Did Shaq Barrett Find A Spark?
December 17th, 2023
Joe has transformed into can-the-Bucs-win-a-playoff-game mode.
It feels great, much better than obsessing about drafting a quarterback.
So for the Bucs to win in Week 19, a pass rush will be necessary. It’s unlikely the Bucs will encounter a joker of a quarterback or weaksauce offense in the postseason.
The problem is the Bucs don’t have much of a four-man pass rush. They need the blitz to generate pressure and it doesn’t always get home, exposing the secondary. Joe will spare fans by not sharing the team’s dismal pass defense numbers.
Bucs sacks king Shaq Barrett hasn’t had a good 2023 season. He swears he’s healthy and he’s frustrated by his lack of production. That’s nice to hear, but Shaq must start producing.
It wasn’t much of a Sunday afternoon for Shaq in Green Bay today, but he did have a half-sack and a forced fumble on the Packers’ final play from scrimmage. It turned out to be a game-sealing play with a little over four minutes remaining. Green Bay never got the ball back.
Shaq and Lavonte David chased down Packers QB Jordan Love and combined for the sack. David came up the gut on a blitz and got past some traffic. Shaq beat his man and hunted like it was 2020. (Shaq also had a nice hit on Love in that drive.)
It was just one play, but Joe is hopeful that play could spark Shaq next Sunday, and maybe he can get back to form when the Bucs will need him most.
If not, then one of the other edge rushers will need to play way over his head if the Bucs are to win their first playoff game since pummeling the Eagles in January of 2022.
December 17th, 2023 at 9:20 pm
Shaq just seems heavy and slow. If we do make the playoffs and White’s foot miraculously heals, Bowles should move him to OLB and let him rush the passer, which is what he does best.
December 17th, 2023 at 9:21 pm
watching the Jags game–they are not good! Multiple miscues aand they are hard to watch!
December 17th, 2023 at 9:24 pm
JTS sis such an imposter. Doesn’t belong as an edge rusher. He’s a boy amongst men. A poser. Has coach Bowels under a spell. Otherwise, I can’t reconcile how he gets playing time.
Maybe he could coach high school football instead.
Please?
December 17th, 2023 at 9:28 pm
Barrett was a complete ghost for 95% of the game today….no explosion anymore and looks to be loafing around half the time.
December 17th, 2023 at 9:30 pm
Offensive performance! In a good way. Evans, Godwin, Baker. pardon my spelling. Let’s GO
December 17th, 2023 at 9:30 pm
This is why cant dump Devin White to the curb just yet, even though KJ Britt is the clear starter going forward we still need White to help with this joke of a pass rush.
December 17th, 2023 at 9:36 pm
Shaq has become much more a bull rusher. He does not have that insane get off and the bend he had in his 2019 and 20 seasons. One underrated thing about Shaq is always his timely forced fumbles, and thankfully that is the one thing that hasn’t changed about him yet. Dude is clutch.
December 17th, 2023 at 9:39 pm
Irishmist and Tbbucs3…You won’t see White playing the rest of the season.
December 17th, 2023 at 9:45 pm
Shaq is a great guy and a team legend for his role in the SB run. I understand he has overcome injury and a personal tragedy that nobody should ever have to deal with. But the NFL is a production league. His contract is far higher than what he is producing on the field. We really need to cut bait post June 1. We could have a scary-good defense if we could get a consistent edge rush. Time to get younger and faster
December 17th, 2023 at 9:55 pm
Buck 1987 – Both the Bucs and White need to put their egos aside and realize that they need each other. The Bucs need a pass rush if they are to go anywhere in the playoffs, and White needs to show some kind of value if he wants to get paid next year.
December 17th, 2023 at 9:59 pm
see now if they deactivate DW and we go to the playoffs, DW is gonna be pissed…
he probably didn’t see this coming …
because the playoffs is an entirely different animal…
and if DW has a memorable playoffs like 2020 and the bucs make a run in the post season, all of a sudden DW’s stock jumps right the f up…
but just deactivate him…….even tho if we get in the playoffs he could potentially be our most dangerous blitzer and pass rusher
December 17th, 2023 at 10:05 pm
jacksonville has left about 10 – 17 on the field tonight in the first half…
2 missed loooong field goals, and 2 chances at touchdowns that turned into nothing…
they’re looking like sh!the@ds out there tonight
December 17th, 2023 at 10:09 pm
I agree with playing 45 in the rushing the passer. He had whiffed on QBs but that seems to be his strength why not use it. I think his rookie year had almost 10 sacks. Dude can get to the QB even if it’s just pressure that does help force mistakes or turns into sacks. BOWELS needs to play a o his players strengths for crying out loud stop playing zone when we get burned so bad by it. 🤦♂️
December 17th, 2023 at 10:10 pm
CTbucs nailed it.
