“Matt Ryan’s Probably Licking At His Chops”
September 15th, 2014
Bucs corner Alterraun Verner weighs in
A couple of low-grade quarterbacks have racked up impressive numbers and two wins against the Bucs defense.
Bucs Pro Bowl cornerback Alterraun Verner, who was very sound yesterday against the Rams, knows what that means.
It means the Falcons’ quarterback is salivating at the thought of Da’Quan Bowers trying to sack him on Thursday night in the Georgia Dome while the porous Bucs zone defense reveals it’s flaws.
“Matt Ryan’s probably licking at his chops right now saying, ‘Oh, we let No. 9 do what he was able to do,'” Verner said after the Bucs fell to 0-2.
Yes, that “No. 9” is the immortal Austin Davis, the Rams’ third-string quarterback.
Catch the good interview with Verner below, via SportsTalkFlorida.com. (Verner is shirtless, rare for a video interview, but Joe can assure you it’s safe for work.)
September 15th, 2014 at 10:51 am
Not to worry, the mysterious Tedford offense will be unveiled!
September 15th, 2014 at 10:52 am
Hard for the Falcons to NOT be overconfident when they look at the Bucs on video.
Then again, the Falcons were humbled on Sunday so they still have a lot to prove.
Problem this time is the Bucs will be facing a legitimate starter at QB.
September 15th, 2014 at 10:53 am
I myself, with nothing more than high school football experience on defense would be salivating at the opportunity to throw the football at the middle of the field against the Bucs. Like throwing a hotdog down a hallway. Wide open
September 15th, 2014 at 10:54 am
The real question is will Frazier stay rigid with “his way” or will he adjust to the personnel he has available and come up with a game plan that gives the def a chance??
September 15th, 2014 at 10:54 am
VJ made a freakish sideline catch yesterday that was high… Wasn’t that what we EXPECTED from our QB. I would rather him throw into single coverage anytime either of our BIG receivers are free. I would rather see an interception there rather than running around in circles then throwing off your back foot to a receiver in the middle surrounded by three defenders!!!
September 15th, 2014 at 10:54 am
I like how mcc own and verner are telling it straight up. Not trying to hide the fact they’re unhappy
September 15th, 2014 at 11:02 am
once again were o and 2 just like last year losing because of our mistakes. i am tired of it. its ridiculous how lovie smith sold the fan base into winning football games like its 1999 all over again. i dont care anymore all this team does is break my heart just like last year.however bucs might have chance with the falcons just because they have some issues just like the bucs. and for all the people critizing mccown for this game dont know football, other then the interception he played some solid football and put us in a position to win it, how about you blame special teams and the worst tight end in the nfl luke stocker for not blocking his guy on a field goal. luke stocker you suck, ASJ get well cause we need you
September 15th, 2014 at 11:02 am
billy buckaroo Says:
September 15th, 2014 at 10:54 am
“The real question is will Frazier stay rigid with “his way” or will he adjust to the personnel he has available and come up with a game plan that gives the def a chance??”
The real question is. How long before people like you start blaming Lovie and not everyone else?
September 15th, 2014 at 11:04 am
I’m not too sure this game will even be played. Chances are we miss the flight up there and end up forfeiting the game. This team has little chance to win even one game this season. All most of us were asking, was to see some improvement, and we’re getting worse.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:05 am
We got spanked by the scout team guy…just think what Ryan is gonna do to us…
September 15th, 2014 at 11:07 am
@INDYbucsfan, Yah I thought McCown at the press conference was almost ready to throw the coaching under the bus..
September 15th, 2014 at 11:14 am
jb Says:
September 15th, 2014 at 11:04 am
“All most of us were asking, was to see some improvement, and we’re getting worse.”
You hit the nail on the head right there man. That’s the number 1 thing that all these fans in here that keep telling us” it takes more time” forget about.
They forget to notice the team is getting worse than when Schiano ran it. The team is going backwards people.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:16 am
Perhaps maybe change their tactic. Perhaps say it like.
It takes time to keep go backwards before we are any good.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:19 am
The Bucs have to suck more before they can be good. It takes time.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:19 am
How great would it be to get total honesty from coaches and GM? In the preseason, Lovie could have said, “Look we’re probably going to be pretty bad. It’s really gonna take us a second offseason and draft to improve this roster. Teams like the Browns have been assembling some really good rosters but the cupboard is pretty bare here. And you can’t really expect Josh McCown to win games for you; I mean, he hasn’t been able to win or keep a starter’s job in all his years in the league.”
The Bucs’ performance is so far from “win now” that it’s not funny.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:23 am
Tedfords offense did enough to win that game lol.
Don’t kid yourselves.
Growing pains, they happen. Deal.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:24 am
NewTampa: well said, my friend, we’ll said.
But the truth doesn’t sell tickets — follow the money.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:27 am
@NewTampaChris Says:
Well said!
“WIn Now” probably their most regrettable statement to this point. Injuries force coaches to make many adjustments during the season but L&L were making adjustments until the very last day prior to the season. “Win Now” right out of the gate with a constantly changing lineup hardly seems a feasible situation and thus a poor statement on their part.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:27 am
WOW…. I am speechless. We went from thinking we can be a top 5 defense to hoping were not in the bottom 5. This is ridiculous.
