Category: Game Day

5 key takeaways from the Bucs lopsided 30-7 win over the Giants

The Bucs came to East Rutherford, New Jersey, desperate for a win, as they had lost their previous four games before last week’s bye.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers came to East Rutherford, New Jersey, desperate for a win, as they had lost their previous four games before last week’s bye.

Not only did the Todd Bowles team come out of the bye week looking refreshed, they made a statement on all sides of the ball, improving to 5-6 on the year and keeping their playoff hopes alive. Here are five key takeaways from today’s 30-7 win over the Giants.

Bucky Irving is RB1

The Buccaneers are known around the league as a team that struggles to run the football. Part of the issue is the running back by committee approach that Liam Coen runs. It’s impossible for any of the Bucs RBs to become “the hot hand” and get something going on the ground when they are constantly being rotated out (this is also covered later on the defensive side). Bucky Irving has been the clear-cut RB1 for the Buccaneers for the last handful of games, and it seems like the only ones that cannot see that are on the Bucs sideline. Totaling only 12 of the team’s 28 designed carries, Irving led the backfield with 87 yards- an average of 7.3 yards per carry. Irving tied Mike Evans with six receptions for the team lead, not only effective on the ground, netting 64 receiving yards. It was understood how dangerous Rachaad White was catching passes out the back. However, Irving has proven to be just as, if not better, at being a pass-catching back than White.

Keep your best players on the field

Throughout the season, namely the four-game losing streak, Bowles was rarely keeping his best defensive line players on the field at the same time. All too often, Vita Vea, Calijah Kancey, and Yaya Diaby were around the mid-60 % of defensive snaps played, which is unacceptable for your star players, who are healthy, to see snap counts that low. This game proved to be different, and while the official snap counts are not out, it was a noticeable effort to keep their best players on the field, and it made a distinct difference, registering four sacks of Tommy DeVito.

Mike Evans opens up the offense

Needless to say, one of the best Buccaneers players in the history of the franchise is a good player. However, it was extremely apparent as Mayfield was able to effectively spread the ball around. Mayfield connected with 11 different players, completing 24 of 30 for 294 yards on the day. The Giants have the best-passing defense that they have faced in the last five games in terms of yards allowed, which begs the question, was it a mistake not to try and trade for another well-established wide receiver when Evans went down?

Playing with urgency

The Buccaneers never let up off the gas throughout the game, no matter what the score was, which is proving to be the recipe for success. Against the Falcons in their Week 5 OT loss, it was a winnable game had the playcalling been more urgent rather than designed screen passes. The controversy of not going for two and not attempting to win against the Kansas City Chiefs in regulation. Not having anyone to catch passes that were not a running back or Cade Otton over that four-game stretch showed that this team has the talent to play with and beat the best that the NFL has to offer. However, they just seem to go on cruise control at the wrong time. Today was not the case and should be the blueprint for the Bucs for the remainder of the season, as they are on the bubble of making the playoffs.

Outcoaching bad coaches

Bowles is not a bad coach. He may be too conservative and make calls that those of us who are not on the sidelines question, but he is not a bad coach. Brian Daboll is not a good coach, and Bowles stepped up and outcoached the Giants. Mistakes are going to happen, as no team, player, or coach is perfect, but continuing to play with urgency and Bowles stepping up and outcoaching the remaining six coaches that the team plays against to close out the regular season is something that needs to happen.

5 key takeways from the Bucs 23-20 loss to the 49ers

In a game that was not nearly as close as the scoreboard would indicate, here are 5 key takeaways as the Bucs continue to look for answers.

In what was sort of a midseason battle of attrition of under-performing teams between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and San Francisco 49ers, the Buccaneers once again fell short, this time in regulation as Jake Moody hit a game-winning FG as the clock expired.

In a game that was not nearly as close as the scoreboard would indicate, here are 5 key takeaways as the Buccaneers continue to look for answers following their fourth-straight loss.

