Rondé Barber Says Jonathan Taylor Film Is Jaw-Dropping
November 26th, 2021
Bucs icon Rondé Barber watches a ton of Tampa Bay game film, in part because he has a gig breaking it down for the team website, and in part because he’s been doing it for fun and for his broadcasting duties since retiring after the 2012 season.
Regular readers here also know Barber is a trusted consultant for the Bucs’ front office. It’s common for team brass to ask Barber for an evaluation of a prospect.
No, that doesn’t mean he’s the de facto general manager. Don’t get carried away.
Barber also is a man with a strong interest in gambling. He is featured on the Betting With The Barbers podcast, and Joe is a regular listener.
On this week’s episode, Barber’s game/pick of the weekend is the Bucs taking care of business as a three-point favorite on Sunday in Indianapolis. And Barber says the game will only be close because of one man, NFL rushing leader Jonathan Taylor of the Colts.
“This is going to be one heck of a game based solely because of Jonathan Taylor. When I watch the film of him, the quality of his runs, not just that he’s getting a lot of volume, but the quality of those runs. The way he’s stiff-arming people and making people miss, or just flat out running through them, your jaw drops,” Barber said. “He’s averaging 5.8 yards per carry. So what does that allow you to do? It allows you to own the game and time of possession. … The best way to handle the Bucs is to control time of possession.”
Barber, however, is confident the Bucs’ consistent and typically dominant run defense will contain Taylor just enough to force Carson Wentz into pressure situations and more total throws than he’s comfortable with to give the Bucs an edge to complement their efficient offense.
Joe hopes Barber is correct. But damn, that Colts running game is impressive and fearless behind a very physical offensive line. How effective Devin White will be with a quad issue (if he plays at all) will be such a massive X-factor.
November 26th, 2021 at 10:10 am
Pete saw the game vs Buffalo and he looked unstoppable. He was “in the zone” that day (like Michael Jordan was so often). He saw everything before it happened
November 26th, 2021 at 10:14 am
New generation RB, been saying that since his freshman year at Wisconsin. Fortunately we have a run first defense that should hopefully allow us to put it on Carson, and with some what of a resemblance of a pass D this past Monday I think there’s definitely a chance we thwart this red hot Indy team and get fight for our playoff run. There’s also a chance that Carson reminds me of how bad our secondary has been this year and we end up in a shoot out with Jon Taylor being the x-factor in an upset for us. Either way can’t wait to see what happens
November 26th, 2021 at 10:43 am
The Bucs D-line will be keyed up for this and Minter is better at run stopping than pass coverage. Taylor will get some yards, but the Bucs should be able to keep the yards per carry down, by not letting him break a long run.
Wentz is coming around, but still has some shaky spots. Bucs DBs, playing man, can slow the receivers enough to spoil Wentz’s timing.
Should still be a tight game, maybe won by turnovers or penalty yards. Bucs need to play with care, they will not run roughshod without giving up a lot of penalty yards.
November 26th, 2021 at 10:48 am
Taylor is an absolute beast. On top of all his physical talents he’s also very intelligent. A RB with a Brady/manning IQ. Buckle up Bucs!
November 26th, 2021 at 11:03 am
Bucs O has to score early and often. If you can get ahead of them it changes that ground and pound TOP game into playing catch up with Wentz having to be the focal point. Bucs D needs some early stops also.
November 26th, 2021 at 11:19 am
@Ronde … ‘The best way to handle the Bucs is to control time of possession’.
Great line by Ronde. Keep our defense on the field & they gradually wear down. Against a very good rushing team like the Colts, that wouldn’t bode well come the 4th qtr, not to mention that it keeps our offense sitting on the bench. Throw in a couple of giveaways & a few untimely penalties, and that’s kind of a tried-and-true prescription for losing by the Bucs beating themselves.
November 26th, 2021 at 12:31 pm
What makes Taylor outstanding (other than the obvious speed) is his patience and vision, and that really separates him from most of the NFL “commodity” RBs. He had an excellent O line at Wisconsin which created opportunities for him. He had the patience, vision, and confidence to let his lead blockers create a hole at the collegiate level, and those traits are undoubtedly what attracted Indy to move up and grab him in the second round. Like Wisconsin, Indy has an excellent O line, he’s the ideal RB for a dominant line. Think Le’Veon Bell during his best years with Pittsburgh. Different RBs, but Bell and Taylor both have that superior vision, patience and decision-making skills.
November 26th, 2021 at 12:41 pm
What Bucs fans really need to focus on in this upcoming game is Time of Possession and of course turnovers. If Indy can grind out long drives, they will wear down the Buc defense and keep Brady and the rest of the Buc offense out of a rhythm (think Washington).
The Bucs offense needs to be aggressive right out of the gate. Get a couple of scores up on Indy. That will force Indy to rely more on Wentz rather than Taylor, and it will take the home crowd out of the game. And of course, minimize turnovers as Indy leads the NFL in net turn overs.
For what it’s worth, Tom Brady has a long memory, and he absolutely loves to beat Indy. Indy was not only the home of his one-time rival Peyton Manning, it was also Indy that launched the Deflategate con game that tarnished Brady’s image. Brady won the case in court as there was no scientific or tangible evidence to suggest that the footballs were deflated (FU BSPN). He lost when the second appellate court ruled that is didn’t matter, evidence or not Roger Goodell could do whatever he damn well pleased because he was Commissioner.
November 26th, 2021 at 2:48 pm
Under Todd Bowles, the Bucs defense have been able the majority attacks in check, so I’m not too worried.
November 26th, 2021 at 3:33 pm
Nelson is out.
Put Devin White up on line
Gholston, Vea,Suh should stop it.
November 26th, 2021 at 4:08 pm
I suspect you’ll see a lot of the SS in the box.
November 26th, 2021 at 4:49 pm
Our 300 pounders should take up blocks, our backers have a nose for the ball and open lanes
November 26th, 2021 at 6:08 pm
Should be a good game!! Best running offense against best running defense!!! Let the BEST TEAM WIN!! I’ll give the points and take the BUCS!!
November 26th, 2021 at 8:49 pm
Le”Veon Bell never had the kind of Speed of Taylor. Taylor ran a 4.33 40 at the Combine, and he is 226 lbs!
I agree that Brady needs to get us a big enough lead to force Carson Wentz to pass.
November 26th, 2021 at 9:14 pm
I graduated from Wisconsin so long ago it don’t mean sh.t. When healthy the Bucs are very hard to run on. But Washington closed the game aganst us by running. So it can be done. Gonna be a bone crunching game unless the Bucs can build a good lead and force the Bills to pass more than they want to. Bucs run defense better wear their big boy pants!
November 26th, 2021 at 9:52 pm
He will not run all over the Bucs, he will get some yards, yes, but if the Bucs do not turn the ball over then they win. Pretty simple.
GO BUCS!!!!
November 26th, 2021 at 10:15 pm
Passing Thru said it best. Aggressive on offense, TOP, no turnovers and put atleast a 17 point lead on them as quickly as possible. I do not trust this defense in a we need the ball back quickly scenario.
November 26th, 2021 at 11:15 pm
When we play to our capablities, no team can stop us. If the team that showed up against the saints and wtf shows up against the colts we will get dominated. Hopefully are guys play with their pants on fire.