Buccaneers RB says team needs to 'look in the mirror' and rally after second-half collapse

Through eight weeks, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers were virtually a lock to make it to the playoffs. The team sat at 6-2 and quarterback Baker Mayfield was getting MVP buzz. But as Week 18 approaches, the Bucs are in jeopardy of missing out on the postseason due to a miserable second-half collapse.

Following that hot start, things went downhill for Tampa Bay. The team went 1-7 over its last eight games and now sits at 7-9 on the season. If the team wants to rally to make the playoffs, it has to defeat the Carolina Panthers in Week 18.

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With the season on the line, Buccaneers running back Rachaad White implored his team "look in the mirror" and show some effort to try and salvage the season, according to JoeBucsFan.com.

“It boils down to for me, how I look at it, just being honest, we all just got to look in the mirror. We all gotta have a level of pride, a level of care. And right now, we all just, you know, are kind of floating around and blowing in the wind. So I think we need to come out with our p*** hot and let’s see what happens.”

That's not exactly an encouraging quote as the team limps into the final game of the regular season. While White was careful not to bury his teammates, later saying, "I wouldn’t even say we’ve been having horrible or bad starts," he painted a picture of a team that lacks motivation.

Even if the Buccaneers win in Week 18, the team isn't guaranteed to make the playoffs. If the Atlanta Falcons also win in Week 18, it would set up a three-way tie at the top of the division. With all three teams tied at 8-9, the Panthers would advance since they hold a tiebreaker over the Falcons after beating Atlanta twice this season.

White's comments were likely meant to fire up his teammates, but it might be too late for that. After dropping so many games in the second half, the Buccaneers now need multiple things to go right in order to make the playoffs. The time for motivation was weeks ago, not days before the final game of the regular season.

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It could all work out for the Bucs in the end. Maybe the team defeats the Panthers and the New Orleans Saints take care of business against the Falcons.

If not, major changes could be coming in Tampa Bay, especially after White implied the team needed to do some soul searching ahead of Week 18.