How Can The Bucs Offense Be Better?
February 7th, 2025
Rookie Bucs OC Josh Grizzard.
The Bucs in the regular season were third in total offense (399.6 yards a game), fourth in rushing offense (149.2 a game), third in passing (250.4) and fourth in average points scored (29.5).
And just by simple osmosis, you figure the Bucs could be better on offense too. Graham Barton, Bucky Irving and Jalen McMillan will no longer be rookies. They’d have a full offseason to work out under the gaze of NFL trainers.
Then, if the Bucs re-sign Chris Godwin, this offense is loaded.
Still, statistically, how the heck can new offensive coordinator Josh Grizzard improve the Bucs offense much, as he talked about yesterday?
To grow into a top-two offense with a first-time play-caller seems wildly optimistic if not unreasonable. So Grizzard, after saying to the local pen and mic club that he is planning to improve, was asked how he could actually do it.
Simple, he said. Focus on fundamentals.
“What we did on the fundamentals we can now evolve to the next level of the teaching of coverages, of D-line technique, [etc.],” Grizzard said. “That way we can now expand the scheme, continue to add from around the league, add from college [and] continue to put pressure on the defense [as we] try to score points.”
In theory, the Bucs could be better on offense as Joe pointed out earlier. But in reality, can that be expected? For example, the offense wasn’t awful with Dave Canales in 2023, but there was no doubt he had growing pains in what was his first season calling plays.
It seems natural to expect a step back with a brand new play-caller, even if a team is more talented.
If Grizzard can actually improve on what Liam Coen did and help take the Bucs deeper in the playoffs, well, that tells Joe the Bucs will likely be looking for a fifth offensive coordinator in as many years.
That would mean that Grizzard is a head coach somewhere this time next year.
Ira Kaufman Talks Josh Grizzard Introduction, Myles Garrett Trade Likelihood & Cost, And Much More
February 7th, 2025 at 4:45 am
Baker needs to protect the ball more that’s the biggest issue
February 7th, 2025 at 5:35 am
Unless we score 40 a game, or we score 15, Grizzard will be here next year.
February 7th, 2025 at 6:17 am
Joe, I gotta ask, how do you pronounce Grizzard?
Like Griz-Arrrd, the short a emphasized
Or
Griz-erd?
Been driving me nuts
February 7th, 2025 at 6:38 am
The more pertinent question is will Todd Bowles defense suck again or will there be major improvement in play and scheme? All eyes will be watching to see the answer to that one.
February 7th, 2025 at 6:38 am
I believe it is Arrrrrr, like a Buccaneer
February 7th, 2025 at 6:45 am
Bucs offense can be better with turnovers, penalties, and situationally
February 7th, 2025 at 6:46 am
If Grizzard is a head coach this time next year, then books need to be written about Bowles offensive coaching tree and his eye for talent.
Seriously, this is a tale where the offense may be better but show it statistically. If the Bucs remain in or near the top five AND the defense improves… WATCH OUT!!!
Those are the two main issues. Will Baker remain at his 2024 level? If so? Elite. Will the Bucs progress as a defensive unit filling the needs on all three levels? If so, then NFC championship game and beyond. LFG!
February 7th, 2025 at 7:30 am
Grizz will be ok. He’ll no doubt get play calling experience in practice and during the now VERY meaningful preseason games (looking at you Joseph). He’s already surrounded by last years support staff.
February 7th, 2025 at 7:34 am
Bee, I couldn’t agree more
February 7th, 2025 at 8:39 am
Limit the turnovers, be aggressive more consistently and convince Todd Blows to trust the offense more than the soft defense
February 7th, 2025 at 8:41 am
Offense might drop off a bit but we all know the defense, especially the pass defense WILL NOT improve
February 7th, 2025 at 8:45 am
The Bucs offense was effective and efficient last year. But what we didn’t see enough of in 2024 were explosives in the pass game. Lots of dink and dunk and throws near the line of scrimmage – not enough mid and long range passing attempts in the 15>25+ yard range.
Now that we once again have an OLine capable of holding off pressure for a bit more than 2.3 seconds, the new OC needs to open things up in the passing game and take more deep shots – similar to what we saw the last half of 2020 and most of 2021 when Brady was kind of slinging it all over the field with great accuracy and success.
February 7th, 2025 at 8:56 am
A study of the Denver game should provide enough information about how the offense can be improved to generate several peer reviewed papers and a text book or two.
From the Dallas game, I hope they learn not to do stupid things during a comeback attempt that take you from field goal range with 1st & 10 at the Dallas 25 to 4th and 40 at the Bucs 44.
And, I hope they learn things things like when you scheme to hit Evans five yards down the field, don’t have the RB run to a spot that will pull the defender covering the RB right in front of Evans; like when you scheme to move the defenders out of the middle of the field, make sure you can take advantage of the wide open spaces; things like always have a hot route instead of arrogantly assuming that all of your routes can go 15 yards downfield before anyone looks for the ball; things like don’t keep holding the guys jersey when he spins away from you giving the referee a perfect view of your arm reaching around him with your hand clenching the front of his jersey; things like run to the one-on-one matchup in space five yards downs the field instead of into a box where you are outnumbered; things like bend your route behind the blitzing linebacker across the middle or up the seam.
There is plenty to learn to make this offense better, but they were very good most of the time.
February 7th, 2025 at 9:19 am
Id be happy if the offense is equal to what it was last year. Some areas can improve for sure. Some may regress.
But what will take us into the promised land is having the defense improve. The defense is the key. The other teams could keep up scoring with our offense bc our defense SUCKED.
February 7th, 2025 at 9:54 am
Bucs were middle of the pack in penalties. As long as the offense doesn’t regress it’s fine but going into year two I agree it should evolve and be better. I don’t know why fans are so hard on the offense about penalties when they are in year 1 of a scheme. You should be worried about why opposing offenses figures out Bowles defense faster than his own players
February 7th, 2025 at 10:33 am
First thing would be to make sure Sterling “hands of stone” Shepard walks the plank.
As far as being first year play caller. Canales and Coen both were, so who knows?
February 7th, 2025 at 10:58 am
This is easy.
Too many penalties and turnovers, self inflicted wounds. Practices need to be much more detail oriented, full of relentless repetition (especially on jet sweeps apparently), and the head coach needs to demand accountability from everyone, including himself, to eliminate the mental mistakes.
Situational football needs to be emphasized more.
February 7th, 2025 at 12:25 pm
How about the OBVIOUS! Start Bucky from day one! Liam Coen for all his “greatness” was even slower than the fans to figure out Bucky’s talent! Fans were screaming to start Bucky long before Coen did it!
I’ve compared Bucky to Barry Sanders because of his style and skill set. But you can actually compare the two and they are EVEN after their rookie seasons.
Bucky only started 3 of the 17 games for 207 carries- 1122 yards – 5.4 YPC
Barry started 13 games for 280 carries- 1470 yards – 5.3 YPC
Pretty similar results although Barry got 14 TDs to Bucky’s 8.
Is Bucky the next Barry? He certainly could be if he stays healthy. Barry did it for a long time. Ten years and over 15 THOUSAND yards. He’s the man. Bucky has a long way to go but so far he’s matched one of the great RB’s to play.
It won’t simply be an increase in Bucky’s production, his success will force DC’s to adjust to account for him. This is when we’ll find out just how good Griz is.
Plenty of targets for Baker, a very good OL which is young and still improving.
I look forward to watching the Buc’s O next year.