Looking At The Playoffs
November 9th, 2021
Bucs coach Bucco Bruce Arians.
Bucs Super Bowl-winning coach Bucco Bruce Arians discusses this often. And yesterday he was joined by center Ryan Jensen.
The Bucs are hellbent on winning homefield advantage for the playoffs.
Over at BSPN, Jeremy Fowler spoke off the record with various NFL executives to get an idea how NFL suits think the playoff seedings will shake out. Interestingly, the suits believe the Bucs will win the NFC South and that the slimy Saints are instead playing for a wild card.
Most interesting to Joe is what the suits had to say about the NFC West. With the Rams holding a tiebreaker over the Bucs and the Cardinals ahead of the pack by a game, Joe would guess the Bucs are in a battle with the NFC West-winner for homefield advantage.
Fowler is getting the sense from a couple of suits that the Cardinals will crater in the second half of the season.
But not everyone is as optimistic, with a few execs pointing to the Cardinals’ 5-2 start last year. Arizona ultimately lost six of the last nine. Will this year be different?
“It might be, but they will need to prove that,” an NFC exec said. “Kyler probably needs to stay healthy. And they will need a counter when defenses make their adjustments in the second half of the season.”
Well, if Sunday was a test case, the bearish-on-the-Cardinals NFL suits might be wrong. The Cardinals were without Kyler Murray, without DeAndre Hopkins, without A.J. Green and without J.J. Watt and went on the road and female dog-slapped the 49ers.
If anything, Joe took that outcome as a warning to the rest of the NFL: The Cardinals, this season, are no lie. They are coming to play.
November 9th, 2021 at 8:07 am
The Cardinals look good right now. Granted the current version of the 49ers might not be the best litmus test. They’ve never been a second half of the season team. At least not since Bruce was there. Will be interesting to see how it shakes out.
November 9th, 2021 at 8:16 am
Not getting the #1 seed is a complete failure of a season b/c we will not win the Superbowl w/o it. This team is STACKED but lacks discipline and focus
Jensen knows
November 9th, 2021 at 8:20 am
9ers suck. Like to see them play a good team without those dudes.
November 9th, 2021 at 8:22 am
Nine games still to go. Anything can happen.
November 9th, 2021 at 8:23 am
Not worried about cardinals I think they have peaked too early in the season …
November 9th, 2021 at 8:26 am
I swear I don’t know why I read these comments smh. So now if we don’t get the top seed it’s a complete failure. Because we can’t win a super bowl without it. Ok I’ve heard enough I’m out🤯.
November 9th, 2021 at 8:52 am
@Medicated Pete they don’t need the 1 seed to make the super bowl. You clearly don’t trust this team. I have no doubts healthy they can beat whoever .
November 9th, 2021 at 8:55 am
‘Medicated Pete’ is probably the funniest screen name I’ve seen. Makes me laugh almost every time, especially with the accurately medicated comments.
Pete, stay medicated buddy haha!
Bucs won their 4 games last year, they can do it again this year. JPP knows how to get the D hot when its time–that’s why he’s never lost in the playoffs.
I have faith.
November 9th, 2021 at 8:58 am
49ers have been a huge disappointment. Nearly everyone thought they would be better. And many there are calling for John Lynch to be fired.
November 9th, 2021 at 8:58 am
Pete’s counting all the people who’ll need to apologize if we don’t get #1 seed and don’t win Superbowl.
I’ve written down 7 names already & keep the list on my fridge
November 9th, 2021 at 9:00 am
Oh my God the Sky is falling…NOT!!!
They are 6-2 with a beat up team, lol lol get real.
As this team gets healthy they will have as good a chance to win it all as anyone.
The Bucs have Brady and everyone else does not!!!!
The Sky is falling the Sky is falling NOT……………..
GO BUCS!!!!
November 9th, 2021 at 9:00 am
Pete, what are the repercussions if you don’t get “apologies” from these posters with made up names? Inquiring minds want to know.
November 9th, 2021 at 9:01 am
I recognize that every game is tough, but of the remaining games on the Bucs schedule, the one that makes me the most nervous in the Colts in Indy. They also get the Bills, but it’s at home, and we saw yesterday that the Bills are not as scary as they once seemed. So, if the Colts win, will 3 losses get the Bucs homefield advantage throughout the playoffs? I don’t think so. I think they’ve got to win out to have any hope of getting that first week off.
November 9th, 2021 at 9:08 am
Every team in the NFL is a threat, every week. Bills lose to the Jags? Really???
Cowboys get blown out — BLOWN OUT — by the Broncos?
I mean, enough of this “easy victory” nonsense. So rather than talk homefield advantage, how about discussing how the last time the Bucs went to DC they barely won. What are you going to do to stop Taylor Heineken, Todd Bowles?
