Starters Win 20-6, The Halftime Score
August 25th, 2018
A rare sizzling start!
Forget about any individual performances tonight; this post is about the team, your Buccaneers.
The Bucs have struggled for years to start games fast, efficiently and physically. Their first-quarter and first-half scoring under Dirk Koetter has been heinous. That was no coincidence and it needed fixing. And as Bucs fans know, the team has been soft at home, the worst home record in the NFC since Chucky was fired.
But tonight, the Bucs’ top dogs played the first half of the season finale (or less in some cases) and won the first half 20-6 against the Lions.
Scoreboard! At home!
Yeah, there were penalties on early drives, soul-crushers, but Ryan Fitzpatrick and Jameis Winston both were strong and the defense got the job done. As Joe wrote earlier, it was Gerald McCoy’s sack that set up the too-long field goal that became Adam Humphries heroic 109-yard touchdown return.
Koetter desires culture change and there’s no better path to that than starting strong in games. Either you’re ready to play or you’re not. Unlike last week, the Bucs were ready tonight from the opening whistle.
It’s a beautiful thing.
August 25th, 2018 at 12:11 am
Smith is a chicken s***t
August 25th, 2018 at 12:13 am
any ya’ll mofo’s wanna trade humphries now? hey let’s go in the season with jackson on punt returns and humphries on kick offs, and let me give a big shout out to godwin, he is a beast
August 25th, 2018 at 12:14 am
I was rocking the same smile at halftime. In total disbelief, they finally put a game together and overcame adversity. Kwon made plays albeit on blitzes, McCoy made a big play and Hump came through with a miracle return. Good stuff.
#AndMamaCookedBreakfastWithNoHog
August 25th, 2018 at 12:17 am
I’m so sick of Mike Smith he needs to go I don’t care if it’s our third string or not he lets Detroit march down the field like always we should’ve won that game I know wasn’t really that big of a deal preseason game but still like I Said Smith scares me
August 25th, 2018 at 12:20 am
Fitz looks great.
August 25th, 2018 at 12:23 am
THAT OJ OPI CALL!!! God. How is every ref in this league so bad at calling plays? Hire me Rog and I’ll get it straight and not just in the Bucs favor. P.S. CONTE BLOWS!!!!! Whitehead forced a fumble but wasn’t enough to overturn. He has got to be our starter day one. But yeah Lions, go back to Detroit with your starters in the 3rd and beating a rookie QB that has had four plays prior. Bucs won that game no doubt.
August 25th, 2018 at 12:24 am
calling penalties*
August 25th, 2018 at 12:26 am
Let’s not get too excited. The Browns were 4-0 last preseason.
August 25th, 2018 at 12:28 am
It’s preseason. Meaningless.
August 25th, 2018 at 12:34 am
Rostta
Yeah he CAN NOT be doing that sh!t in the regular season. He’s played tighter than last year but with 2 minutes he plays deep ass zone cus I think he thinks they’re just gonna bomb it but then they just jam a bunch of short yard gaines all the way down the field. He did it last year and it never worked out well. Speaking of defense, VH3 was smokin in the slot tonight. DeVante Harris had some nice plays too for his second week on the team.
August 25th, 2018 at 12:38 am
Godeep66
“Let’s not get too excited. The Browns were 4-0 last preseason.”
I’m excited because this first string on both sides of the ball is looking damn good. Fitz, Jameis, PB, Godwin. Starters have been playing real well against opposing starters.
August 25th, 2018 at 12:43 am
They looked great tonight
August 25th, 2018 at 12:44 am
And we played alotta man up coverage it’s refreshing
August 25th, 2018 at 4:50 am
Winston looks really really good
Hump and Martino dropped perfect passes and a questionable offensive pass interference call on a big pass to O.J. would’ve made his stats look even better
August 25th, 2018 at 6:21 am
It’s all looking way to easy for the Bucs at this point….to me that’s an uneasy feeling….
August 25th, 2018 at 6:22 am
As good as Hump’s field goal return was, Shaun White looked pretty good last night in his returns and as a change of pace back.
August 25th, 2018 at 6:33 am
Big dropoff in talent on the defensive side of ball in the fourth quarter. I wouldn’t blame that on Mike Smith.
August 25th, 2018 at 7:00 am
Huge drop off in talent at the end……Detroit’s future UPS drivers are better players than ours.
August 25th, 2018 at 7:23 am
Shaun Wilson hands down KO returner. Even though it’s only preseason, there is something different about this teams confidence. When and if fully healthy, they will be the contender Bruce Arians and Tony Dungy think they are.
August 25th, 2018 at 7:58 am
Boy, people who have decided to hate someone refuse to see anything that proves them wrong.
