Tag: rachaad white

5 key takeaways from the Bucs pivotal win over the Saints in Week 6

An ever-important bounce-back game was on the docket for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against the New Orleans Saints on the road.

An ever-important bounce-back game was on the docket for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers against the New Orleans Saints following their Week 5 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Not only would the Bucs fall to .500 with a loss, but they would have been 0-2 in the NFC South, a place you do not want to be.

With a commanding 51-27 win over their division rivals, this was more of a giant leap forward for the Bucs team, who improved to 4-2 on the season. Here are 5 key takeaways from Sunday’s pivotal win over the Saints.

The offense once again showed glimpses of explosiveness

For the fourth time in six games, Baker Mayfield and the Bucs have put up more than 30 points, three of those being in winning efforts. Despite three interceptions from Mayfield, two of which should have been catches, Liam Coen never let off the gas in his playcalling. Three fourth-quarter touchdowns were a much different -and welcomed- feeling for Bucs fans as the offense was able to truly shut the door on the Saints in their blowout win.

The Buccaneers have the luxury of two superstar wide receivers and a revolving door of capable running backs. A balanced offensive attack proved the recipe for success against the Saints, as there was a 36-to-35 passing attempt to 35-to-35 rushing attempt split.

Rachaad White might be the odd man out

There will likely continue to be a theme when it comes to figuring out the running back room, and the theme will be uncertainty. A couple of times this season, it appeared that Rachaad White and Bucky Irving could be in the discussion for one of the top duos in the league until they weren’t. That conversation spun off into Irving potentially taking over RB1 duties from White. With White being inactive for Sunday’s matchup against the Saints, insert Sean Tucker into the conversation. Tucker carried the ball 14 times for 136 yards and a touchdown, while Irving also logged 14 carries for 81 yards and a touchdown.

A saving grace for White has been his ability to catch passes and create out of the backfield. However, Tucker finished the day as the team’s second-leading receiver, with 56 yards and a touchdown on three receptions.

The coaching staff will need to figure this out, and with arguably the toughest four-game stretch in the league looming, it might be time to roll the dice and stick with what worked so well against the Saints.

Defense still needs to tighten up

Don’t let the score fool you. Typically a 30+ point effort puts your team into prevent defense and clock-eating mode, that just simply hasn’t been the case for this team more often than not this season. Once up 17-0 early over the Saints, quickly turned into a 3-point 20-17 deficit. Rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler was sacked five times and threw two interceptions on the day, but he never truly looked uncomfortable in the backfield in his first career start.

Only one time throughout their six games have the Buccaneers given up less than 250 yards, and that was to an A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith-less Eagles offense that generated 227 yards of offense. Leaving your offense to win in a shootout is going to be a difficult task, especially with the Baltimore Ravens, Kansas City Chiefs, and San Francisco 49ers coming up. Yes, a crucial game against the Atlanta Falcons should be on the radar as the defense allowed Kirk Cousins to have a career day in Week 5.

Cade Otton isn’t the tight end the Bucs need

As legendary pro wrestling commentator Jim Ross would say, “he’s a good hand.” What that means is that he can be dependable, but there is nothing that truly stands out. It’s not a knock on Otton, but he is incapable of the athletic playmaking that the Buccaneers offense needs. GM Jason Licht is not one to make in-season trades, however, a dynamic playmaking tight end could prove to push this offense into the upper echelon of the consistently elite offenses in the NFL- emphasis on consistently.

Tykee Smith is developing into a solid starter

It’s too early in his career to talk about a budding superstar. After yesterday’s performance, it’s understandable why emotions are high, but let’s bring it back down to earth and talk about what Tykee Smith truly is, and that is a very solid developing star in this Buccaneers defense. Allowing just a 3.5 passer rating -yes, you read that right, 3.5- to Rattler while seeing six targets (second most behind Zyon McCollum’s 7) cannot be ignored. As Jamel Dean has struggled in the first quarter of the 2024 season, and the continued need for Todd Bowles to tighten up the defense, Smith should continue to see more snaps- especially with the return of Antoine Winfield Jr. looming over the top.

 

Bucs vs. Saints Inactives: Rachaad White and Graham Barton out

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will face the New Orleans Saints on Sunday without two key offensive starters.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will face the New Orleans Saints on Sunday without two key offensive starters. Rachaad White and Graham Barton have been ruled out for their Week 6 matchup on the road.

Rachaad White was on the injury report all week with a foot injury, and after being limited in practice, the team decided to play it safe. In his place will be rookie Bucky Irving, who has flashed whenever he touches the ball this season.

Another rookie, Graham Barton, will be inactive after appearing on the team’s injury report after their Week 5 loss to the Falcons. He will miss the game due to a hamstring injury, and Robert Hainsey will start in his place.

Other inactives for the game include Trey Palmer, Kameron Johnson, Christian Izien, and Devin Culp. The wide receiver group missing both Johnson and Palmer means the Bucs will rely on the Oklahoma connection of Sterling Shepard and Baker Mayfield to Gardner results for a third straight week.

The Bucs’ rushing attack continues to flash but struggling overall

Last year, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers saw Rachaad White emerge as one of the best running backs in the NFL, they then drafted another.

Last year, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers saw Rachaad White emerge as one of the best running backs in the NFL. The former third-round pick out of Arizona State was a darling of the fantasy football community, and he eventually became one for Buccaneers fans.

Despite his emergence, general manager Jason Licht decided they needed more punch in their backfield. Thus, the team drafts Bucky Irving in the 2024 NFL Draft in April.

