Shaq Still Elite Rusher
November 7th, 2020
Among league leaders.
Joe always has been and always will be a sack guy. Why this annoys some of Joe’s readers, well, that’s a mystery.
So the following information will make this crowd happy.
It seems that while NFL sack king Shaq Barrett will finish the season way, way off the 19.5 sacks he had last year, Shaq is still among the NFL leaders in getting close.
While Shaq only has three sacks this season, he is tied for second in getting-close plays — known as “pressures.”
Shaq, per the PFF tribe, has 38 quarterback pressures, tied for second with Myles Garrett and trailing T.J. Watt by one pressure. Fourth is Joey Bosa with 37 close calls.
Most total pressures among edge defenders:
🔸 T.J. Watt – 39
🔸 Myles Garrett – 38
🔸 Shaq Barrett – 38
🔸 Joey Bosa – 37 pic.twitter.com/4ioUeG3lKo— PFF (@PFF) November 6, 2020
When it comes to sacks for those four, Garrett has the most with 9, Watt has 6.5, Bosa has 4.5 and Shaq has 3.
Why is Joe so hung up on sacks? Because a quarterback cannot attempt a pass when he’s on his arse with a defender on top of him. What the quarterback can do on a sack, however, is fumble the ball.
A sack is a drive-killer for an offense.
Just like Bucco Bruce Arians refuses to apologize for a win, Joe refuses to make any apologies for having a sacks fetish.
November 7th, 2020 at 1:00 pm
AwshBucs exactly I can always tell which joe it is.
November 7th, 2020 at 1:06 pm
A quarterback is also less likely to complete a pass while pressured. Seems you’re letting perfect be the enemy of good.
November 7th, 2020 at 1:09 pm
Shaq is very good…..but if he doesn’t produce more sacks he won’t be worth his
$15,828,000 next year…….perhaps….$10-12 on a multi-year deal…
Let’s hope Shaq checks his ego at the door and accepts a pay cut….I think he will if he has a multi-year contract offered.
We need to save some $$ next year for LVD & Godwin…..
November 7th, 2020 at 1:17 pm
Joe, you like to hear yourself talk. If the pass is incomplete, it doesn’t matter whether the QB is on his back, side, or upside down. Taking the Giants game as an example. When you have a QB like Jones, it could be better to let him make the foolish throw. You don’t get interceptions when the QB is lying on his back.
November 7th, 2020 at 1:18 pm
What hasn’t been discussed is Shaq and JPP switching sides this year. Shaq had 19.5 sacks last year. So, why switch? With only 3 sacks, why not switch back?
Here’s a better question … If Shaq led the league in sacks 2 years in a row he would break the bank. To Joe’s point, sacks aren’t pressures. So, do they resign Shaq at lower amount and then put him back at his natural position?
November 7th, 2020 at 1:25 pm
Shaq is making the defense better. The defensive team is playing better this year over last year. It’s because Shaq is focused on doing his job, maintaining his gaps, keeping containment — versus just hellbent after getting the QB on the ground. The film bears this out.
November 7th, 2020 at 1:26 pm
PS — Shaq forced two INTs last week. If Danny Pennies were on his back with the ball, neither of those picks happen and maybe the Bucs lose to the Giants.
November 7th, 2020 at 1:47 pm
i never looked at numbers on this…but from watching i knew…and mentioned it a few times on joebucsflan.com…
38…
good job shaqster
November 7th, 2020 at 2:21 pm
sack strips would be best, but pressure is great also. like everybody here is saying if it causes turnovers doesnt matter. I will say that sacks make the QB a little gun shy though and helps put a little fear into them dont hold the ball long enough , which may cause them to throw a little early?
November 7th, 2020 at 2:25 pm
i see them resigning him for like…3 years 40 mil…at this point…
this can change by the game tho…
i still see him getting double digit sacks come season’s end
November 7th, 2020 at 2:37 pm
For those talking about signing Shaq for a lower amount, it ain’t gonna happen. The Bucs’ cupboard isn’t overflowing with DE/OLBs (to say the least), and retaining Shaq is critical. He’s not getting enough sacks to feed Joe’s foot fetish (or sack fetish, whatever), but he’s a critical cog in this defense & everyone knows it.
