I’ll be completely honest, I was surprised by what we saw from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers yesterday. Although I did pick the Bucs to win, I wasn’t expecting them to completely dominate the Philadelphia Eagles in the way that they did. It was a statement victory as they bounced back from a disappointing loss last week.
There were a lot of positives to take away in this game for the Bucs. Even short handed due to injuries, they controlled every aspect of the game. Now the question becomes, how much of it is sustainable and how much of that was beating up on an inferior opponent?
Truth be told, I believe most of what we saw is sustainable. In fact, I wouldn’t call the Eagles an inferior opponent at all. Although I would say the Bucs are the more talented team of the two, most people expect the Eagles to win their division and return to the payoffs this season. In short, this game was all about the Bucs being great and not about Philadelphia being bad.
Here’s what I took away from the Bucs in this massive win over the Eagles.
Offensive Line Played Great
Going into this game there was a lot of doubt as to how this Buccaneers offensive line would hold up against a talented Eagles defensive line. Jalen Carter has been one of the best defensive tackles in the league so far this year and he plays next to 2022 13th overall pick at nose tackle in Jordan Davis. Philadelphia also has a stable of edge rushers who include Bryce Huff, Josh Sweat, and Brandon Graham.
Despite a deep pool of talent, the Bucs controlled the line of scrimmage. Graham Barton, Cody Mauch and even Ben Bredeson all played very well and won again and again up front. This was expected to be an advantage for the Eagles in this game, but it was exactly the opposite on Sunday.
This should serve as a reminder of exactly how good this Bucs offensive line can be. Remember that Barton was a first round pick and is changing positions as a rookie. Mauch did the same last year as a second round pick, moving from left tackle in college to right guard in the pros. These position changes and jump in competition take time for players to really polish their technique and reach their potential.
Make no mistake, there will still be growing pains with these two. Neither is a finished product and have not mastered their new position yet. However, this was a glimpse into how good they can be when they are both playing well together.
Offensive Identity
New offensive coordinator Liam Coen is off to a good start this year. However, after last week it was unclear what the coaching staff wanted the Bucs identity to be. Two consecutive offensive clunkers left us wondering what the Buccaneers can do well offensively.
Yesterday showed the blueprint of how the Bucs can be one of the better offenses in the NFL. Asking Baker Mayfield to throw the ball 47 times may seem a bit excessive, but this is in large part the formula. The Bucs are a passing team that wants to throw it all over the field and will use that to open up the run.
With weapons like Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Rachaad White, Jalen McMillan and Cade Otton you have to throw the ball a lot to really utilize those playmakers. The question to this point has been if Mayfield can consistently play at a high level and if the offensive line can give him enough time to get them the ball.
The answer was a resounding yes to that question in this game. Time will see if they can sustain that level of play consistently on a week to week basis, but this is what it is supposed to look like.
Greatness Continues To Shine.
Two of the Buccaneers all time great players achieved new milestones yesterday that are worth mentioning. Mike Evans moved into sole possession of 12th place on the all time receiving touchdown list, breaking his tie with Las Vegas Raiders receiver Devonte Adams. Evans also moved to 31st on the all time receiving yards list as he passed both Hall of Famer Don Maynard and Antonio Gates in this game. Evans is not just 21 yards from passing Michael Irvin and moving into the top 30 all time in receiving yards.
It’s also worth recognizing that Evans became the Buccaneers all time leader in points scored with his touchdown in Sunday’s game. He becomes just the third player in the NFL to be a team’s all time point leader who isn’t a kicker, joining Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith. There is no doubt that Evans is the greatest offensive player in franchise history and this is just another feather in his Hall of Fame cap.
Speaking of Hall of Fame, Levonte David also had a big day on Sunday. His forced fumble in the game moved him up to 27th all time, tying Khalil Mack, Neil Smith and Cliff Avril with 30 career forced fumbles in their careers. David is now just three forced fumbles away from cracking the top 20 all time in this department.
Davi also moved into sole possession of 10th All Time in combined tackles, passing Donnie Edwards. He is now just 77 combined tackles behind another Buccaneers legend Hardy Nickerson for 9th all time and 86 behind Clay Mathews for 8th all time.
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