Did Baker Mayfield Feel “Handcuffed” Last Season?
August 1st, 2024
Discusses Liam Coen’s offense.
Look, Joe is not here to start a “Let’s crap on Dave Canales” harangue.
While Joe thought Canales called run plays — specifically up the middle — way too much for Joe’s liking, especially when the Bucs offense is built to throw. But too many players had career years on offense or near-career years for Joe to waive that off as some sort of coincidence.
Joe doesn’t believe in coincidences in football.
Prior to the Bucs’ Tuesday night practice at the Glazer Shed, Baker Mayfield had a sitdown on NFL Network with Brian Baldinger, Mike Garafolo and Sara Walsh. There, Mayfield had an interesting comment when asked about running Liam Coen’s offense.
“For me, it’s, we have certain playcalls at the line of scrimmage,” Mayfield said. “We’re going to have answers. It’s not like we’re going to show up at the line of scrimmage and feel handcuffed to whatever the defense is doing.”
Now Joe has no way of knowing for sure if Mayfield was referring to last year with Canales or perhaps he was referring to the joke of a situation he was in with the Stinking Panthers two years ago. Or maybe an offense he worked with playing for the Browns.
With all the motion Coen plans use this fall Mayfield called it “eye candy.”
Joe is quietly anxious to see this offense. There is all sorts of statistical data out there that demonstrates the more motion an offense uses, the more effective it is.
Of course, former Bucs offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich would mock such data as “fantasy football.”
Baker Mayfield on his responsibilities in the new Liam Coen offense in Tampa. #nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/sDLE8PPao9
— Sara Walsh (@Sara_Walsh) August 1, 2024
August 1st, 2024 at 6:19 am
Are you referring to the still unemployed Byron Leftwich?
August 1st, 2024 at 6:27 am
This goes against the narrative that JL is an OL genius.
August 1st, 2024 at 7:01 am
Coen discussed this in a podcast. His Offense (and I would guess all others to some extent) have what he touted as MORE options for the players based on what they’re seeing from the Defense. So perhaps Canales’s plan had that to less of an extent or within a narrower range of choices? It’ll be interesting to see how Coen’s offense works. Will there be too much lattitude for a guy like Baker? Or is he in the right spot in his career to be able to diagnose what’s happening big picture during the game? Gotta believe Coen’s plan has options until you start making bad choices or start making plays the OC thinks are completely “out there”, then I bet the options get pulled from the player’s hands.
August 1st, 2024 at 7:07 am
I’ve heard Coen and Bake talk about multiple plays being called in for Bake to switch the call at the line. My sample size is small having seen only one practice, but I didn’t notice Bake calling audibles and I didn’t see a lot of pre snap motion.
Joe, are you actually seeing audibles and a lot of motion?
August 1st, 2024 at 7:09 am
Like with most things in life there are probably good things and bad about using lots of motion. We are always discussing all the good things. I wonder what the downside is if any to using lots of (eye candy) motion? Keeping OL in there stance longer causes more false starts? Gives a defensive more time or get pressured and sub in personnel? I don’t know what if anything or others are true. I’d like to hear a coach discuss both the positives and Negatives regarding all this motion.
Will the Bucs use the Mike McCartney Cheat motion? It looks like arena football to me but it sure seems to work. I suspect a lot more teams using it this year.
August 1st, 2024 at 7:09 am
I felt handcuffed watching our offense last year
August 1st, 2024 at 7:30 am
LOL Amen! 😂
August 1st, 2024 at 7:47 am
I agree with Joe that people having good years with Canales’ offense isn’t a coincidence. But so is being one of the few teams to not score a TD on their opening drive all year.
Have to take the bad with the good.
August 1st, 2024 at 7:54 am
@Durango: JL is an OL genius..drafting them not coaching them.
August 1st, 2024 at 8:00 am
Book em Joe
August 1st, 2024 at 8:04 am
Thing about the OL is everyone wants Ali Marpet back. Heck, so do I. What some people forget is the two years of experience he needed before he became the player we miss.
August 1st, 2024 at 8:12 am
Canales is good at making a young or journeyman look good. Baker is neither of those. He is a legit top QB. Cohen was able to let the natural talent of top QB,s shine at the Rams.
