Week 7 Buccaneers Discussion

We're halfway through the week, the trade deadline has passed; isn't it about time to talk about Sunday's game? Even though the Pats won by 59 last week and the next opponent is 0-6, if there is any group of fans that should know they cannot take a win for granted, it should be fans of the Patriots.


Obviously these are not the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who had one of the most dominating defenses in NFL history when Warren Sapp, Derrick Brooks and John Lynch led their team to the 2002 Super Bowl. Anybody else with some insight on Tampa Bay?

Some Bucs stats:

Defense
Yards per Game: 370.2 (27th)
Yards per Play: 6.0 (31st)
Points per Game: 28.0 (29th)
1st Downs per Game: 20.3 (24th)
3rd Down Percentage: 43% (28th)
3rd Downs Allowed: 33 (26th)

Passing Defense
Yards per Game: 198.5 (11th)
Yards per Attempt: 8.5 (32nd)
Completions: 61.5% (21st)
Touchdowns: 13 (30th)
Interceptions: 6 (24th)
20+ yard pass plays: 16 (18th)
40+ yard pass plays: 8 (32nd)
Sacks: 10 (23rd)
Opponent QB Rating: 101.0 (30th)

Rushing Defense
Yards per Game: 171.7 (31st)
Yards per Carry: 4.9 (31st)
Touchdowns: 6 (24th)
20+ yard run plays: 7 (28th)


Offense
Yards per Game: 277.7 (28th)
Yards per Play: 4.7 (26th)
Points per Game: 14.8 (27th)
1st Downs per Game: 16.0 (27th)
3rd Down Percentage: 32% (25th)
3rd Downs Made: 26 (17th)

Passing Offense
Yards per Game: 178.2 (22nd)
Yards per Attempt: 5.4 (30th)
Completions: 54.1% (28th)
Touchdowns: 7 (18th)
Interceptions: 8 (27th)
20+ yard pass plays: 13 (22nd)
40+ yard pass plays: 2 (16th)
Sacked: 12 (17th)
QB Rating: 64.9 (26th)

Rushing Offense
Yards per Game: 99.5 (21st)
Yards per Carry: 4.4 (9th)
Touchdowns: 3 (20th)
20+ yard run plays: 6 (4th)

Time of Possession: 28:56 (20th)
Turnover Differential: -1 (16th)

I'm surprised where they rank in passing yards allowed, actually. Do they have a shutdown corner in the mould of Revis who can chase Moss around pretty decently?

JSn said:

I'm surprised where they rank in passing yards allowed, actually. Do they have a shutdown corner in the mould of Revis who can chase Moss around pretty decently?

Click to expand...

No. Teams get a lead on them, and the Bucs give up an average of 5 yards per rush. Why pass, just run out the clock and go home.

JSn said:

I'm surprised where they rank in passing yards allowed, actually. Do they have a shutdown corner in the mould of Revis who can chase Moss around pretty decently?

Click to expand...

There corners are a past his prime Ronde Barber and Aqib Talib, a sophmore CB who's looking pretty good. He had 4 picks in his rookie season and 3 so far this year (All in one game if IIRC).

so it's possible that Maroney could have another big game this week eh?

Talib is really, really good. Pretty much everyone else sucks.

Tampa Bay Buccaneer Links

Some links for Tampa Bay Bucs info:


Team Web Site: Buccaneers

Fan Forums: The Buccaneer Bulletin Board, Pewter Report

Newspapers: St Petersburg Times, Tampa Tribune, Orlando Sentinel, Sarasota Herald Tribune

Radio: WDAE 620, WQYK 1010, WHBO 1040

TV: CBS-10, FOX-13, ABC-28, NBC-8, Bay News 9

One of the worst defenses in the NFL. Ground defense is swiss cheese. Maroney et alia should truck over these guys. Air defense isn't much better. Throw at anyone besides Talib and you can get big gains, just look at the yards per pass stat.