Switching sides with JPP may have made a difference; don’t know. Opponents keying on Shaq may have made a difference; don’t know. Todd Bowles may be using him differently this year; don’t know. Shaq might’ve beefed up a little & that might’ve slowed him down by a fraction of a second; don’t know. But what we do know is that although he’s ONLY got 3 sacks in 8 games, he’s been credited with 38 pressures in those 8 games. Plus 24 solo tackles (33 total), 6 TFLs & 3 PDs.
Now double those numbers for a full season. Then consider that his snap counts (percentages) in these past 8 games have been 88-95-75-92-87-90-77-84 (86% average) and I seriously doubt Shaq will be allowed to go anywhere. That’s Ironman territory IMO.
November 7th, 2020 at 3:19 pm
I got a sack for ya Joe [Just Kidding] lol..
November 7th, 2020 at 3:56 pm
“Bird” just learned the hard way that you can only throw so many rocks at the dog before the dog bites back.
The dog just bit.
Never smart to keep throwing rocks at the guy who owns this site and controls the Goodbye Button.
November 7th, 2020 at 4:01 pm
You can put me in Joes camp on this one. I want the sacks. The second INT last week is a good example. Looked like Shaq had the sack. When Jones got rid of it I screamed NOOOO…..The pick was a great result no doubt but Im not expecting many great QBs to make that mistake. The pressures and hurries can cause some picks but that play was just bad decision making by the QB………Id rather see Shaq get home and complete the sack on a play like that. Just because you cant rely on the QB to make a bad error there……Luckily the Giants are 1-7 and stupid plays like that are probably why.
That said Im not down on Shaq in no way. He is causing havoc in the backfield and that makes a real difference. I also think he is a big reason why our run defense is so good. I can give a crap less what PFF has to say but sometimes they are right. If they are right this time it will show up eventually and we will see the sack come…….If I remember right PFF said last year Shaq was not getting pressures and his numbers was an anomoly…….Point is I think you can take these numbers and wipe your rear end with them.
November 7th, 2020 at 4:12 pm
Defense Rules I think the lower number people are talking about is that if Shaq gets 19 1/2 sack again and is the top sacker in the league again. Which would also make him an All-Pro player. If he does that he would command the highest salary in the league. Probably 20M or higher.
I think that 20M number is what people are thinking of when they say that. As is Shaq will command a pretty high paycheck. But at his current rate it shouldnt break the bank.
November 7th, 2020 at 4:13 pm
joe:
so i noticed this guy bird’s name is always in red…
is that because a poster on this site is in bad standing ?
#TurnThemRedBeforeTurningThemLoose
November 7th, 2020 at 4:15 pm
shaq is currently looking at jpp type money…
3 years 40 mil…
i think jpp makes about 13
November 7th, 2020 at 4:17 pm
did you know shaq is like the only linebacker in the entire nfl with a little pot belly?
lol
November 7th, 2020 at 4:27 pm
Shaq getting pressures like he is is a huge reason as to why we get so many take aways.
Turnovers >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>sacks
It is much more important we pick the ball out of the air then get a sack. a sack is a sack don’t get me wrong. But to look at his sheet and say he hasn’t been contributing without looking at film is just assinine.
November 7th, 2020 at 5:11 pm
Shaq is an elite pass rusher this year, just not an elite pass sacker this year! But seriously, he’s consistently in the QB’s grill. If you’re not bringing them to ground you better at least be moving them off their spot and disrupting their timing. And he is doing that.
November 7th, 2020 at 8:45 pm
Billichick said that pressure is more important than sack. You just look at TB, Brees, they avoid sacks by throwing away. So the best measure is pressure.
November 7th, 2020 at 10:57 pm
Shaq was on Jones, that is, he was pressuring the QB both times when he threw his picks last Monday night! Go watch some “tape”.
Enough said.
November 8th, 2020 at 7:21 am
Shaq is playing as well as he did last year, whilst dealing with more pressure and double teams. Sacks are a great stat – but they don’t win you games. It’s lazy analysis to pretend that Shaq is having a down year.
November 8th, 2020 at 10:15 am
I’m a sack guy just not a Shaq guy. One hit wonder so far, seems to easy to scheme against him