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Buccaneers: Winners and losers following road loss to the Packers

By Michael Horan

ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 11: Mike Smith, defensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, stands on the field during pregame warmups prior to facing the Atlanta Falcons at Georgia Dome on September 11, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 11: Mike Smith, defensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, stands on the field during pregame warmups prior to facing the Atlanta Falcons at Georgia Dome on September 11, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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TAMPA, FL – NOVEMBER 09: Demar Dotson #69 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers looks on during the second half of the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Raymond James Stadium on November 9, 2014 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Cliff McBride/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FL – NOVEMBER 09: Demar Dotson #69 of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers looks on during the second half of the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Raymond James Stadium on November 9, 2014 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Cliff McBride/Getty Images) /

Losers

Entire offensive line

Over these final four Buccaneer games you can probably expect to see this offensive line unit, or several of its players, in the losing category. Season ending injuries to center Ali Marpet and right tackle Demar Dotson have decimated an already mediocre offensive line, and it showed this week against the Packers. Green Bay racked up seven sacks on Jameis Winston, and a ton of hurries throughout the game.

Evan Smith and Caleb Benenoch got the starts at center and right tackle, and both struggled at different parts of the game between botched snaps and whiffed protections. Left tackle Donovan Smith continued to struggle with consistency; on one play he’ll smash a defensive lineman to spring open a running lane, but on the next he’ll get worked in pass protection and allow a sack. The Bucs have a tough call to make going forward on Smith and the entire offensive line save Marpet.

Mike Evans

It’s been an up and down year for Mike Evans, and Sunday’s game against the Packers was a down. Facing a weak Packers secondary with Winston back, Evans had a perfect opportunity to blow up and get his first hundred yard effort of the season. That did not end up being the case. Evans finished the game with just two catches for 33 yards on six targets. Evans had a drop as well, and for some reason was hardly involved. Evans now has 53 catches for 735 yards and four touchdowns on the season.

We shouldn’t have concerns with Evans long term, and the Buccaneers will still surely pay him a heaping some of money this off-season. However he’s most definitely not having the season anybody expected out of him. With DeSean Jackson and O.J. Howard in the mix, Evans was supposed to thrive against single coverage, but instead he’s yet to record a hundred yard game, a multi-touchdown game, or a game with more than seven catches. This will be a season to forget, even if Evans is able to finish things strong during the final four games.

Next: Buccaneers vs Packers: Immediate reactions

Who were your winners and losers from the game, Buccaneer fans? Did

Winston deserve a place among the winners in his quality return from injury? Sound off in the comments and let us know!

"Stay Locked In! James and Dave are back with their recap episode following the Buccaneers’ Week 13 loss to the Green Bay Packers. Only on the Locked on Bucs Podcast!"

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