The race for the NFC South is coming down to the wire and oddly enough, it doesn’t look like anyone wants to win the division and secure a home game in the first round of the playoffs.

It’s a two-horse race between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, losers of five of the last six games, and the Carolina Panthers, who just squandered the opportunity to take the NFC South lead by losing to the New Orleans Saints. Both teams sit at 7-7 apiece and have yet to play each other, so there’s plenty at stake entering the first head-to-head matchup in Week 16.

There’s been plenty of dysfunction for both, so it’s worth diving in and taking a look at exactly just how everyone got here and how this likely plays out.

Bucs are sinking fast heading into the Panthers game

Evan: The panic button was officially pressed after Thursday night’s loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

The Bucs can’t do anything right, these days, and that’s an all-around statement. The offense is inconsistent and can’t provide complementary football nor make plays in the “gotta-have-it” moments. The defense can’t stop anyone and consistently allows big plays that also often go for six points. And last but certainly not least, the kick return unit has been a sieve all year long and Bucs fans are holding their collective breath every time Chase McLaughlin launches one from the 35.

Teams are out-coaching them and out-executing them, too. On a granular level, it’s issues like Baker Mayfield’s accuracy, problems with interior offensive line, lack of pass rush with four guys, and poor play at the second and third levels of the defense.

Now, starting cornerback Zyon McCollum is on IR. Very little has gone right for the Bucs since the bye week and it’s crashing down at the worst possible time of the year.

The Bucs are frustrated and rightfully so. It’s important they manage said frustrations in a smart way, though, and avoid any kind of negative influence that could affect their play on the football field.

Panthers continue to shoot themselves in the foot, but can roll with the punches

Kole: For the second time this season, the Panthers made an absolute fool of themselves against the New Orleans Saints coming off a big-time win the game before. The first occurred back in Week 10 when they were fresh off a road victory against the Green Bay Packers, but then they got a rude awakening at home, losing 17-7 to the Saints.

After that game, practice habits were called into question and the Panthers realized the offense needed the passing game to step up in order to really challenge teams down the stretch. It was a well-received wake-up call for the entire team.

Carolina secured a win over the Atlanta Falcons (fueled by a record-breaking game by quarterback Bryce Young) in Week 11 and then had the biggest win of the season two weeks later, taking down the Los Angeles Rams in a shootout and proving the offense is capable of hanging with the big dogs.

But, the win over the Rams and getting huge news during the bye week put air back into the Panthers’ heads. This past week, the Panthers travelled to New Orleans and proceeded to blow a 10-point lead in the second-half by allowing the Saints to score 13 unanswered points. The rally dropped the Panthers down to .500 and there were mental mistakes were all over the field for Carolina.

The moral of the story here, the Panthers took another gut punch the team has been used to taking all season long, but a well-timed one yet again. It’s worth noting this team has rolled with the punches this season and hasn’t lost back-to-back games since the first two games of the year. After a loss, the Panthers have won five straight games, they just haven’t figured out how to operate as a winning team yet. All of which should bode well for this upcoming game, specifically.

“I don’t want it any other way,” veteran defensive tackle Derrick Brown said. “From the jump it’s been about grit. This is what we do. So now we’ve gotta bounce back. We’ve gotta challenge every man as a man in here and we’ve gotta go to work (this) week.”

How will it shake out for the Bucs and Panthers?

Evan: Personally, I don’t see the Bucs winning a fifth-straight NFC South title.

At this point, why would I expect a team to win a do-or-die game when it can’t do the little things right to win in the first place? Something isn’t clicking, anymore, and it’s hard to see the Bucs snapping back into the clutch version of the team that propelled itself to a 6-2 start.

The Panthers are young and hungry. The Bucs are the fattened cow that’s enjoyed the easy life on the farm over the last few years.

And now, it’s dinner time.

Kole: I’d have to agree with Evan here.

This division seems like it’s the Panthers’ to lose the way the last few weeks have gone and Sunday was a proper wake-up call this team needed at the right moment to regroup.

Unlike Tampa Bay, it doesn’t seem like there’s much disarray and disfunction inside the Panthers’ locker room. They understand what went wrong last Sunday against New Orleans, how they can fix it, and what’s at stake over the final three weeks.

For this game alone, I see the Panthers coming out at home and getting this win against the Bucs.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers News

Baker Mayfield and Bucs eat their own words against Falcons and it looks like they don’t even want to make the playoffs

The Bucs are a bad team and all they’re doing is talking. Talk is cheap. Winning teams make plays and they aren’t doing that.

Evan Winter