Buccaneers-Panthers: A "Must Win" For Tampa Bay?

Perhaps it sounds outrageous to say that there is a "must win" for a team that has won no games.

Might even sound silly.

But for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a win this Sunday against Carolina is dead-serious business.

It is because this Buccaneers team is hemorrhaging. It is bleeding badly. Someone needs to get a tourniquet on this group that is 0-5...and the five have been pretty ugly.

There was no chance to win last week in Philly, but it is different with these 1-3 Carolina Panthers. Yes, those Panthers who are struggling mightily themselves.

Their quarterback, Jake Delhomme, is a shell of his old self. He's playing poorly and perhaps that's an understatement. 

This team that was a running machine last season cannot run the football. And they cannot stop the run—the two mortal sins of football.

Which brings us to Sunday.

Somehow, someway, this game managed to avoid the NFL television blackout policy. Now, the Buccaneers need to make sure that they don't blackout on the field. They need to run a gut check. They need to suck it up and beat this one-win team. Someone needs to make a stand, make a play, heck, make several plays.

Why?

Because if the Buccaneers lose this game, the downward spiral could start descending into parts unknown.

After this week, it looks like this:

Patriots in London: New England is beatable this year, but not by these Bucs.

Bye week: Bucs manage a tie.

Green Bay: Throwback Sunday will produce a loss for Tampa Bay.

at Miami: Are you kidding? They'll Wildcat all over Raheem's guys.

New Orleans: Don't even think about it.

at Atlanta: No how, no way.

at Carolina: Well, again, there's a possibility.

Jets: J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets say No, No, No way to the Bucs.

at Seattle: They'll be lucky to find their way there and back.

at New Orleans: Ha!

Atlanta: It won't really matter by then.

There you have it. Find a win or two. That's a task in and of itself.

That's why this spiral needs to stop on Sunday. It really has to.

Or does it?