Five NFC South players the 2017 Buccaneers have to game plan against

Buccaneers quarterback Jameis Winston is known for taking chances. Unfortunately, they don’t always turn into plays of the year.

Smart defenders like Luke Kuechly make these risks taken all the more dangerous. The sixth-year leader of the Panthers defense knows how to make big plays when his team needs them the most.

Carolina will obviously look to pressure Winston into making some mistakes, and the Bucs will likely counter with screens, quick passes, sweeps and draws.

Each of these is designed to take advantage of aggressive defenses and get playmakers into space to operate.

However, they can also provide feeding grounds for guys like Kuechly who need few looks at the same play to pick up on its keys and cues.

Once he does, it can mean big plays for the Panthers and terrible plays for the Buccaneers.

It’ll only take a couple close calls and one interception to force Winston into a little hesitation. This hesitation then opens the door for fumbles and sacks. Both of which are detrimental to say the least.

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Beating this defense means not letting Kuechly become a significant part of the game.

Whether he’s in coverage against tight ends and running backs, blitzing gaps to try and get sacks of his own, or trying to beat blocks in run support, he alone can spell trouble for the Bucs offense.

However, reading the defender correctly can help Winston find the right target to throw to. Ali Marpet’s ability to identify blocking assignments can prevent him from single-handedly shutting down Tampa’s running attack.

If these things happen, then we might see more of the results which led to the Buccaneers sweeping the Panthers in 2016.