Is Offense Really Struggling?
October 12th, 2017
Interesting numbers.
Man, Joe watches the games just like everyone else, and aside from five quarters, it sure seems like this Bucs offense is sputtering.
Perhaps our standards are out of whack?
Joe included, nearly all Bucs followers have become grumpy over the offense. Yet, as pointed out by WTVT-TV Channel 13 sports reporter Kevin O’Donnell, the Bucs offense is at a near-franchise record pace.
@ODonnellFox13: This season, the #Bucs have 1,496 yards, the 2nd-most through 4-games in franchise history, two yards shy of the record (1,498 in 2003).
Joe did a little checking and through four games America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston, is on pace to break the 4,000-yard season plateau for the third straight year. Remember, Jameis is the only quarterback in NFL history to throw for 4,000 yards in each of his first two seasons.
The Bucs were 1-3 after four games last year. Jameis had 1,034 yards passing (and eight picks). This season Jameis already has 1,198 yards passing with only three picks. This season, Jameis has three games without an interception.
Joe would like to see two things develop: The first would be any semblance of a running game. Yeah, Doug Martin, stale from only having three practices the past month while serving his suspension, gave the Bucs a shot in the arm in limited play last week. Once he is fully football ready, hopefully the Bucs will see more of what we saw last Thursday.
Also, Joe is waiting for DeSean Jackson to be unleashed. Hey, if Jameis is having trouble connecting with Jackson on deep balls, here’s a novel thought, just get Jackson the ball in space underneath and let his blazing wheels take over.
Oh, and then there is this: The Bucs have the No. 6 offense currently in the NFL.
October 12th, 2017 at 12:06 am
I think if Hump and Godwin were utilized more, Desean and ME13 would open up. Hump could be a first down machine
October 12th, 2017 at 12:23 am
Like I said before I’m encouraged fr what I saw from every player besides hargarves and spence. Play calling not an expert but seeing oj do nothing ( blocking no one) maybe get him to roll into a check down or 2 will help. That is my only gripe. Otherwise we are knocking on the door and greatness will open on us this season.
October 12th, 2017 at 12:29 am
What really stings is the Patriots having the #1 O. Dayum.
There’s too many weapons on O for the Bucs not to dominate. STOP effing around man.
Koetter has to find a way to make all of these toys work. Is it really THAT hard?
I’m not all on Koetter for what’s going on like some fans. JW and Koetter are a 2 headed monster to me at this point. They’re married to one another so to speak. They… both of them NEED to fix the BS. 6th place or not….wtf? Score points and LOTS of them.
Unleash the beast against Zona and all is well Koetter/Jameis. Revenge.
Go Bucs!
October 12th, 2017 at 12:31 am
That’s right….
The HELL with FIELD GOALS!!!
Okay I’m done now.
October 12th, 2017 at 12:35 am
Wow the stat cherry picking is just hilarious. 6th in yards, 26th in scoring…..
October 12th, 2017 at 12:45 am
Got a lot of yards coming from behind the last 2 games it’s only week 5 for this offense they will get it going, need to give OJ some more targets to loosen up the outside by giving attention to our TE
October 12th, 2017 at 1:15 am
Koetter needs to find a way to get our offense more productive. He’s the offensive guy in charge. Mix in more short routes and slants. Jameis needs to see the field better. He rarely goes to his checkdowns. I just think we have to many weapons not to be more productive. Yes we score. But more is much better. we need to score more in Arizona. Because they will take what they can get and field goal you to death.
October 12th, 2017 at 1:16 am
No rhythm in offense !! Long drive and FG or missed FG and than bunch of other 3 and outs.
Joe why don’t we use HOWARD arguably one of best TE to come out in years like Tony Gonzalez? Weapons for Winston but don’t spread it around what’s the use.
October 12th, 2017 at 1:21 am
Agree with asdf, y’all are cherry-picking Joe. Bucs are a middle of the pack team right now with a 2-2 record, offense (17th) & defense (14th). We’ve beaten 2 teams with a combined 1-9 record (and poor defenses) and lost to 2 teams with a combined 6-4 record. Like you, I’m hopeful Martin will lend some oomph to our rushing attack (currently ranked 29th in attempts & 27th in yardage) and that our OC will get some more balance into our attack. Our time-of-possession has been terrible & more than anything that’s the result of the game-planning & play-calling to this point IMO. What I’ve seen thus far is a lack of patience and yes imagination on our offense’s part that’s made our defense’s portion far more difficult than it should’ve been. No need to even talk about special teams.