The Buccaneers are not built for close games

Close games are traditionally won by out-coaching your opposition. Todd Bowles is unable to do that and has proven it time and time again. Whether it is poor clock management or just simply playing without a killer instinct and playing to win, Bowles is overstaying his welcome among fans. Offensive coordinator Liam Coen, who would be the front-runner to take over the team should the Buccaneers make the unlikely midseason move at head coach, has continued to show flashes of great calling, followed by headscratchers. On the season, the Buccaneers

Bucky Irvin should be RB1 from now on

Of that headscratcher, as mentioned above, decisions would be why the Buccaneers have not named rookie RB Bucky Irving the clear-cut RB1 after routinely out-gaining Rachaad White on running plays. White is dynamic in the passing game; however, splitting nearly 50% of carries every week is less than ideal as Irving is not only the team leader in rushing yards but out-gains White by over a yard per carry, which is a lot considering how close the Buccaneers games have been as of late.

Defense is poorly indescribable

Injuries be damned. Players get hurt weekly, and there is no excuse for how poor this Buccaneers defense is, especially with the number of self-inflicted wounds we see weekly. That falls back on coaching. Bowles continued odd-man substitutions rarely allow for his best players to be on the field at the same time, namely on the defensive line. In last week’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs, Yaya Diaby, Vita Vea, and Calijah Kancey all saw more than 55% of defensive snaps, which was the highest for all three players all season. Antoine Winfield Jr. has to put 120% effort into every play, not to account for a lack of talent but for a lack of effort from his teammates, which is a recipe for disaster as the season progresses.

The lack of depth at WR should’ve been addressed

The NFL trade deadline came and went, and all the while, the Buccaneers were missing superstar WRs Mike Evans and Chris Godwin. This left Mayfield solely to rely on a young and unproven wide receiver corps, as Jason Licht and the Bucs front office chose to stand pat and not make a move. TE Cade Otton has emerged as Mayfield’s favorite–and most reliable– target over the last several weeks; outside of Otton and the Bucs running backs being utilized in the passing game, it’s become a total crapshoot if and when someone else will step up. Luckily for the Buccaneers, Mayfield continues to toe the line as an outlier in the MVP conversation. Evans will likely return following the bye, which should help open up the offense more.

Bucs playoff hopes dwindling

Per The Athletic, the Buccaneers entered Week 10 with only a 21% chance of making the playoffs, and with another NFC loss to a team in the Wild Card picture, that only makes things harder. Five of the remaining seven games are against fellow NFC teams, making each a must-win bout. As the Bucs enter the bye week, they will look to address some of the problems in hopes of shoring up the defense. In Week 12, the Buccaneers will play against the New York Giants, who have been a mess all season, with the caveat that Bowles has never won a game following a Bye Week.

Bucs set franchise record for offensive yards against Saints

No team has had a more eventful 10-day stretch than the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but on Sunday they were able to push it all aside.

No team has had a more eventful 10-day stretch than the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. From last week’s overtime shootout loss to the Atlanta Falcons to being displaced over 700 miles in New Orleans since Tuesday due to Hurricane Milton, the Bucs had all the makings of a “putting up a dud” coming into their Week 6 divisional matchup against the New Orleans Saints.

From the opening kickoff, where the Bucs elected to receive the ball, they never really let off the gas on the offensive side of the ball.

In fact, when the final whistle blew, the Bucs set a new franchise record for offensive yards with a net total of 594. Bucky Irving and Sean Tucker combined for 277 yards on the ground, while Baker Mayfield threw for 325 yards in the air.

The previous record of 588 yards came from a Tom Brady-led 47-7 win over the Detroit Lions in 2020, the year the Bucs won the Super Bowl.

5 key takeaways from the Bucs overtime loss to the Falcons in Week 5

Here are five key takeaways from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 36-30 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

Now and then, Thursday Night Football puts on a fun and energetic game, and tonight was nothing short of a barnburner. Combining for nearly 800 yards of offense in a game that came down to the last second of regulation as Younghoe Koo hit a game-tying 54-yard FG- if you had no skin in the game, this was one of those games.

Unfortunately for Bucs fans, the Falcons successfully defended their home field, scoring a touchdown on the first drive in overtime. Here are five key takeaways from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 36-30 loss to the Atlanta Falcons.

Offense can score with the best in the league

Scoring 30 points in three-of-five games this season, it’s a safe bet that this Buccaneers offense not only can score but also keep up with the league’s best. Ironically, as potent as they have looked, the Bucs offense is in the middle of the pack due to their inability to run the ball effectively. Fast starts in the last two weeks have shown flashes of how easily the Bucs offense can move the ball down the field, and worst case scenario, have the most account long-range kicker in NFL history put three points on the board.