The team and offensive coordinator Liam Coen were expected to replicate the success of the team’s rushing attack in 2023 just during this season. Sadly, they have been chasing those goals and haven’t fully achieved them.

Rachaad White and Bucky Irving are the most talented backfield in the NFL right now, but they aren’t playing like it.

Coen and Licht had this picture of being able to take over games, and it just hasn’t happened. In one game, White will showcase his explosiveness; in the next, Irving will show how powerful a runner he is; they have yet to show these abilities in the same game.

Until they can have a complete game, complimenting each other, this offense cannot take the next step needed to be a serious contender.

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.

Eagles limp into bye week after a 33-16 loss to the Buccaneers in Week 4

The Philadelphia Eagles suffered a disastrous 33-16 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.

With A.J. Brown (hamstring), DeVonta Smith (concussion), and Lane Johnson (concussion) out with injuries, the Eagles didn’t have enough depth in key positions. They suffered a disastrous 33-16 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.

Jalen Hurts was sacked six times on the afternoon, and the star quarterback committed another turnover (fumble), as Philadelphia could not sustain any offensive consistency without the big three in the lineup.

Saquon Barkley had ten carries for 84 yards (8.4 avg). Still, with the Eagles playing from behind all afternoon, the running back was unable to get the Philadelphia offense over the hump against a motivated Tampa defense.

An Eagles defense that shut New Orleans down in Week 3 was gashed to 445 total yards for the Buccaneers offense, including 111 rushing yards and a twelve-minute advantage in time of possession.

Baker Mayfield was on fire early, and even after an inefficient second half, he still was 30-40 passing for 347 yards, two touchdowns, and a 100.2 rating.

Philadelphia (2-2) will now have a week off, during which questions about Sirianni’s job security and the Eagles’ playoff hopes will dominate the airwaves.

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Sights and sounds from first half of Eagles matchup vs. Buccaneers

Jalen Hurts was 7-15 passing for 49 yards and one touchdown, and the Eagles offense was non-existent in the first half as Tampa jumped out to a 21-0 lead before finishing the first half with a 24-7 lead. The Buccaneers dominated time of possession, …

Jalen Hurts was 7-15 passing for 49 yards and one touchdown, and the Eagles offense was non-existent in the first half as Tampa jumped out to a 21-0 lead before finishing the first half with a 24-7 lead. The Buccaneers dominated time of possession, holding for 20:14 seconds, compared to Philadelphia’s 9+ minutes with the football.

With the second half set to begin, here are sights and sounds from the first half.

Bucs RB Bucky Irving deserves a larger workload going forward

A rookie being one lone pulse on a team of 53 men is not only impressive, but it deserves to be rewarded, all things considered. 

Against the Denver Broncos, not many players looked like they had a pulse on the Buccaneers. One of the few who looked the part was rookie running back Bucky Irving. A rookie running back being one lone pulse on a team of 53 men is impressive and deserves to be rewarded.

Bucky Irving is ready and deserving of a larger workload.

Irving has played 55 snaps to Rachaad White’s 121 through three weeks of the season. White is a dual-threat back, but he doesn’t look the same or work that way on Liam Coen’s offense. On the other hand, Irving has been a complete back for the team, especially in the pass protection category.

On 43 touches this year, whether through a rushing attempt or reception, White is averaging just 3.8 yards down from 4.6 just a year ago. If we project that out the rest of the season he is on pace for 538 total yards this year. The Bucs need more production out of the running back position, where Irving steps into the picture.

Irving has had 30 touches this year, averaging a whopping 6.1 yards per touch. Averging six yards per touch will be tough to keep up with, but the Bucs need to strike while the iron is hot.

If they had reversed the work they had gotten thus far, Irving would have the looks of an Offensive Rookie of the Year. The Bucs need to make a move now in the best interest of everyone on the offensive side of the ball.

Bucs one dimensional offense leaves little room for error

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are realizing that their offense needs to add a new wrinkle to it because it’s current state isn’t sustainable.

The phrase “running the ball effectively” has often not been associated with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers- especially for the last few seasons.

In 2020, the Bucs’ Leonard Fournette-led backfield finished 26th in the NFL. The following season, the rushing offense dropped to 28th, and last season, it had the league’s worst rushing offense with 1308 yards on the ground. In fact, the last time this team finished above 25th was in 2015, when it finished fifth in the league on the legs of Doug Martin’s 1402 rushing yards.

2024 is proving to be more of the same, and the Buc’s lack of ability to run the ball reared its ugly head on Sunday against the Denver Broncos. On just two occasions, did Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph stack the box -three if we count the goal line alignment- showing a complete disregard for the Bucs rushing attack? I know someone is saying that the box didn’t need to be stacked as the Bucs were down 20-7 at the end of the first half, but the two times that defense was dialed up was with 2:35 left in the 2nd quarter and at the beginning of the 3rd quarter.

The Broncos logged seven sacks of Baker Mayfield. Per PFF, only Cody Mauch was credited with allowing a sack, meaning there were six coverage sacks of Mayfield.

Through three weeks, the Bucs are averaging 23 rushing attempts per game, which ranks them 26th. This one-dimensional offense leaves this Bucs team little room for error in the passing game, especially against a good passing defense such as the Broncos.

There is no reason to sound the alarm in Tampa as the team sits with a 2-1 record. However, being outgained by over 200 yards in Detroit further shows that this offense already needs a shot in the arm. In a league where wins are hard to come by, adding an extra element of difficulty to your own team’s success and the need to rely on a banged-up defense is a recipe for disaster.

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.