The Pewter Plank
FanSided

Buccaneers: What we need to see from Dirk Koetter in year two

By James Yarcho

NEW ORLEANS, LA - DECEMBER 24: Head coach Dirk Koetter watches a play agianst the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on December 24, 2016 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - DECEMBER 24: Head coach Dirk Koetter watches a play agianst the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on December 24, 2016 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 4
Next
TAMPA, FL – NOVEMBER 27: Head coach Dirk Koetter of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers looks on from the sidelines during the second quarter of an NFL game against the Seattle Seahawks on November 27, 2016 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FL – NOVEMBER 27: Head coach Dirk Koetter of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers looks on from the sidelines during the second quarter of an NFL game against the Seattle Seahawks on November 27, 2016 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images) /

Number Three – Clock Management

Dirk Koetter hired a clock management specialist last year to assist him in making those crucial decisions while taking into account the game clock.

There were problems.

Take for example the Rams game, where the Buccaneers were in position to win. Instead, the clock struck 0:00 on the Bucs and they still had timeouts left.

Not a good look for a first year head coach – especially against a lesser team.

More from Bucs News

Koetter said after the game that he second guessed himself, as would anyone else;

"“We throw that ball to Charles Sims on the right sideline and we’ve still got two timeouts. Charles absolutely does the right thing by going for yardage right there. He is so close to pulling out of that tackle and we’ve got Vincent Jackson and Cameron Brate ahead of him with one guy left. He pulls out of that last tackle, he’s going to score. So at that point, we have a guy in the press box that’s keeping an eye on the clock management. He was doing exactly what he was supposed to do. He was telling me, ‘Timeout, timeout, timeout.’ That’s 100% me. We had a play that I’d been wanting to get to the whole game in no-huddle and I thought had a chance to be the game-winner. I wanted to keep the defense from huddling, I wanted to keep them going, so I decided to not go with the timeout and go with that play.”"

That is not something the Bucs can afford to let happen again this year. With the slate of games they have – and some top tier opponents – mismanaging the clock is the difference between making the playoffs and sitting at home for the eleventh straight season.

It’s rather probable that Koetter learned from this pretty epic mistake and we won’t see it replicated. That said, it would be nice to see a little more no huddle/hurry up offense like we saw last season that proved to be extremely effective.

Home/Bucs News