Detroit Lions vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Week 16 Game Preview

A look into the history between the Detroit Lions and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers over the years.

Detroit and Tampa Bay have faced each other 59 times over the course of history, one of those during the post-season. Who remembers when they were in the same division?

Yeah, I’m that old.

The overall record between the two teams is 31-28 in favor of the Detroit Lions.

The last time these two teams faced each other was December 15, 2019. Jameis Winston was still the quarterback for the Buccaneers. David Blough for the Lions. There were even fans in attendance. Something that seems too good to be true during this pandemic.

Both teams attempted to air it out in this matchup by throwing for over 40 pass attempts each. Winston and the Tampa Bay offense were far more successful, though, with Jameis throwing for 458-yards and four scores. Blough threw for 260-yards and two interceptions.

Just in case you wanted to re-live that memory once again. Now, with the most recent matchup being talked about above, go back in time to look at one of the first matchups between the Lions and the Buccaneers.

Since I couldn’t find any info on their first-ever matchup in 1977, I decided to jump to their second outing on September 9, 1978. It was a pretty well-balanced game, with both teams relying on the rushing of their respective running backs. Dexter Bussey for Detroit and Ricky Bell for the Buccaneers. Detroit won that game in a defensive battle, 15-7.

(Matchup stats and figures courtesy of footballdb.com)