I really don't see anything to be scared off except for a 'letdown' game from the Pats. Otherwise our offense should easily score 35+ and come away with the win.

i dont expect the blowout of last week, but something similar is in line


and apparently talib is susceptible to double moves....i imagine hell take moss w/ some safety help...

the most important thing for me is to see how the line run blocks, and how maroney runs again

on top of that, i need to see what we have going as a 3rd WR, hoping that either if not both of nunn and tate will be active

and seeing how the TE's do, consiering baker has done crap this season so far, and that watson had a concussion

Their offense is good but their defense stinks, the one thing we have to watch out for is their ST. Stroughter is a nasty KR. I don't think Smith will be active by Sunday (concussion) so we have to deal with Stroughter.

They run the classic west coast "start with the run to set up the pass" so I see us staying in the 3-4.

I do see a blowout if we continue to see what we saw last week: an offense in sync and Brady in a groove.

Re: Tampa Bay Buccaneer Links

jmt57 said:

Some links for Tampa Bay Bucs info:


Team Web Site: Buccaneers

Fan Forums: The Buccaneer Bulletin Board, Pewter Report

Newspapers: St Petersburg Times, Tampa Tribune, Orlando Sentinel, Sarasota Herald Tribune

Radio: WDAE 620, WQYK 1010, WHBO 1040

TV: CBS-10, FOX-13, ABC-28, NBC-8, Bay News 9

Click to expand...

You, sir, are the opposite of a troll. Is that like a princess or something?

At any rate, thanks helpful links!

Some more Buc facts and trivia:

Tampa Bay has an all-time franchise winning percentage of .394 (205-316-1); only the Texans (.364) are lower.

Despite three winning season and two playoff appearances in the last four years, the Bucs fired their head coach (Jon Gruden) and general manager (Bruce Allen) after last season. After week 13 they had beaten the Saints for their 4th straight win and were in position for a first round bye with a 9-3 record. But division rival ran for 299 yards gainst them in the next game, and then they lost to the Falcons by a field goal. The Bucs came back home and they turned the ball over three times in a 17-point loss to the then 6-8 Chargers. Despite the three losses all Tampa Bay had to do was beat the lowly Raiders at home in the last game of the season to secure a playoff spot, but Oakland ran for 192 yards and won 31-24.

Going back to those last four games of 2008, Tampa Bay has now lost ten in a row. They've been outscored by an average of 29-17 during that span, surrendering an average of 376.5 total yards and 178.6 rushing yards during that time.

Bucs head coach Raheem Morris is only 33 years old. He once said he learned how to coach by "majoring in Madden" at college. Most of his experience has been as a defensive backs coach; he was a defensive coordinator for just one year - at Kansas State. Originally he had been named the Bucs new DC after Monte Kiffin announced he would be leaving to join his son Lane at the University of Tennessee last year. But right after Morris interviewed for the Denver job, Tampa Bay fired Gruden and gave Morris the HC job. There was some speculation at the time that the Bucs originally wanted to wait a year but got cold feet and thought they would lose Morris, so they overreacted and gave him the job despite no experience as an NFL coordinator. Looks right now like the Broncos made the right decision with their choice for a new head coach.

Morris was one of three head coaches to fire his offensive coordinator (former BC coach Jeff Jagodzinski) just before the season started. Those three teams - the Bucs, Bills and Chiefs - are a combined 3-15 this year and are collectively averaging about 15.5 points per game.

Pats vs. Bucs history

Pats versus Bucs history


The Bucs have been in the league for 34 years now, but the Pats have only played Tampa Bay on six previous occasions. Contrary to popular belief, the Pats have indeed won in Tampa Bay; the Pats are 4-2 overall against the Bucs and 2-1 in Tampa. However both those wins were at the "Old Sombrero"; the Pats have not yet won at Raymond James Stadium.

