You Can Blame The Offensive Line (Sort Of)
April 17th, 2023
Former Bucs LT Donovan Smith.
Joe knows the ultimate kneejerk scapegoat for an offense’s woes is blaming the offensive line. It never fails but it sure gets old quickly.
But this time, for the folks who have bunions stomping so often last season while hollering about the offensive line, there is some validity to the bellyaching.
Joe’s good friends at Football Outsiders have a formula for detailing the consistency of an offensive line. Just about anyone who has played offensive line or coached it agree that consistency and durability are major factors in how a line plays and develops.
And last year, the Bucs were in the bottom rung of the league, tied for eighth worst.
Vincent Verhei of Football Outsiders shows the longest stretch in which the Bucs had the same five starters on the offensive line was four games. That’s a bad total, second-worst in the NFL.
The Bucs also had their front-five change eight different times. That was sixth-most in 2022. Also not good.
It was just an awful year for Bucs consistency on the offensive line. It began with Ali Marpet shocking the world with his retirement. Then, Ryan Jensen had his knee destroyed on the second day of training camp. Then Donovan Smith went down in the first game. Tristan Wirfs missed four games.
The Bucs, it seems, were scrambling all season as a result.
One reason why the Bucs had such a good line from, say, 2018-2021 was so few injuries.
That very much was not the case last season.
April 17th, 2023 at 3:58 am
Why is this post trying to have it both ways about the offensive line? Either good teams build in the trenches and succeed with their hog mollies or die trying. Common thread between the Eagles and Chiefs last year, was dominant OL play. Lack thereof was how the Bucs destroyed the Chiefs in the Super Bowl in 2020.
It gets old quick bc we’re right. And arguing with someone who’s right isn’t really arguing is it? Glad some proof was found to “validate our bellyaching,” not that we needed any of it to see something Stevie Wonder can see.
April 17th, 2023 at 5:32 am
Just watch the 2022 tape, they were BAD
April 17th, 2023 at 5:40 am
Agree.
They were bad last year.
Go Bucs!
April 17th, 2023 at 6:19 am
They were very bad last year, and that was with the quickest release at QB that makes all O-line’s look better than they are.
April 17th, 2023 at 6:20 am
So the Bucs had good starters from 2018-2021 with few injuries, but last year when they had injuries, the back ups couldn’t get it done. Sounds familiar as few teams have enough OL depth to handle more than one starter being out for any length of time. You could argue the Bucs had 3 starters out most of the year with the Marpet retirement, Jensen injury and the missed games at LT, RT and RG.
April 17th, 2023 at 6:26 am
Hopefully this year will be better, but I’m concerned it will be a growing year for the OL with two new starting Guards and a new LT. Added to this, there will be a new blocking scheme. Hopefully, they can all come together between now and opening day with no major injuries.
April 17th, 2023 at 7:04 am
The ideal scenario to me is to get Donnie back on the cheap, leave Wirfs at RT and trade Diva White on draft day then pick up OL and DL pieces…lotsa of them.
April 17th, 2023 at 7:12 am
Then there is the simple eye test. Holding penalties that negate touchdowns and offsides that take us out of field goal range were a common occurrence. Never mind the missed blocks and no running lanes. Injuries happen and less talented players fill positions. Last season was pretty cut and dry the line wasn’t good at all.
April 17th, 2023 at 7:14 am
Leighroy Says:
April 17th, 2023 at 3:58 am
Why is this post trying to have it both ways about the offensive line? Either good teams build in the trenches and succeed with their hog mollies or die trying. Common thread between the Eagles and Chiefs last year, was dominant OL play. Lack thereof was how the Bucs destroyed the Chiefs in the Super Bowl in 2020.
It gets old quick bc we’re right. And arguing with someone who’s right isn’t really arguing is it? Glad some proof was found to “validate our bellyaching,” not that we needed any of it to see something Stevie Wonder can see.
__________
Ha ha, spot on man!
And Joe, bunions are a deformity and not caused by stomping.
April 17th, 2023 at 7:21 am
I’d love to see all-22 film of our running plays, but apparently you have to pay to see those, and I’m all tapped out what with my huge Asian midget porn budget
April 17th, 2023 at 7:42 am
Lt. Dan,
Great idea.
Bring back an unmotivated, lazy and previously overpaid player for less money and expect good results.
Absolutely genius idea.
April 17th, 2023 at 7:43 am
I honestly believe in the idea of drafting an offensive lineman somewhere in the top 3 rounds every year regardless of need…
The idea is to always have a surplus at that position. You can never have enough quality o lineman; they get hurt , move on in FA, etc. and being that the NFL is such an offense driven league that’s the 1 unit where you cant afford to have a drop off if someone gets hurt…
April 17th, 2023 at 7:49 am
@Dooosh
I get the sarcasm and I don’t mind. But bringing back Donnie on the cheap fills a major hole with a “not bad” LT. The alternative is using a premium draft pick on LT or risk screwing up a good thing by moving Wirfs to LT. Also with Diva White suddenly going all, well…Diva, the Bucs certainly need to spend that premium pick on an ILB.
April 17th, 2023 at 9:26 am
And when they did have injuries there was sufficient depth to function, instead of a Goedonkey.
