Running Backs Burned Bucs Pass Defense
April 10th, 2025
Bucs coach Todd Bowles.
The Bucs pass defense has been terrible the past two seasons. But this surprised Joe.
Of course, many fans killed many (not all) of the Bucs defensive backs for getting shredded as the Bucs once again finished in the bottom five of the league in passing yards allowed.
But were the defensive backs the culprits?
Noted stathead turned handicapper Warren Sharp is pumping out his draft guide little by little, which of course is stats-heavy. And yes, Sharp documented how awful the Bucs’ pass defense was last year.
So what element of opponents’ offenses hurt the Bucs most in the passing game?
Was it receivers? Was it tight ends? Oh, they did their damage. But it was running backs that tore up the Bucs defense the most.
Running backs’ efficiency in the pass game was the worst element of the Bucs’ defense, per Sharp. The pass defense had the third-worst rating when it came to running back efficiency in pass defense.
When wide receivers or tight ends kill a defense, it’s usually pretty simple: the secondary got torched.
But a running back? Joe doesn’t know if that’s on safeties, outside linebackers or inside linebackers. But, no matter how you spin it, running backs torched the Bucs in the pass game.
April 10th, 2025 at 4:48 am
and this is why we need help at inside linebacker early in the draft.
April 10th, 2025 at 5:20 am
I respect KJ Britt. In 1996, he would have been a star.
But he was just too slow to start in the NFL.
Special teams warrior? Yes.
Goal line defense? Yes.
But starting in the NFL?
God bless his heart. He just didn’t have the speed to do it.
April 10th, 2025 at 5:26 am
With the middle wide open at all times, it’s no surprise.
April 10th, 2025 at 5:35 am
To call our guys outside linebackers is a misnomer to me. They sometimes drop but rarely cover anyone. They have been known to sniff out screens and RBs coming out in the flats.
We need ILBs who can cover backs and TEs. Loss of Dennis screwed us here as well. Britt failed for the most part.
My understanding of Safety is the last line of defense. He gets the tackle when others fail. FS more so. Covering backs? Not so much. Strong safety was a bit of a problem me thinks. Whitehead was not what we had in mind last year. Last but not least? Can you say poor tackling? Yet again? Everybody including corners!
Go Bucs!
April 10th, 2025 at 6:10 am
Where are the ranks for pass defense against tight ends and wide receivers for comparison? Also 3rd down conversion defense is misleading. Let’s see a 3rd down conversion defense rank for the 4th quarter only, when it really counted. I’m not biting this as the defenses main problem. Rbs tear up teams in the passing game across the league. I still have nightmares and flashbacks of wrs and tight end wide open down the field middle to late fourth quarter comebacks. Todd better get this right this season, this offense isn’t going to be this good forever and he’s wasting the opportunity away
April 10th, 2025 at 6:13 am
Every team in the league ate us up over the middle and in the flats – we had no answer all season
Let’s just keep running KJ & JJ out there – I mean we pulled DJones off the couch and he was better than either
The OLB in the flats when they are not really LB, they are standing DE’s – NT playing MLB – the schemes are atrocious sometimes with Todd and we were so undermanned at LB & OLB it was criminal
April 10th, 2025 at 6:26 am
“Running backs burned the Bucs pass defense…” as did wide receivers, tight ends and stationary, statue like, injured, geriatric quarterbacks.
April 10th, 2025 at 7:02 am
i mean, we all saw it and knew it I can only assume Bowles picked the lesser of evils. britt probably the most common victim.
April 10th, 2025 at 7:08 am
It all starts with the ILB not being able to cover and then that ILB gets suckered trying to cover what he thinks is a pass coming to his area and gets caught with one foot on the boat and the other foot on the dock.
April 10th, 2025 at 7:13 am
This is baffl
April 10th, 2025 at 7:15 am
This is baffling to me. The defense practices against Bucky and Rashad every day and they are two of the best receiving backs in the league. 🤔
April 10th, 2025 at 7:29 am
I agree with Garro.
