If the Buccaneers have any hopes of competing this season, it’s going to come because of their offense; with names like Mike Evans, DeSean Jackson, Chris Godwin, O.J. Howard and Cameron Brate, this passing attack has been a quarterback’s dream – see the four straight 400-yard games of Ryan Fitzpatrick earlier this season – and so far the offense is third in the NFL in yards per play (6.8).
The defense, however, is an entirely different story. Most people knew this side of the ball would continue to be an issue for the team and even with the moves they made in the offseason, it’s been as bad as expected. Not even the firing of defensive coordinator Mike Smith after Week 6 could make things easier, as the defense has consequently blown a double digit lead against the Browns and let the Bengals steamroll over them the last two weeks.
With that said, here are some things Panthers fans should be made aware of heading into Sunday’s divisional matchup at home going against the Buccaneers defense.
THE STATS
Photo Credit: Christian Petersen/Getty Images
First, the defense is second in yards per play, allowing 6.5 yards per play through Week 8. For all the faults Mike Smith had as defensive coordinator, there’s very little talent – if any – in the Buccaneers’ secondary, and the back seven as a whole is extremely lackluster.
Coming into Week 8, the team was also tied with the 49ers for the worst Takeaway-Giveaway Differential with -13. The defense only has six takeaways while Jameis Winston has had little problem putting the ball into defenders’ hands ten times in four games.
Finally, only the Chiefs and Bengals have given up more yards to these basketball-playing-football players than the Buccaneers, who have surrounded 574 receiving yards to tight ends. Using this fact as a segue, let’s talk about the disaster that’s been the Buccaneers’ defense in this week’s breakdown.
THE TAPE
No play better exemplifies how horrible the Buccaneers defense has been against tight ends than the now infamous Vance McDonald baptism of safety Chris Conte.
On this third-and-10…LOOK AT HOW OPEN MCDONALD IS!
Conte inexplicably plays so far ahead and reacts too late. Ben Roethlisberger wisely processes this in time and throws to the tight end, allowing McDonald to pick up an easy first down with loads of space in front of him.
But it doesn’t end there, because Conte’s attempt at tackling McDonald…
…becomes futile, as he ends up getting run over by McDonald on his way to an improbable 75-yard touchdown.
With all these details discovered, let’s take a look at the full play, if you somehow haven’t seen it already.
Again, I don’t understand why Conte was playing so far back when all the Steelers needed was ten yards – Conte was playing this as if he was supposed to play soft on a third-and-25, so this alignment is either inexcusable coaching or inexcusable execution – neither are good options for Tampa Bay.
What Norv Turner can take away from this is that Greg Olsen needs to be a big part of the game plan on Sunday. The Buccaneers don’t have the speed or the coverage skills in space to stop tight ends, and it’s been apparent all season long.
Tampa Bay’s coverage doesn’t get much better against wide receivers either, as corner Brent Grimes becomes more and more of a liability each passing week.
On the very bottom of the screen, you can see Grimes matching up against Julio Jones in tight man coverage.
Julio looks like he’s gonna break inside on a deep slant route, baiting Grimes. Jones then breaks out…
…completing his corner route.
As you’ll see in the GIF below, Grimes isn’t even in the same providence as Jones once he breaks to the sideline.
It also wouldn’t be a Brent Grimes snap without him falling, and he does so while tackling Jones. A valiant effort that pads his raw stats while at the same time getting owned on a severe mismatch by one of the game’s best receivers.
However, it’s not all bad for the Buccaneers’ defense. Defensive tackle Gerald McCoy is putting together another quality season, and free agent signing Jason Pierre-Paul has been a pleasant surprise, as he’s tied for second in sacks (8.0) and ranks inside the top ten in quarterback hits (13). He’s had a sack in every game outside of Week 1, and that was against the Saints, who have allowed the fewest quarterback hits in the league through Week 8 (22).
Pierre-Paul had a season-best game against the Steelers, sacking Ben Roethlisberger twice (both tackles for loss) and hitting him four times. As shown here, Pierre-Paul (#90) lines up against left tackle Alejandro Villanueva.
As Pierre-Paul attempts to rush towards Roethlisberger…
…he uses his power to “lift” Villanueva briefly in the air.
At 6’5 and 240 lb., Roethlisberger has a unique physique – his size forces pass rushers to adjust on how they sack him given how tough he is to bring down. Pierre-Paul gets there and instead strip-sacks Big Ben (The Steelers ended up recovering the fumble).
Pierre-Paul’s still got it. He’s been a pleasant surprise for a defense that is otherwise lacking in talent to say the least – don’t be surprised to see him lined up over Chris Clark and when that happens, the Panthers need to send help for their left tackle – otherwise it will be a long day at the office and a short day in the pocket for Cam Newton.
The Buccaneers’ defense has produced 43 quarterback hits on the season, which is right in the middle of everyone thus far. The Panthers offensive line, which has been surprisingly competent – thanks to Norv Turner’s scheme and the quality play of Taylor Moton and Greg Van Roten – has handled much worse, holding the fort against the Ravens, Eagles, Redskins, Bengals and Cowboys pass rushes, all of which have had greater numbers of QB hits in 2018.
The Panthers have the speed at receiver with D.J. Moore, Curtis Samuel, Damiere Byrd and Christian McCaffrey, and Greg Olsen should have a big day against a defense that struggles to cover tight ends. As long as they can handle Pierre-Paul and McCoy, the offensive line should be fine against that pass rush, too.
A 6-2 start is on the line for the Panthers, and they’ll need it because they’ll travel to Pittsburgh next Thursday to face the Steelers in a tough matchup on a short week. So they’ll need all the points they can get to keep up with the Bucs offense – Tampa Bay scores over 28 points per game.
Luckily, the Tampa defense allows 33.3 per game – that’s good for dead last in the NFL.
Some Clips and Images Via NFL Game Pass.