Baker Mayfield is a Top 10 quarterback

Mayfield’s name is all over the place regarding a quarterback power ranking. However, it’s rarely in the Top 10- and it’s time to discuss Mayfield being a Top 10 quarterback in the NFL. Mayfield plays with just the right amount of recklessness, but you can still trust him with the ball during crucial moments. The quarterback has displayed a do-it-all ability to scramble out of the pocket with 42 yards on the ground. Entering Thursday’s game, Mayfield had the fourth-highest passer rating, was second in TD passes, and top six in passing yards.

Rachaad White and Bucky Irving are a severely underrated duo

Running back duos with similar play styles is becoming more popular. In the past, it was a workhorse, a powerful back for early downs, with a pass-catching change-of-pace back for passing downs. As Liam Coen and the Bucs figure out how best to utilize Rachaad White and Bucky Irving, it’s becoming apparent that this tandem fits the mold of what the backfields are becoming in the NFL. As versatile as both White and Irving are, the way they have played the last two weeks, this duo needs to be discussed among the league’s best running back duos.

Defense still needs work

This is a banged-up Buccaneers defense playing against a rival team that game plans for them twice a year and with the importance of divisional games- arguably plans stricter than 11 of the other games they will play this season. The Bucs defense allowed 36 points and a whopping 550 yards. Shootouts will happen, however, since Week 1, opposing offenses have out-gained the Bucs offense because the defense has been unable to play a complete game. Bend but don’t break defense works to keep teams out of the endzone, but it gives up a lot of yards and, in turn, keeps the defense on the field much longer than any of them would like. Not even being one of the top pressure-generating defenses in the league can save them

Todd Bowles needs to step up play-calling

This goes hand-in-hand with the above takeaway. There is no reason for the amount of cushion the secondary gave the Falcons receivers. This aligns with the loss to the Denver Broncos that left many wondering why the defense was playing so soft, especially coming off of a game where they made Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles almost look like a team amid a rebuild. For a defensive mastermind like Bowles, Bucs fans should expect better.

5 key takeaways from the Bucs 33-16 route of the Eagles

This Buccaneers team did just that, stifling Jalen Hurts and the Eagles on defense and easily moving the ball down the field on offense.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers suffered an embarrassing loss last week to the Denver Broncos and needed a bounce-back win in an important game against a conference opponent and playoff powerhouse as the Philadelphia Eagles came to town. This Buccaneers team did just that, stifling Jalen Hurts and the Eagles on defense and easily moving the ball down the field on offense.

Here are five key takeaways from the Buccaneers’ 33-16 route over the Eagles.

1. All gas, no brakes

Beating the Detroit Lions and then losing to the Broncos was a head-scratcher for most if not all, Bucs fans. From the opening snap in Week 3, the Buccaneers looked sluggish and could not get anything going on either side of the ball. After a week-long cry for more energy and effort, the Buccaneers came out in Week 4, firing on all cylinders and never letting up. We often see a team go up big and then play prevent defense to close out the game. This was not the case for the Bucs today, and it showed that this team can dominate games.

2. Buccaneers are capable of dominating games

One thing of note, while the Buccaneers are 3-1 on the season now, they were outplayed by both the Lions and Broncos, as the play-calling (for both offense and defense) was more conservative. The Buccaneers defense gave up 0 net yards in the first quarter for the first time since 2002 in Carolina. In every level of this game, the Buccaneers were able to dominate the Eagles. Putting up 445 yards of offense and allowing just 227 yards while tallying nearly 13 more minutes of possession, there was nothing that the Bucs couldn’t do as they had their way all afternoon.

3. Vita Vea is the engine for the Bucs defense

The Buccaneers defense has so many great players, but it’s extremely noticeable when Vita Vea misses time. Coming into the game, the Eagles were the holders of the NFL’s third-best rushing offense, and while the box score may show that the Buccaneers allowed 113 yards on the ground- 59 of those yards came on one, Saquon Barkley run. Led by Lavonte David’s two sacks, the Buccaneers got to Hurts in the backfield six times on the day, six more times than the defense got to Broncos rookie quarterback Bo Nix just a week prior.

