“Nelly’s Doing Nelly Things”
September 11th, 2023
Anthony Nelson’s late-third-quarter sack of Kirk Cousins yesterday.
Buccaneers outside linebacker/edge rusher Anthony Nelson got a payday this offseason.
It was a relatively quiet re-signing of the team’s top sack artist off the edge from a year ago.
Nelson’s 5 1/2 sacks in 2022 led the Bucs from that position, despite him playing hundreds fewer snaps than Joe Tryon-Shoyinka. The Bucs’ 2019 fourth-round pick plays the run well, too.
Nelson had another sack off the edge in yesterday’s season opener against the Vikings. The 26-year-old hit quarterback Kirk Cousins three times — from the left and right sides of the line. Joe’s favorite was Nelson slamming Cousins to the ground on one of those hits by pulling the back of his jersey. It looked like something out of the WWE as Cousins released the ball.
Head coach Todd Bowles was asked today about Nelson being so productive in so few snaps — 25 plays.
Bowles’ reply was simple. “Nelly’s doing Nelly things.”
Joe had a chance to talk to good-guy Nelson in New Jersey after the Bucs’ practice there against the Jets last month. He seemed supremely focused and certainly didn’t come across as a guy taking his foot off the gas now that he’s earning $5 million-plus per season.
That played out yesterday for all to see.
September 11th, 2023 at 1:37 pm
Is it just me or did it seem that across the League, the refs weren’t calling as many BS roughing the passer calls as last year? I saw a lot of pretty hard hits with no calls that last year seemed to get called?
September 11th, 2023 at 1:38 pm
Good guy, good pick, good player……glad he’s finally earning a buck.
September 11th, 2023 at 1:39 pm
Anthony Nelson needs to be rotated more on the D-Line. All the guys does is make plays and whenever he gets his hands on someone with the ball, that person goes down.
Play him more on the line with his hands in the ground !
September 11th, 2023 at 1:39 pm
A perfect example of how long development takes in the NFL
September 11th, 2023 at 1:52 pm
Couple him with Tryon-Shoyinka. There’s a chemistry developing between those 2.
September 11th, 2023 at 1:55 pm
Why isn’t he in the game more? It seems like he always produces.
September 11th, 2023 at 1:59 pm
@NCalBucsFan
I was thinking the exact same thing. Every time we hit Cousins I was looking for the inevitable late flag to come flying into frame, and it never came.
September 11th, 2023 at 2:12 pm
He might be our best pass rusher currently- dude is relentless, has a heart the size of a skyscraper
September 11th, 2023 at 2:14 pm
Nelly is a blue collar lunch bucket type… I love it.
I watched a bunch of games and yes there were alot head shots that weren’t called across the boards.
Along with a bunch of neck collar type tackling… not called in a bunch of games!
September 11th, 2023 at 2:24 pm
I’m a Bucs Radio fan, but I’ll watch the tube for highlights. There’s a LOT of these horse collar/hit with the helmet combos which are not being called. I guess when dead bodies are carted off the field, zebras will start calling them.
September 11th, 2023 at 2:25 pm
I saw one where we threw Cousins on the ground like a rag doll, thought it was DW. Kept waiting for the flag, never came
September 11th, 2023 at 2:27 pm
He should start. Way better than JTS
September 11th, 2023 at 2:33 pm
Let’s get a article about the special teams. Zyon McCollum did his job. Team looks good all around defense special teams were a+
September 11th, 2023 at 2:44 pm
The defense and special teams kept us in this game until the offense did jut enough to grab a win. On one of the big plays that the Vikes hit with Jefferson, the Bucs tried a corner blitz with Davis. Stupid. Davis is our best cover corner. Not a good pass rusher and only average as a tackler I’m not as critical as many on this site about Bowles, but that was just plain dumb. Let your guys play to their strenghts.
September 11th, 2023 at 2:58 pm
Great defense yesterday, was stuck at my local watering hole with 7 clueless Viking fans!! I loved it… what cry babies and this skoal thing is nuts! Nelson will have 10 sacks this year easily… Go Bucs.
September 11th, 2023 at 3:33 pm
Kid is earning more and more playing time IMO.
September 11th, 2023 at 3:35 pm
Nelly should be the starter. He always produces and is almost never out of position.