April 10th, 2025 at 8:18 am
Opposing RBs killed us mostly with the short stuff … just like our RBs do to opposing defenses. Our pass rush pressure on opposing QBs is very inconsistent, and with Todd’s incessant blitzing it’s not hard for QBs to find RBs in the open (especially when our LBs are blitzing). Bucs blitzed 461 times last season; look who did it:
o ILBs: 126 blitzes (27.3%)
o OLBs: 202 blitzes (43.8%)
o CBs: 13 blitzes (2.8%)
o Safeties: 120 blitzes (26.0%)
Of note, since our Nickel CBs are listed as Safeties (and have played both), their blitzes are included with the Safeties. IOW our Outside CBs rarely blitz.
THE most frustrating aspect of being a Bucs’ fan last season was watching opposing QBs easily complete pass after pass in the middle of our defense. Bucs MUST create a more consistent 5-man pass rush (3 DLine & 2 OLBs whose only job is to serve the opposing QB green grass for dinner).
Bucs blitzed more than 30 other NFL teams last season according to Pro-Football-Reference, blitzing on 34.2% of passing plays. The other teams who blitzed the most also appear to have had terrible pass defenses (Vikings & Lions did even worse than us & both blitzed a bunch). We’ve got to improve our 5-man pass rush and blitz less to improve our short passing game coverage. And we need a giant DT/NT to rotate in with Vea to accomplish that … Round 1.
April 10th, 2025 at 8:43 am
Simple….we put our lawn chairs in the wrong place…
April 10th, 2025 at 8:57 am
When it’s running backs, it’s generally the linebacker corps. We’ve known the LB corps was lacking for a while. This just confirms it.
How’s that JTS pick looking now?
April 10th, 2025 at 8:59 am
Bucs couldn’t cover Tightends, Cooper Kupp from the 2021 playoffs, running backs, wide receivers, Rae Carruth’s ghost, janitors, practice squad receivers, Kirk Cousins scrambling like he’s Lamar Jackson, or an injured Cee Dee Lamb.
This pass defense is NOT GOOD, the scheme is NOT GOOD and I doubt it gets fixed by someone who couldn’t fix anything on defense over the last few years
April 10th, 2025 at 9:06 am
I’ve been saying all along that there will be quality defensive tackles available late in the draft, and I’m standing by that. There are talented DTs this year who can make a real impact in the NFL for years and years to come. That said, you can never have too many 300-pound-plus linemen who can move well and possess the kind of raw power that disrupts offenses. A fresh Vita Vea or similar player— who’s well rested, explosive, and dominant at the point of attack—is a game-changer. Depth along the defensive line is invaluable, and having a rotation of big, athletic, powerful bodies keeps your front seven dangerous all four quarters. Defense Rules is saying a legit pass rush with 5 guys.
I want an ELITE PASS RUSH WITH ONLY 4!!!
April 10th, 2025 at 10:09 am
Coach Bowles scheme is not working anymore. It is obvious.
April 10th, 2025 at 10:20 am
No surprise at all.
LaVonte can’t cover the TE, RB and spy the QB all at the same time. His field mate, Britt, was a corpse who breathes. Then everyone else was at least 12 yards deep covering nobody but empty areas of grass in Todd’s “nothing over your heads” zone schemes.
Thankfully coach is in the lab, and it’s good to know Bill Parcells and Ronde Barber are yelling at him constructively.
April 10th, 2025 at 10:57 am
If only we had someone that could teach tackling and coverage fundamentals to the defensive players……wait……..
Nothing changes until Toilet Bowles gets the flush.
28-27
April 10th, 2025 at 11:04 am
How many times last year did we see an opposing receiver coming out on OUR right side, cut over the middle, catch the pass over our middle, and here comes JTS chugging behind as the receiver runs away and is finally tackled by some one else.
How many times – -12- -24??!!
At least it will be someone else who will be covering.
April 10th, 2025 at 11:14 am
From Pro Football Reference
2024 Passer rating when targeted Yards/target
SirVocea Dennis – 101.5. 8.4
K.J. Britt – 108.5. 8.2
Lavonte David – 102.4 (career 98.5). 7.8 (career 6.1)
J.J. Russell – 115.7 8.4
Anthony Walker – 94.4 @ Miami in 2024 8.2
Dean – 91.2. 6.7
McCollum – 91.8. 7.6
Whitehead – 125.5. 9.0
Winfield – 136.8 (102.0 2023). 10.5 (9.8 2023)
Izien – 78.4 6.4
Smith – 100.8 6.8
Funderburk – 158.3 12.6
Edwards – 76.4 7.8
Generally, a passing rating of 100 or higher is considered poor performance.