August 1st, 2024 at 8:30 am
“Canales called run plays — specifically up the middle — way too much for Joe’s liking”
We did the same thing in 2022 before Canales arrived – #1 in rushing attempts and #32 in yards per rushing attempt – so how do you know it’s not Bowles?
August 1st, 2024 at 8:31 am
Loved this video. Sounds like Baker will have more control and will get the ball thrown quicker. So much cohesiveness going on and it’s great to hear and see!
August 1st, 2024 at 8:44 am
One of the biggest issues I criticized Baker for last year was his lack of adjustments at the line of scrimmage. The result was often a player coming off the edge untouched. Perhaps it wasn’t his fault.
August 1st, 2024 at 8:55 am
Bruce Arians is still angry that Byron is unemployed
August 1st, 2024 at 8:56 am
This site is a harangue. Joe breaking out the vocab this morning.
August 1st, 2024 at 9:00 am
That’s a Good idea to give the QB more of a say in the decision making process. Surely Mayfield would have over ruled Canales’ call to throw to the Lion linebacker on the final drive of the season.
August 1st, 2024 at 9:03 am
lol @ DCone
August 1st, 2024 at 9:08 am
🙂
August 1st, 2024 at 9:25 am
“Surely Mayfield would have over ruled Canales’ call to throw to the Lion linebacker on the final drive of the season.”
Fans were really blaming that on the play call and not the ball handler, lol
August 1st, 2024 at 9:38 am
Lol!!!! Joe, being a student of Bugs Bunny/Looney Tunes like some of us, advanced his vocabulary growing up watching these brilliant cartoons way before we learned it in school. And I always thought Bugs Bunny was an underrated actor. What was the topic again?
August 1st, 2024 at 11:14 am
Fist down running plays and holding penalties on those runs because officials were watching Hansey and Goedke holding did a number on the Bucs 2nd down options. I’m certain that if QB had the option to change out of a running play and throw slants to Otton or Godwin there would have been less holding penalties and more first downs specifically in first quarter where Bucs were one of the worst if not worst scoring offenses in Q1.
That was Canales overrating his running game and not being smart enough to change until 2nd halves.
August 1st, 2024 at 11:21 am
In hindsight Canalwater was pitiful. Never scoring an opening drive TD, rarely scoring in the first quarter, bottom of the barrel in red zone offense, worst run game in the league, and never came from behind in the second half. Todd is accountable for much as the head coach who sets strategy and approves game plans. But his dude was giving him checkers to play the chess match.
Good riddance to Tony Robbins Jr.
August 1st, 2024 at 11:47 am
Is it possible that Baker might’ve meant that Canalas focused primarily on analyzing the opposing defense’s formations to select the next offensive play, and Coen focuses more on the offense running what it wants and trying to dictate the game that way, forcing the defense to respond? If so, I like it. Defenses have gotten too good at disguising their attacks and coverages to take cues from what the defense shows pre-snap. Our own defense thrives on that. Our offense should recognize the same reality.
August 1st, 2024 at 12:39 pm
That time lag is a significant concern with this OL. Did Mauch in fact make the jump this year? Do we have our starting LG on the roster today? Will Barton take half the season or longer to really get in gear? Can Klein be an impact player second half of this year? These are all unknowns. I’m optimistic looking out another year, but we may only go as far as the OL allows us. And obviously Baker cannot get hurt or we will be drafting high next year.
August 1st, 2024 at 1:45 pm
“harangue”
…..reminds me of the gorilla in Cincinnati…..too bad we can’t get him to be an edge rusher
RIP Harambe
August 1st, 2024 at 2:11 pm
Baker literally had a career year, after being the worst QB in the NFL over the previous 2 seasons … and he was held back?
LOL!
August 1st, 2024 at 6:18 pm
Oh of course fangirl pear bottom blames Canales but not the most gifted qb in all of football. The one who can’t read a defense until he guesses their defensive hand signals. The one who touched the ball on every play. What hand cuffs Mayfield is he doesn’t know what a defense is doing before the snap of the ball that’s why he jumps around nervously behind the line if no one’s open immediately. So making excuses for him
August 1st, 2024 at 9:19 pm
I think Canales could be a great HC. I loved his energy but hated his playcalling.
Baker is extremely smart and can make every throw. This should be interesting. However, we MUST average way more than 2 yards per rush this season.