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Chris Simms Picks Bucs To Be No. 4 Seed In NFC Playoffs September 8th, 2026More optimism is flowing for your Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Baker Mayfield is going to be shocked. Just three weeks ago, Mayfield said he was seeing and expecting everybody in the media to be picking against the Buccaneers. It wasn’t accurate then, and it certainly isn’t now. Season predictions are coming in fast and furious this week with the NFL’s opening day tomorrow. Former Bucs quarterback, Team Glazer 2025 suite guest and NBC Sports Xs and Os guru Chris Simms popped his predictions today and landed with Tampa Bay winning the NFC South. Simms had a handful of key thoughts: *The Bucs and Panthers have the division’s best defensive fronts but the Panthers offense is too bad to take seriously. *The Bucs offensive line is darn good but Simms isn’t as high on it as many others are. *Simms has “big questions about the [Bucs’] secondary.” *On the slimy Saints: “When I looked at [the Saints’] roster, I just went, ‘man, they need another player here, another player there.’ They’re just not quite there yet.” *Simms sees Baker Mayfield carrying the team in the division, along with how the Bucs could have a totallly different defense (as in ‘good’) this season if Calijah Kancey and Vita Vea can remain healthy. *It’s a No. 4 seed for the Bucs, per Simms, nothing more than winning the NFC South landfill. Simms co-host on his Unbuttoned podcast, rising NBC star Connor Rogers, also picked the Bucs to win the division.