Are The Bucs Too Aggressive?
October 5th, 2018
“I thought I had my agent’s number written down.”
The Bucs were downright horrible Sunday. In particular, the defense.
This is why virtually every Bucs fan is freaking out right now. Fans have seen that kind of tripe before (too often, frankly) and know how the season ends (studying the draft before Halloween).
Some fans believe the Bucs, who did not blitz at all in the first half when Mitch Tribisky went full-blown Dan Marino and threw for five touchdowns, should have blitzed a time or two to throw off the Bears.
Jet-flyin’, kiss–stealin‘, data-analyzin’, Bucs-film-studyin’, limousine-ridin’ Thomas Bassinger of the Tampa Bay Times believes the Bucs were smart not to blitz. Why? Because the Bucs were too aggressive on defense all game long.
How do you fix this? If I knew, I’d be the defensive coordinator. What I can tell you is how the Bucs can make it worse, and they can make it worse by calling more blitzes. They didn’t call any in the first half, leading some to argue that they’re not playing aggressively enough. The opposite is true. They’re playing too aggressively, and opponents are exploiting it.
Well, here’s the thing: It’s hard to suggest what the Bucs were doing was correct on defense when they were getting their doors blown off. Sure guys were wide, wide open and part of that was Tribisky had time to allow guys to get wide, wide open. A blitz or two to mix things up would have maybe slowed the tide?
It was a novel concept not to blitz. It mirrored one failed Greg Schiano theory. The former Bucs commander became so disgusted the Bucs couldn’t rush the passer that he simply gave up and dropped guys back. His theory was, if you can’t stop them on the front end, stop them at the back end.
The Bucs last Sunday couldn’t stop a cool breeze.
October 5th, 2018 at 1:23 pm
Man, it’s Friday and he’s still the coach. Gotta back him at this point until her isn’t here.
Go BUCS
October 5th, 2018 at 1:24 pm
Until he isn’t^^^
October 5th, 2018 at 1:26 pm
You have to be kidding right! The only way to play D is aggressive. I encourage anyone to name those great D’s of the past that played passive. I’ll wait
October 5th, 2018 at 1:26 pm
Too aggressive? What a crock.
Flat out awful. For all of Smittys tenure.
October 5th, 2018 at 1:29 pm
When the players are lined up in base defense, whether it be 4-3 (and the variations of even, odd, over, etc.) or nickel, we are NOT being aggressive.
Was mentioned before here and on other blogs/game reviews, the variation in defensive front on the third down sack play was great and outside the norm for Bucs defense. IT WAS AN AGGRESSIVE PLAYCALL!
More of those. Please! We beg of thee!
October 5th, 2018 at 1:31 pm
I hope Mike Smith reads these articles and comments. I hope he realizes we don’t hate him as a person but man oh man do we dispise him as our DC
October 5th, 2018 at 1:31 pm
Am I f*cking crazy; or was every wide open big TD in soft zone coverage?
When I watch the replays; it is typically wide open wheel routes in between the CB’s zone and the S zone. We never adjusted and they just kept penetrating the same holes in our zone scheme.
I don’t recall seeing aggressive press MAN coverage; and the CB just losing his guy for a 10 yard wide open cushion…
Or am I f*cking crazy?
October 5th, 2018 at 1:33 pm
He makes a valid point. The Bucs have spent so much of their drafts on the offensive side for Jameis, crabby patty, jock grabbin, W eatin, Winston that the defense is left with a bunch of nobody rookie and second year players, along with a 35 year old DB just collecting a check. And the LB’s should shut up and step up.
#weaponsformikesmith
October 5th, 2018 at 1:33 pm
Bad coverage =/= being aggressive.
This defense is anything but aggressive.
October 5th, 2018 at 1:37 pm
Th old Bucs D said give us 17 I believe
With these weapons on offense they should change it.
Defense keeps em under 30 and we could be 3-1
I think we can keep em under 30. Can the offense still put up 400 yards and 4-5 TD’s a game?
as everyone has said….this is the new NFL (heck, you can’t fart on a QB)
October 5th, 2018 at 1:38 pm
Correction – I am a bit crazy lol:
Trey Burton TD = Justin Evans slip.