The Pats beat the Bucs 31-14 at their old stadium in the final game of the Bucs' innaugural season of 1976 when they were in the midst of an 0-26 franchise start. Tampa Bay led at halftime but Sam Hunt returned an interception 68 yards for a touchdown to give the Pats the lead for good in the 4th quarter. Andy Johnson also scored two touchdowns for the Pats in what I am guessing was sloppy conditions; the two teams combined for 84 running plays but only 32 passing plays. The Tampa Bay quarterback that day was Steve Spurrier, who was 12/17/145 with 1 TD and 1 INT; it was the final game of his NFL career. The next game the Pats played was the infamous Ben Dreith playoff game against the Raiders.

The two teams didn't meet again until 1985. By that time the Bucs had gone from being very bad, to a playoff team, and back to being very bad again. The Patriots gave them their 8th straight loss to start the year, en route to a 2-12 season for Tampa Bay. Craig James ran for two touchdowns and threw for another, Tony Collins had 164 yards from scrimmage, and Tony Franklin kicked three field goals for the win in Tampa. The Pats went 11-5 and won their first AFC Championship that year before losing to the Bears in the Super Bowl.

Three years later was Tampa Bay's first game in Foxboro. On the next to last game of the 1988 season the 4-10 Bucs took the 8-6 Patriots into overtime with the score tied at 7. Tampa Bay won the toss, but Bucs' head coach Ray Perkins elected to kickoff, feeling he could get his team in better field position because the game had been a defensive battle all day long. The Pats got the ball, Tony Eason marched the team down the field, and Jason Staurovsky kicked a 27 yard field goal for the 10-7 win - with Tampa Bay never getting their hands on the ball in overtime. However, the Pats missed the playoffs when they lost at Denver the next week. Perkins was fired a year later but became the Pats offensive coordinator for Bill Parcells from 1993-1996.

Once again it was nine years before the Pats played the Bucs. The 1997 game was held in Tampa and the Bucs got their first win over the Pats, 27-7. The Pats could get nothing done on offense, finishing with just 10 first downs, 168 total yards of offense, three turnovers and were sacked five times. That season was the turning point for their franchise; their defense, led by Warren Sapp, shocked the 49ers in the season opener and started the year with five straight wins. They finished 10-6 in Tony Dungy's second season as a head coach and the team won their first playoff game in 18 years, and only the second in franchise history. The Pats also finished 10-6 that year, beating the Dolphins and then losing to the Steelers in the playoffs.

Three years later the two teams met on opening day of the 2000 season in Foxboro, with Tampa Bay winning 21-16. Troy Brown scored on a 66 yard punt return and a 39-yard TD from Drew Bledsoe to Terry Glenn in the 4th quarter made the final score close, but again it was Tampa Bay's defense that won the game; Bledsoe was sacked for a loss six times in Bill Belichick's first game as head coach of the Patriots. The Pats finished 5-11 while the Bucs were one-and-done in the playoffs, losing (as they often did during Dungy's tenure) to the Eagles.

The last time the two teams met was in week 15 of 2005. The Pats won 28-0 in a game in Foxboro that was never very close - perhaps due in part to Tampa Bay not enjoying the weather in New England in December. Corey Dillon scored on two short runs and Tom Ashworth caught a one-yard pass from Tom Brady, but the real story was the Pats defense. Bucs QB Chris Simms was sacked seven times, while the Pats limited Tampa Bay to 12 first downs, 30 yards rushing on 18 attempts, and just 138 total yards of offense. The Pats went on to beat Jacksonville before losing at Denver in the playoffs that year, while the Bucs lost to the Redskins in the wildcard round; their 11-5 record from that season now being just a distant memory to Buc fans.

