Offensive Line Rankings
November 20th, 2019
Graded.
To paraphrase a quote from Bill Belicheat, the crowd at BSPN believes they have it all figured out.
Over at the four-letter, they believe they have concocted a formula to determine if teams have good (or bad) offensive lines.
Now you may remember Joe had a piece from NextGen stats (data from the NFL) that claims America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston, was about in the middle of the pack for quarterbacks and the time it takes them them to make a throw.
BSPN grades seem to reinforce that data. BSPN has the Bucs as the No. 12 pass-blocking unit in the game with Ryan Jensen as the eighth-best pass blocking center. Additionally, they have Ali Marpet as the fourth-best blocking guard.
In the same article, BSPN also has a top-10 list of pass rushers both for defensive tackles and outside linebackers/defense ends. Only one Bucs player made the list, and that was Vita Vea rated as the No. 8 pass-rushing tackle.
November 20th, 2019 at 9:05 am
……and I’m sure ESPN doesn’t account for all the times Donovan Smith and Demar Dotson has absolutely whiffed on blocking
I remember at one point, Demar Dotson was one of the best tackles in the NFL………now he’s hurting and it looks like it’s time for retirement.
November 20th, 2019 at 9:06 am
This is a decent Oline but for the money we pay they should be great.
November 20th, 2019 at 9:07 am
For the money we paid….they should be blocking like Dallas O-Line………^^^^
but nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
November 20th, 2019 at 9:13 am
Miken
Don’t disagree but poor Dot is literally on his final legs. Cappa is a virtual rookie who played through a freaking broken arm.
And so while I agree I would point out the future is bright. I think Cappa is a legit starter…we need an RT…and perhaps a little better depth and we’re good to go.
Donovan Smith is neither the best nor the worst LT. I view him as middle of the pack. Yeah he makes a bundle but that’s as much because of the position he plays. Positions determine salary almost as much as talent/skill/performance.
Can you say Jameis Winston? He made close to what the B and B made…Brady and Brees…is he anywhere near close to those two? Not really…but I could go the other direction and show other guys at that POSITION who are earning waaay tooo much.
QB…DE…and LT’s are all going to get paid…it’s a simple as that.
November 20th, 2019 at 9:31 am
Wow! So the NFL Sack leader didn’t make the top ten but VV did?
What are they smoking over there?
November 20th, 2019 at 9:47 am
The problem is not the line. The problem is the scheme.
Let’s say an average NFL gives it QB 2.5 seconds to throw, and our line can hold for 2.75 seconds on average. That’s a pretty solid unit.
But, if our vertical scheme requires patterns that take 3-3.5 seconds to develop, the our line and our QB look godawful.
There’s a reason so few teams continue to center their offense around vertical concepts. It places way too much pressure on the O-line and QB. Vertical elements – fine. Vertical focus. Too hard to be successful due to lengthy drops, low percentage throws and tighter windows.
On both sides of the ball, the Bucs have been scheming from the stone ages for nearly a decade. Tampa 2, Air Coryell.
Might as well be wishbone.
Wipe the slate clean and join the modern NFL.
November 20th, 2019 at 9:48 am
so whats going to be the excuse now…..lol…
WRs cant get separation…lol…
every game its a new excuse….lol…
GO BUCS!!!!
November 20th, 2019 at 10:03 am
How can you say its a O-line rating but not say anything about run blocking? We have had the worst overall running game since our Super bowel. Running backs getting killed behind the line every week.
November 20th, 2019 at 10:11 am
The O-Line would be better if we had a QB that could make a decision with the football instead of holding on to the ball for 6 seconds and then either throwing to the other team or fumbling it.
November 20th, 2019 at 10:17 am
This confirms what I have seen with my eyes all season. The o-line gives Jay-Miss more clean pockets than most fans think.
November 20th, 2019 at 10:43 am
I’m with Bculaw on the scheme…to a point. Play calling has to adjust during the game. Last week we saw almost non-stop blitzes and we should have thrown in more slants and screens to slow that down. We didn’t. That said it really does take Winston a long time to get rid of the ball, even when he knows/or should know the play is busted. Throw it away or run. Dot is at the end of his run. Age catches everyone eventually. Smith has always been guilty of taking plays off or committing a bone head penalty at the wrong time. We paid for Arians to call plays and we are not getting our money’s worth.
