Bucs 8-1 When Blount Has 16 Or More Carries
November 1st, 2011
Joe’s writhes in agony when the Bucs seem to miss what’s glaringly obvious: Opponents don’t stop LeGarrette Blount; Greg Olson does.
While Raheem Morris says stats are for losers, one stat was on the coach’s lips last night during The Raheem Morris Show on WDAE-AM 620. The head coach explained to a caller that the Bucs don’t need much no-huddle offense because they win when No. 27 gets the rock.
“With the no-huddle, that’s something that you get in and you get out of. Really, we’re focused on running the football and you want to hand the ball off to LeGarrette Blount 20 or so times a game,” Raheem said. “The things we have been successful with, if we’re able to get the ball to LeGarrette Blount 20 or so times, we’re almost undefeated in those situations.”
Allow Joe to clarify for the head coach, his Bucs are 8-1 when Blount has 16 or more carries.
Raheem went on to say about running the ball to open up the passing game, “that’s kind of what our offense is. It’s kind of what the bread and butter of our offense is and has to be.”
This is all music to Joe’s ears, especially with Blount returning healthy on Sunday, but it’s just lip service right now. Joe wants to see Blount with 20 carries through the first three quarters Sunday in New Orleans.
Why? Because it works.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:03 am
Pound it early, get them tired, keep Brees off the field, give offense more confidence, rest the defense…sounds like a game plan to me…remind me of the downside again? Wait, there is none!
GO BUCS!
November 1st, 2011 at 11:11 am
Agreed it can work, but so does 4 and 5 wide – we just haven’t run it very often. Only when we’re behind a lot, and it seems to work just fine.
My biggest issue is we are not aggressive at taking shots down the field. More vertical attacks are needed. Our OL will hold up.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:15 am
Going off what you said, having Blount in on 3rd downs with 4 wide can really confuse a D. They can get Blount in space with a draw, a screen, or simple route out of the backfield. Then watch Benn, Williams, Bricoe and Parker pick apart the zones.
Blount in on 3rd downs = winning football games
November 1st, 2011 at 11:17 am
Why stats are for losers….
Hard to commit to the run when you are behind early. You run the ball when you have the lead. If simply handing the ball to Blount 20 times equals a win we would be undefeated.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:27 am
@captain stagger… Not necessarily. A good example of that is the Minnesota game. It was Blount’s running that got us back into that game. San Francisco….that was a whole different ballgame. Nothing was going to work for us that day. We just sucked. Detroit…I thought we should have continued to run the ball because that is really Detroit’s weakness. We abandoned it too quickly. We do not have a QB with receivers that can get us back into a game on passing alone. Maybe in a few years but not right now. The play action is critical for us.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:27 am
Not if we control T.O.P. Getting Blount going early will be important.
If we can’t cut the penalties, all this about running is a moot point.
GO BUCS!
November 1st, 2011 at 11:35 am
JOE:
Any word on Tashard Choice? He was cut outright. Is he too expensive,?Too old? Too injured? etc?
Just wondering if he is a viable option to pick up as a backup since Lumpkin is … well….. not so much.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:37 am
I really think getting Blount going early and often is the key but with success. Mix in some play action with him in there to keep the Saints d honest. It would be great to get an early lead to quiet the load as hell Superdome fans.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:37 am
All this talk of Blount being in on 3rd downs.
Yes, it would be better than Lumpkin or a rookie from the practice squad (unless said rookie is a great receiver and a burner).
BUT, I would still prefer a very good 3rd down type back to alleviate the burden from Blount. (Sproles type) In the long run, it would better for everyone.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:46 am
I think in our slow starts we have been trying too much to use play action set up the run, instead of vice versa and have been putting the cart in front of the horse.
How many games has the first play on offense been a play action incomplete pass or sack and then we are jammed into a second and long on the 2nd play of the game?
Blount will get runs of no gains, or 2-yarders, they’re gunna happen. But he can’t be stopped from busting big ones open eventually and that’s why you have to commit to him first. Cuz until there is a threat of that happening, teams are not going to come in off the deep routes, and those won’t open up for Benn and Williams.
