Buccaneers Pick Six: Disaster in the desert – take two

Another trip to Arizona, another pathetic showing from the Buccaneers – despite the second half surge.

Are you kidding me? You’re kidding me, right? The Buccaneers had TEN days to prepare for this game and they came out in Arizona only to spot the Cardinals THIRTY ONE POINTS?! It was a nightmare from the word go. Adrian Peterson running roughshod over the defense on the opening drive, finishing the first quarter with 76 yards and a touchdown. Larry Fitzgerald was uncovered on multiple occasions. Jameis Winston had his shoulder buried into the ground Aaron Rodgers style.

It was a disaster. Again.

Somehow, Ryan Fitzpatrick was able to get them back in the game on the heels on of an improved second half defense that actually made some second half adjustments (*gasp*), but it was too little too late. Let’s pick six…

Six Topics Suitable For Conversation

1.) Dirk Koetter is about to be under fire. I am in no way calling for Koetter’s job. I like him as the head coach. Truly, I do. However, he needs to get his act together with the play calling or give it up. He passed on a chip shot field goal that my eight-year old could have made at the end of the first half and missed on three two point conversions. Put the damn points on the board. Period. It doesn’t matter if you’re down 24-0 at the end of the half, that field goal would’ve made it a field goal game at the end. Going to Jacquizz Rodgers in the fourth quarter when Doug Martin was running well again? Why? Throwing the ball on a curl route out of your own end zone when the line of scrimmage is the one yard line rather than run it straight up the gut to get some breathing room – resulting in an interception and an eventual touchdown? It’s just bad. Koetter either needs to get back to his 2015 play calling or pass it off to someone else.

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2.) No, there isn’t a quarterback controversy, so just stop it. Jameis Winston is the starter. Period. Jameis Winston is a franchise quarterback, Fitzpatrick is not. Yes, Fitzpatrick had a decent game and brought the Bucs back. That said, it’s not crazy difficult for an NFL quarterback to produce when the opposing defense is playing a soft zone to keep everything in front of them with a 20-plus point lead. Later in the game, Patrick Peterson went out with an injury which is when Mike Evans got involved. Jameis certainly has plenty to work on and improve, but saying the Bucs need a new quarterback before the guy has even played three seasons is the epitome of overreaction. There may be some controversy as to who decided Winston couldn’t play, though;

So Jameis wanted to play, but the shoulder was “too sore to continue”? So did Winston say he didn’t want to or couldn’t continue or was this a coach’s decision to keep him out?

3.) This defense isn’t close to what we thought it would be. For the love of God, Mike Smith – fix this! Stop giving your players the choice of how much cushion they give. Because – surprise, surprise – when the corners pressed in the second half, the Cardinals’ offense couldn’t get going. Instead, we have Hargreaves – who is officially a shit show – giving twelve yard cushions to receivers and getting roasted like a marshmallow as a result. We have Hall of Fame receiver Larry Fitzgerald with no one in a ten yard radius looking like he did in the Cards’ super bowl run. And we have Adrian Peterson shredding a defensive line that was man handled all first half. This is not a game plan! This is “welp… hopefully we get a turnover because we can’t do a damn thing otherwise!” Well, they got two turnovers – one returned by Lavonte David for a touchdown. However, that doesn’t help when your offense turns the ball over twice as well, both resulting in Cardinals scores. Kwon Alexander is a huge loss to this defense, but not so much that it causes every level to be progressively worse.

4.) Can we get a game where this team shows up for all four quarters? Enough of this second half comeback crap. How about a complete game for once?! You get goose-egged in the first half, then outscore the Cards 33-14 in the second half. If you had even HALF the production on either side of the ball in the first half as you did in the second, it’s a win. Yet again, the Buccaneers dig themselves a hole so massive that it’s impossible to get out of. No excuse. Period. The game is sixty minutes – try playing that long.

5.) Welcome back Lavonte David. For someone we didn’t think we’d see for a few more weeks, Lavonte David came back with a vengeance this week. David finished with six tackles, including one for loss, two forced fumbles, a fumble recovery, and a touchdown. Thank you Lavonte for being a bright spot on a dark afternoon.

6.) DeSean Jackson is going to explode. And no, I don’t mean for a big game. I mean he is going to GO OFF. He didn’t come here to not get the chance to make plays. He didn’t come here to be overthrown, underthrown, or missed in general. He didn’t come here to see Bernard Reedy getting the end arounds. He came here to make a difference. To have a chance to win. The way things are going, he’s not getting that opportunity. He’s running out routes to the sideline which – why? Why are you eliminating what makes DJax so dangerous by not giving him a chance to run after the catch? At this point, I wouldn’t blame him one bit if he went on a tirade that everyone was so afraid he’d do. It’s not being a “diva”. At this point, it’s speaking the truth.

Six Numbers To Consider

3 – Opening drive touchdowns by Buccaneers since 2015 – worst in the NFL

158.3 – Palmer’s passer rating vs any Bucs DB not named Brent Grimes (that’s perfect, by the way)

27 – Bucs’ rank in the NFL on 3rd down conversions in 2017

24 – Deficit the Bucs faced at halftime the last two seasons in Arizona

4 – Consecutive games with a Cam Brate touchdown – longest streak ever by a Bucs tight end

31 – Career interceptions by Brent Grimes – fifth most by an active NFL player

Six Best Tweets (In No Particular Order)

(*Note* – Also, Fitzpatrick’s touchdown pass to Cam Brate was the first touchdown pass involving two former Harvard players in NFL history)

(*Note – we were all REALLY rooting for this to happen)

Six Ways To Get Through The Week Without Losing It

6.) Start a GoFundMe to lure Deion Sanders out of retirement to join the Bucs

5.) Enjoy the Lightning’s early successes

4.) Stuff yourself silly with Halloween candy

3.) Don’t listen to local sports talk radio

2.) Drink. Heavily. (If you’re of age, of course)

1.) Watch the Browns, 49ers, Giants, or Chargers and realize things aren’t all that bad

Next: Cards Beat Bucs 38-33 - Immediate Reactions

Six Super Bets

1.) Kansas City Chiefs – Bad game against Pittsburgh, still an incredible team

2.) Philadelphia Eagles – I could not have been more wrong about them

3.) New England Patriots – Benefit from bad call against ASJ, but we all know they’ll contend

4.) Denver Broncos – Defense. Still. Elite.

5.) Minnesota Vikings – With their defense, they may emerge as favorites given Rodgers’ injury

17.) Tampa Bay Buccaneers

– They’re not who we thought they were

Six Final Words

Heads will roll sooner than later