New Buccaneers defense has good debut vs 49ers

One game into the season and the difference between the defensive unit of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers has been night and day under Todd Bowles.

All offseason those close to this team have been waiting to see the new Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense in action. After all the acquisitions, cuts, and draft picks, there has been a ton of buzz that this year would be different on the defensive side of the ball for the pewter and red.

New defensive coordinator Todd Bowles changed the scheme and players had to adapt. One game into the season and we can already see this unit is definitely new and improved as they put together a strong showing against the San Francisco 49ers last night, allowing just 17 points.

Early in the game after a blocked punt, the 49ers had a short field to work with, but after a few nice plays and offensive penalties, the Bucs were able to hold them to just three points on a Robbie Gould field goal. Throughout camp and the preseason, we heard that this unit was going to move fast, and we finally got to see it in full action, and it sure was fast.

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Something we have not seen a lot of recently in the past was timely turnovers, but against the Niners, they were able to deliver two. After a drive that saw two touchdowns come off the board and ended in an O.J. Howard fumble, the Bucs’ defense responded with a pick-six from Vernon Hargreaves III.

The former first-round pick was often scrutinized in the past under old defensive coordinator Mike Smith, but this new scheme allows him to play in a similar style as he did at the University of Florida. Hargreaves showcased his improvements made this offseason and in the first game, he showcased he stood out for the Buccaneers’ defense by scoring their first touchdown of the season.

The other timely turnover came after Howard let a pass slip right through his hands that led to a 49ers turnover and Jameis Winston‘s first interception of the season. At this point, the 49ers were already in field goal range right before halftime when the Bucs were able to strip the ball from rookie Deebo Samuel and end the half on a high note with no points let up on the drive as Carlton Davis pounced on the live ball.

The lone sack of the day came from offseason addition and preseason stand out Shaquil Barrett. The pass rush was more consistent though this season as Jimmy Garoppolo was made uncomfortable on several throws and attempted to run a few times. Vita Vea and Ndamukong Suh made their presence known as they could be found in Jimmy G’s face often.

The Bucs were hit hard by two costly pass interferences that could have gone either way, as one was called on Hargreaves though the pass was a bad one behind both the wide receiver and Hargraves himself. The other was called on Carlton Davis on a deep ball that was not even catchable as it sailed ten yards over everybody’s head.

Overall, we saw an overall all-around better defensive performance from the Bowles-led squad. Carl Nassib continues to show how great of a pickup he was and why he was voted as a team captain by his peers. Jordan Whitehead made several good tackles in the box, and looks like a fun toy for Bowles to deploy as he was a bullet all over the field; Mike Edwards even got in and made a great play on a slant in man coverage as the safeties showed signs of life.

The unit will need all the team speed next week on a short week as they will take on the Carolina Panthers on Thursday night. Cam Newton, Christian McCaffrey, and the speedy receivers will be another good test for this defense as the Buccaneers look to bounce back and get a win in week two.