4. Rushing attack was attacking

Exploiting matchups is always a key to success. While the Bucs ground game has struggled in the beginning of the season, we saw what it was capable of on the legs of Rachaad White in 2023. The Eagles’ defense was ranked 24th in the league, and Liam Coen was able to exploit a defense that had largely been unable to stop the run in its first three games. Against the Broncos, it was predictable what the Bucs offense was going to run based on the personnel on the field. It was a different tune when this team took the field against the Eagles as Coen threw in some wrinkles to his offense. Earlier in the week, Todd Bowles said that Bucky Irving had earned more touches with this play, and saw just that. Both White and Irving each had 10 carries for 49 yards. Was it a barnburner effort with 100+ yards from a running back? No. But that is not typically how this team operates, and it doesn’t appear that it will function outside of a duo-laced backfield.

5. A healthy Sterling Shepard could set this offense ablaze

Former New York Giants wide receiver Sterling Shepard was signed to the Bucs active roster and totaled 3 receptions for 51 yards on 5 targets. If you watched Shepard with the Giants, his availability is the only knock on his game. Adding a healthy Shepard to a team that arguably has the best wide receiver duo in the NFL with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin could be the missing piece on offense, as it could truly turn into a “pick your poison” for opposing defenses. Even more when you add the element of White and Irving being solid pass-catching backs. It will certainly be worth watching how this develops as the season progresses.

WATCH: Bucs LB Lavonte David gets a strip-sack of Jalen Hurts

Lavonte David comes up with a huge defensive play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers again.

Lavonte David comes up with a huge defensive play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers again.

With the Philadelphia Eagles in the red zone looking to cut the Bucs lead down to one score, David records a strip-sack on Jalen Hurts, giving the Bucs linebacker his 30th career forced fumble.

With the 30th forced fumble under his belt, David is now tied with Khalil Mack for the lead among active players. The 13-year veteran has totaled 34.5 career sacks, which ties him for seventh-most in Bucs franchise history with Chidi Ahanotu.

  1. Warren Sapp – 77.0
  2. Simeon Rice – 69.5
  3. Gerald McCoy – 54.5
  4. Shaquil Barrett – 45.0
  5. Chidi Ahanotu – 34.5

Tom Brady responds to Baker Mayfield’s comments during game’s broadcast

Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield was asked about how his role within the organization meshes with his personality ahead of today’s game.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield was asked about how his role within the organization meshes with his personality ahead of Sunday’s game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Bucs.

“They wanted me to come in, be myself, bring the joy back to football for guys who weren’t having as much fun,” Mayfield told reporters.

Tom Brady responded to those comments on the Fox broadcast during Sunday’s game. “I thought stressful was not having Super Bowl rings,” Brady responded. As a good portion of the current Bucs roster was on the Super Bowl winning team of the 2020 NFL season, Brady added “There was a mindset of a champion that I took to work everyday.”

“This wasn’t daycare. If I wanted to have fun, I was going to go to Disneyland (World) with my kids,” Brady concluded.

Likely, Mayfield was referencing the last year Brady was the Bucs’ quarterback, when the team finished 8-9 and nothing seemed to gel across the board. Nonetheless, what an exchange from the greatest of all-time to his successor, who has repeatedly stated that he was not here to fill in Brady’s shoes or be the second-coming of the former Bucs quarterback—but to be the best Baker Mayfield he could be.

5 key takeaways in the Bucs 26-7 loss to the Broncos

Following a huge win over the Lions last week, emotions were high, and suddenly, the Buccaneers had a lot of attention aimed at them.

Following a huge win over the Detroit Lions last week, emotions were high, and suddenly, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a lot of attention aimed at them.

Welcoming in an 0-2 Denver Broncos team led by Bo Nix, who had yet to score a touchdown – neither passing nor rushing – in his rookie season, this had either trap game written all over it, or the Bucs would assert their dominance.

Unfortunately for the Buccaneers, it would be the former. As the Buccaneers fall to 2-1 on the season, here are five key takeaways from their 26-7  loss to the Broncos.

