2004 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The 2004 Tampa Bay Buccaneers went 5–11, finishing 4th in the NFC South, and missed the playoffs. They scored 301 points and allowed 304.
- Record
- 5–11
- Home
- 4–4
- Road & neutral
- 1–7
- Points
- 301–304
- NFC South
- Place 4 of 4
- Postseason
- Did not qualify
Where the season ranked
They scored 301 points, the tenth-fewest among the 32 teams, and allowed 304, tied for the ninth-fewest. Their point differential was -3.
How the season unfolded
The Buccaneers opened with four straight losses and were 3–5 after eight games. They lost their last four games to finish 5–11.
Their longest losing streak was four games, from Week 1 to Week 4.
Best and worst games
Their biggest win was 35–3 over the San Francisco 49ers in Week 11 (November 21, 2004).
Their heaviest loss was 37–20 to the Carolina Panthers in Week 16 (December 26, 2004).
They shut out the Atlanta Falcons (Week 13).
In games decided by eight points or fewer, they went 2–8.
Division and playoff opponents
They went 2–4 against the NFC South, splitting with the Saints and the Falcons and getting swept by the Panthers.
Against teams that reached the playoffs, they went 1–5 in the regular season.
Postseason
They missed the playoffs. The lowest record among NFC playoff teams was 8–8, three games better than their record.
Before and after
That was two wins fewer than in 2003, when they went 7–9.
In 2005, they went 11–5 and returned to the playoffs.
2004 schedule and results
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Sep 12, 2004 | at Washington | L 10–16 |
| Week 2 | Sep 19, 2004 | vs Seattle Seahawks | L 6–10 |
| Week 3 | Sep 26, 2004 | at Oakland Raiders | L 20–30 |
| Week 4 | Oct 3, 2004 | vs Denver Broncos | L 13–16 |
| Week 5 | Oct 10, 2004 | at New Orleans Saints | W 20–17 |
| Week 6 | Oct 18, 2004 | at St. Louis Rams | L 21–28 |
| Week 7 | Oct 24, 2004 | vs Chicago Bears | W 19–7 |
| Week 9 | Nov 7, 2004 | vs Kansas City Chiefs | W 34–31 |
| Week 10 | Nov 14, 2004 | at Atlanta Falcons | L 14–24 |
| Week 11 | Nov 21, 2004 | vs San Francisco 49ers | W 35–3 |
| Week 12 | Nov 28, 2004 | at Carolina Panthers | L 14–21 |
| Week 13 | Dec 5, 2004 | vs Atlanta Falcons | W 27–0 |
| Week 14 | Dec 12, 2004 | at San Diego Chargers | L 24–31 |
| Week 15 | Dec 19, 2004 | vs New Orleans Saints | L 17–21 |
| Week 16 | Dec 26, 2004 | vs Carolina Panthers | L 20–37 |
| Week 17 | Jan 2, 2005 | at Arizona Cardinals | L 7–12 |
Counted by WHYNFL from the final score of every 2004 game. Division place uses win percentage, then point differential; the NFL's full tiebreaker procedure is not applied.