Stopping Matty Ice
November 25th, 2012
For Joe, there is really only one area of the Dixie Chicks that the Bucs need to concern themselves with, and that is Matty Ice.
The signal-caller of the Dixie Chicks can be lethal. The Bucs secondary is lethal — that is lethal to watch. It is ugly beyond words, an NFL-worst outfit. Throw in Eric Wright’s status is very much in doubt for today’s showdown, and there will be a lot of pressure on the Bucs defense to find a way to somehow, someway, throw Matty Ice off of his game.
One would think somehow limiting Matty Ice opportunities to burn the Bucs secondary would be a goal. But alas, it is not, Bucs defensive end Da’Quan Bowers told Joe.
“We want to get him to throw the ball as much as possible,” Bowers said.
This was simply shocking to Joe but Bowers explained it and it is actually smart. Bucs defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan is all about stopping the run and making an opposing offense one-dimensional, in other words, predictable. So, Bowers said, to get Matty Ice to throw the ball virtually every down means the Bucs would have accomplished two of Sheridan’s tenets of defensive football.
Bowers noted that Matty Ice’s release, though very good, is not his greatest asset.
“It’s his pocket presence, knowing where everybody is and knowing where his pocket protection is,” Bowers said. “He’s smart. We have to get pressure on him and get him to the ground.”
Bowers’ defensive line teammate Michael Bennett still is impressed by Ryan’s quick release.
“Matt Ryan gets the ball out pretty quick,” Bennett said. “He has a little bit of everything. He is a vet and he knows where all of his players are. You can stop him but they have other weapons like Michael Turner and Tony Gonzalez, Roddy White and Julio Jones.
“They are passing more.”
Bucs cornerback Leonard Johnson is very impressed.
“He’s just like all the other quarterbacks in this league, he’s very consistent and he has good decision-making skills,” Johnson said. “He has all the attributes that you look for in an NFL quarterback but he is definitely one of the premiere quarterbacks in this league. That’s why he is playing on the level he is playing.”
November 25th, 2012 at 8:17 am
Just took my puppy for a walk and the air smells like Victory today. Bucs win 31-28
November 25th, 2012 at 9:45 am
Joe,
The Bucs pass defense may be giving up a lot of yards, but they really aren’t THAT bad. Opposing QBs rating for the season is 88.9, good for 17th in the league. This is due in large part to the Bucs also being 3rd in the NFL in INTs with 13. Lethally bad, historically bad, or just plain bad pass defenses don’t rank in the middle of the pack as far as oppsing QB rating and in the top 3 in INTs. The team is also 15th in the league for least pass TDs given up. Yes, the pass defense could improve, specifically by getting to the QB a bit more and limiting the number of times opposing QBs have a chance to throw.
This pass defense gives up uards, but they take the ball away AND don’t allow too many scores, but overall opposing QB ranking is right in the middle of the pack. This is NOT a bad pass defense and with Bowers coming on strong (2 sacks in the last 3 games), Teo-Neisheim’s emergence (2 sacks in the past 4 games), and Bennett (7 sacks on season), McCoy’s (3 sacks on season but numerous pressures) continued excellent play, the pass rush has stepped up and the pass defense has continued to improve.
November 25th, 2012 at 10:21 am
Nice work Joe, in maximizing use of the name “Matty Ice”.
November 25th, 2012 at 10:28 am
Brandon, your stats are reveling. Many of the Bucs opponents this season have had to play from behind and changed their game to passing a lot to try and catch up on the score board. I feel this has shifted the stats a little against our secondary.
The rules in the NFL are geared for passing, so it makes it hard to defend. I think the pass interference rules need to be changed. Many teams just throw it up and hope for the refs give them the call.
I think we need top keep the ball away from the dirty birds and limit their opportunities to score. The Bucs need to win the turn over battle and time of possession. Go Bucs
November 25th, 2012 at 10:37 am
“keep the ball away from the dirty birds..limit their opportunities to score. The Bucs need to win the turn over battle and time of possession. ”
All this is obvious & easier to say than to accomplish, but cliches exist because they’re true, and I couldn’t agree more with you & Brandon… Go Bucs.
November 25th, 2012 at 10:48 am
Is Daquan bowers finally 100% and be taking more than just the third down reps cause his versatility is very much needed to stop the run and pressure matty ice into some of his questionable throws tht our starting undrafted corners could easily pick off , bowers is the Julio jones of this defense , it’s easier to win with him
November 25th, 2012 at 10:48 am
After reading the paper, I am feeling pretty good now! Ira Kaufman picked us to loose! That is a great sign as It’s always bad for us when he jumps on the bandwagon. Ira does do an excellent job of predicting what happened last year.
November 25th, 2012 at 10:55 am
I have a feeling that this defense is going to rise to the challenge.
November 25th, 2012 at 11:00 am
I like that he is named after crap beer.
November 25th, 2012 at 11:11 am
If the Bucs defense can get sufficient pressure up the middle to force Ryan to dump it off quickly. The Bucs secondary will jump a few routes and pick off Ryan. Rhonde will have at least one pick today.