April 17th, 2023 at 9:26 am
Last year our o-line was not good enough to block an immobile 45 year old QB. Fortunately with Baker it won’t need to be that good. Mobile guys can cover these deficiencies
April 17th, 2023 at 9:43 am
The OL was gawd awful especially #76 and Goedtke but BL was not a good play caller at all, who runs a behind a guard pulling on the 1 yard line
April 17th, 2023 at 11:03 am
1st Down = Run for Zero Yards
They have to had the most net zero runs on first down in the history of the NFL. Oh that’s right, they did. They were horrible.
April 17th, 2023 at 11:08 am
Baker is trash and throws a lot of INTs
Why does he have all these fanboys?
April 17th, 2023 at 12:04 pm
Just Leave Trask Alone Says:
April 17th, 2023 at 11:08 am
Dude, I hope Trask can be good. Yet, this team has had two full years to look at him, and I tend to trust coaches. If they don’t think Trask has it, they are not just going to give him the job because some fans just want to be invested in him.
I am ok with Kyle and Baker just battling it out. Just don’t cry if your guy loses the competition. Take it like a guy who does not know the game as well NFL coaches.
I certainly will accept that Trask has a chance to win and will not be mad if he actually does win the starting competition.
April 17th, 2023 at 12:12 pm
Geno, you nail it. A guy with his love fantasy in his screen name is obviously thinking about only one thing. And it’s not how a FAIR COMPETITION for quarterback will be conducted. Which it will be if for no other reason than the head coich knows he’s not going to get the chance to oversee six losing seasons in a row, and needs to be certain (as certain as a Bloweszo can be) that he’s putting the players on the field that give him the best chance to win.
April 17th, 2023 at 12:19 pm
I’m glad BL is gone, and last year definitely exposed that he as a playcaller could not overcome a bad line. But too much blame for how the team played last year overlooks that the O-line play (as a result of injuries and retirement) was the first, second, and third reason for our decline.
Was BL a poor playcaller behind that line. Yup. Was BL leading a top 5 offense in the league every year behind a good line. Also, yup.
Did Brady decline last year. Yup. Was Brady more than good enough to lead us deep into the playoffs behind a good line. Also, yup.
Did the D give up too many big plays and not get off the field when they needed to? Yup. If the offense (behind a good line) could have sustained drives and put up points, the defense isn’t gassed and having to always protect the slimmest of margins. Also, yup.
We spent so much timing bitching about coaches and the run game and the defense. But there was no overcoming our losses on the line. And if you don’t agree see the 2022-23 Rams, and also McVay, Sean. Because no one here or elsewhere is going to say that the Rams or McVay are a terrible team or a bad OC/Coach. Yet they were WORSE last year than us. Same problem…line decimated.
We need to be PETRIFIED of this upcoming season. Cause Canales can be new and shiny, and Mayfield/Trask may be able to move around. But our line is an absolute question mark. No LT, traded away an overrated but starting RG, pro-bowl (30+ year old center) coming off a massive knee injury, LG still an unknown or unproven player. It’s essentially Wirfs and an optimistic plan.
You can’t coach or scheme around this. McVay might be the very best in the league for that and even he was toast last season.
April 17th, 2023 at 1:02 pm
Time to turn the page on last season. This years O line will be completely different personel wise, and scheme wise from last year.
April 17th, 2023 at 1:16 pm
Let’s say it this way, Joe: the linemen had limited talent, except Wirfs. They weren’t terrible, except Smith and Goedeke, but hey weren’t exactly impressive either.
I’ll give you this: injuries created pure bedlam.
Coaching was incompetent.
The whole team seemed lethargic and slow.
A perfect storm.
April 17th, 2023 at 2:31 pm
Are you saying that the criticism of the OL is only valid now after the stat from Football Outsiders? The OL was bad the whole year and it was painfully obvious. Brady had no time and we had one of the worst running games ever. Still not sure why this is such a controversial opinion.
April 17th, 2023 at 3:24 pm
QBs usually get the knee jerk blame, I would say. When a team can’t run it more than three yards most of the time and the qb can’t sit in a pocket long enough to throw further than three yards, the offensive line gets to share some of the blame.
I think that is what happened.
April 17th, 2023 at 3:52 pm
Leighroy Says
“Why is this post trying to have it both ways about the offensive line? Either good teams build in the trenches and succeed with their hog mollies or die trying.”
Unfortunately, it is not as simple as that. Good players get good contracts. That means teams can’t always replace those players with new ones if they start playing bad.
And teams can only hand out 1-year deals, of course.
We had a great offensive line, one of the best. And then it broke apart. Two key players went elsewhere. One retired. Two go injured. And all of that happened post-draft…when only scraps were left.
April 17th, 2023 at 3:55 pm
“And teams can’t only hand out 1-year deals, of course.”
April 18th, 2023 at 1:31 am
Did goedeke play poorly last year because he was just another rookie playing out of position because of need? I was always under the impression in the pros left guards were left guards, and right tackles were right tackles🤷♂️
April 18th, 2023 at 2:18 am
I think many of the regular posters here have already detailed this in many ways Joes.
Injuries were usually the first thing mentioned. Second to Goedeki. Followed by Smith….
But good to know that one of the so called experts noticed a bit of a problem. LOL