Depending upon the formation, defense and play, a RB is probably going to be covered by a LB, Safety, or maybe a Nickleback.
At safety, Edwards rated well when he was brought back for the last third of the season. But, the numbers for Winfield and Whitehead are poor.
The numbers for all of the Buc’s LB’s last year were poor, but the new Buc free agent Anthony Walker who played for Miami last year had better numbers.
The starting CB’s had okay numbers, and Izien had good numbers . But, the numbers for Smith weren’t great.
Many people want the Bucs to take a cornerback in the first round. But, LB and Safety were the weak spots last year in so far as starters are concerned, and they are the ones RB’s attack.
April 10th, 2025 at 11:29 am
Live by the Sword…
Of the top 10 receiving RB’s White and Irving were 8 and 9 and 124 and 125 of all receivers.
Bucs faced RB #2 twice, #3 and # 5 twice in 2024. Bucs will face those again in 2025 and a few more @ ARZ, NYJ, MIA unless Hall (#4) gets traded from the Jets to the Commanders and Achane (#1) gets moved out of Miami.
Bowles will address the need to have to Blitz for QB Pressure and hopefully any new additions at Edge will not be too focused on sacks to pay attention to RB’s slipping out. Maybe Bowles took some notes from Quinn when he was shutting down the Dink and Dunks and RB YAC’s on his way to the NFC Championship game.
April 10th, 2025 at 12:21 pm
Sometimes schemes get exposed, sometimes TALENT or the lack thereof gets exposed.
Many here like Aquaboy wish to blame it all on Bowles and none on talent.
I OTOH like a more nuanced researched position like D.R.’s.
Todd himself admitted to bad scheming that was forced upon him by the loss of the best players, specifically AW and Dean in the backfield, but there were others who revealed either lack of experience, far too green, or lack of talent, ultimately a lack of depth exposed by the injuries.
The major difference between Aquaboy and me is I get the obvious as well as nuance. Did Bowles have his best year at DC. Most would say NO. Some MIGHT say he had one of his better years getting the playoffs with that lack of talent and experience on D.
Reasons have been well documented! DW45’s mental implosion, paying off the cap mortgage from the Brady SB, injuries.
The real question is am I making an EXCUSE for Todd or just describing reality.
This board is already set and so I do not expect to change any minds.
As for me my take is “that was yesterday and yesterday’s gone!” THIS year will give us a truer indication of Todd’s actual ability. I make no predictions but I feel confident. I totally understand those who don’t.
April 10th, 2025 at 12:34 pm
@stpetebucsfan
Bowles actual abilities have been well documented.
And why would you even want to try to change peoples minds in regards to their opinions about the direction of the team???
It’s almost like there’s a segment on these message boards that just want an echo chamber of their own thoughts regurgitated back to them.
I prefer a robust dialog of different opinions, right or wrong. That’s the whole point here, or at least it should be.
Fire Bowles!! 28-27
April 10th, 2025 at 2:07 pm
I’ve got a Whole Lot of Amen’s and a couple of you guys that didn’t seem to actually “WATCH THE GAMES”, You fellas Have To Wake Up!
And with that said, Im of the same mind as DR. A “Top End” Talented DT/NT would open up a few options for us that we currently don’t have or at least can’t do well as is. And THAT would be the most effective way to solve A Lot of our defensive problems. A VERY EFFECTIVE way to skin the cat. UNLESS…..
I only have one exception to that and that’s Jalon Walker…. He would Solve (for the most part) our problems over the middle. IF he drops to us, he’s gotta be the pick. If not, I Sure hope DR’S wishes come true.
April 10th, 2025 at 2:35 pm
Wow, that sure Tells a Story.
Bad play last year by our some of our linebackers, and all of our Safeties.
Well, at least we know where to start adding help
April 10th, 2025 at 6:17 pm
That’s what happens when you have garbage players like Britt on the field, who was clearly too slow to play in the NFL. I saw him time and time again get beat to the edge on dump offs. Also it doesn’t help that Bowles kept dropping his big lumbering edge rushers into zone over and over and over again. Really on the 2nd level of the defense you had one defender who could cover – David – that was it. Everyone else was a huge liability (except for Dennis, but he played so little I’m not counting him).
April 11th, 2025 at 2:41 am
Saying it now Coach Bowles will get extension after this season and prove his haters wrong