“It Might Have Been The Best Thing For Us”
December 10th, 2020
Head coach Bucco Bruce Arians speaks
The stars continue to align for our beloved Tampa Bay Buccaneers, according to Bucco Bruce Arians.
If you asked Arians in August what he thought about his team’s Week 13 bye week, Arians might have dropped a few F-bombs and called BS.
Yesterday on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Arians explained that he misjudged. “I wasn’t real happy about it, but it might have been the best thing for us,” Arians said of the bye.
Arians noted it will help his talented rookies avoid a rookie wall (something he thinks they haven’t hit), and he didn’t have to say the late bye was a good fit for his team that’s lost three out of four games and has a load of veteran players. All Bucs fans can see that.
Tom Brady certainly used the extra time.
“Tom, I’m really pleased with where Tom is,” Arians said. “I mean, it’s not easy to change after 20 years and not have any practice. But, you know, he looked at himself, he did a bunch of studying himself last week, too, as we all did. I’m very, very comfortable where we’re at this week.”
For NFL Radio co-host Bill Polian, the Hall of Fame general manager and Arians’ friend, the bye was best for the other side of the football.
“I think so much more for the defense than the offense,” Polian said of the bye’s value. “I think the offense has played pretty darn well. You know, everybody’s expecting 50 points a game, which is completely unrealistic.”
“But I think defensively, Bruce never makes excuses, but the loss of Vita Vea was really, really tough. Because the nose tackle is the guy that sets the tone. … their run game has suffered, they’re pocket push has suffered and they’re not the same defense.”
Polian went on to assume the Bucs worked a lot in recent days on better integration and technique at that position.
It’s Wednesday’s Ira Kaufman Podcast
December 10th, 2020 at 8:06 am
HEART!
For the life of me I can’t figure out why everyone at the pro level doesn’t have that attitude!
December 10th, 2020 at 8:18 am
@Polian … ” “I think the offense has played pretty darn well.”
Yes Bill, beating 1 losing team but losing to 3 winning teams in the last 4 games is awesome. And oh ya, make sure you blame it on the defense.
December 10th, 2020 at 8:45 am
I think the bye was too late to call it perfect timing. Arians said the team was tired weeks ago. That probably would have been the ‘perfect’ time.
December 10th, 2020 at 8:48 am
We have been very inconsistent on both sides of the ball…..
December 10th, 2020 at 8:50 am
I get the angst, but perspective is needed. When exactly did 6th in the league in pts scored per game become something for this fan base to thumb its nose at? Ask Warren Sapp if he would have accepted 28 pts per game from his offense!
This article illustrates the main source of optimism we have left, right? If this team can look stuck in 3rd gear and still produce 28pts per game, imagine what finally having the bye to self-scout and adjust will do.
Everyone’s healthy, reflected and has 4 games against bottom-half defenses to get on a roll and peak for the playoffs. Make it happen Bucs!
December 10th, 2020 at 8:53 am
They have been “consistent”!!!!!!!! It just depends if the other team is above average or easily outcoaches the woefully awful coaching that ole stale biscuit and friends bring to the table!!!!!!!!!!! And for the record, on a whole, the schedule has been very soft this season!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
go bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
December 10th, 2020 at 9:14 am
probably best if the bye came earlier, like after the saints game but thank goodness it came. Sunday is huge and will show if we are really contenders
December 10th, 2020 at 9:14 am
Mark your calendar’s everyone, it’s a very special day here at JBF!
Realist has used his one millionth ❗️mark!
And what’s even more impressive is that in all that time he’s actually managed to say NOTHING!
Congratulations resident loser!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
December 10th, 2020 at 10:16 am
Gotta agree with the Vea assessment. We lost that big pock push when he went down, which is likely a big reason why our blitz scheme isn’t as effective.
December 10th, 2020 at 10:50 am
If we don’t beat the Vikes we go 9-7 with one loss to ATL. If we can beat them then we have a chance of Running The table.
December 10th, 2020 at 10:59 am
LMAO!! technique? does that technique come @ 350 with freakish talent? come on Polian. Vita is and has been irreplaceable.
December 10th, 2020 at 11:14 am
yeah no one really wants to admittedly emphasize they’re not the same defense without vita…
his absence has really shined a spotlight on just how key he is to this defense, and how others thrive when he is in there…
polian nailed it…
vita’s the best nt in all of football
December 10th, 2020 at 11:14 am
just gotta hope 348 pounds still has some hop left in that ankle once fully recovered
December 10th, 2020 at 11:26 am
Here’s a novel idea, on obvious passing downs instead of blitzing a cb or lb simply line up 5 dlmen and take the slowest lb and go with 2. Our blitzes are no longer effective as before so make the ol deal with 5 dlmen straight up.
I hope Arrogance, Leftocers and Toilet Bowels took a really good look at themselves in the mirror as well and realized they are part of what is holding this team back.
I don’t think we expect 50 though it would be nice but 28 per game is something which is obtainable with this offense.
December 10th, 2020 at 1:17 pm
Hopefully the coaches have all figured out their players and will use them appropriately for the rest of the season.
If that happens we will at least make it the the Championship game. If they blow it, like against the Chiefs, we will have a much shorter season.
The players on the team have more bright spots than not. They could go a long way.
December 10th, 2020 at 1:28 pm
Polian is spot on. What this Team needs is time together.
Every Practice, Every game, They get better. Even in loses, you can see them getting closer and closer to becoming an absolutely dominant Offense..
Defensively, again, Polian is absolutely right.
The loss of Vea has changed the defense dramatically.
Everyone is piling on the Cornerbacks, but the issue is the play of our safeties!
Bowles stops the run, then pressures the QB.
To stop the run, he is having to pull the Safeties up in the Box.
That is leaving Davis and Bunting in a bad place.
But our secondary is young and talented. They’ll figure it out.
Despite the issues, Im seeing it start to come together.
We need JPP, Shaq, Davis to stay healthy. And of Course, Brady, Evans, Godwin.
I hate saying this. This team has disappointed me most of my adult life.
But I think its gonna be Tampa and KC in the Super Bowl.
December 10th, 2020 at 6:01 pm
Vita Vea going down is what will cost us a real chance at winning anything closely related to a Super Bowl