Tag: trey palmer

What went right, what went wrong for the Bucs in 2023

It was a mixed bag for Tampa Bay in their 9-8 season — see what the Bucs did well and what they can improve on going into 2024.

Very few anticipated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to reach the heights they did during the 2023 NFL season. When QB Tom Brady announced his second retirement after the Bucs’ loss to the Dallas Cowboys in the 2022 Wild Card round, it triggered a complete reset of the offense. Trying to return back to a division-contending level-of-play while also dealing with several personnel changes was a large task to overcome as Tampa Bay looked ahead to the 2023 season.

Despite all odds, the Bucs won the NFC South for the third consecutive season and reached the NFC Divisional round, where it fell 31-23 to the Detroit Lions. There were several things that went right during Tampa Bay’s transition year. However, there was plenty that could’ve been improved upon. Before we get to what went wrong, we’ll highlight some of the good from the Bucs’ 2023 season.

Baker Mayfield must calm his rogue tendencies to have a chance against the Lions

If Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers are going to beat the Lions, Mayfield will have to stay within himself as he didn’t in Week 6.

Baker Mayfield is on his fourth NFL team since 2021, which is an odd place for a former No. 1 overall NFL pick to find himself just seven seasons into his NFL career. One reason Mayfield has traveled an arduous road from the Cleveland Browns to the Carolina Panthers to the Los Angeles Rams to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers is the randomness of his play that can show up too often at the worst possible time. As great as Mayfield can be in the right situation with a coaching staff who can control his rogue tendencies, he’s a finely-tuned machine with a couple of oddly-placed springs, and you just have to live with it.

Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales has done an outstanding job with that this season, which is a primary reason that the Bucs are in Detroit to play the Lions in the NFC divisional round. Canales has a lot

In that 20-6 Detroit win, Mayfield completed 19 of 37 passes for 206 yards, no touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 56.8. It was probably his worst game of the season. Mayfield was frequently speeding up in the pocket whether he was hurried or not. He didn’t throw with good base fundamentals, and he threw off-platform more than he needed to, which led to a lot of incompletions against tight coverage. More worrisome were the incompletions in which his receivers had scalded Detroit’s defense. 

Mayfield had a wide-open shot to Trey Palmer with 2:00 left in the first half that he overthrew by a couple yards and would have been a touchdown if he’d stayed within himself. This was a deep over from the slot against Cover-4, and Palmer beat safety Kerby Joseph over the top. 

Mayfield did have defensive tackle Benito Jones pressuring him right when he threw the ball, but that’s a throw you need to make. Mayfield was pressured on 13 of his 41 dropbacks in that game, and he completed two of 10 passes for 17 yards and a sack.

This deep incompleton to receiver Chris Godwin on third-and-10 with 1:04 left in the game was one such negative example. The Lions ran a zone exchange out of Cover-4, and Mayfield was in shotgun with a 2×2 formation. The backside flat/post combination was a great design against this coverage, and Joseph was beaten again. With edge defender Julian Okwara dropping into coverage, Detroit defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn sent linebacker Derek Barnes and cornerback Will Harris on an overload pressure to the other side. Harris got through, and Mayfield threw a worm-burner to his target.

For the season, Mayfield has completed 81 of 165 passes for 1,035 yards, seven touchdowns, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 78.2. So, it’s not as if he’s a complete disaster under pressure – this game was an oddity, but it presented most of the things about Mayfield that tend to give you pause. 

It’s now time for Mayfield to silence the doubters.

“When there are plays to be had, we have to take advantage of them,” Mayfield said this week. “It’s staying consistent – they play extremely hard. It just jumps out on film, obviously [with] the way [Lions head coach] Dan Campbell runs that team – everybody swarming to the ball, playing for each other, playing extremely hard with a lot of effort at all times. They’re a tough opponent and they make it hard on you.”

Mayfield will obviously have a better chance to advance to the NFC Championship round if he can avoid making it hard on himself.

In this week’s “Xs and Os with Greg Cosell and Doug Farrar,” the guys investigate the things that those around Mayfield have done to rein things in when necessary.