October 12th, 2017 at 1:34 am
More tds and less fgs equals more wins
October 12th, 2017 at 1:44 am
Standards out of whack? Being perennial losers for going on a decade set those standards. All this team ever has is excuses. Win the games. The fans don’t care about garbage time glory. Winston has been terrible in the red zone with some of the best red zone weapons in the league. His untimely Freeman-style inaccuracy has been wearing out his own defense and cost them both loses. This is year three in development. It is time to flourish instead of costing your team wins. To think this team is last in the division and Winston is the worst qb in the division so far does seem very out of whack.
October 12th, 2017 at 1:51 am
Bucsfan951 Says:
“More tds and less fgs equals more wins”
They can’t make FG’s anyways!
October 12th, 2017 at 2:05 am
“Asdf Says:
Wow the stat cherry picking is just hilarious. 6th in yards, 26th in scoring…..”
Who’s manipulating stats? 26th in scoring is comparing our 4 games to their 5. We are 17th in points per game and would be 9th if we didn’t miss kicks.
October 12th, 2017 at 4:22 am
Again,
This isnt Madden
These are real people, and it takes them time to adjust to each other.
And it takes the cosch time to adjust to all these new pieces, and new adittions to the playbook.
New Starting Wr, New 4set WR, New starting TE.
New 2 TE Sets.New Deep patterns for Desean
Not to mention a new Center and a new Guard- dont discount that. I guarantee Jameis hasnt gotten used to Marpet yet. It takes a few games. The low snaps are on his mind every shotgun snap.
In a video game world, the first thing people overlook, is the human factor.
They will be lethal together soon.
Like it or not, we have to be patient.
October 12th, 2017 at 4:34 am
I wish we never got Jackson! Forcing the ball to him so he won’t cry is messing up the whole offense let’s trade him and just go with Godwin!
October 12th, 2017 at 5:36 am
We tried to tell you this would happen!!!!! I do think a factor is that JW3 is late and inaccurate with throws because he is really just starting to see the defense and over-protecting the ball the last couple of games!!!!! But we did warn the sheep!!!!! OMG Its the “Realist Repost”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Buc Realist Says:
August 3rd, 2017 at 8:43 am
We need the defense to come out firing, until the offense can get their feet underneath them, due to all the new players in new positions!!!!! They have had quite the overhaul if you look at last year’s starting roster and compare it with the “projected” starting roster for this year!!!!!!!!!
Go Bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
October 12th, 2017 at 6:12 am
Yards gained doesn’t mean much.
Points for (85), Points against (83) and Wins (2-2) are the only stats that really matter.
This team is going to need to average more than 21 points per game if playoff aspirations are to be realized. Simple as that as the simpleton would say.
October 12th, 2017 at 6:32 am
Long time reader. First post. Buccaneer Scotty is right. The Bucs need help with a pass rusher and at cornerback. Why not trade DeSean and one of our linebackers to get it? At a quarter into the season, the team would be no worse without DeSean…but it would be a whole lot better with a tall shut down corner or a DE who puts QB’s in the dirt. Trading a linebacker now would definitely have a negative impact, but there is going to be a log jam there soon enough. Too many good players and not enough positions. I’d rather the team take a half step back in linebacker depth if they can trade for a player that is a full step forward in an area of need.
October 12th, 2017 at 6:39 am
3 full quarters without converting a third down against one of the weaker defenses in the league. Not a stat good offenses put up.
October 12th, 2017 at 6:40 am
Here we go again on this site
Of course the offense is sputtering.
There have never been this many weapons on offense with an offensive line playing really good. They should be putting up almost 30 a game with ease. No field goals Tds
October 12th, 2017 at 6:43 am
Its coming folks.
This article should bring back to earth those fans still holding on to the old Bucs.
The defense is heading to the top 3 rank come mid season.
Doug’s wheels will keep defenses honest. Howard and Jackson will make the most of that honesty. Buccaneer fans will know then its time to make hotel reservations for The Super Bowl.
Go Bucs!!!
October 12th, 2017 at 6:54 am
Convert 3rd downs; give the defense a breather.
