Another embarrassing display made by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where 500 yards of offense only yielded 3 points against the Washington Redskins, resulting in Tampa losing 16-3. Some fans are asking if another quarterback could have done better.
Tragically, it doesn’t seem to matter. Nothing the coaching staff has done this year has yielded any consistency. The defense couldn’t pressure Washington QB Alex Smith, and despite a pedestrian 176 passing yards and one passing touchdown surrendered, not to mention holding Adrian Peterson to 68 yards rushing, the offense this day showed even more ineptitude than the defense.
Was the offense at fault? Despite throwing for 406 yards, Ryan Fitzpatrick couldn’t play a clean game, coming away empty from attempting to score a touchdown. While an 82.0 QB rating is average, the lack of TDs, the two interceptions, fumbles from Fitz and Jaquizz Rodgers, and stalled drive gave Bucs fans another reason to not be sober this year.
Would Jameis Winston or Ryan Griffin have made a difference? Winston hasn’t exactly pitched in relief of Fitz with success, and with the season quickly slipping away, it may not be a bad idea to consider Griffin for taking snaps under center. I would give Fitz the ball again since he did produce another 400-yard passing game, but with head coach Dirk Koetter taking back play-calling duties, the phrase “playing for next year” is becoming a reality sooner rather than later.
If Fitz stops getting 300-400 yard games, then sure, Griffin should just finish the season. Until then, we haven’t had a complete meltdown from the team…just the fans.
There isn’t much else to say for this team than same s***, different day.
