Explosiveness Lessons For Rachaad White
July 23rd, 2024
Rachaad White
Telling stuff from Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen.
So Joe has moaned and groaned about Rachaad White for most of his 435 carries in a Tampa Bay uniform. That’s no small sample size. White’s been very good through three postseason games, averaging 4.9 yards per carry. But in the regular season, White has struggled at 3.67 yards per carry.
Joe remembers when White’s position coach, Skip Peete, came out in midseason last year and explained that White is soft. Then Peete talked this spring about White needing to hit holes and stop dancing. There are other examples of White being called out from One Buc Palace.
Coen visited The Sick Podcast — Pirate Parlay recently and was more subtle in his critique of White. But he noted that coaches sat down White and told him he must start running harder. Kill the hesitation when reading holes.
“We challenged him when we got here,” Coen said. “We challenged him to trust and to take the ball and to explode through hole and whatever happens, happens. Like you saw a difference. You saw a difference. And I saw him every day try to do what we’re asking. That’s going to help. That’s going to help us. And then, it’s like, ‘Ok, his talent takes over once he trusts the track and he trusts the run and he understands the run and what we’re trying to get done.'”
Hopefully, effective coaching was somehow holding White back rushing the ball, but that’s doubtful. He was encouraged to run hard last season. It doesn’t seem to be in White’s DNA when he takes a handoff.
How many third-year running backs with 400-plus carries are still learning how to run?
Still, it’s July, the season of optimism. If White can pick up where he left off in the postseason and find his way to averaging 4 yards per carry, the Bucs should have a significantly improved offense.
July 23rd, 2024 at 11:33 am
He is not capable, it is not in his DNA. He is not worth the keystrokes. He is another “IfNhope”.
July 23rd, 2024 at 12:06 pm
So White has to be taught how to run the ball? Hasn’t he been a runner his whole life? Put him in at TE on 3rd down, replacing Otton, and put Bucky in at RB.
The Bucs’ entire RB room is weak, my only hope is Bucky gets an honest shot by Coen. Licht needs to get very busy and find some good backs with NFL experience.
July 23rd, 2024 at 12:14 pm
Maybe with better blocking, scheme and play calling his patients and hesitation may find even better results than anticipated.
July 23rd, 2024 at 12:17 pm
LOOK CLOSELY AND WHAT DO YOU SEE
Only 10 yards away from 1000. 60 yards from being a Top 5 rusher.
That’s one block away from an off season of lavish praise. Now, Barton is in town. Coen is in town. Canales is out of town. The deck is stacked in his favor.
White knows he’s on the wrong side of the razors edge between chump and glory. He’s been living at One Buc and grinding. I’d watch what y’all say cuz I think White is about to serve up a whole lot of, “Shut the hell up.”
July 23rd, 2024 at 12:39 pm
“We challenged him to trust and to take the ball and to explode through whole and whatever happens, happens.”
This is kind of the starting point of the convo, but it wasn’t set up by any words before/after this statement that said White lacked explosiveness or didn’t know how to run the ball. Coen talked more about getting White to trust his track/play design/blocking and just to hit the hole.
At the tail end of his words on White he was lauded by Coen for letting his natural talent take over after referencing how White has bought in and how Coen sees the intent in Whites workrate and how it lines up with what the new offensive staff has challenged him with.
July 23rd, 2024 at 1:00 pm
I’m saying it here again RW1 has 1000 yards by 12th game if the line is any better than last year
July 23rd, 2024 at 2:38 pm
Good lord, so Joe is still trying to spread this false narrative like he was raised on tRumps campaign staff. Our offensive line was C- at best last season. Why do you think the Bucs spent a No.1 pick on a center. If you want to run the ball between the tackle like Canales did, then you better have some girth and weight to move the line forward. The Bucs didn’t.
July 23rd, 2024 at 2:59 pm
White’s biggest problem is that he emulated his running after Leveon Bell.
July 23rd, 2024 at 3:13 pm
“SlyPirate Says:
July 23rd, 2024 at 12:17 pm
LOOK CLOSELY AND WHAT DO YOU SEE
Only 10 yards away from 1000. 60 yards from being a Top 5 rusher.”
Correct……and, as I have previously pointed out, White left yards on the field for the benefit of the team on at least two occasions.
To place all of the frailties of the run game solely on White’s back is disingenuous. Blocking abilities up front, play calling (creative vs. mundane/repetitious) defensive schemes against said play calling……it’s seldom just one guy.
The attention has been to shore up the offensive line. That should be an indicator of where the coaches and front office feel most of the issues have been.
It’s hard to confidently try to run thru and behind a line that repeatedly allows you to get hit as soon as you try. It leads to indecision…it leads you to look for openings that, in the back of your mind, you know are probably not going to be there.
Looking at his college and his rookie year highlights there doesn’t appear to be as much hesitation at the line as there was last year.
