Todd Bowles Needles His Defensive Backs
October 30th, 2023
Cornerback Carlton Davis.
A not-so-nice distraction from Devin White’s 14-game sackless streak is Jamel Dean’s 20-game run without an interception — while fellow cornerback Carlton Davis hasn’t grabbed a pick in his last seven games.
The Bucs offense has been so brutal that the Bucs’ big defensive names need to make big plays for the team to stay competitive.
The aforementioned stars haven’t delivered in that area.
Head coach Todd Bowles acknowledged his starting cornerbacks’ struggles in backhanded fashioned this afternoon. He quipped that defensive tackle Will Gholston has more picks than the entire starting secondary, which includes Dean and Davis with starting safeties Antoine Winfield, Jr. and Ryan Neal.
Gholston caught a Josh Allen pass Thursday that was deflected by Winfield on a blitz. It was the first interception of Gholston’s 11 year career.
Joe hasn’t given up on Dean and Davis making big plays, but they are way overdue for big-money cornerbacks. Especially Dean.
October 30th, 2023 at 10:57 pm
Clueless! Light needs to cut bait from Todd-o and land an offensive HC that can develop the Bucs 1st round 2024 QB.
October 30th, 2023 at 10:58 pm
If you watch, they seem to rarely be in position to intercept the ball. In fact, they rarely even challenge the receiver for the ball. Hell, I would be happy if they just swatted the ball away. Instead, it appears to me like they wait for the receiver to catch the ball then they try to tackle them. They are terrible in zone coverage & constantly give receivers 10+ yard cushion. Very frustrating!
October 30th, 2023 at 10:59 pm
Dean knocked down a pass which was very catchable and could have been a pick 6. All I know is that we can get much better CB play for far less money. Now the Bucs are stuck with these underachievers.
October 30th, 2023 at 11:00 pm
It’s not a this year problem either. This has been occurring for several years now.
October 30th, 2023 at 11:03 pm
Dean and Carlton are better at press man, however, TB has them playing off the majority of the time. Some corners excel at zone coverage, where they can read the patterns and jump routes, that’s not Dean’s or Carlton’s strengths.
October 30th, 2023 at 11:06 pm
The Bucs are literally playing zone over 90% of the time – and not a tight Tampa 2 zone either, just a loose sloppy zone that lets the other team move the ball at will until it finally tightens up in the red zone. While I don’t like that defense, it is worth saying that it is working at limiting points. However that defense does nothing to take advantage of your two expensive man-to-man corners.
October 30th, 2023 at 11:11 pm
You just see Jimmy Garoppolo throw a 3 yard pass to his runningback on 4th and 17 down by two scores with 4 minutes left in the game? Reminded me of certain QB on the Bucs.
But hey, at least he didn’t turn it over – and as we know from Bowles, that’s the most important thing. Also, he boosted his completion percentage!
October 30th, 2023 at 11:17 pm
Spot on Shane247.
These D & D aren’t worth the money.
October 30th, 2023 at 11:32 pm
The glazers need to hire Jim Harbaugh
October 30th, 2023 at 11:38 pm
If somebody paid me 8 figures to play CB like as soft charmin could, and then press like the pillsbury doe boy; I’d take the money too. Heck they’re just doing what they are told to do, otherwise the coaches would be calling them out, wouldn’t they?
So go ahead, play that soft lawnchair scheme. But make no mistake; we the fans are taking notice, even if the coaches are not.
October 30th, 2023 at 11:47 pm
The problem I see with the Bucs is we have key players who lacks the mental aspect of the game. Dean could’ve taken a potential int to the house last week but he batted it down. That’s not the first time that type of play happened with him. There were times he could’ve int a pass had he made an effort to toe tap before going outta bounds. He has a tunnel vision mentality. He’s slow to react n has poor hand eye coordination. True play makers at cb are head’s up players n knows how to make plays. If you watch Dean closely, he shows no confidence, he lacks aggressiveness, he plays stiff, is passive, appears confused n he’s in year 5.
October 30th, 2023 at 11:59 pm
Quarterbacks are less likely to throw interceptions when they have all day to throw the ball because our pass rush is softer than a bag of marshmallows
October 31st, 2023 at 12:34 am
But, but, but…. I remember Bowles saying he spent a lot of times with Dean in the film room and that he was a student of the game….so then, it’s being a waste of time!
