnson

Johnson hasn’t been racking up the catches and yards, but he has four receiving touchdowns since Week 7, which leads the team by a mile. He’s taken advantage of the opportunities he’s received and the confidence derived from such should help his development continue over the rest of the year.

In a tough stretch, Johnson has given Bucs fans plenty to smile about and it’ll be fun to see how much more the rookie can do.

Rookie we need to see more from: WR Emeka Egbuka

Typically, this means more playing time in a nutshell, but we’re going to do it a little differently this time around.

Even though Chris Godwin Jr. has yet to show he’s “back back” from his fibula injuries, it’s time for Egubka to really step up and lead the Bucs passing attack. So far, he’s struggled without legitimate help and while that’s nothing to hold against him — he’s still gotta find a way to produce at a higher level than what he has since Week 7.

It might be an unfair burden on the rookie, but those are the circumstances. We’ll see if he steps it up.

Underachiever: CB Benjamin Morrison

There’s no one else to put in this spot and for obvious reasons. When healthy, Morrison has been ok and has flashed the talent and potential that made him a second-round pick, but he can’t stay healthy. So far, it’s looking like health is going to be a consistent factor during his time with the Bucs.

Overall Grade: B. Jacob Parrish and Elijah Roberts are still playing well. Johnson’s ascension and all of the context surrounding Egubka’s situation also help keep the grade respectable.

Coaching report card

Grade: F.

The coaching situation has completely flipped on its head since the last report card.

For a minute, Bowles was considered a realistic candidate for Coach of the Year and people were wondering if Grizzard would be the third OC to leave the Bucs in as many years. Now, people are calling for Bowles’ job and have doubts about Grizzard in the long run.

Sure, the politics are part of the cyclical nature of football, but at the same time, there are legit concerns, here. Especially on special teams. The Bucs can’t really do anything right at the moment and it all starts up top.

Poor game management like we saw against the Bills and Rams is starting to creep back into the picture, as well. The wild part is a lot of the dysfunction has come after the Bucs bye week — they should be playing better, not worse. Regardless of opponent.

Even with the Panthers loss to the 49ers, nothing is guaranteed over the last month-and-a-half. The Bucs, once again, have pinned their own backs to the wall and there could be some big changes in store if they can’t get out of the mess they made.

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Craig Smith