SAN DIEGO -- Tampa Bay Buccaneers co-chairman Bryan Glazer traded hugs with his brother Joel and COO Bryan Ford inside a tiny hallway of Qualcomm Stadium. General manager Jason Licht would soon follow. They were standing just outside the Bucs locker room, where singing could be heard, along with shouts of joy and pure elation. They might as well have been shouting it from atop nearby Sunset Cliffs, or Razor Point, or any other picturesque spot in San Diego.

While you're at it -- take a picture of this: the Bucs are playoff contenders.

Read it out loud. Say it twice.

Yes, it's really true.

After starting the season 1-3 and failing to win at home until Week 10, the Buccaneers are now 7-5 after a 28-21 win over the San Diego Chargers, giving them their first four-game winning streak since 2012. Coupled with a one-point loss by the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, they Bucs have moved into a first-place tie in the NFC South.

"I've been asking for this for seven years," said defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, a former No. 3 overall pick who's been to the Pro Bowl four times but never the playoffs. Few in the Bucs locker room actually have, and the ones who have were part of other teams.

Backup safety Keith Tandy, who started in place of injured Chris Conte, recorded a touchdown-saving interception to preserve the win with 3:01 to go. He, too, has waited a long time for this.

The Buccaneers' defense has been adept at forcing turnovers during their four-game winning streak. Jeff Gross/Getty Images

"It's the first time since I've been here for five years that we've actually been playing meaningful football in December," Tandy said. "I can't lie to you. It's a great feeling. But we also know we've got a lot of work to do. So we're going to take 24 hours to celebrate and then get back to work."

That work includes preparing for the first of two contests against the New Orleans Saints this weekend, and a very tough Dallas Cowboys team in Dallas. Both of those games have been flexed, with the Dallas game moving to Sunday Night Football due to the Bucs' recent rise in popularity and four-game win streak that includes five straight road wins.

Where did all this come from?

"I just think we're one of those teams that is starting to believe," said head coach Dirk Koetter who, weeks ago, said this team couldn't get out of its own way. Now they're in the hunt for the playoffs and just might win the division.

"It's crazy what confidence can do when you start making plays. It seems to build on itself."

Quarterback Jameis Winston has been taking better care of the football, while the defense, no longer forced into unfavorable field position and relatively healthy, is playing free. And they're all finally on the same page. It took them reaching the lowest point of their season -- a two-game stretch where they surrendered over 1,000 yards defensively -- to get them there. They dug their way out.

Winston stood in front of teammates and read a heartfelt letter, telling them the season wasn't over. Last week, McCoy gave a tearful pre-game speech about family and what it means to have each other's backs. They've responded like one.

"We're the same football team. We're just not beating ourselves," McCoy said of the turnaround. "Earlier on in the season -- it was like Coach Koetter said -- we were beating ourselves. We played some really good teams earlier on in the season but we turned the ball over and we weren't taking the ball away. If you look at it, since we've been winning, we haven't been turning the ball over and we've been taking the ball away."

What's been the difference-maker?

"[We're] playing together. Just trusting one another, trusting the process and putting in the work every day," McCoy said. "The players are doing more than what we were doing. The coaches took a big lead early on in the season, but they said, 'If this thing is gonna change, the players are gonna have to do it.' Guys are meeting more, communicating more and it's paying off for us."

Defensive end Robert Ayers, who has regained his stride since being out for several weeks with an ankle sprain, said this has been his expectation, to make a push for the playoffs.

"The best teams, they close out games," he said. "We've got to close out games, especially in November and December. That's when it matters the most. We're trying to make a good playoff run. We've just got to try and keep fighting and finish every game and every practice and every day."

"My confidence doesn't necessarily come from wins. Wins just confirm what I already believe. I already believe that we can beat anybody. I already believe that no team can beat us if we're on top of our game. Wins just confirm that to me."