October 12th, 2017 at 7:06 am
Every post here has some girth to it. I think that we are getting really close …. Stay positive. After all, what would you rather have, the Bucs to figure it out progressively and “peak” midway through the season into the play-offs or start on fire then peter-out? Have some faith because with Winston at the helm we’re not ever doomed.
October 12th, 2017 at 7:28 am
“Pro Bowler Jameis Winston, is on pace to break the 4,000-yard season plateau for the third straight year…” – J0E
your math is off or you are being conservative.
1496 over 4 games is an average of 374 per game.
374 over 16 games would put him at 5,984 yards…a near impossibilty. However, if he can average 292 yards or more from this week forward (very possible), he would break the 5,000 yard mark.
October 12th, 2017 at 7:33 am
Sorry, my math was off. I thought he had 1496 yards so far. He has 1,198.
Which means he needs to average 317 yards per game. Still doable once Jackson starts producing.
October 12th, 2017 at 7:40 am
The offense has kind of been like the USF football offense, they have put up big numbers but have struggled at times which makes the offense look like it’s struggling overall.
October 12th, 2017 at 7:41 am
We win 38% of the games Winston attempts 30 or more passes…The yds are deceiving
October 12th, 2017 at 7:43 am
Heh. We all complain that ‘Den of Depression ‘ is too negative, but when J0E write a positive article, you say he’s nitpicking stats.
Tampa fans…
Here’s what I think, if anyone cares…if Koetter finally uses the fullback position like he claims he wants to (for strong lead blocking and short yardage), then the running ga e will explode reducing the risk of throwing downfield.
Jackson would produce. Opposing defenses would get gassed. We would control the games and the clock.
There is a reason the runnig game has sucked. We need a Lorenzo Neal for these pass catching, undersized running backs.
October 12th, 2017 at 7:43 am
Bonzai: Jamie’s has 1198 through 4 games. Total offense is 1498, which sheds a lot of light in the perceived offensive struggles. The offense seems focused on “explosives” but those 4-6 yard gains keep the sticks moving and are vital in red zone and short yardage situations. It seems the Bucs have not been very effective with the running game and the short passes that substitute for a struggling running game. Hopefully “good Doug” can help in this respect.
October 12th, 2017 at 7:49 am
Just saw your subsequent posts, Bonzai. Spot on. Have to get the run game (or at least an effective short passing game) going to keep the chains moving and keep the offense from being one dimensional with the intermediate passing game. IMO, this was the Pats entire defensive strategy – disguise coverage and take away the deep/intermediate passing game. It allowed Doug to run wild during he one scoring possession, but otherwise the team couldn’t take advantage until late.
October 12th, 2017 at 8:19 am
they are 17th in points per game, you know, the stat that actually matters. you dont win football games with yards. you need points.
October 12th, 2017 at 8:47 am
Bucs can move the ball they just struggle scoring and completing drives and in this game you need to score points to win. Bucs don’t score enough to be considered more than a 8-8 or 7-9 team.
October 12th, 2017 at 9:02 am
dirk needs to step his game up….don’t abandon the run…get creative….GO BUCS!!!
October 12th, 2017 at 9:29 am
The chemistry CANNOT be forced, it has to happen on its own.
I disagree slightly with Buc1987. Better play-calling will help usher this offense to the next level. You don’t have to ALWAYS throw the long-ball to DJax, as Joe mentioned. You don’t ALWAYS have to throw the WR screen to Hump. A little creativity might go a long way. How about a trick play off that screen? Have Hump pull up and throw it. This offense is too predictable at this point.
October 12th, 2017 at 10:49 am
Total yards can be misleading, like in 2015 when we were 5th in total yards. But we were 20th in points scored 21.4 pg. This year is similar, we are 6th in total offense pg. But we are 17th in points scored pg at 21.3. During our last 3 games we are averaging 18.6 pg. The problem isn’t gaining yards, the problem is scoring points. And scoring points is the key to winning football games, not gaining yards.
October 12th, 2017 at 12:34 pm
Lakeland nailed it.
October 12th, 2017 at 1:08 pm
Exactly, yards are nice cuz ur moving the ball and eating clock, but points are what matters.
I hate that offensive and defensive rankings are based on yards and not points. It’s misleading.
Regarding the Bucs almost breaking franchise records… we’ve never had much offense it Tampa bay, so the records aren’t that hard to beat!
October 12th, 2017 at 10:04 pm
The yards per game stat is a ridiculous measurement of competency when 2/3 of those stats come in mop up / catch up time….