The Buccaneers closed out an amazing season with a win over the rival New Orleans Saints at the Superdome on Sunday. The win marked the first victory over a team with a winning-record for the Bucs all season and despite, ultimately, being the last game the Bucs will play this year it also showed definitive proof of growth over the course of the season and promise for next.
When the Bucs hosted the Saints in week 6 New Orleans decimated Tampa, winning 31-6 in a game that was never close. The Bucs have been labeled frauds all season largely because of that defeat and a blowout loss to Pittsburgh in week three.
A lot has changed since then, as the Saints found out Sunday afternoon. By the end of the season this Bucs team had lost that awe-struck, happy-to-be-here mentality in favor of a more veteran, business-like approach. The Bucs wasted no time in New Orleans, going up by a field goal at the outset of the game and responding in kind whenever the Saints put up points.
Josh Freeman played his best game as a pro. It’s funny to write that a week after the guy tossed 5 touchdowns against what IS, actually a playoff team. But let’s get serious, the Seahawks are a lousy team and it’s a joke they made it to the post-season. The Saints are the defending Superbowl champs and Josh Freeman had his way with their defense.
On the day Freeman finished 21 of 26 for 255 yards and two touchdowns. That’s hardly the kind of prolific day he had last weekend, but Sunday he went against a better defense and a team that was in the hunt for a divisional title and home-field advantage at kickoff. Freeman looked unflappable. He bought time in the pocket when he needed to, stepped into every throw no matter the pressure, hit his receivers with impressive accuracy and kept the Bucs offense moving the entire game.
I’m going to have an entire piece of Freeman later this week, but this guy is a franchise quarterback in the making. Forget Matt Stafford, forget Mark Sanchez, Josh Freeman just finished his season with 3,451 yards, 25 touchdowns, just six picks and a completion percentage a hair over 61%. Those are stud numbers from a 10th year QB and Freeman just posted them on the league’s youngest team in his first full season as a starter. The guy is unreal.
Elsewhere, the Bucs found success as they needed it, the ground-game failed to break 100 yards on the day but was effective when it had to be. LeGarrette Blount went over 1,000 yards for the season (despite starting just 7 games and playing in just 13). He finished the season with a 5 yard average and six touchdowns. Against the Saints he was mostly bottled up, gaining just 66 yards on 19 carries. But it was clear from how the Saints defense played the run that Blount and this Bucs line is beginning to gain notice as a viable ground force in the NFL. The Superbowl champs made it pretty clear they didn’t want to get beat on the ground. If this is the respect Blount gets as a rookie, I can’t wait to see him after a year in the Bucs conditioning program and with more time in the offense under his belt.
Then there were the receivers. Dezmon Briscoe, the rookie out of Kansas (who made news when the Bucs “stole” him off the Bengals practice squad) led the team in receiving Sunday, bringing in four reception for 65 yards including a perfect toe-dragging touchdown catch and a 54 yard reception. Briscoe only really got playing time because Arrelious Benn and Sammie Stroughter were out, but he made the most out of it. He could be a player to watch next year, I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes Maurice Stovall‘s roster spot.
Mike Williams also finished the day with four catches for 40 yards and a touchdown. On the season Williams missed 1,000 yards by 36, but he broke the Bucs franchise TD-receptions record in just his first season. 1,000 yards is nice, but 11 touchdowns is a better stat any day.
The Bucs offense handled itself well against New Orleans. They exerted their will, they played with confidence and they showed they are indeed capable of beating an elite team. I don’t buy the “Saints rested” argument either. They were in that game, being soundly beaten by the Bucs, until midway through the 4th when they saw Atlanta had locked up home-field advantage, and then they pulledDrew Brees (who was outplayed by Josh Freeman, anyway). That’s not resting, that’s conceding. They were beat, no point risking anything else, just pack up and go home.
My only regret about this Bucs team as the year finishes up is that they don’t have a few more weeks. I feel like this team just peaked, it just hit its potential for the year but they missed the chance to do much with it because the season is over and they’re on the outside looking in. I said mid-season I didn’t think the Bucs would have gone anywhere in the playoffs. I think now I was wrong, with the momentum they had and their new-found confidence, I think they would have made it out of the wild-card round. It’s all pointless projection at this point, but if there IS football next year (big if) this Bucs team is going to be poised and loaded.