NFL Playoff odds: Buccaneers join the race

Four weeks ago, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were 3-5 and heading for the NFL cellars once again, with tough games against the Seattle Seahawks and Kansas City Chiefs just around the corner. Since then, the Bucs have won three straight games, are 6-5 and just one game out of the NFC South lead.

Just as significantly, they’re only half a game behind an NFC wild card, with Washington in the lead there holding a 6-4-1 record. In other words: the Bucs are now really close to nabbing a playoff spot for the first time since the 2007 season. This is the closest they’ve come since 2010, in fact.

That said, the road to get there is not easy. The Bucs either need the 7-4 Atlanta Falcons to drop a game or…