You can watch this week’s episode of “The Xs and Os,” featuring all the most important matchups of the divisional round, right here:

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You can also listen and subscribe to “The Xs and Os” podcast on Spotify…

…and on Apple Podcasts.

Baker Mayfield claps back at Lions DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson: “He’s gotta do a little more film study”

Baker Mayfield clapped back at Lions DB C.J. Gardner-Johnson when Gardner-Johnson questioned Mayfield’s place in the Bucs’ passing game.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will travel to the Motor City to play the Detroit Lions in the divisional round of the playoffs on Sunday. The two teams previously played in Week 6 of the 2023 regular season — it was a 20-6 win for the Lions, and Bucs quarterback Baker Mayfield did not play particularly well. Mayfield completed 19 of 37 passes for 206 yards, no touchdowns, one interception, and a passer rating of 56.8. Probably his worst game of the season. He was frequently speeding up in the pocket whether he was hurried or not. He didn’t throw with good base fundamentals, and he threw off-platform more than he needed to, which led to a lot of incompletions against tight coverage.

Maybe that’s why at least one Lions defender might be a bit overconfident right now. Defensive back C.J. Gardner-Johnson recently had this to say about Tampa Bay’s passing game.

“If you give that Tampa group a good quarterback, that’s a good group — [Mike] Evans, [Chris] Godwin, [Russell] Gage, that’s a great group. I played against ‘em for a year. [Rams receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua) probably right rank there as one of the best groups, [as a] combo, with the running back. That’s hard. One-two punch with the running back, it’s going to give us a run for our money. Gotta be smarter than we normally are and be more quick and decisive with the calls.”

Well, that was certainly a veiled shot at Mayfield, and Mayfield didn’t waste much time forming a response. Gage, by the way, missed the entire regular season after suffering a torn patellar tendon during a joint practice with the New York Jets last August.

“[Gardner-Johnson] must be going off preseason stuff that the media was talking about,” Mayfield said. “He didn’t play our first game so I’m excited to see him. I think he’s a really good player. He has been for a while. He’s been an impactful guy on every team he’s been on. … But yeah, he’s gotta do a little bit more film study.”

In Gage’s absence, sixth-round rookie Trey Palmer from Nebraska by way of LSU has become that important third man with Evans and Godwin, catching 40 passes on 68 targets for 440 yards and four touchdowns, including this  -yard scorcher against the Philadelphia Eagles in the wild-card round.

Maybe the confusion has to do with Gardner-Johnson missing that Week 6 game — he suffered a torn pectoral muscle in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks, and didn’t play again until Week 18 against the Minnesota Vikings. But that also does free up more time for film study…

Trey Palmer scores first NFL playoff touchdown

A former Nebraska Cornhusker scored his first NFL playoff touchdown on Monday night.

A former Nebraska Cornhusker scored his first NFL playoff touchdown on Monday night. Wide receiver Trey Palmer scored on a 56-yard touchdown catch in Tampa Bay’s 32-9 Wild Card round victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.

For the game, Palmer had only the one 56-yard reception. He had 39 catches for 385 yards and three touchdowns on the season.

Palmer had 71 receptions for a school-record 1,043 yards and nine touchdowns in his one year at Nebraska. The receiver was taken in the sixth round, with the 191st pick overall in the 2023 NFL draft.

Tampa Bay will now head to Detroit for the Divisional Round of the NFL Playoffs. You can find social media reactions to the touchdown catch below.

WATCH: Bucs WR Trey Palmer hits the jets to score

The Bucs took possession right after an Eagles safety, and they made it count.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had an opportunity to do some damage after forcing a safety on the Philadelphia Eagles. And boy, did they take it.

The Bucs got the ball back up 18-9 after Hurts was called for intentional grounding in the end zone, and a few players later, they struck with a dagger. Quarterback Baker Mayfield hit wideout Trey Palmer on a pass, and Palmer turned on the jets. He evaded numerous Eagles defenders en route to the end zone, taking it to the house and putting the Bucs up 25-9 with just about one quarter left to play.

