Ian Beckles: Bucs Offense Should Run Through Leonard Fournette
October 13th, 2022
Former Bucs guard Ian Beckles.
A former Bucs guard is of the mind the best player right now on the Bucs is Playoff Lenny. Therefore, the more he touches the ball, whether it be on the ground or through the air, the better the Bucs will be.
Who is this mysterious man? It’s former Bucs guard and current popular sports radio personality Ian Beckles.
Speaking on his podcast “In the Trenches,” Beckles declared the best Bucs player to be Playoff Lenny, fully aware Tom Brady and Mike Evans are on the roster. He later boasted how Tristan Wirfs is the best offensive lineman Beckles has ever laid his eyes upon.
Beckles, as Joe has documented, is an old-school football man. Football is a physical game of brute strength and iron will. Those who win mano y mano battles through strength and power will be the victors, not those who use effete trickery like passing, blitzes and spin moves (though a Beckles favorite is Dwight Freeney).
Beckles doesn’t believe the Bucs are a good passing team and outside of Mike Evans, Beckles said the Bucs have “fair to middling wide receivers.”
Instead, Beckles campaigned for Playoff Lenny to get the ball more.
“Leonard Fournette is our best football player,” Beckles said. And he repeated that line for effect.
Other thoughts from Beckles:
* On the current State of the Bucs:
“We’re too complacent,” Beckles said. “We don’t have a killer instinct. And that Atlanta team is not good. Any good football team that runs up against that team, they are going to beat them, OK? For us to be fighting to beat that team at the end, I don’t think it is a sign of a great team. … We should have mauled that team.
“We’re a good team. We’re a middle-of-the-road team. Period.
“We run the ball, eh. We stop the run, eh. And we don’t rush the passer that great.”
* Beckles has to have a protagonist. In years past, it’s been Gaines Adams, Barrett Ruud and Gerald McCoy. Earlier this season, Beckles anointed Joe Tryon-Shoyinka as the player next in line to be a target of direct and relentless hate. Tryon had the best half of football last weekend since he’s been with the Bucs. Beckles gave him credit for his spin move for a sack, but needs to see much more before Beckles begins to dial back his laser focus on the Washington product.
“Had a nice sack on a spin move,” Beckles said. “I’m not going to take away what I said. I’m not going to say you can play until you run through somebody. Great move, but you can’t keep on spinning but you can always run through somebody.”
* On Logan Hall:
“Every time I see the kid I think he should play WAY more. Every time I see the kid I like what I see.”
* On Bucs tight ends:
“I’ve seen enough of Kyle Rudolph. I’m good. Cade Otton? We need to see more of Cade Otton.”
* Beckles doesn’t believe the Bucs are constructed to withstand a grueling November and December, much less the postseason.
“I just don’t know if we are built to win later on in this football season,” Beckles said. “I can’t expect Tom Brady to be healthy. I can’t expect Mike Evans to be healthy. I can’t expect Julio Jones to ever be healthy.
“Defensively I think we are OK, offensively I think we are breaking down. And I’m not sure I like what I see.”
* Beckles shared strong manly love for the Bucs’ All-Pro right tackle.
“Tristan Wirfs is one of the best offensive linemen I have ever seen in my career. That’s at any level at any time. I’ve never seen somebody so darn clean in my life. Never misstep. Never misses a punch. Never giving up anything. If his guy is anywhere near the quarterback when he throws it I am shocked. Tristan Wirfs is amazing.”
* Beckles said a standing-O is in order for the Bucs’ maligned offensive line.
“Throwing the ball 50-some times and not giving up a sack? You have to applaud them up and down the line for that.”
October 13th, 2022 at 12:28 am
Agree with most everything except running the offense through Fournette. Leftwichs scheme isn’t creative enough for that (at least in the run game). And not every team will have their linebackers vacating the flat as consistently as the Falcons did.
Good things happen when Mike Evans gets the ball. We are a team that actually opens running lanes by passing. Lenny should still get more touches naturally as a running back, but good things happen when Mike gets the ball early and often.
October 13th, 2022 at 12:46 am
IAN BECKLES says
““I’ve seen enough of Kyle Rudolph. I’m good.”
Ditto. Good Lord, get out, man. Enough.
Cade Otton? We need to see more of Cade Otton.”
Maybe I am jumping the gun a little… but Bucs fans… I think we just may have something REALLY REALLY special in this Otton kid.
October 13th, 2022 at 12:48 am
It is VERY evident that Tom already trusts both Cade Otton & Rachaad White. — We have seen Tom in New England. You have to EARN that from him when you are a rookie. These kids are ballers, and it is going to show more and more as we go on.
October 13th, 2022 at 12:56 am
Well that was earlier than usual.
October 13th, 2022 at 1:24 am
We will run it tru Lenny later on. Now it’s time to assess our personnel. You don’t show all your cards this early.