New England vs. Tampa Bay

NFL capsules: New England vs Tampa Bay via WEEI

New England QB Tom Brady is 12-0 with 109.9 passer rating against NFC opponents since Oct. 9, 2005. He's thrown for 30 touchdowns vs. five interceptions during that stretch.
... Brady has been especially good in October. Last week he became first QB in NFL history to throw for five TDs in a quarter. And since 2006, he's 11-1 in October and passed for 3,292 yards, 39 TDs and just three interceptions.
... Patriots WR Randy Moss, who has three 100-yard receiving games this season, has averaged 18.3 yards per catch against Tampa Bay during career on 36 receptions.
... Bucs are off to worst start since 1985, when they opened with nine consecutive losses on way to 2-14 finish. Team's 10-game losing streak dating to last December is Tampa Bay's longest since 1977, when Bucs were in middle of NFL record 26-game skid.
... TE Kellen Winslow leads Bucs in receiving with 29 catches for 286 yards and four TDs.
... Tight ends have five of Tampa Bay's seven touchdown receptions. Team's wide receivers have one as group.
... RB Cadillac Williams has rebounded from offseason knee surgery to average 4.3 yards per carry and leads Bucs with 276 yards rushing. He's scored three TDs, two on ground.
... Lack of playing time has frustrated RB Derrick Ward, who signed with Tampa Bay as free agent after rushing for more than 1,000 yards with New York Giants last season. He's carried 33 times for 135 yards and one TD.
... Bucs defense had two interceptions last week; unit has 192 since 2000, second most in league.

Click to expand...

Patriots-Buccaneers preview via WEEI

"(Patriots coach) Bill Belichick is not going to take it easy on us," Morris added. "He just played an 0 and whatever team (last Sunday), and the score was 59-0. Now he's going to play another one. I'm sure Bill Belichick is licking his chops. And, he should be."

There were plenty of positive signs for Belichick's offense against the winless Titans, including a season-high 123 yards and a touchdown from running back Laurence Maroney, who may have to carry more of the load again with Sammy Morris' status in doubt.

Morris suffered a knee injury last Sunday and Fred Taylor is still recovering from ankle surgery. Backup BenJarvus Green-Ellis had 67 yards on seven carries against the Titans, and he could help New England on the ground against the Bucs' 31st-ranked run defense.

Carolina exploited that weakness in a 28-21 win at Tampa Bay last Sunday, rushing for 267 yards. The Panthers' game-winning 16-play drive included 15 runs, killing most of the final nine minutes of the game.

"The results right now are disappointing," Morris said. "But to see people start to grow and develop into what they can become are pretty encouraging."

Click to expand...

Head to Head analysis via WEEI

Buccaneer opponents are averaging over 8 yards per play, and 28 points per game.

Views from the other side of the pond

Views from the other side of the pond


Morris: Bucs mean business by Sky Sports

Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Raheem Morris is determined that his team will not be demolished by the New England Patriots at Wembley Stadium.

However, first-year coach Morris, who must be hoping that Wembley's reputation for producing close games over the last couple of years comes good again, is relishing the challenge.

"But you love those challenges. It's what you live for.

"Motivation is high. Nobody wants to be embarrassed on Sundays. You go out, you practice hard, you play hard. Motivation is easy."

The Patriots are the most popular team among British fans, mainly due to their outstanding three Super Bowl victories in the last decade, but the Bucs have their own strong links as they are owned by the same Glazer family that owns Manchester United.

Click to expand...

Tampa out to enjoy a Bucs party in London by the Belfast Telegraph

New England and star quarterback Tom Brady dominated the news in the NFL last weekend by thrashing another winless team, the Tennessee Titans, 59-0, and Morris is determined not to let it happen again.

"We are playing the New England Patriots, so no, we're not going sightseeing. I do not want to be the lead story on Sportscenter unless it's for a good reason", he said.

"We can see London in the off-season."

While the Patriots are loaded up with veteran players, marshalled by what is widely regarded as the smartest coaching staff in the league, the Bucs are a young team under first-year coach Morris.

The Patriots demolition of Tennessee, a veteran team in an inexplicable skid this season after doing well last year, was an ominous sign for Tampa Bay, who must hope that Wembley's reputation for producing close games over the last couple of years comes good again.