2nd TD = MJ Stewart beat in coverage
3rd TD = Cohen destroys Lavonte David
(however – would note – that in watching the highlights there were 3 huge pass plays to this point all in soft zone – one being the wheel route to Cohen and another huge play to Burton where no one was near him – just complete f*ck up or “miscommunication”)
4th TD = wheel route/rub route where D is completely confused again – WIDE open TD.
5th TD = short run after 2 huge plays – one a big pass where Stewart is owned; and then a big run by Trubisky where the D was clueless.
6th TD = Cohen on a LB in a wheel route easy wide open TD
October 5th, 2018 at 1:39 pm
They just can’t play against ” physical” teams. Or smarter coaches.
October 5th, 2018 at 1:43 pm
Maybe the players simply lack enough intelligence to know their assignments and process multpile decisions in a split second.
Maybe taking a man and staying with him would be a novel idea.
October 5th, 2018 at 1:45 pm
What he means by being aggressive is the lack of discipline. Players abandoning their responsibilities when they THINK they see something. I saw two players covering one player when there were other players open. Being aggressive is a good thing when you know what you’re doing.
October 5th, 2018 at 1:49 pm
Robert-
the it being the players excuse has sailed man. 3rd yr. same results
October 5th, 2018 at 2:22 pm
Everyone can blame the defense all they want but the bottom line is the head coach cant get what is needed to win / nice guy too bad / he doesn’t have it .and the talent on the team cant overcome these two fools / head coach is the barney fife of the league and these players wont run threw a cobb web for him . Just saying
October 5th, 2018 at 2:26 pm
Too predictable would be the more appropriate term. When offenses know exactly what you’re doing they can gameplan around it – sort of like teams knew for 2 years that Dirk would run it up the gut on 1st down in the 1st half of games and they gameplanned for that.
There seems to be a lack of shelf awareness with the two clowns running the team, Dirk and Mike, they don’t seem to know that people sitting on their rear ends at home know what they’re doing most of the time, so NFL coordinators know what they’re doing all the time.
October 5th, 2018 at 2:26 pm
Too aggressive? Are you kidding me? I’d like someone to explain how that defensive play was too aggressive. Aggressive is breaking on thrown balls. If you miss, hopefully the safety will clean it up. Aggressive is not leaving receivers wide open or letting them run slant routes in their sleep. Come on man!
October 5th, 2018 at 2:28 pm
You will notice aftyer the Atlanta loss watch the after game press conference Dirt will be looking down the whole time rarely engaging eye contact same as last year . he is whipped and he knows it
October 5th, 2018 at 2:33 pm
In the school yard everyone was assigned a man to cover. Don’t let him catch it.
Maybe go back to the bottle cap, stone, and dirt pile approach.
October 5th, 2018 at 2:39 pm
These guys literally did not know what they were doing. Outside of the play where Evans fell and lost coverage for an easy TD…the rest of the wide open bombs generally had two Bucs covering one Bear with another Bear running wide open.
The defenders were clearly and frequently out of position and worst of all they didn’t seem to have any answers out there. They were confused the ENTIRE game.
Given that the DB’s are largely rooks or young inexperienced players and may not have the physical skills yet…can they not learn where to line up and who to cover?
October 5th, 2018 at 2:48 pm
The title alone made me spit my tea on my monitor! Are you effing kidding?! “TOO AGGRESSIVE!”??!!
I’d rather the be aggressive and get burnt than sit back in some scheme that, apparently, NONE of them know how to play in!!!!
October 5th, 2018 at 2:50 pm
lewis Says:
October 5th, 2018 at 2:28 pm
You will notice aftyer the Atlanta loss watch the after game press conference Dirt will be looking down the whole time rarely engaging eye contact same as last year . he is whipped and he knows it
this is funny because i study these guys and how they handle their post game pressers at the podium after wins and losses…dirk always seems curt with the media and jameis seems limited and redundant with his speak…i will miss football this sunday even if we were gonna get shellacked in big boy juice
October 5th, 2018 at 3:07 pm
thats complete BS!!!!!!
#NOEXCUSESIN2018!!!!!….#PRESSURESONTHECOACHES!!!!…GO BUCS!!!!
October 5th, 2018 at 3:31 pm
@Cornelius… Nice breakdown. I actually watched this defense nightmare again last night and it was just a multitude of errors combined with some clever play calling from Chicago. M.J. Stewart is just fighting for his life out there and playing with little instinct. Davis is missing assignments at the worst times. But the good news is that these guys don’t let up. They don’t have a choice. They’re rookies who are being asked to grow up quick. We made a big mistake letting Tandy go as he was the only experienced depth we really had. But I DO have faith in these young DBs (Whitehead included) to develop and start playing with more instincts. It’ll only take a int or two to boost some confidence.
