Bucs Fans Wanted It. Bucs Fans May Have Received It.
August 11th, 2024
Fun play.
Nothing got Bucs fans to holler and stomp about their woeful 2023 running game more than the interior of the Bucs’ offensive line.
(Yet the guy who led the league’s worst rushing attack the past two seasons seemed to escape any if not all responsibility. Hhhmm?)
So Bucs fans wanted, no demanded, that Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht do something about it.
He did.
First, incumbent right guard Cody Mauch was ordered to the weightroom. Time to turn that North Dakota State body into an NFL roadgrader.
Then Licht drafted a left tackle from Duke to play center, Graham Barton. Then Licht signed a Michigan Man, Ben Bredeson, from the Giants to play left guard.
At least on one play last night, Bucs fans got what they wanted.
On Bucky Irving’s first quarter, five-yard plunge up the middle, go look at the roadgrading by the interior of the line. Barton blasted his man back into the end zone. Mauch buried his man. And Bredeson ragdolled his.
The Bengals had no chance.
Bucs fans from near and far must have pitched a tent watching the blocking on that TD run.
Bucky Irving gets the @Buccaneers on the board!
📱: Stream #TBvsCIN on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/QmESgHNX5U
— NFL (@NFL) August 10, 2024
August 11th, 2024 at 6:22 am
This Bucs team may become a tough out if they can perform NFL average in the run gamed despite a hard schedule this upcoming season.
Now for that pass rush…big questions mark.
August 11th, 2024 at 7:28 am
How about TE durham picking up his block shoving him to the back of the end zone? Even though it was a preseason game
it was refreshing to watch. Our rookies and second unit and 3 unit guys played like starters. Still have a long way to go still have a tough schedule ahead but I am so freaking excited for the season to start, because the Buccaneers are stepping up to the next level. Defense looked good/great s well. 💯 ready to go, September and that meeting with the commanders can’t get here fast enough for me. My opinion we went from a top-notch college type team last year(very vanilla offense, IE schemes, motions, etc)into a full-fledged NFL playoffs last super bowl contending team. L F G Tampa Baker
August 11th, 2024 at 7:37 am
Beautiful.
The young guys on the line looked real good Other than a couple lapses on the outside and past blocking.
The explosiveness from Bucky and Tucker was very apparent
Also really liked how the back seven in the defense rallied to the ball and stopped receiver without too many yac other than a couple big plays
I will say I was concerned about the lack of pass rush.
August 11th, 2024 at 7:43 am
Bucky’s juke is on joke
August 11th, 2024 at 7:47 am
I’m very much liking what I see. We got extremely lucky the bumbling Carolina Panthers stole our weak OC from last year. Cohen is a real NFL OC. The difference is stark!
August 11th, 2024 at 7:50 am
Trey Palmer could’ve scored on his reception before this play and I’m hoping someone gets in his ear and tells him “next time bite the ball and cut upfield, you’re fast enough to take that 6” instead of running out of bounds.
August 11th, 2024 at 8:29 am
Loving what the rookies brought last night. It’s going to be a real good season!
August 11th, 2024 at 8:48 am
Get ready peeps, we got a small shifty who can break their ankles….thats why i wanted him
August 11th, 2024 at 9:32 am
Looks like we have some building blocks to construct a wall. So far so good.
August 11th, 2024 at 10:02 am
Canales who? Very impressed with Coen, and this is just preseason!
August 11th, 2024 at 10:35 am
Now if Jason Licht could just feel the same way about the defensive line.
August 11th, 2024 at 10:37 am
That was a well designed play too. Screen motion to the left moved the outside LB out and froze the safety.
August 11th, 2024 at 10:38 am
Somebody, either 58 or 68 had a great seal block on the Mike backer. That was a pretty play blocking-wise.
August 11th, 2024 at 10:43 am
Being able to run the ball inside the 10 will increase TD%. Hopefully the Bucs can stay consistent.
August 11th, 2024 at 10:58 am
Unlike what I’ve felt before, I guess Canals did us a favor. I am glad TB and JL kind of doubled down to replace coaches and players he poached, as well. Coen and new coaches sure seem to be an upgrade, and Canals could have left us in the lurch.
August 11th, 2024 at 11:29 am
Everyone expected Mauch to be much more conditioned this year. Football factories can come close to NFL conditioning, small schools can’t. Bredeson is sneaky good, a mauler, maybe a little slow footed. All those high picks are coming together for the OLine.
