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.