You can check out the scoring play here below:

The worst offensive players for Tampa Bay in 2023, per PFF

See which five offensive players got the least amount of love from Pro Football Focus in 2023.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense hasn’t been consistent. While there have been some stretches where it’s looked like a top unit, there have been others where that definitely hasn’t been the case.

The team has shown signs of struggle throughout the year, but in some respects, that was to be expected. This Bucs team is young, and while a few of the team’s rookies have showcased some good potential going forward, it’s understandable that they’d struggle in their first year in the NFL. Pro Football Focus put out their year-end grades for Tampa Bay, and two of their five lowest-ranked players on offense for the Bucs were rookies.

See those worst-ranked offensive players from 2023 are below:

WATCH: Alontae Taylor’s first career interception is must-see TV

Alontae Taylor’s first career interception is must-see TV. The second-year cornerback rebounded well after being benched last week:

Now this is a great way to bounce back. Second-year New Orleans Saints cornerback Alontae Taylor was benched last week after struggling to keep up with the high-powered Los Angeles Rams receiving corps, but he worked hard in practice and returned to the starting lineup for Sunday’s game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

And he responded by snagging the first interception of his career. It’s as impressive a play as you’ll see all week. Taylor kept pace with Buccaneers receiver Trey Palmer deep downfield and correctly read the ball’s path to leap the route and take it away in midair, frustrating Baker Mayfield; the Tampa Bay quarterback had been intercepted just 8 times on his first 322 pass attempts through 15 games this season.

He was quickly surrounded by teammates who celebrated his big takeaway, knowing just how important it was to the young player given his struggles this season after converting to a new position.

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The worst offensive players in Tampa Bay’s loss to Indianapolis, per PFF

PFF didn’t love these five players in their grades for Tampa Bay’s Week 12 game:

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers continue to struggle to get the offense firing on all cylinders.

The team had a strong run game behind running back Rachaad White and had two touchdowns courtesy of wideout Mike Evans, but the Bucs were unable to surpass 20 points in a 27-20 loss to the Colts. While the unit sometimes looks improved, the team still needs to put together a solid game in four phases and has rarely done so this year. Pro Football Focus graded the team’s offense in Week 12, and there were a few players they pinpointed as having a negative impact.

Here are the five worst-graded Bucs players on offense in Week 12, per PFF:

Bucs’ biggest surprises from the first quarter of the season

Despite media expectations, the Bucs are 3-1 and atop the NFC South — but that isn’t the only surprise in Tampa Bay this season.

Outside of Tampa Bay, expectations for the Buccaneers coming into the 2023 season were low. With no Tom Brady and $75 million in dead cap money, the Bucs were dead on arrival.

Tampa Bay clearly had other ideas.

At 3-1, Tampa Bay is firmly in control of the NFC South and a playoff contender. It comes as little surprise that the defense is above average, powered largely by 10 forced turnovers, the second-most in the NFL this year. The source of these turnovers and the defense’s resiliency, on the other hand, may be unexpected.

The biggest surprises come on offense. Things were going to be different under new offensive coordinator Dave Canales, but as a rookie playcaller, it was a mystery whether he would be a change for good or not. A quarter of the way through the season, it would be difficult to argue that Canales is not an upgrade for the Bucs offense.

Here are the biggest surprises from the first four games of Tampa Bay’s season:

Former Husker makes goal line touchdown catch on Sunday

A former Nebraska wide receiver made another highlight touchdown catch on Sunday afternoon.

A former Nebraska wide receiver made another highlight touchdown catch on Sunday afternoon. Trey Palmer caught a one-yard touchdown pass from Baker Mayfield in Tampa Bay’s 26-9 victory over the New Orleans Saints.

Palmer only made two catches for six yards during the game. For the season, the Louisiana native has made six receptions for 42 yards and two touchdowns.

In his one year at Nebraska, Palmer had 71 receptions for a school-record 1,043 yards and nine touchdowns. The receiver was taken in the sixth round, with the 191st pick overall in the 2023 NFL draft.

He’s only the second player to break 1,000 receiving yards in a season after Stanley Morgan Jr. (1,004 yards – 2018). Find a photo gallery of Trey Palmer below.