![23-001 [2023 WaitlistTicket Sales _ Single Game Tickets] - Detroit Lions SGT Ads -OrganicMA_4x5-04 (1)](https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/private/t_editorial_landscape_12_desktop_2x/t_lazy/f_png/buccaneers/qw1ck2btozckhqnc5fjt.png)
The 2023 Tampa Bay Buccaneers are becoming appointment viewing.
The NFL announced that the Buccaneers' next game – at home against the Detroit Lions on Sunday, October 15 in Week Six – has been "flexed" from its original early-afternoon slot of 1:00 p.m. ET to 4:25 p.m. on that same day. It will still be televised by FOX, but the later time slot will allow the game to be viewed by a much larger national audience.
After five weeks, the Buccaneers are 3-1 and in in first place in the NFC South, which likely exceeds national preseason expectations for the team. Meanwhile, the Lions, who are also in first place in their division, are off to a 4-1 start. As such, the NFL is shining a brighter light on that mid-October matchup between two teams that have emerged as potential playoff contenders.
That greater audience will also witness a showcase of something the Buccaneers and their fans have been anticipating for a long time: The return of the 'Creamsicle' uniforms the team wore from 1976 through 1996. Following a Week Five bye, the Buccaneers will sport the orange-and-white uniforms they wore in a series of throwback games from 2009-2012 before new helmet rules made that impossible for roughly a decade.
The Buccaneers' long-awaited Creamsicle Game will evoke the franchise's rich history of nearly 50 years with more than just the popular orange jerseys and white helmets with the original Bucco Bruce logos. In addition, Raymond James Stadium will be transformed on game day to pay homage to Tampa Stadium, which was affectionately nicknamed 'The Big Sombrero.' That will include retro field stencils, stadium bunting and video board assets.
The NFL has used a "flexible scheduling procedure" since 2006 to present notable matchups to wider audiences, and in 2023 that procedure was expanded to include Monday night and Thursday night games. For contests flexed from early to late afternoon on Tuesday, the league must inform teams and their fans of the change at least 12 days before the game.
