New York Jets (2-7) at New England Patriots (8-2), Thursday, 8:15 p.m. ET
The Patriots stretched their winning streak to seven games with their 28-23 escape from Tampa last Sunday, and now get to play a home game against their struggling AFC East foe. The Jets have actually won two of the last three games in this series, but Thursday's prime-time outing sure looks like a mismatch on paper, particularly when comparing the recent performances of quarterbacks Drake Maye and Justin Fields. That's a lot of words to devote to a game that really won't affect the Bucs' playoff situation. In this case, I'll root for chaos – Fields throws for 35 net passing yards but the Jets somehow win, 13-7.
Verdict: Go Jets, I guess.
Washington Commanders (3-7) at Miami Dolphins (3-7), Sunday, 9:30 a.m. ET
For the most part, this is a simple "pick an AFC team to beat an NFC team," and for that reason we should be pulling for the Dolphins. However, Miami remains on the Buccaneers' schedule (Week 17) and I'm leery of the Dolphins getting back on their feet (fins?) after a tough start to the season. They dispatched of Buffalo surprisingly easily last week, with De'Von Achane running wild. The Commanders aren't really a playoff contender at this point, especially with Jayden Daniels on the shelf, so it wouldn't be a tragedy if they won this contest. Let's root for our Florida friends, but not too heartily.
Verdict: Go Phins, but we're not holding up any foam fingers.
Carolina Panthers (5-5) at Atlanta Falcons (3-6), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
Which of these NFC South opponents do we most enjoy seeing get beat? For me, it's the Falcons, easily (though they are still behind the Saints). Unfortunately, that's not what we should be rooting for this weekend. This is a simple matter of the division standings, and the Panthers are the Bucs' closest competitors even after a surprising home loss to the Saints in Week 10. No, we don't want to see Atlanta claw back into this race, but the more immediate concern is maintaining or increasing that 1.5-game cushion in the division race. This week, we're all Bijan fans, whether he's on our fantasy team or not.
Verdict: Go Falcons, unfortunately.
Los Angeles Chargers (7-3) at Jacksonville Jaguars (5-4), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
Cincinnati Bengals (3-6) at Pittsburgh Steelers (5-4), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
Houston Texans (4-5) at Tennessee Titans (1-8), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
Here's the usual block of early-afternoon all-AFC contests. The Buccaneers have only played and will only play one of these six teams, having beaten the Texans in Week Two. For the very mild reason of strength of victory and strength of schedule numbers for future potential tiebreakers, we should be rooting for the Texans every week, so there's one. The Chargers-Jaguars matchup is the most interesting one in terms of the AFC race, and I'll beat a dead horse by once again (I know, it's getting old) rooting for the Chargers because their uniforms are about 10,000 times better than their opponents this week.
Verdict: Go Texans and powder blue!
Chicago Bears (6-3) at Minnesota Vikings (4-5), Sunday, 1:00 p.m. ET
The Bears are one of the NFL's most interesting teams this season, and if you didn't grow up in St. Louis like me, despising every Chicago team, you're probably tempted to root for Caleb Williams and company. And you know what? That's okay! The Bears are tied with the Lions atop the NFC North, and given that the Bucs have already lost to Detroit, we'd probably rather see Chicago come out on top in that division. If Tampa Bay can hold onto its lead in the NFC South and ends up tied with the NFC North winner in the overall standings, we'd rather not be in a tiebreaker situation with Detroit. In addition, it's in the Bucs' overall interest to have the field of NFC contenders thinned out as much as possible. We'll probably go back to rooting against the Bears soon, which will soothe my heart, but this week it's okay to give them our support.
Verdict: Twelve-year-old Scott would be mad at me for saying this, but Go Bears!