September 11th, 2023 at 3:38 pm
Wasn’t nelly the name of a horse let’s change that to Lord Nelson And hope he lives up to it
September 11th, 2023 at 3:46 pm
NCalBucsfan Says:
September 11th, 2023 at 1:37 pm
Is it just me or did it seem that across the League, the refs weren’t calling as many BS roughing the passer calls as last year?
——–
Yeah, same here. I kept waiting for BS flags every time Winfield touched anyone early in the game, and there wasn’t any. I hope behind the scenes they’re told the refs to pull back on that nonsense. But we shall see.
September 11th, 2023 at 3:55 pm
Nelly needs more snaps. He’s outplaying JTS easily with better stats and way fewer snaps. The coaches need to come to the realization that JTS should get fewer snaps.
September 11th, 2023 at 4:00 pm
Rod, settle down on the love for the refs. Did you happen to see the phantom PI on us or the one that was obvious but not called that Evans drew? Fine, the NFL listened to the people and stopped the ridiculous roughing the passer calls but they still hate on small market no Tom Brady having TB Buccaneers.
September 11th, 2023 at 4:05 pm
cmurda – I have zero love for the refs, and what I mean is the NFL told the refs to pull back on the BS calls.
Also, I assume the refs will f us over at the worst possible time. So even if they didn’t call stuff yesterday, don’t do so against the Bears, and don’t do so for 3 quarters vs the Eagles, in the 4th quarter, if the game is close, and Hurts is running around and White or Winfield or David brings him down cleanly, they’ll throw some flag.
September 11th, 2023 at 4:26 pm
Do you even know who Lord Nelson was?
September 11th, 2023 at 4:27 pm
why
September 11th, 2023 at 4:45 pm
@Beej
On that play Cousins neither gave himself up and was beyond the line of scrimmage. DW had the right to do anything he wanted to do to any other running back
September 11th, 2023 at 4:53 pm
I was listening to various Vikings podcasts since I take great enjoyment in hearing other fans cry — but one thing I thought was cool, was in one of them they kept saying Hall of Famer Mike Evans, as in it’s a sure thing. People might think that is a sure thing, it is not. There is a very stupid perception around the league that Evans isn’t an elite WR, just a very good one. It’s more widespread than us Bucs fans would like to believe. However, hearing some random Vikings podcast just assuming he’s a future HOFer, that’s great, gives me hope that the ‘very good’ camp isn’t as firmly entrenched as I suspect.
September 11th, 2023 at 5:15 pm
Crying about refs is for losers. My coaches always said hit them as hard as you can and if a flag flies than hit them even harder the next play and let me get in their face. But don’t mouth off and hurt the team with a penalty.
September 11th, 2023 at 5:23 pm
It’s a sure thing Munch. Write it down.. Who is saying no Peter King?
September 11th, 2023 at 6:13 pm
He’s a keeper
September 11th, 2023 at 6:19 pm
orlbucfan,
I think maybe you’re too soft for football. Maybe start following golf or pickleball. That seems more your speed.
September 11th, 2023 at 6:37 pm
What people might seem to forget is this team has got a coach playing for his job, a QB playing for his last chance to be a legit starter, JTS on the hot seat if he doesn’t produce sacks, Evans playing for a new fat contract, White doing the same, Wirfs trying to prove he is an all pro at either side, etc etc. U can’t put a price tag on that kind of motivation we have going on here in Tampa. And last but not least the whole team and organization wanting to prove it was all not Brady!! Go ask Carlton
September 11th, 2023 at 8:56 pm
Be a Man Pressed hard to ever come close to Lord Nelson! Powerfully crazy his leadership was. Not a large man either. But super powerful.
Go out and make them play you Nelly.
GO!!!!!BUCS!!!!!
September 11th, 2023 at 9:18 pm
Nelson is an excellent example of how you draft a guy with some intangibles in the 4th round, develop him into a capable NFL player, benefit from his play the last couple of years on the cheap rookie deal and then re-sign him to a modest yet still substantial contract.
A tangible reward for all that developmental hard work, effort, determination and visible on the field improvement that player and coaches have achieved together…
Similar situation with Gholston… and look at the rewards to the Buccaneers from that 4th round pick….
September 12th, 2023 at 3:56 am
I will repeat!
Give him more snaps!
Go Bucs!