August 11th, 2024 at 11:59 am
Mauch made mulch out of his guy. My goodness.
Joe typed a lot of words there. I’ll paraphrase what he was trying to tell the fanbase: “I was wrong. You were right.”
August 11th, 2024 at 1:33 pm
Bucky was had, dead to rights off the left side by the defender. Good RB’s make that guy miss. This young man is going to be so much fun to watch; Tucker too, he had a great night! Really excited to see what our RB’s do this year.
August 11th, 2024 at 4:13 pm
Dullard fans who don’t know what they’re watching want a boring run first offense.
Real fans who aren’t morons want a entertaining offense that puts up points and isn’t celebrating only scoring 17 points like it’s a big deal.
Give me a passing offense, you know like the one the Bucs just won a SB with a few years ago, and you all can keep your 1970s offense that finished 24th in scoring.
August 11th, 2024 at 4:23 pm
Joe is so obsessed with absolving the o-line of any responsibility for a poor running game, he legit sounds upset about seeing a run play be successful. LMAO
August 11th, 2024 at 5:48 pm
I think that play relies a lot on the right defensive end being held by the action of the QB. Play action run game, if you will. A RDE or ROLB that doesn’t hesitate to commit to the run, may blow that play up behind the line of scrimmage. The Bengal at that spot was just a step too slow last night. Maybe a receiver could be in motion from left to right to get a body on any player in that area?
August 11th, 2024 at 5:54 pm
I knew Mauch would get better 😉
THe whole line is only going to improve as they play more, barring injuries.
August 11th, 2024 at 7:45 pm
One thing I noticed was that our team did not do well when the Bengals starters were playing. So it is too early to get too excited.
August 11th, 2024 at 8:04 pm
Rod … ‘Give me a passing offense, you know like the one the Bucs just won a SB with a few years ago, and you all can keep your 1970s offense that finished 24th in scoring.’
Oh ye of little faith. Look at the run-pass ratios for the division champs last year …
o Bills (11-6): 512 runs – 1115 plays … 45.9% run-pass
o Ravens(13-4): 541 runs – 1076 plays … 50.3% run-pass
o Texans (10-7): 444 runs – 1083 plays … 41.0% run-pass
o Chiefs (11-6): 417 runs – 1080 plays … 38.6% run-pass
o Cowboys (12-5): 468 runs – 1122 plays … 41.7% run-pass
o Lions (12-5): 500 runs – 1137 plays … 44.0% run-pass
o Bucs (9-8): 439 runs – 1047 plays … 41.9% run-pass
o 49ers (12-5): 499 runs – 1024 plays … 48.7% run-pass
So the division winners won an average of slightly over 11 games last season by running an average of 478 times out of an average of 1086 plays for an average run-pass of 44.0% Rod. The Bucs were a full 2% below that, and had the 2nd least total plays of the division winners.
Still, our main problem was that we sucked at running the ball. The solution to that problem isn’t to stop running the ball & become one-dimensional; the solution is to improve at running the ball … which is exactly what JL & TB have tried to do this off-season. My bet is that our rushing average (a league-worst 3.4 YPC last year) will improve to at least 4.0 YPC this year, maybe higher. And that our run-pass ratio will be someplace between 42% – 45%. And IF that happens, our Points Scored will easily increase from 348 points (20.5 PPG) to 400 points (23.5 PPG) and probably higher.
August 11th, 2024 at 8:58 pm
Regardless of the run/pass mix, being the league’s worst running team for twos years in a row while playing for a coach who tries to conjure 1970 — fatal for the team. Beefing the OL is a beautiful thing, helping run and pass, and Liam will hopefully go into Todd’s office and emphasize points scored — not time of possession — as the most important improvement metric. And 17 ain’t gonna cut it. Once again Todd exhibited the 1970 approach, instead of going for it on 4th down and short from the Bengals 34, he kicks. Coen surely has plays dialed up to convert a 4th and short against bartenders and waitresses.
Whatever. Todd needs 11-6 and 25ppg while tightening up the soft and woeful pass defense.
August 12th, 2024 at 11:14 am
I had a few tears at that majestic beauty. I’m not gonna lie. 😃
August 12th, 2024 at 11:09 pm
Def a well blocked run. Carry this type of play
over to the reg season. LFG