Yarcho’s Pick Six: Buccaneers Start Slow, Rout 49ers

Things looked really ugly really fast for the Buccaneers. However, after falling behind 14-0 in the first quarter, the Bucs bounced back to score 27 unanswered points on their way to a 34-17 win in San Francisco.

Whew! That was way more stressful than it needed to be in the beginning. It was really nice to see the Buccaneers show some resiliency and not roll over as we’ve seen in recent years. They stayed true to the game plan, clawed their way back, and eventually took complete control of the game. The defense stepped up once again – outside of the opening drive and the short field touchdown courtesy of a Jameis Winston interception – and shut down the 49ers for the vast majority of the game. All that being said, let’s pick six!

Six Topics Suitable For Discussion

Jacquizz Rodgers continues to be a beast. After rushing for 101 yards on 30 carries in Carolina, Rodgers followed up that performance with a 26 carry, 154 yard effort including a 45 yard run during the second quarter. The Bucs fed Quizz early and often, once again controlling the tempo of the game and punishing the 49ers last ranked run defense to the tune of 249 total rushing yards. Doug Martin is missed, but Quizz is easing the pain a little more with each carry.

Bucs faced adversity, and overcame it. How many times have we seen this team get punched in the mouth early in a game and they just roll over and get berated for the rest of it? Too many to mention, right? This time was different. This time, the Buccaneers took a hit, then another, then another, yet they came back swinging harder than the Niners thought possible. That is the continuing evolution of a culture change. That is where this team is beginning to show maturity. I’ve preached culture, our friend Brent Allen of The PewterCast has preached culture, and Dirk Koetter himself has preached culture. It doesn’t happen all at once. This game, this win, after trailing by two scores in the blink of an eye, is showing some of the culture changes emanating from One Buc Place.

Have we found our new #2 receiver?

Russell Shepard

made some big time catches in this game and showed why he should be the top in-house candidate to line up opposite

Mike Evans

moving forward. Winston obviously trusts him and even called him the “best overall player on this team.” If Jason Licht isn’t making phone calls to trade for a compliment to Mike Evans for 2016 and potentially beyond, Shepard might be the guy who steps up and helps out this offense.

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Mike Evans continues to dominate. For the player leading the NFL in targets, Mike Evans again showed why he will end up as one of the elite receivers before long. He finished with eight catches on thirteen targets for 96 yards and two touchdowns. That brings his total to a league leading six scores on the year. Already. In fact, Evans is closing in on Buccaneers immortality…but we’ll get to that momentarily.

Roberto Aguayo is improving, but has a long way to go. Aguayo was perfect on the day until he kicked a 50 yarder and missed badly. Overall, all but two of Aguayo’s kicks were right down the middle. The two that weren’t were his missed attempt and an extra point that ricocheted off the upright and in. He finished 2/3 on field goals and 4/4 on extra points. He’s not going anywhere, Bucs fans, so stop screaming for him to be released. He showed improvement today. Let him continue to build on that.

Defense is starting to click. They gave up a horrendous opening drive spanning 75 yards and resulting in a touchdown. Then a Jameis interception left them with a short field and another 49er touchdown. Those two drives combined for 92 yards. Outside of that, the Buccaneers defense allowed only 181 yards and three points. The Buccaneers also got three takeaways, giving them seven over the last two games. Defensive coordinator Mike Smith said the defense would take around four games to really begin to gel and after those four games, they’ve really stepped up. Things are moving in the right direction at the right time. Hopefully next week we’ll see the returns of Clinton McDonald and Robert Ayers, adding another element to the defense.

Six Numbers To Consider

Oct 23, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston (3) looks to throw the ball ahead of San Francisco 49ers outside linebacker Aaron Lynch (59) for a touchdown during the second quarter at Levi’s Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-USA TODAY Sports

13 – Number needed for Mike Evans to become the Bucs’ all time leader in receiving touchdowns

2014 – The last year a running back had 25+ carries in back to back games until Jacquizz Rodgers did it Sunday (DeMarco Murray was the last one)

+6 – Bucs turnover differential in last two games

1 – Mike Evans’ NFL rank in targets per game (12.5 targets per game)

513 – Total yards by the Buccaneers, fourth most in team history

6 – Career games where Jameis Winston has a passer rating over 100.0

Six Top Performers

6.) Peyton Barber – He had limited playing time, but in the fourth quarter, Barber sealed the deal with his first career touchdown on a 44-yard run. Barber finished with 12 carries for 84 yards.

5.) Bradley McDougald – Give credit where credit is due. I’ve been one of McDougald’s biggest critics, but he showed up today. He finished with seven tackles – one for loss – a pass defensed, and an interception. It seemed like he was consistently around the ball today making plays.

4.) Russell Shepard – The Bucss needed someone besides Evans to step up at wide receiver and Shep answered the call. Would love to see him involved in the offense more.

3.) Jameis Winston – Made some mistakes early and missed on a few passes, but overall Winston had a solid game, finishing with 269 yards on 21-of-30 passing, three touchdowns, and an interception. We need to see more of this Jameis moving forward.

2.) Mike Evans – What else is there to say? Dare I say elite?

1.) Jacquizz Rodgers – Two starts, 255 yards rushing. We could get used to this…

Six Fun Ways To Prepare For Raiders Week

6.) Go buy every can of silver paint you can find so Raiders fans can’t paint themselves

5.) Ensure that every Raider player that calls for an Uber gets stranded

4.) Make sacrifices to the football gods that Doug Martin returns to shred them like he did last time

3.) Remind every Raiders fan you see that their team is moving to Las Vegas, rendering them depressed and unable to cheer Sunday.

2.) Troll Tim Brown on Twitter incessantly about how he keeps crying that Bill Callahan “threw” the Super Bowl, leaving him ringless.

1.) Watch the Super Bowl XXXVII DVD over and over and over and over…

Six Super Bowl Bets

1.) New England Patriots – Why do they always have to be so good?

2.) Minnesota Vikings – Minor setback, still a hell of a team

3.) Dallas Cowboys – It’s painful that this team is for real…until Romo returns, that is

4.) Pittsburgh Steelers – Put up a heck of a fight against New England. Just have to keep their heads above water until Ben returns

5.) Green Bay Packers – Did they get their act together? They don’t look pretty, but they find ways to win

22.) Tampa Bay Buccaneers – .500 and ready for a three game home stand

Next: Buccaneers' Week 7 Winners and Losers