Monday Night Football against the Carolina Panthers, sounds like a recipe for disaster for our Tampa Bay Buccaneers, doesn’t it? Well, don’t be so hasty in your assumptions, here are 5 keys to tonight’s game that will have to happen for our Bucs to get this season steered in the right direction.
1. Win the turnover battle.
The Buccaneers have to be able to force turnovers on defense which has been a rare occurrence for them this year, they are worst in the league with -9 in turnover differential and if that doesn’t change it will not bode well for the rest of the season.
2. Establish a running game.
As we all know, the Bucs have been struck with the injury bug this season. Doug Martin, a huge part of the offense, has been sidelined since week 2 and the running game has suffered tremendously. Now with Rodgers presumed to start tonight with Sims being doubtful, he will have to step up and take some of the pressure off of Jameis Winston.
3. Exploit the Panthers weak secondary.
Last week, the Panthers defense gave up 300 yards to Julio Jones. Which lead to the cutting of CB Bene Benwikere. With the Panthers secondary in turmoil at the moment, Jameis and company should look to have a great game through the air.
4. Improved Coaching all around.
The Bucs coaches have to make this a statement game, this year has been marred by bad choices….from bad play calling to terrible clock management. They need to slow everything down and call plays that can easily gain chunks of yards instead of going for the big play every down. Wrangle in Jameis and call the right plays to give this team a fighting chance.
And last but not least….
5. DO NOT LET DEREK ANDERSON BEAT US.
Normally, when your team has a chance to play against a backup QB instead of an Elite QB like Cam Newton, you would be stoked. Well, not the Fans of the Buccaneers. Why do you ask? Because the Bucs are now facing Derek Anderson who has looked like a starter against us the two times he’s filled in for Cam against us, both in 2014. In those 2 games, he completed 49 of 74 for 507 yards with 3 touchdowns and 0 interceptions. We have to find a way to stop him or it’ll be another long game for our defense.
So with that said, Grab a few friends, snacks, and your beverage of choice and let’s get ready to cheer on our Bucs on Monday Night Football!