November 20th, 2019 at 10:43 am
“BCULAW
nice post and 100 percent correct
BAs schemes has no horizontal elements to their pass routes
the crossing patterns and slants to open space leads to much less interceptions because the ball is targeted front of the receiver away from the chasing pass defender
the easiest route or type of reciever for corners to cover is the straight line speedsters. separation is created from sudden change of direction or change of speed
amazingly the 1 short shallow cross they threw sunday was to Godwin who yac ed it for 30 yards and a TD. It had 5 air yards at the most and was highly probable of completion and less prone for ints
The modern NFL offenses have figured out the short passing game is the only effient scheme to win n this leauge
it gets the ball out and protects the QB
what position does every 32 team needs at all times? OFFENSIVE LINEMAN
because of the type of game college football plays, offensive lineman are now never taught correctly to block as an NFL lineman
the short passing game not only protects the QB but protects the lineman from holding their blocks and not creating penalties
‘But But we can beat the pass rush from running 30 times per game” JBF Sheep
look at sundays game. Dennis Allen dialeded up all the holes by run blitzing and edges
running will not stop the QB pressure because everything is still in front of the stacked box and they will play downhill in every gap to get the runningback behind the LOS or sack the QB
THE ONLY WAY TO DEFEND AGAINST THE MODERN NFL DEFENSIVE PRESSURE IS THE SHORT PASSING GAME
Let them rush and they will throw quickly right behind them. they can all aout blitz like what Saints did sunday but they will be chasing the rb or TE after catching the short screen
November 20th, 2019 at 11:01 am
^^THIS^^ our current offense is Koetter’s offense. Our o-line sucked then and it sucks now. Cappa doing fine, Marpet doing fine, Jensen doing fine unless he snaps the ball while Jameis is still calling out plays and signaling to his WRs. Donovan Smith is hot garbage and has been from day 1. I don’t care what anyone tells me, I watch every game with my own eyes. Does he hold up on occasion- of course, but the pressure on Jameis’ blindside is nauseating. Dot- thank you for your service, please pull your hammy again and end this. Make Licht put your back up in. Who is that, Wells? Fine let him get gamete reps- if he has a false start or holds, fine- he is doing exactly what Dot is doing but hopefully learning from game speed NFL competition.
November 20th, 2019 at 11:02 am
^^ Arians not Licht, but it will expose our depth that Licht has refused to build on our line.
November 20th, 2019 at 11:06 am
Biggest concerns with this regime for me was whether they were another over-the-hill game-passed-them-by types like Lovie or Dirk – running antiquated offenses or defenses.
With Dirk we wanted more quick passing concepts especially in red zone and hoped to get them with a change but it hasn’t been there. We at least have run more screens but not nearly enough quick passing concepts compared to most current succesful offenses & QBs.
Then on the other side the defense has been driven by horrific drafting and talent management by Licht & Dominic the last 10+ years. I appreciate at least running a more aggressive scheme but my god it’s insane to swing and miss on THAT many secondary players with high draft picks.
The most frustrating thing is the fans of this site have collectively had better ideas about team building / who to draft / etc than the 4shole’s making millions off of torturing Tampa fans with a terrible product.
November 20th, 2019 at 11:41 am
The previous article said KC’s line gives Mahomes 2.5 secs and Matt Moore 2.75 secs which leads me to believe they’re just documenting how long it takes for the QBs to release the ball vs how well the oline blocks.
My measure is running stats and sacks. An oline with multiple RBs avg 4+ ypc and giving up 1 or less sacks per game is dominant.
An oline that cant get a 100 rusher no matter who is back there and avg 4+ sacks per game almost damn near 20 qb hits per game is pure trash.
Unfortunately the Bucs line resembles the latter and don’t get me started on Josh Well’s, Dotsons, or Smiths outstanding performances.
When Jameis Winston is your leading rusher two weeks in a row you got major oline problems.
November 20th, 2019 at 11:57 am
Lets face it. It all starts at the top. The Glazer’s who know nothing about running an NFL franchise suck. The Bucs are nothing but a cash cow for them. They should stick to soccer & sell the team. I’m sure there would be a lot of takers that actually know football. If nothing else they should hire someone to take over football operations. It would pay them in the long run. Poor papa Glazer must be turn over & over in his grave.
November 20th, 2019 at 12:43 pm
#8 center is the highest paid in the league? Sounds like someone overpaid again.
Last time I looked, you needed 5 O linemen to block. Why happened to the other 3?
You remember Donovan “Look out” Smith, Alex “I beat out the Earl of Watson” Crappa and DeMar “Saloon Door” Dotson don’t you?
Peace, out
November 20th, 2019 at 2:21 pm
Don’t consider Jameis stands in the pocket for half an hour and eventually takes his own walk into a sack.
November 20th, 2019 at 3:00 pm
Lets just put it out there, the optics aren’t even close. I see plays where Jameis has had time, and I see plays where he’s running from jumpstreet. When we have committed to running we’ve looked better than years past.
At best, this OL is “average”-ish. Many have been looking for Dot’s replacement now, for years. Rightfully so.
Marpet might be the best lineman we have followed by Jensen, Smith, and now Cappa it seems.
The problem is that this team is waaaay too pass-happy! The numbers PROVE that Jameis is AWFUL when throwing more than 35+ times. You simply cannot all-out abandon the run-game when going down a couple of scores early in a game.
It’s like we’re saying that we’re already losing, so lets ask our QB to do the thing that we KNOW will noty turn out well!