There’s a good chance that running into a brick wall repeatedly will begin to make you hesitant to continue doing it.
July 23rd, 2024 at 3:24 pm
Poor run designs, piss poor IOL play. You can’t explode thru holes that aren’t there.
July 23rd, 2024 at 4:01 pm
“Skip Peete, came out in midseason last year and explained that White is soft. Then Peete talked this spring about White needing to hit holes and stop dancing.”
Skip Peete is an idiot if he just wants White running into the back of his offensive lineman like he’s Michael Pittman.
BTW, you had a basic moronic run full speed into the middle of the line runner in Sean Tucker – he did exactly what you wanted, and go look at his average.
If you watched the games, and the blocking, and think the answer was to just run forward – you just don’t know much about football.
July 23rd, 2024 at 4:14 pm
I agree with @Rod, Skip Peete telling R-White to hit the line hard and fast is ridiculous when the hole isn’t where it’s supposed to be. Didn’t Vince Lombardi say “run to daylight” ? R-White doesn’t have the vision and ability to change his direction at the line because he comes to a stop when making his jump cuts. The Bucs need to stop beating a dead horse and get a better back for running the ball.
July 23rd, 2024 at 4:33 pm
I think what Skip Peete and the coaches mean to say is we know their were no holes to run THROUGH but get in there for the 6 inches that are available:)
July 23rd, 2024 at 5:15 pm
The RB position group is light on bodies for camp as has been previously acknowledged on JBF. ROJO is available and could be signed on a league minimum prove it deal to add depth for camp. ROJO is a proven effective runner with 2 Super Bowl rings and is only 26 with a lot of tread left on the tires. Do your job Jason Licht and bring in ROJO. C’mon Jason ROJO will actually show up which is more than I can say for your Randy Gregory signing.
July 23rd, 2024 at 6:00 pm
If the line shows improvement I think White’s numbers improve but he’s not taking over a game.
July 23rd, 2024 at 6:29 pm
Hey let’s just throw the guy under the bus u all r good at that,WTF
July 23rd, 2024 at 6:31 pm
U guys post like u r Jason Licht u r not let him do his job u don’t have 1 on 1 buc olaza
July 23rd, 2024 at 7:34 pm
Hopefully he’ll be fine.
Please stop with the RoJo nonsense. He got let go from KC and Dallas. He’s on the street for a reason. If Andy Reid couldn’t find a way to utilize him that should tell you all you need to know about him.
July 23rd, 2024 at 8:44 pm
He proved very capable in the open field. His biggest problem is he is extremely patient, too patient. Last year, if the hole wasn’t there, he’s pausing too long for something that’s not occurring because the O line was not great at run blocking.
Patient is great, but he needs to be a little more decisive. Hopefully if the line blocks a little better, those two things will collide and we will see a much improved running game.
July 23rd, 2024 at 8:49 pm
JimBobBuc – You’re wrong about White, it was his vision and stop-start ability that let him gain as many yards as he did. Go back and watch his college tape when he actually had some decent run blocking, the kid looked like a young Le’Veon Bell. His workout numbers are mirror of Bijan Robinson. If they him any sort of legit blocking, and they’re not completely predictable, he’s going to have a monster season (and he had 1500 total yards and 9 TDs last year).
July 23rd, 2024 at 8:53 pm
David Says:
July 23rd, 2024 at 8:44 pm
He proved very capable in the open field. His biggest problem is he is extremely patient, too patient. Last year, if the hole wasn’t there, he’s pausing too long for something that’s not occurring because the O line was not great at run blocking.
———–
Again, go watch Sean Tucker just run full speed into the line… That got him 1.5 yards yards per carry. Or watch Keyshawn Vaughn, another basic north/south runner, he got 1.8 yards.
Chase Edmonds is a mix of the three, and he had 3.6 yards per carry in limited carries, but that was also inflated by being a passing downs back taking unexpected handoffs when the defense wasn’t playing the run.
Truth is, by far, White was the best runner on the team – and short of Barry Sanders, there wasn’t anyone that was going to get you over 4.5 yards per carry in that offense with that blocking.
Simple solution, however, don’t run the ball. The team was literally built to pass – so pass the ball. Then, after establishing the pass, maybe call some running plays on passing downs to keep defenses off balance.
But really, just don’t run the ball. Use the screen game, ‘run’ through the air like a modern offense.
July 23rd, 2024 at 11:16 pm
I agree with everyone who says the biggest issue was the O line for White. When they did their job and held, White did his job. When they collapsed and the play was run up the middle he hit a wall. White has skill but we are not a run team. Even with a better OLine we should be mostly passing without our QB scrambling to make plays and taking hits. And our RBs having a hole that stays open. Like Rod said, use the screen game. We all hope the Oline is vastly better.