Buccaneers: Predictability hurts the offensive game plan

The Buccaneers need to be less predictable on offense.

The offense in Tampa is one of the best in the NFL. This unit has been the focal point for most of the success for the Buccaneers over the years, and a unit that is headlined by Tom Brady and an incredibly talented wide receiver corps can scare any defense in the NFL.

Like baking a cake, the ingredients are perpetually there, but putting those ingredients together is a science. The Buccaneers should be able to stay one of the top offensive units in the NFL regardless of the play calling, but the baker is clearly not doing their part in this equation.

Byron Leftwich is a rising star in the NFL and has a high upside as a bright young offensive mind, but his adherence to the run and predictability on this side of the offense slows the whole unit down.

This is not to say that the run does not have a place on this offense, but the strict adherence to the run in obvious situations is wasting key downs.

Just look at the first offensive play of the games for the Bucs over the season. Tampa has run on the first play of every game but two when leaving out plays that were negated due to penalties. Think defenses start keying in on that?

The run does little to no good when everyone knows that it’s coming. Teams can stack the box against the Bucs with little fear of facing passes on the first play of the game. This doesn’t tell the whole story, but it still does show a strange tendency that clearly isn’t paying off.

Byron Leftwich and the Buccaneers need to do far more to subvert expectations, especially when running the football if they want to win games on offense.

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