🤦
October 31st, 2023 at 1:14 am
Shane247 is exactly right! My question is do they just play like that, or are they coached to play like that? I seriously wonder because it’s so obvious that’s what they’re doing, wait for the receiver to catch the ball and then try to tackle him. And Davis doesn’t even want to tackle the majority of the time, he just tries to slow the guy down enough that somebody else will come do the dirty work for him. No picks, no passes defended, that’ll be $31M. I never see other teams playing defense this way.
@Rod
What you said is so accurate. Bowels wants to hang his hat on these random stats or philosophies. Lowest TD% allowed in the red zone, time of possession, fewest turnovers, run first, don’t gas the D, etc. What he seems unable or unwilling to understand is those are all means to an end and the end goal is WINNING. Belichick was a master at this. If winning means the QB only throws 3 passes, that’s what they’re gonna do. If the opponents are missing all their CBs (that sounds familiar) they’re gonna throw the damn ball. If they have a bad run D, they’re gonna run. Blows is so stubborn! We can’t play man cause the 3rd & 4th CBs can’t play man… SCREW IT!! We’re losing anyhow, let’s at least lose a different way! OR, hear me out, OR it could work. Changing strategy or personnel, or *gasp* playing to our strengths as a team, could actually be an improvement! I know it’s hard for him to fathom, but maybe Bowels, the architect of four straight losing seasons, doesn’t get everything right on the first try. But don’t tell him that, this idiot is about to get fired over Ryan Neal on a one year deal 🤣. #NOconfidence
October 31st, 2023 at 1:47 am
Harbaugh? He’d be an upgrade.
October 31st, 2023 at 3:52 am
How about just defending passes and getting off the field on third down? Then we can worry about INTs.
Go Bucs!
October 31st, 2023 at 5:17 am
This team so reminds me of teams of years gone by
Worst run game in the league and worst 3rd down conversion rate in the league
So we can’t score and we can’t stop anyone and our big money CB can’t catch or play zone
Sounds like a Todd Bowles led team for sure – or Richard Williamson take your pick
October 31st, 2023 at 6:20 am
Rod Munch: turns DB thread into shot at QB. 🤡
October 31st, 2023 at 6:58 am
Yep rod muncher thinks he’s a expert on everything in life including munching big thick rods hater
October 31st, 2023 at 7:06 am
All our money is being dished out on the D.
Dummy Bowels is too brain dead to realize he has it totally backwards
October 31st, 2023 at 7:59 am
The coach is not putting the DBs in place to make splash plays. They are too busy trying to stop a WR who already has the ball because of an excessive amount of cushion.
October 31st, 2023 at 8:10 am
Good DB’s help your pass rush. Good pass rush helps your DB’s. They’re symbiotic.
October 31st, 2023 at 8:49 am
But you’ll criticize Rachaad White every week lmao
October 31st, 2023 at 9:11 am
“BBB”…doesn’t stand for Better Business Bureau…but rather Bye Bye Bowles
October 31st, 2023 at 10:08 am
then stop play soft coverage and let them play to their strength which is press man. even zone that has a press.
October 31st, 2023 at 12:45 pm
@Jack Clark
What came first, the chicken or the egg?
Corners can’t get pick’s 8 yards off the ball and bailing on the snap. Defensive linemen can’t get sacks when corners are playing 8 yards off the ball and bailing in the snap. 6 of one, half dozen of another.
This scheme has no teeth right now. Soft corners and a middle LB that doesn’t fill inside gaps. Getting gutted with the run up the middle and getting nickel and dimed with free runners in the secondary. I’d rather live and die by the sword putting up a fight instead of bleeding to death from 1000 paper cuts.
October 31st, 2023 at 2:35 pm
JK Says:
October 31st, 2023 at 6:20 am
Rod Munch: turns DB thread into shot at QB. 🤡
———
It was just live commentary on the MNF game. Sometimes people talk about other games going on, so I was just commenting on that.
But the fact that triggered you when I didn’t even mention ‘his’ name, well, that says a lot.
October 31st, 2023 at 11:50 pm
Why among all the criticism it seems to be lost that in the past 3 years, we won a Super Bowl and TWO Division Championships! How can you call that three losing seasons? Granted, who knows WTH is going on this year so far, but we have not been a bad team for years–not hardly!
October 31st, 2023 at 11:54 pm
Kinda hard for D. White to rack up sacks when he’s rarely sent after the QB even though that’s one of his strengths. Go figure