Forcing Trevor Lawrence To Carry Jags
December 24th, 2023
Bucs coach Todd Bowles.
One reason Todd Bowles is always obsessed with stopping the run is that he wants a team to throw. He believes if an offense is one-dimensional, it is beatable.
Well, Mike DiRocco of BSPN notes the Jags are lousy running the ball yet the Bucs are stingy against the run.
Therefore, DiRocco believes it will be up to Trevor Lawrence to decide the game.
Bold prediction: The Jaguars will rush for fewer than 50 yards — even if Lawrence plays. The Bucs rank ninth in rush defense (96 yards per game) while the Jaguars’ run game has really struggled the past month (71.3 yards per game), especially up the middle. They’ve averaged just 10.5 yards per game rushing up the middle the past four games. That’s with Lawrence on the field, too.
Yeah, you want to, in theory, make an offense one-dimensional. But the way the Bucs pass defense has been throwing up on itself of late, do you really trust the Bucs to shut down Lawrence?
No. Lawrence may not be having a great year but this guy is a good quarterback. If this was Gardner Minshew or Ryan Tannehill, yeah, Joe would be cool with those guys filling the west-central Florida sky with passes.
Joe isn’t all that comfortable with a guy like Lawrence going pass-happy, even if he’s only having an OK year.
December 24th, 2023 at 12:55 am
With a bad ankle, his mobility should be suspect. Kirk out. A defensive score would be a great get this week. We haven’t had a field goal bring us a win as of yet ( i think). This might be the week.
December 24th, 2023 at 1:27 am
Jags been bas for the past three weeks and missing key players. Trevor coming out of concussion with bad ankle. He hasn’t been good lately. Bucs have no excuse to defeat Jags if they have any hope to be a contender in the first round of playoff maybe at home. Here is a chance for TB & BM to beat a team with wining record for the first time.
They lose this game at home, fire TB and bench Baker. You can’t limp into playoffs with 8-8 or 9-8 record as last year and get blow blow out.
December 24th, 2023 at 1:34 am
Trevor L. is just another trash qb as Baker. Let’s see who will win. LOL
December 24th, 2023 at 1:36 am
In fact between those two trash qb’s, I like Baker to beat Trevor the highly over rated qb out of college.
December 24th, 2023 at 1:38 am
Jax will not force the run like the bucs. They will exploit the bucs weakness. The real question is what will Bowles tell Canales to do. Will they try to exert their will to run whether it works or not. Will they try to pass the ball if they can’t run. Which Mayfield shows up the 12 games at 200 yards a game average or the two games of over 300 yards mayfield. Do you play the odds or do you go with emotional bias.
December 24th, 2023 at 1:57 am
Pass rush needs to execute. I see DL having a good game. CD3 has been playing a lot better. Bottom line is we need to see domination in the CB position this game and we have the talent.
December 24th, 2023 at 1:59 am
AWJ will have an interception. He’s hungry
December 24th, 2023 at 2:39 am
I’m with you on that one Joe!
Hope Bowles and company have some tricks to throw at Lawrence.
A Shaq attack would be a very timely thing. If we can force third and long and get off the field we can beat the snot out of these guys.
Shaq, Nelson, Diaby and company need to show up and have mayhem on their mind.
Go Bucs!
December 24th, 2023 at 2:41 am
No excuses for Bowles. Rams lose almost entire team from Super Bowl win then rebound to coach no names players to play like winners. Texans coach DeMarco Ryan come in as rookie coach with new coaches n a rookie qb to take a team who’s won a total of 11 games the past three years to play aggressive, fast pace, in your face football. They have won eight games n knocking on the door of playoff. He knows to win in this league u can’t play conservative n have a 70’s football coach mindset. Bowles have three main key playmakers on offense from Super Bowl, 64 percent of defense from superbowl n almost the entire coaching staff from Super Bowl team n we barely made it to 500 this year. Last year we had more returning players n were awful. If we end season with another losing record n make playoffs, the only reason to retain Bowles is if he mirrors what the team did the last six games of the 2020 season, otherwise, poof be gone! Just think what Sean McVay would’ve done with this team.