I really hope Olsen realizes this and gets back to basics, rather than trying to be too cute when Freeman is struggling to get it going.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:46 am
I don’t think i have ever seen us use the run to set up the pass this season.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:49 am
Dave:
First, you must ask yourself this question:
Why would a team that is still fighting for a playoff spot unload a running back in the middle of the season?
The fact this guy is still unemployed should be the answer in your search for a “word.” Thirty other teams have also turned their nose up on the guy.
Joe would much rather the Bucs pick up a guy who isn’t some one else’s waste. Right now there’s really no one walking the streets who can replace Lumpkin, not in November at least. Maybe in March.
November 1st, 2011 at 11:51 am
Choice was claimed by washington
November 1st, 2011 at 11:56 am
Choice was picked up by the skins. We have our 3rd down back, his name is Spann.
November 1st, 2011 at 12:46 pm
If Blount does not have 15 to 20 touches at the start of the 4th Quarter, Raheem needs to relieve Olsen of his play calling duties.
I dont care if the Bucs are down by 3 touchdowns, we need to establish an identity as a power running team.
We have the RB to do it, we have the O-line to do it and we have the QB that can get the ball down the field on play action.
It’s all very simple, commit to running the ball, pressure the QB on 3rd downs and most importantly protect the football. Not saying its easy but if the Bucs can do that, I like our chances against anyone
November 1st, 2011 at 1:11 pm
So in other words “Just give Blount the damn ball”
November 1st, 2011 at 2:19 pm
The 8-1 record when he gets 16 or more carries doesn’t prove cause & effect. The headline could just have easily read, “Blount has 16 or more carries when the Bucs are 8-1.”
November 1st, 2011 at 2:23 pm
The 8 and 1 record when Blount gets 16 or more carries doesn’t prove cause & effect. The headline could just as easily have read, “Blount has 16 or more carries when the Bucs are 8-1.”
November 1st, 2011 at 2:26 pm
@Bobby
How exactly is the Minnesota game a good counterexample to Captain Stagger’s point?
Blount got 5 touches in 23 total offensive snaps (22%) in the first half, and we got zero points and 3 first down. Second half, he got 9 touches in 35 snaps (26%). Do you seriously call that a big difference with how much we were using Blount?
The big difference was what he accomplished when he got the ball — 0.8yds/carry in the first half, 8.4 yds/carry in the 2nd.
Heck, we started the first drive of the game with 2 carries by Blount, and ended that drive with a punt. We ended the game with two touchdown drives; Blount got one carry on each drive.
Capt. Stagger is right — it’s way too simplistic to just think you can run the ball 20 times and our offense will automatically do well. Running the ball that much is the _result_ of having the lead, not necessarily the cause.
November 1st, 2011 at 3:01 pm
In other news, Blount has 16 or more carries when the Bucs are 8-1.
November 1st, 2011 at 3:36 pm
@FLBoyInDallas
Good one 🙂
November 1st, 2011 at 4:06 pm
@JOE
while i completely support legarrette running the ball more, this is the perfect example of how statistics can be misleading.
it is faulty logic to assume blount running more is the cause of the W merely on this statistic alone, especially since running is the name of the game ONCE YOUR AHEAD.
a more telling statistic would be to show how many drives the bucs scored on where running the ball was more than a 1:1 run to pass ratio. vs how many they didnt.
ANd then even more telling would be to show how often opposing offences scored after being left off the field for x amount of REAL TIME minutes.
just saying those numbers would be more pertitenent to the cause and effect of what you are trying to get across here Joe
November 1st, 2011 at 6:36 pm
Classic backward stat Joe. Its when the Bucs win Blunt has 16 plus carries, not the other way around. Get the point though. Commit to the run
November 1st, 2011 at 9:11 pm
Pound the ball. Someone needs to change Olson’s playbook before the game to have less than 500 pass plays and more than 3 running ones.