November 9th, 2021 at 9:09 am
They won it all as a wild card last year.
So throw out the knee jerk assessments.
Again, they have been dealing with injured starters since the first half of the first game. A total walking mash unit of a secondary, and they are still 6-2.
And it took a screw up from Brady and a lot of dumb penalties to give the game away against Nawlins or they would be 7-1.
They are doing well, yeah it could be better, lol lol.
BUT they are still the betting favorite in the NFC
GO BUCS!!!!
November 9th, 2021 at 9:15 am
@Steven007
A written apology mailed to Pete’s P.O. Box or subscribe to Pete’s OnlyFans for 1 year
November 9th, 2021 at 9:26 am
Playoffs? Playoffs? Bruce SHUT UP! What coach talks about playoffs with 9 games left? Riddle me this Bucco, if Brady gets injured what seed will Bucs be then. Drives me crazy, this guy doesn’t know how to keep his pie hole shut. Maybe he should attend a turrets meeting. Oh wait he doesn’t go to meeting. Can you say CLOWN?
November 9th, 2021 at 9:47 am
IF our Bucs do not get a hellava lot better on Defense, there will I watched Arizona on Sunday and their defense is flying around all over the field hittin hard like we use to when we were hungry. And listen, Bruce Arians has been a bit mouthy lately. There are still a whole lotta games left. Anything can happen. I would not be talkin playoffs just yet. Brady goes down and its curtain time. Ole Brucey got that superbowl hangover himself.
November 9th, 2021 at 10:04 am
Playoffs? Too early to make a call on the character of this team.
During the second-half of the season, the physical and emotional wear and tear takes hold. Some teams “have it” like the Bucs last season. Down the final stretch they went undefeated, and hit stride right in time for the playoffs. There was a confluence of have a relatively injury-free roster plus a sustained, team-wide motivation and belief.
There’s no guarantee that this season’s team will remain injury-free, and there is certainly no guarantee that this team will have the same degree of motivation entering the playoffs. The character of this team will reveal itself after Thanksgiving, that’s when this team has to finally gel, particularly on defense.
November 9th, 2021 at 10:11 am
There is one person that dictates where this team ends up and it AIN’T BA, BL or Bowles. It’s TB12, the coaching staff are just puppets dangling on Brady’s stage.
November 9th, 2021 at 10:23 am
When and if BA figures out that a 50-50 balance running and passing is the secret sauce for winning , that will go a long way in determining Bucs fortunes. Bucs have the backs and the line to do this. Running the ball late in the season and in the playoffs is how you close out games and exert your will and dominance over your opponent. Running the ball takes the air out of the ball ( No Brady joke intended) and keeps your D fresh. Great offensive linemen always prefer to run as they get to deliver the shot instead of take it on pass protection. In the immortal words of Jon Gruden ” Pound the Rock” BA.
November 9th, 2021 at 10:55 am
At some point guys, Your defense is going to have to make a stand. You cannot outscore everybody in this very talented league. Pass rush has got to improve 2-fold.
November 9th, 2021 at 11:00 am
Bucsfan, I watched Najeem Harris last night, we do not have the backs. We have hard nose runners. Great backs are patient, skirt the line looking for a seem, then burst. On almost all occasions if the hole isn’t there than it’s a loss or no gain. To be fair both Lenny & Rojo do have the ability to bounce off a tackler for positive yardage. I’d say the Vaughn and Gio may have the shiftiness but lack power. If you can average over 30 points without a running game, what do you gain with one? The problem is Bucs have to score 30+ to win, nothing to do with offense.
November 9th, 2021 at 11:27 am
It is N-a-j-e-e- not Najeem. Bucs stable of backs is every bit as talented if not more so than Steelers. What do you gain you ask?
1. Increased time of possession-Resting your defense making them better.
2. Huge decrease in chance of turnover versus passing.
3. TB 12 will never be injured on a running play.
4. Bad weather outdoor games increased win percentage.
5. Increased effectiveness of passing game on play action.
Titans and Cardinals run more than anybody in the league-need I say more?
November 9th, 2021 at 11:54 am
Bucsfan, and less than 30 points / game. The D doesn’t support it.
November 9th, 2021 at 5:51 pm
Highly suspect Medicated Pete is actually noted Buc troll El
Realisto. BAA, BAAA sheep, calling cause they are so lonely!
Bucs will be just fine.
LFG Bucs!
Let’s Go Brandon!
November 9th, 2021 at 10:17 pm
Bucsfan 1976….
They will never run 50% of the time, not with Brady and not in today’s NFL and not with their weapons. Wide receiver screens and running back dump offs are just like a running play.
Winning (especially in the playoffs) with time of possession by pounding the rock is definitely an advantage and some thing they proved they can do a few times this year already and last year in the playoffs.