Raising The Bar

July 5th, 2021

Projection.

Joe doesn’t know what to make of this. Both sides of the argument have validity.

The PFF tribe seems to think it is a reasonable possibility the Bucs could have three (!) 1,000-yard receivers this year: Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown.

We all know Evans could. He has never not had a 1,000-yard season.

Godwin could have had 1,000 yards last year. He finished with 840 and missed four games.

Brown might. He surely is capable, we all know that. Without a firm grasp of the playbook  last year (remember, he once did play for Bucs coach Bucco Bruce Arians when Arians was offensive coordinator in Pittsburgh) and having been out of football for over a year, he had 483 yards in eight games.

Now getting these guys the ball will be the key. Remember, O.J. Howard returns and there is another highly dangerous weapon who will pull catches away from the Browns, Evans and Godwin.

One wild card is the 17th game. That makes it much more likely the three could get 1,000 yards. However, if the Bucs clinch home field advantage by Week 16, would Arians be inclined to sit these guys?

Given a 17th game and how good the Bucs offense is expected to be, yeah, Joe can see these three guys getting 1,000 yards each. But with so many mouths to feed in the passing game, will they get enough passes?

It appears the last trio to accomplish this feat was Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin, and Steve Breaston with the Cardinals in 2008..

14 Responses to “Raising The Bar”

  1. Medicated Pete Says:

    When AB is in 1 on 1 situations, Tom wants to throw that way every time bcuz AB knows which option routes to run in order to get open every time.

  2. Casual Observer Says:

    Only so many pass plays to go around. I wouldn’t worry about individual catch totals. Brady will choose the best possibility for each play. Only the number of Ws matters.

  3. Jmarkbuc Says:

    Add in two TE’s and a third down back… maybe we can petition to play with two footballs at a time…

  4. gp Says:

    How about three wide receivers AND a running back or two, hmmm?
    If our defense is as dominant as we all hope, There very well may be enough offensive game time to create all of those opportunities.
    RUN THE SCORE!

  5. Hawk Says:

    In order to have 3 receivers with 1,000 yards, all the games need to be ‘fairly’ close in score. If the Bucs start blowing out opponents, they will run the ball a lot more in order to run out the clock. That will have an impact on the receivers opportunities.

  6. gp Says:

    @Hawk
    There are many possible scenarios.
    I’m not sure there are many teams that will be able to “shoot it out” with us.
    I think there are a bunch where we can “run up the score”.
    But both work for me, as long as the result is a win!

  7. Jason Says:

    One wild card is the 17th game. That makes it much more likely the three could get 1,000 yards. However, if the Bucs clinch home field advantage by Week 16, would Arians be inclined to sit these guys?

    Who has bonuses for a 1000 yard season? We saw it last year. Just saying.

  8. SOEbuc Says:

    This has gone through my mind ten million times and i have no clue. To Tom it’s whoever gets open the fastest when I got Evans, Godwin,AB, and Gronk/Brate/OJ so who the hell knows? Enter the fact that this team is highly focused and determined. A bangarang oline. That’s how deadly this offense is.

  9. ModHairKen Says:

    I’d rather have two 1,000 yard backs. That means games are being won early.

  10. SB Says:

    Tom Brady will be the second QB off the board in my FF draft.
    Some idiot will take Mahomes first. Soon as that happens my next pick is Brady.
    Brady will be FF GOLD this yr!

  11. Bucs Bro Says:

    I’d be shocked if two WR’s hit 1,000 yards receiving with so many capable weapons available. If OJ and Gronk are healthy for 13 games or more it will eat into the WR targets.

  12. stpetebucsfan Says:

    If the team wins and the players stay healthy they’ll get their numbers.

    While BA is certainly most concerned about W’s and not player stats he’s not blind to the value for the individual player, both historical and financial.

    If the Bucs have a playoff spots wrapped up with a few games to go the Bucs will make sure their boys get their stats.

  13. DavidBigBucFan99 Says:

    If they keep the pace the Broncos kept during their record setting year, 70 plays/ game then everybody will eat. Brady will have another record setting year and so will the Bucs

  14. Buczilla Says:

    I know that it’s not a stretch or anything, but I’m thinking that Brown is gonna lead the team in catches and yards, with Mike leading in touchdowns. Mike and Brown will each have 1k yards with Godwin being the odd man out. Just like Vita, Godwin is proving that he is injury prone, but I hope to heck that I am wrong.