1. Offensive line still struggling to protect Baker Mayfield

We saw the Bucs offensive line have a difficult time protecting QB Baker Mayfield last week and it was essentially chalked up as Justin Skule drawing the extremely difficult task of blocking Aidan Hutchinson. Today was more of the same, except the difference is that the Broncos’ secondary is a bit more stingy than the Lions. With tighter coverage and an often collapsing pocket, Mayfield could not find his footing and evade pressure. Skule struggled again. However, the mistakes were all over the offensive line. Assuming there are no setbacks, Luke Goedeke should be back next week- but it’s difficult to think that he alone is the missing link to the offensive line’s protection issues.

2. Lack of depth on defensive line was on full display

For most of the game, Nix remained comfortable in the pocket. With both Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey inactive, William Gholston and Joe Tryon-Shoyinka banged up all week. It left only a healthy Yaya Diaby as the only healthy starter on the defensive line.

3. Bucky Irving needs to be utilized more

In three games this season, Bucky Irving has been primarily used as the change-of-pace back for the Bucs, with Rachaad White getting the early-down carriers. White displayed a great ability to catch the ball out of the backfield last season, but Irving also possesses that same ability while being a bit shiftier- as he displayed against the Broncos. Suppose the Bucs continue to struggle to keep Mayfield’s pocket clean. In that case, it might be time for Liam Coen to dial up some two-back sets or add some wrinkles to the playbook and get Irving involved and on the field more, and his explosive play needs to be capitalized upon while it’s still early in the season.

4. Absolutely no energy on either side of the ball

The lack of energy was apparent from the first drive. Beat a good opponent and then falling flat the following week has been the cycle over the last three seasons since Todd Bowles has been the head coach. The secondary was playing prevent defense from the first quarter, and with the defensive line unable to get after Nix, the Broncos wide receivers had plenty of real estate to allow for easy, uncontested catches on a much more frequent basis than any defensive coordinator would like to see; alas that was what we saw from the Bucs secondary today.

5. Offensive play-calling looked predictable

Perhaps a testament to the Broncos’ defense, the Bucs’ offense looked stagnant and predictable for about 75% of the game until late in the fourth quarter. Irving was clearly the hot hand in the Bucs backfield and only surpassed Rachaad White in carries until five minutes remained. Many fans were having PTSD of the Byron Leftwich “run it on first down, no matter what” play calls on social media, the Broncos defense looked a step ahead the entire day. Even though the Bucs won in Detroit in Week 2, the offense was still significantly out-gained by the Lions, by over 200 yards. As stated above, seeing Coen open up the playbook a little more would be a welcome addition.

Buccaneers announce inactives ahead of Week 3 vs Broncos

No surprises but does show cause for concern on the defensive line in what could be considered a trap game for the Buccaneers.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers announce inactives ahead of their Week 3 matchup against the Denver Broncos. It doesn’t feature any surprises but does show cause for concern on the defensive line in what could be considered an early-season trap game for the Buccaneers.

  • TE Devin Culp
  • T Luke Goedeke
  • WR Kameron Johnson
  • DT Calijah Kancey
  • OLB Jose Ramirez
  • DT Vita Vea
  • S Antonie Winfield Jr

Luke Goedeke will miss another game in concussion protocol, which puts Justin Skule back in the starting role, looking to recover from a rough outing, allowing 4.5 sacks to Aidan Hutchinson last Sunday. The good news is that while the Broncos blitz at the highest rate in the NFL on passing plays, Baker Mayfield is the 2nd best quarterback in the league against the blitz. Also, Skule will not have to block anyone near the same level as Hutchinson.

Clijah Kancey is a big miss after going down with a calf injury and missing practice all week, especially with Vea not suiting up and William Gholston missing practice on Wednesday with a knee and logging two limited practice designations on Thursday and Friday.

INJURY UPDATE: Zyon McCollum OUT with concussion

Starting cornerback Zyon McCollum is being evaluated for a concussion.

UPDATE: Buccaneers starting cornerback Zyon McCollum has been ruled OUT for the rest of the game with a concussion:

https://twitter.com/BuccaneersComms/status/1832892775160811776

McCollum came off the field in the first quarter following a tackle attempt on Washington Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr., who appeared to pick up a first down off a pass from rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. The play was called back on an illegal block penalty.

With McCollum ruled out, he is replaced by CB Bryce Hall across starting CB Jamel Dean. The injury may also press second-year CB Josh Hayes into action.