Click to expand...

Views from two Buc fans/bloggers

Patriots Daily talks with two Tampa Bay fans and bloggers about Sunday's game. Some interesting discussion about what's gone wrong with their team - as well as some talk about Joey Galloway and why he didn't work out for the Pats.

The wind was effectively taken out of their sails, when the decision was made to fire offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski 10 days before the regular season opener. Then the teams best offensive lineman Jeff Faine goes down in the season opener and a revolving door under center with a young quarterback taking a gigantic leap in competition levels in Josh Johnson, along with an offensive coordinator willing to abandon the running game to quickly and have an inexperienced signal caller shoulder the load and voila! You get a cluster fudge of epic portions’. Couple that with a porous defense trying to two gap with it’s interior defensive lineman who are better built to be one-gapers and its easy to see why the team is zero-dash-six and facing the likelihood of a franchise suffering through its second winless season in the not so storied history of the organization.

Click to expand...

First Impressions

First Impressions - the Tampa Bay Buccaneers by Greg Doyle of Patriots Daily

Now, each team comes into this game in some sort of transition and, in some ways, rebuilding. The difference is Belichick remains, and the Patriots remain an elite team while undergoing a reconstruction. It remains to be seen, but the dynasty may continue in New England. There just might be more glory to add on to the three previous championships. In Tampa Bay, things largely fell apart after their one Super Bowl in 2002. They only made the playoffs twice since, losing in the first round both times. Gruden was let go after last season and they now sit at 0-6 with Morris still searching for his first NFL coaching win. They jettisoned many old stars from their glory days, such as Derrick Brooks and Warrick Dunn, in the offseason, and are back at the bottom starting over.

Click to expand...

Week 7 Facts and Trivia, Pats vs Buccaneers

A ton of facts and trivia for Sunday's game in this week's Nuggetpalooza by Gary Marbry of WEEI, such as:

• Tampa Bay has lost the last five times they have scored 20 or more points
• The Pats have won 33 of the last 34 games they have scored 20 or more points
• Tampa Bay has allowed 93 second half points this season, tied for worst in the NFL
• Tampa Bay has allowed 56 points this season (9+ per game) on drives of fewer than four plays. By comparison the Pats have given up 7 points on those "quick drives".
• Tampa Bay's offense ranks 28th in completion percentage, 30th in yards per pass attempt, and 31st in passing 1st down percentage.
• The Pats' pass defense ranks 9th in yards allowed per attempt, and 4th in fewest pass plays of 25+ yards allowed (5).
• The Pats' defense has allowed only one rushing touchdown this year.

Five Things To Watch For Sunday Afternoon

Christopher Price of WEEI lists his Five Things To Watch For Sunday Afternoon as being Adalius Thomas, Laurence Maroney, The Number 3 Receiver, Goin' Deep, and Playing In A Foreign Environment.

Chris writes about Adalius Thomas here:

Some of this is not his fault. Thomas has been hamstrung because he is first and foremost, a pass rusher, one who thrives in a 3-4 defense bringing heat from the outside. That’s where his skills are best utilized. Instead, this season, he is being asked to do other things and in other schemes. (In the Baltimore game earlier this season, his responsibility was to act as a spy on quarterback Joe Flacco. There has never been a more expensive spy in the history of the National Football League.) He’s been working predominantly on the outside in a 4-3 set, a set that usually features safety blitzes and pressure from the defensive line as the best way to get pressure on the quarterback. Neither one of these things allows him to play to his strengths.

Now that the Patriots have some depth inside — which will allow them to play more 3-4, as they did last week against the Titans without him — they should turn Thomas loose, allowing him to do what he does best — rush the passer.

Click to expand...

I think it's worth noting that other than the four players who didn't play, the entire PS went along and no dinged up player is listed as worse than 50-50. Not that it would surprise me to see a "doubtful" player stay home, but it surprises me that even Butler, who didn't practice, is listed with a 50% chance of playing.