Im glad I have Matt Ryan on my fanatsy team this week
#OWEN16
September 15th, 2014 at 11:29 am
During that game yesterday I kept wondering which is worse, offense or defense? It’s a tough call. Still not sure. What I am sure of is do-no-wrong Lovie and his suddenly silent lapdog GM are quickly becoming a huge embarrassment.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:33 am
PRB…and what about the D? What’s Ryan going to do to this D on Thursday?
September 15th, 2014 at 11:33 am
Dallas
“Quickly becoming” ??!?! Unserstatement of the year.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:36 am
Dallasbuc,
Good point. Haven’t seen Licht in a while. Is he on a scouting trip to Siberia?
September 15th, 2014 at 11:37 am
i miss revis
September 15th, 2014 at 11:39 am
I miss Greg Schiano. Atleast people blamed him for everything. We can’t hardly get anyone to point a finger at Lovie for a damn thing.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:41 am
@Dallasbuc, Licht helped surve up the Kool aid and now does not want to show his face..
September 15th, 2014 at 11:42 am
Ugh Chip Kelly. Coulda, shoulda , woulda.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:45 am
Going strictly by points alone the defense isn’t bad. However, this old-school “bend but don’t break” style Lovie plays which allows the opposing offense to march most of the way down the field before Lovie puts the clamps on is frustrating as hell to watch.
First, it wears down our defense. Second, it makes third string QB’s look like Peyton Manning because it allows them high completion percentages (although admittedly it does limit throwing TD’s). Third, it comes across as fearful and hesitant instead of aggressive and proactive. This is a difficult defensive style for fans to get behind in this day and age.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:46 am
Lightning- Lovie told him to stop barking and go lay down with his bone.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:49 am
Lovie is so cool calm and collected, you can’t shake that demeanor. Ho hum we’re 0-2, what’s with the big uproar? We shoulda woulda coulda. Blah blah blah and so on.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:49 am
The Tampa 2 isn’t a mystery, folks. If there’s no pass rush, there’s plenty of places to throw the ball.
GET TO THE PASSER.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:53 am
Ryan? Why? Falcons will start their backup QB.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:57 am
You can see Lovie’s defense is playing the old Tampa-2 style philosophy of “keep everything in front of you” and “bend but don’t break”. This allows tons of completions. Truthfully it does somewhat limit passing yards to the low 200’s and limits passing TD’s. And it also limits big plays to a certain extent.
Beyond that I don’t see any strengths and for fans of modern football it is extremely frustrating to watch this style. It tends to give the opposition an advantage in time of possession, so fans are stuck watching completion after completion as well as quite a few converted third downs. It seems to take forever before we get the ball back on most drives.
The ONLY way this defense can have the success it’s capable of is if you have a front four that can rush the passer. Right now we have ONE GUY who can do that consistently, and he has a broken hand after yesterday. Until we get at least two more of the front four guys (for a total of three) applying consistent pressure on the QB this defense will frustrate fans to no end.
September 15th, 2014 at 11:59 am
^^^Yep
September 15th, 2014 at 11:59 am
Tampa 2 is a pathetic, outdated and completely figured out defense. Lovie needs to join 2014 NFL football and stop acting like 2001 NFL football is coming back. Should never have gotten rid of Revis.
September 15th, 2014 at 12:03 pm
Where have all the fan police run off to with all the “haters” criticizing the HC and QB? Off duty when truth hurts I guess!
September 15th, 2014 at 12:08 pm
There’s a huge difference between informed criticism that includes analysis of what’s wrong vs emotional outbursts that offer nothing but negativity and unrestrained blaming, bitching and moaning. All the difference in the world, in fact.
September 15th, 2014 at 12:09 pm
In short: grow up
September 15th, 2014 at 12:10 pm
Oh wait, there’s a fan cop!^^^
September 15th, 2014 at 12:28 pm
There is nothing emotional about the way this team has performed and make no mistake this is uninspiring product.
I keep saying this but fans should not be emotionally vested with this losing franchise because it’s simply not worth it. Why have 6’5″ WRs and speed not to even make playcalls to use them.
If it’s anything I see missing and it’s the void of coaching accountability.
September 15th, 2014 at 12:58 pm
Not one single pass thrown into the end zone all game long yesterday….that boggles my mind! We have 2 of the biggest pass catchers in the league and not one shot into the end zone! Why??????? It’s so hard to try to stay positive when this kind of inept play calling happens.
September 15th, 2014 at 1:12 pm
Playing not to lose, equals losing.
September 15th, 2014 at 1:19 pm
Name a team in the league that would be okay after losing 3/4 of their defensive line, a middle linebacker (in a cover 2 scheme, no less) and a starting CB. Would Carolina/Houston/Seattle be dominant defensively with those injuries? I think not.
September 15th, 2014 at 2:07 pm
Excuses. Excuses. Gruden was the only really good head coach we ever had.
September 15th, 2014 at 2:09 pm
I’m not throwing the offense completely under the bus until Tedford calls his own plays!
The only thing we’ve learned through 2 weeks is Arroyo can’t coordinate an offense.
We’re severely lacking dept in the secondary, DeQuan Bowers is still stealing $ from the Bucs, and Leslie Frazier needs to try mixing in some man coverage, and blitzes every once in a while!
How many times did Leonard Johnson get burned yesterday?
He looked like EJ Biggers get torched by receivers all afternoon!