Now this D line?… We lack pass rushers outside of McCoy and JPP. Curry only wins if he can catch the edge. Vita Vea is going to really help push the middle of the pocket but I wouldn’t expect a lot of sacks. We’re still not sure what’s up with Spence but this front four is lacking some explosive pass rushers. I feel they’re forcing the issue a bit with the rotation as our pass rush takes a huuuge dip when McCoy and JPP are out and it’s putting us in a hole.
October 5th, 2018 at 3:36 pm
Maybe aggressive is the wrong word (even though I don’t think it is). One thing we definitely are is predictable. You can tell right away what we are doing, and so does the other team (Nagy said it himself). There is no excuse for getting torched the way we have, and for guys running 15 yards wide open. I don’t buy we didn’t blitz enough, because I’d rather blitz every play and get burned than not blitz and have guys running wide open.
October 5th, 2018 at 3:37 pm
Didnt blitz once in the first half, not once!! The worst qb in the league against the blitz wasnt blitzed once. And this clown says they are too aggressive lol. Worst bit Ive ever seen. Guy is clueless. Smart not to blitz the worst qb against the blitz? Him and mike smith are the only 2 in america who think so.
October 5th, 2018 at 3:51 pm
@BigPoppa
Yeah agree. Would be nice to see some exotic looks/blitzes when we don’t have our best 4 in
October 5th, 2018 at 3:59 pm
Some fans believe the Bucs, who did not blitz at all in the first half
————
Simply not true. In the first series LVD blitzed the A gap and kwon messed up the backside contain. The blitz was easily picked up and the back got a good gain bc kwon was not where he was supposed to be.
If anything they didn’t blitz enough as Kwon was Spying Mitch most of the game. He should have just went after him, I guess they were afraid he’d gash them which he did anyway.
This guy Bassinger doesn’t know what he’s talking about. How do these guys get press credentials. Daddy knows somebody I’m guessing?
October 5th, 2018 at 4:04 pm
The Rookie DB’s especially lack the experience to adjust to Smitty’s attempts to
disguise the defense. There assignments are not clear to them so they don’t know
when to hand off or takeover coverage when receiver leaves or enters a new zone. . Cover 2,cover 3,
Cover 4 or 5. Maybe experienced DB”s can pull that off , but expecting rookie DB’s to all work together and play at an NFL level is asking too much.
October 5th, 2018 at 4:12 pm
Every offense knows our LB’s are going to shoot the gaps when blitzing so they
gameplan for it. But who thinks we are actually going to blitz the corner or safety.
Correct me if I ‘m wrong , but I haven’t seen a successful corner blitz since Ronde retired. Sit Grimes and turn some of our DB’s loose once in a while. Lets get after it.
October 5th, 2018 at 4:31 pm
If we get blown out in Atlanta Someone, Anyone must step in and take action. If it is fire Smith, demote him etc. then do it. Something must be done to salvage the season.
October 5th, 2018 at 5:19 pm
FUUUUUUUUUUCCCKKKK!!!!!!
October 5th, 2018 at 5:45 pm
there is a guy who is supposed to have experience at calling defense and all that, yeah he’s been a head coach, a defensive coordinator, currently a linebackers coach, been around 40 something years, even knows the players, he’s kinda well respected in NFL circles by both players coaches and GM’s hell he even coached under thee great woody hayes, and at this moment is employed by the buccaneers, imagine that, his name is duffner and he should be next man up, hate is a strong word i can not say i hate mike smith, but i do hate the air he breaths and the ground he stands on, oh well, it’s a bucs life, go bucs
October 5th, 2018 at 6:24 pm
PLEASE! Bucs? Aggressive Defense? OXYMORON.
October 5th, 2018 at 8:18 pm
Hire Greg Schiano!
October 5th, 2018 at 11:45 pm
They were still on soft zones anyway Lord C. Bassinger is mistaking over-pursuit for aggressive. My wife’s 96 year old Grandma is more aggressive than this defense. What you call last Sunday’s debacle Mr. Bassinger is a bad D Coordinator and piss poor coaching.