Yeah the spin move was cute. But we don’t want to be cute. We need to play grown man football
October 13th, 2022 at 3:11 am
They were tipping Chris toe last week and he went 6for 6 50+ yards. Finally they can rest Gage. People wanna hate on him but he still nursing a hamstring all camp and regular season.
October 13th, 2022 at 5:12 am
Beckles … ‘We’re a good team. We’re a middle-of-the-road team. Period.’
At 2-2 after the Chiefs’ game and 3-2 after we survived the Falcons, I’d have to agree with Ian that we’re just middle-of-the-pack right now. That’s exactly where we were after 5 games in 2020, so all isn’t lost … yet.
Basic problem is that this team is MUCH different than that Super Bowl team. More youngsters (1st or 2nd year guys) starting or playing key rotational roles for 1 thing. Last week it was Goedeke, Hainsey, White, Otton, Hall, JTS, Camarda. Even McCollum got in there. Plus many different, oft-injured veterans on the team like Rudolph, Julio, Hicks, Ryan. This is a MUCH different team and it continues to be a work in progress.
Tom Brady-led teams have a track record of improving as the season progresses. He too is going through a lot right now, and that has to have an impact. But as long as we can protect him, I wouldn’t put down any money AGAINST him, or the Bucs. The team we’re seeing now will grow considerably in these 12 games. I fully expect this team to make the playoffs, and once you make it to the big dance, anything can happen.
October 13th, 2022 at 6:40 am
i don’t necessarily agree that Lenny is the best player on the team. We are more
of a plodding offense when that happens. We have struggled to score more than 20 points in three of our games. We are only converting 41% of our third downs.
We are not using all our weapons effectively and become more predictable when we don’t get the ball to some of our best weapons like Evans and Godwin enough.
October 13th, 2022 at 6:54 am
Well hell if a guy that won 6 games at most in a season says it,it has to be true cuz he knows everything just ask him
October 13th, 2022 at 6:54 am
Agreed, DR. After these past two years, it’s been frustrating to watch the offense get shut down. I hope that these first few games were the ‘training camp’ phase of the season and that the team, particularly the offense, can start establishing some consistency. It seems that we have a lot of players on “pitch counts” at different positions. It’s no wonder that we have the largest coaching staff in the NFL.
October 13th, 2022 at 7:21 am
24 total touches running & receiving when we ran 75 total plays, Lenny was our leading rusher and receiver this past Sunday. I kind of agree with Beckles that we should spearhead our offense with Lenny, doesn’t have to be the considered the best player on the team, but in terms of having a player who can exemplify the balance this offensive attack needs, Lenny is that dude.
October 13th, 2022 at 8:42 am
I agree….we don’t have the killer instinct……and that’s on Bowles.
He needs to light a serious fire under his team’s a$$es!!!
October 13th, 2022 at 9:03 am
It is what it is. 9 new players on offense. Rookies and second year guys starting and others getting significant playing time. That’s how it goes. Davis, Shaq,Godwin,Vea and Gage all got their money. You have to offset it by playing guys on their rookie deals. Guys just need time playing together. Give it at least another month.
October 13th, 2022 at 9:04 am
BTW #GRIND
October 13th, 2022 at 9:58 am
I agree with Ian 99% of the time. I always like reading/hearing his take on the Bucs. The Bucs are missing the swagger they had in game 1 against the Cowboys
October 13th, 2022 at 10:04 am
I agree with the Tampa Bay Demon about Cade Otten!
Brady is trusting him more and more.
Yes, Lenny is great but we need to find and hit our awesome receivers more.
I honestly do not feel that Lefty is doing a great job scheming to get our receivers open.
October 13th, 2022 at 10:18 am
I love playoff Lenny but he is not the best player on the offense. That would be Brady followed very closely by Evans. If we don’t have the best quarterback ever putting us in the right plays, making the right checks, playoff Lenny and Evans don’t get the ball as much and we are probably looking at a sub .500 football team.
October 13th, 2022 at 10:27 am
Sometimes Ian just says dumb things.
October 13th, 2022 at 10:40 am
Ian is right on the money about one thing. The Bucs are pillow soft in the trenches. Furthermore, Diva White flashes and woofs and then disappears, then gets bored. Give me Shelton Quarles any day over Diva White.
October 13th, 2022 at 6:33 pm
Brady, who is our best football player by far, will make sure the offense heads in the right direction, despite our OC and HC. He will also get our defense minds back on football, and off themselves. Brady will bring them together despite our DC and HC. That’s why Brady is by far our best football player. When he leaves, Bucs will go to a 50-50 or less , club.
October 14th, 2022 at 12:14 am
I’m tired of Beckles mouth he hates to much. If he was playing today he wouldn’t even make this team, he was a slouch.