FOR EXAMPLE
When we started the 4th quarter, it was not our 3rd stringers who were in. It was the 4th, 5th and 6th stringers. At that point, our entire on field unit consisted of camp meat.
At the start of the 4th quarter, the Lions put multiple starters back into the game against out camp meat. Like Blount for example. Yes, we could have put some of our better defensive players in, but that would have been stupidly risking their health for a meaningless game.
Chris Conte actually had a monster game last night, not that his haters noticed. He consistently made plays when other players gave up. One case was saving a TD when VHIII got fooled and left behind along the right sideline. Conte came from the middle of the field to stop the TD. Another instance was when Lavante David could have tackled a player along the left sideline, but gave up on the play and slowed down. Again, Conte came from mid field and made the tackle. Chris Conte was one of the better secondary players last night, and I bet his stats will prove it (I haven’t even looked yet).
Mike Smiths first and second stringers held the Lions to 6 points. No TDs. But, of course, haters focus on the one TD Lions starters scored on our third stringers, and running starters against 4th-6th stringers in the 4th quarter. For heavens sake, people, even the tv announcers wondered why Blount was playing in the 4th quarter! That wasn’t a Smith defensive breakdown, it was a complete talent breakdown! Nothing but missed tackle after missed tackle
August 25th, 2018 at 8:47 am
I’m pretty sure we were in cover 2 on the long pass play and Conte but short. That was probably his man and his fault. Other than that he was solid.
BTW, don’t look now but another 2nd round pick is getting cut. Our 5th string D was out there late in the game along with Noah Spence again. He didn’t really stand out. Just based on the fact that he ass in the game at that time. I believe he’s a goner.
August 25th, 2018 at 9:28 am
I just went through the stats. Isaiah Johnson and Chris Conte had the most production out of the entire secondary last night. So all of you saying Conte sucks? Try looking at the development of those plays…he was fixing other peoples’ mistakes.
August 25th, 2018 at 10:03 am
Don’t know what you Conte lovers were looking at but I saw Conte get burned big time on at least 2 Detroit long plays. I saw it first hand because my seats are on the 30 row A. Maybe it was a blown assignment by another defender I suppose but sure looked like he was the one burned.
August 25th, 2018 at 10:26 am
@Cobraboy
“It’s preseason. Meaningless.”
Not to nitpick because if you’re referring to our final record…that which will decide whether you get in the playoffs or not…this game literally will not count.
That doesn’t mean it’s meaningless. We’re building our team at this time of the year…finding who can play and who can’t especially with the younger players.
It’s a time to find out who is ready…JPP and GMC who need to be our stars on defense have shown they are ready to rise to the occasion.
Here is what else we’ve learned this preseason IMHO
We already knew we had the best TE tandem in the league. We wanted to believe our WR corps was among the elite…that’s been confirmed…it wasn’t just Humps great “kick six” play or Godwins great TD catch against a top NFL DB…but DJAX is back in the flow…without forcing the ball to him he’s getting his touches and performing well.
And in my “homer” eyes I believe we have the best slate of QB’s in the league.
Our numero uno has finally discovered what I believe was his biggest need…POISE. He’s taken a chill pill…handling himself incredibly well and he seems to have gotten better throwing the ball in terms of accuracy and touch although that never concerned me as much as his head. His head seems to be screwed on straight at last.
Fitz played very well as our number one backup and Grif has to be the best third stringer in the league. We are DEEP at QB.
If you believe like me you need to live in the moment…it’s all we really have…may die in a crash tomorrow….right now at least…It’s all good.
August 25th, 2018 at 12:39 pm
@Buc believer-
It was a blown play. VH3 and Kwon were covering guys who ran a little pick/ crossing route and they both ended up staying on the same player while the other guy ran free. Conte was running over late to try to stop the TD.
August 25th, 2018 at 3:42 pm
I could care less what Mike Smith called in the 4’th quarter. The coaches saw what they needed to long before the announcers started making an issue of it. The Bucs who will be on the team played great. Fat Pat needed the win because his real team sucks.
August 25th, 2018 at 3:45 pm
Monken called an excellent game and I give zCoach Koetter 100% of the credit. If Koetter keeps coaching this way, I’m falling in behind him. Great game bAnd preparation by the entire Bucs, coaching staff.
August 25th, 2018 at 3:58 pm
correction: Shuan Wilson ,not Shuan White on above post.
August 25th, 2018 at 10:28 pm
Godeep you’re such a clown with your Fitz looked great. Fitz is servicable. Your pungent hatred of Jameis isn’t going to make Fitz any better than he is now. He was horrible against the teen Titans so what’s your excuse for that?