December 24th, 2023 at 3:42 am
The whole season is in front of these guys, Bowles included.
It’s interesting reading how great McVay would do with this salary cap hell of a team. Bowles could win coach of the year if they finish strong and that would really upset some fans apparently.
I’m of the mindset that if this run game continues, Bowles and Canales are 2 of the smartest and wisest coaches in the NFL.
The mindset theory of running the ball has been preached by Canales all year and we ALL complained that you have to have the horses.
Now White is a top 5-10 back and they look like geniuses.
This team can still turn things around on defense too.
I think the pre game energy should finally start to resemble a playoff atmosphere, so thankfully we don’t have to worry about the usual lack of it from a Bowles team.
Are the Bucs Contenders or Pretenders?
I really don’t know the answer to that in week 16.
My heart says Contenders because of 3 straight wins.
The fans seem at the ready at their keyboards to type Pretenders.
Will we complain about Bowles, or start reading a ton of coach of the year articles?
Crazy that 1 game could swing the narrative so drastically.
Tune In.
December 24th, 2023 at 4:28 am
We have a two game gauntlet to run through. If we can steal a game against the
Jags, I believe the team will gain confidence and momentum. Even then we can’t
sleep on the Saints. They still have a tough defense that can give a QB problems.
The few games I have seen bits of, their offense doesn’t play consistently throughout the game and they are trying to comeback at the end of the game.
So getting off to a good start and having an aggressive passing attack mixed in
with a productive running game will be necessary.
December 24th, 2023 at 5:01 am
BillyBucco … Contenders or Pretenders? I like that; with 3 games to go, it could swing either way though. Still, the division crown is ours for the grabbing; we control our own destiny.
I’ve pegged us to fall in the 7-10 to 10-7 range all season (can’t miss now), depending on IF we could finish the season strong. We’re close now (riding a 3-game winning streak), but we need to finish. That momentum will be key to how we do in the playoffs IMO. It’ll also be key to a lot of coaches & players futures as Bucs.
December 24th, 2023 at 5:31 am
Great, if we are going to make him throw he will have a career game against us.
December 24th, 2023 at 8:25 am
A healthy secondary would help. No idea what’s happened with Dean and Davis, they’re both solid corners that excel at press man coverage. But either one of them of them is injured every game. We have meaningful games in December – both need to show up.
December 24th, 2023 at 8:41 am
I want to see Antoine have an INT and 2 sack-fumbles 😀
December 24th, 2023 at 8:48 am
Lawrence will run if no one is open. The guy will do anything to make first down and the Bucs need to be ready for him to scramble. He also seems to roll out a lot. Hope the defense is ready….
December 24th, 2023 at 8:51 am
I’m so glad Leftwich isn’t their head coach and GM. That would spell doom for or any club coming in. Get chills just thinking about it.
December 24th, 2023 at 8:57 am
This fan says contenders. Duh. Wonder if Bowles is going to let DWhite play? THAT will be interesting, to say the least. O owes the fans big time! RJS is sold out. So deliver, Bummy Bucs (just jivin’)!
December 24th, 2023 at 9:13 am
Dean is soft. Dean will start then get hurt and come out of the game sometime near the end of the first half. Dean is soft. Restructure Dean and Davis because they are not living up to their contracts and then you can retain Mike.
Dean is soft. Did I mention that Dean is soft?
December 24th, 2023 at 9:25 am
David your single mindedness toward Baker is both admirable and troubling
December 24th, 2023 at 9:55 am
David just stay on your Gator blog and gtfoh!
December 24th, 2023 at 10:30 am
David, I really think that you were dropped on your head as a baby.. some of the stuff you say is really childish. How old are you? When you sit in your chair does your feet touch the floor? You really have to stop the bashing dude it’s really annoying.
December 24th, 2023 at 11:43 am
99, That’s probably an accurate summation. As I said before, he’s a troll and not a very good one. He writes like a 12-year-old and is simply a one note. Troll. Poor form. All the way around. Likely resulting from an early age head injury.
December 24th, 2023 at 12:00 pm
This is a game the Bucs should win. Unforunately we all know what happens when they play in games like this. The results are not good.