The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will battle the Washington Commanders in the penultimate game of the Wild Card Round. The Commanders are on a five-game winning streak entering the playoffs, while the Bucs won their Week 18 game to clinch the NFC South title and the No. 3 seed.
This is another Week 1 rematch after the Buccaneers beat the Commanders 37-20 to start the season. Washington hasn’t won a playoff game since 2006; Tampa Bay lost to the Detroit Lions in the Divisional Round a year ago. Here are the voices you can expect to hear during the Buccaneers vs. Commanders game.
Announcers for Buccaneers vs. Commanders
- Lead Play-by-Play Announcer: Mike Tirico
- Color Commentators: Cris Collinsworth
- Sideline Reporters: Melissa Stark
The Sunday night clash will feature Mike Tirico as the lead play-by-play announcer. Tirico is a fan-favorite broadcaster who often brings insightful commentary and has a knack for engaging the late-evening NFL audience.
Tirico was a play-by-play announcer on ESPN’s Monday Night Football from 2006 to 2015 before moving to NBC’s Sunday Night Football. His voice has become synonymous with high-stakes, prime-time football.
The veteran broadcaster has covered the Olympics, World Cup soccer, NBA, NHL, college sports, golf, tennis, and even the Indy 500. If you name it, Tirico has probably covered it.
Cris Collinsworth will join Tirico as the color analyst on Sunday night. Collinsworth is in his 16th season providing game analysis for Sunday Night Football. He has won 17 Emmy awards across his stops at HBO, FOX, and the NFL Network. Collinsworth played wide receiver for eight seasons with the Cincinnati Bengals, from 1981 to 1988, and made three Pro Bowls.
Collinsworth often gets criticized for sounding too repetitive during broadcasts. However, no one can deny that he and Tirico work well together.
Melissa Stark will share her notes from the field. Stark is in her third season as a sideline reporter for NBC. Along with NBC, she worked for ESPN and the NFL Network during her career. Stark covered an NFL game as a sideline reporter for the 100th time late in the regular season.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Washington Commanders Game Preview
- Location: Tampa, Raymond James Stadium
- Time: 8 p.m. ET
- Channel: NBC/Peacock
The Commanders finished the season with the sixth-lowest turnover rate in the league, which puts the offense in a position to succeed as often as any. This fuels their fourth-place ranking in points per drive.
Jayden Daniels is already one of the elite dual-threat quarterbacks after one season. His scrambling has led to a ridiculous 56.0 EPA, while no other QB has more than 35.7 EPA on scrambles this year.
The Buccaneers had to sweat it out, but they got everything they could have hoped for in Week 18. The Bucs clinched the NFC South and got Mike Evans his record-tying 11th straight 1,000-yard receiving season.
The offense certainly earned the right to play postseason football. Baker Mayfield had a career year, joining Tom Brady as the only two players in franchise history with 40 passing touchdowns in a season. That allowed Tampa to post a top-five ranking in both EPA per rush and pass success rate.
On the season as a whole, the Commanders’ offensive line has done a good job in pass protection, given just how long Daniels holds the ball (3.01 seconds; seventh). Whether it’s in the face of the blitz or not, Daniels is in the top 10 for both in terms of time to throw (or be sacked).
The Buccaneers’ offensive line has undeniably been one of the most improved units in the NFL this season. They have been the NFL’s second-best unit over the past four weeks, including three games graded as B- or above.
Tampa Bay’s pressure rate (24.4%) is the lowest in the league, and they have impressive numbers whether facing the blitz or not.
The Commanders were a below-average defense for most of the season, which their final Defense+ ranking reflects (17th overall, Grade: C). Ultimately, Washington’s performance was largely fairly consistent based on their level of competition.
For the season, the Commanders ranked 24th in defensive EPA per dropback, the third-lowest among the 14 playoff teams.
Quietly, the Buccaneers defense has improved since returning from their bye in Week 12. A soft schedule helped, but the Bucs rank third in EPA per play, first in third-down defense, and fourth in red-zone defense over that span.
A Wild Card matchup against the likely Offensive Rookie of the Year will be a bigger test. However, the Bucs did hand Daniels and Co. a convincing defeat in Week 1.