Like in any sport, a team can ride a wave of good momentum to a playoff appearance. The NFL isn’t an exception, as some teams that started their season slowly turned their fortunes around. With the 2024 season halfway through, one of the 15 teams with a losing record could follow that script.
As the Fox Sports NFL account on X (formerly Twitter) pointed out, nine AFC and six NFC teams are below .500 through Week 11. One of these teams, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, faces the same fate as last year.
Injuries to key players like Mike Evans and Chris Godwin have hampered the Buccaneers’ fight for the NFC South title. After winning four of their first six games, Tampa Bay lost four consecutive games. Sadly, three of those losses were by six points or less.
In 18 of the last 20 years, at least one team with a losing record after 11 games has qualified for the playoffs, including in each of the past six seasons.
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 21, 2024
The Packers, Rams, and Buccaneers did so in 2023 pic.twitter.com/zIFwW1uiv5
However, getting Evans back for Week 12 against the New York Giants could be the spark they need to clinch a postseason berth. Last season, the Buccaneers entered the playoffs despite starting with a 4-7 record. They won five of their last six games to win the division, which allowed them to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles in the Wild Card Round.
Meanwhile, the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins are surprisingly among the teams with losing records. The Cowboys are 3-7 after finishing the 2023 regular season at 12-5. Likewise, the Dolphins had an 11-6 record before going 4-6 this season. However, the Dolphins could be peaking after winning their last two games.
-Lance Fernandez