Buccaneers Pick Six: Bucs end slide, beat Jets

Six Topics Suitable For Conversation

1.) How Bout That Defense? 

I give the Buccaneers’ defense plenty of grief when they screw up, but the game against the Jets was not one of those times. Coming into the game, the Bucs were dead last in third down efficiency and one of the worst in terms of sacks. Against the Jets, the defense allowed only three third down conversions (out of fifteen), one fourth down conversion (out of two), turned the ball over twice, and had six sacks. Yes, they almost equaled their season total in one game. The question is, where has this defense been all season? Where has the pressure against the quarterback been all season? Hopefully we see more but this may be a product of “they played the Jets.”

2.) No, Fitzpatrick Is Not Better, Nor More Efficient Than Jameis Winston.

Let’s cut that crap out right now. There were already people chirping on Twitter about how the offense was better with Fitzpatrick than they’ve been with Winston. This statement is pure, unfiltered 100% horse crap. In fact, our own Bailey Adams summed it up perfectly;

The haters will continue to hate and find any and every reason they can to knock Winston and hope he gets replaced. We’ll get into one of the reasons the offense was successful next, but did you notice the way they weren’t asking Fitz to throw the deep ball on EVERY OTHER PLAY? Did you notice how heavily they relied on the run game? Did you notice the way they asked Fitz to make (mostly) easy passes to his receivers? It’s amazing what happens when …

3.) They Finally Used DeSean Jackson The Right Way

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It doesn’t always have to be the deep ball! The Buccaneers got DJax involved early with short passes and allowing him to make plays with his legs. Jackson would finish the day with six receptions for 82 yards – both led the team. It’s not always about the big play or the explosive play. Hell, a short pass to DJax could turn into a big or explosive play. The obsession with only having Winston throw deep to DeSean is mind-boggling, frustrating, and handicapping this offense. Learn from this. Adjust. It will make the team better.

4.) Maintain The Commitment To The Run – With Doug Martin

Yes, Charles Sims had the best run of the day and the only touchdown. No, that doesn’t mean I’ve changed my mind about him. He comes onto the field, it’s a pass 99 times out of 100. The Jets know it. Every team the Bucs have played knew it. We know it. My eight year old knows it. It’s beyond frustrating. and for all those people screaming for Barber to start or get more carries than Doug Martin, how’d that go this week? I’ll tell you in terms you can understand since most are also the “yards per carry are everything” crowd – two carries, NEGATIVE two yards. Yes, if Barber touched the ball against the Jets, the Buccaneers moved backwards. Doug Martin is still the best back on this team for the rest of this season. Will that change for 2018? Who knows. But right now, today, and moving forward, Martin is the most talented back on this roster. Get over it.

5.) Bucs Suffered A Big Loss

Vernon Hargreaves left the game against the Jets with a hamstring injury and didn’t return. Hargreaves was really starting to get into a groove and hamstring injuries are the worst. There’s no true timetable and it could cause VH3 to slip back into early season form if he were to miss time. We saw with Kwon Alexander earlier this season how fickle that injury can be and that one week could turn into three or four in the blink of an eye.

6.) Lavonte David Deserves Far More Praise Than He Will Receive

Lavonte David has been an absolute beast this season. He was all over the field, leading the Bucs with eight tackles – two for loss – and another fumble recovery. David has the second most fumble recoveries of any NFL player since his rookie season in 2012, trailing J.J. Watt by one. He won’t get the credit or praise – yet again – because he’s an elite player on a crappy football team. That said, he is by far the best player thus far on the defensive side of the ball, maybe on the entire team, during this season.