December 17th, 2023 at 10:11 pm
Can we get a worse mobile experience and some more ads on the site?
December 17th, 2023 at 10:25 pm
@ Buc1987
Alright. I’ll bite. Is that because you feel it in your gut or do you have some inside info?
December 17th, 2023 at 10:27 pm
LVD made Shaq look decent. The Old Man deserves his Props!!!
December 17th, 2023 at 10:27 pm
I’ve noticed that Joe always puts the Hooters ads under my comments. I’m trying to decide if that’s a compliment…
December 17th, 2023 at 10:37 pm
Devin White to be a situational pass rusher, he’s close to the same size as Barrett, much younger and faster. Use White in the same roll as Lawrence Taylor.
Bowles has misused White, he’s not a good coverage linebacker, he’s damn good at getting after the QB. Put him on the edge and see what he can do, stunts with White will be in my game plan.
December 17th, 2023 at 10:52 pm
Our pass rush was awful today. Winfield and David are our most productive pass rushers rn. It’s bad. We will get creamed by the Cowboys with that kind of play from the front four.
December 17th, 2023 at 11:02 pm
Yeah let’s change everything that D White has ever done.
That’ll work.
I swear, some of you guys play way too much Madden.
Devin is done in Tampa and his career is on the ropes.
December 17th, 2023 at 11:05 pm
What Eliot said. Devin abandoned his team mates, he’s DONE
December 17th, 2023 at 11:05 pm
D-line needs to step it up on pass plays. Can’t put it all on the shoulders of the DBs to defend the pass. Bucs are 30th in Pass Defense I believe. Not good!
December 17th, 2023 at 11:15 pm
If the Bucs only had the foresight to draft a MLB at #5 overall and convert him to a situational pass rusher…
December 17th, 2023 at 11:32 pm
Jags not looking so threating tonight….
Hopefully the Bucs today wasn’t a fluke.. If they play that well the last 3 games, they could actually win out… IF Bowels doesn’t screw it up!
December 17th, 2023 at 11:59 pm
We will beat the Jags 17-16. Now that Godwin is back in the slot receiver spot we look much better. Figuring things out as a team and coming together. Jags will be down to one starting wr on the field been struggling to score. At home we sqeek out a 17-16 win to stay hot. That Thursday night game Saints making that cross country trip on short week that might be the biggest game of the year for us. If Rams beat Saints we beat Jags we are just about clinched a playoff spot.
December 18th, 2023 at 3:47 am
Kinda seems like Devin was cleared but he didn’t play. I will take Britt’s sure tackling over devins any day of the week he also seems more disciplined in his assignments.
December 18th, 2023 at 7:46 am
His daughter died, he may be healthy physically but there is no way he is all good emotionally or mentally. Much Love to the guy
December 18th, 2023 at 8:04 am
The only problem w Britt is that he has to cover tight ends, etc.
December 18th, 2023 at 9:41 am
Mebbe Shaq is finally recovering from the shock/agony of his daughter’s death. That would throw a major hammer into any normal human’s thinking. We sure need him at 100%.
December 18th, 2023 at 10:39 am
Shaq is one year removed from an Achilles injury. Sometimes guys never come back from that, sometimes it takes a couple of years. It doesn’t help that Shaq is getting a little long in the tooth, but it is obvious he doesn’t have the first step he used to have. Given one more year he might get some of that quickness back. I can tell you this, Shaq isn’t loafing as one person suggested. He plays hard and has really made some good plays against the run this year. He does contribute just not much as a pass rusher right now.
December 18th, 2023 at 11:01 am
Shaq would do better as a pass rusher if the defensive scheme allowed him to do it full time.
He has to drop back in coverage way too much, but it better for him to do it than have JTS trying.
If the offense keeps clicking it will give heart to the defense and also allow them to not get worn out in the middle of the game. With Britt improving so much maybe Shaq will get some more consistent snaps as a pass rusher.
December 18th, 2023 at 11:14 am
Go get em Shaq!
Go Bucs!