The Buccaneers took an L against the Detroit Lions Sunday late afternoon, with an offensive performance that was as forgettable as they come and a defense that couldn’t quite seem to figure out how to cover star Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.
So here are the Walk the Plank and Captain’s Table candidates for the game.
Walk the Plank:
Dave Canales’ playcalling
For a guy who’s been getting “HC Interview” headlines recently despite only being a 1st-year coordinator, Mr. Canales had a tough game. From the 2-minute drill that included a 2nd down run then a weird bubble screen to the 3rd and 1 fade route to Mike Evans, there were just a lot of really odd things that took place in Sunday evening’s matchup when it comes to the offensive play calling for the Bucs.
Baker Mayfield
Just an incredibly poor performance from Baker when the Buccaneers needed something more. He threw a pretty brutal pick that was tipped at the line of scrimmage, missing a WIDE open Mike Evans who potentially could have taken it to the house, and he missed a somehow even more WIDE open Trey Palmer down the field at the end of the first half. Then add in the back-breaking miss of Palmer in the 4th quarter on 3rd and 2 instead of taking a little dump off to try and pick up the first when you’re down by a couple scores, and you’ve got yourself a formula for a dogshit performance.
Another rendition of “Take me Home, Country Roads”
I get it, you need something to (as Will Ferrel in “Blades of Glory” said) “get the people going.” This, Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing,” and Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline” are some middle-aged white people bangers that they play all the time at stadiums. And that’s the target audience for these types of things. But I don’t know, I’m kind of tired of it. I mean, every time that stupid ass Jim Bean “Sweet Caroline” commercial comes on I have to mute it for my own sanity. Maybe I’m just being an asshole. Whatever.
Captain’s Table:
Lavonte David
What a performance from the veteran. David had an elite pass breakup on a down the field attempt by Jared Goff to tight end Sam LaPorta, and followed it up with a sack in the same half. He was just outstanding, proving yet again why he’s the best non-Derrick-Brooks-linebacker in Bucs history.
The Creamsicle Jerseys (of course)
While the game itself was a bummer, the uniforms sure did look cool, as did the rest of the decorations and scoreboard themes for the retro night. While I’m not advocating for the Bucs to entirely shift their whole look back to the classic look, it was a nice change of pace. Too bad they played more like those creamsicle-wearing squads of old.
Amon-Ra St. Brown’s name
I mean, he put up some pretty nasty numbers with 12 catches and 124 yards, and while my 3 fantasy teams that have him in their starting lineup certainly appreciate it, his name has always been what’s stood out to me. According to a Pro Football Network article on the origins of the receiver’s first name, it’s based on the Egyptian God of air, sun, and creation “Amun.” St. Brown also has a brother named Equanimeous, who plays for the Bears. Pretty fucking dope, right?
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