No More Excuses: The Bucs Must Get After The Quarterback, Or Find Someone Who Can
July 20th, 2023
Bucs OLB Joe Tryon-Shoyinka.
Joe has a new standard when taking teams seriously as they begin to stoke their annual training camp hype furnace.
- Do you have a top-shelf quarterback?
- Can you get after the opposing team’s quarterback?
If the answer to either question is uncertain by summer’s end, then a team isn’t serious about winning in the fall.
Statistically speaking, the NFL has come down to two elements that lead to success and winning: quality quarerback play and a pass rush. Missing one of those two elements? A team is basically toast.
Joe has been inhaling Warren Sharp’s 2023 Football Preview. Joe has always, always been obsessed with quarterbacks and sacks. Yes, pressures help a lot but sacks are the icing on the cake.
So one thing has been hammered home to Joe while reading Sharp’s exhaustive statistical deep-dive on every NFL team. It’s all there in black and white: If you don’t have a top-shelf quarterback and you can’t get after the other team’s quarterback, you are just p!ssing in the wind.
The Bucs won the Super Bowl two years ago and were within a cat’s whisker of going back a year later.
Last year the Bucs, despite having Tom Brady, had a losing record and were embarrassed in the playoffs by the Cowboys.
Why did this happen? Inconsistent pass rush:
So three years ago when the Bucs won the Super Bowl, Brady was sharp as can be and the Bucs were a top-five team hounding quarterbacks. Same was true the following year.
Last year, the Bucs fell off the map pressuring quarterbacks and ended up with a losing record.
Coincidence between lack of pressures and losing? Joe doesn’t believe in coincidences.
July 20th, 2023 at 8:24 am
Suh!
July 20th, 2023 at 8:26 am
Great coaching can produce good teams but without great coaching it produces 2022
July 20th, 2023 at 8:29 am
He is our best pass rusher so hello first pick in the draft
July 20th, 2023 at 8:37 am
The guy opted not to play his senior year, enough said !!
Licht made a mistake and ignored the obvious and now the Bucs have the obvious !! a non football player athlete trying to play a game he isn’t nearly physical or mentally able to play at the level required .
July 20th, 2023 at 8:43 am
Answer is ‘find someone who can’.
July 20th, 2023 at 8:44 am
So our line is Vea who when in shape is a beast.
They play him 50 snaps
Logan hall
JTS
This years 271 pound first pick DT
Gholston
Nelson
After 11 Jason Licht drafts this is our haul
Am I missing anyone ?
What is the grade ? I say D minus
July 20th, 2023 at 8:46 am
“Coincidence between lack of pressures and losing? Joe doesn’t believe in coincidences.”
Reach, you don’t get as many pass rush reps when you’re playing from behind and when you aren’t putting points up or at least a threat to score, the opposing offense can play ball control running and passing at you. That’s the “imposing your will” part of the game you hear referenced so often at most levels of the football.
Even with the low pressure rate, we still finished top 10 in sacks and had 14 players with at least 1 sack last season. 9 of those 14 guys are still on the team and we’ve got new additions to potentially replace the sack production we got from Edwards, Nassib, Hicks, Avery, & Nacho who were all role players. We also blitzed less and it needs to be factored in about how teams counter our defense with quick underneath passes to negate the reputation Bowles has for sending exotic pressure package.
I expect the stunt & twist game to be prevalent this season, as you don’t establish the directive of getting “faster” up front w/o having a plan to exploit that speed. We’ll see how things get dialed up soon enough.
July 20th, 2023 at 8:47 am
Sometimes GM’s and coaches get too caught up in Athleticism and potential. They lose track of whether the guy can play football. Then throw in the check cashers and drafting becomes a real puzzle to solve.
July 20th, 2023 at 8:55 am
Sounds like Logan Hall was a workout warrior this offseason added 15-20 of bulk. Hopefully JTS put some muscles on his chicken legs. He has terrific speed and length but no power.
July 20th, 2023 at 9:04 am
I’m not sure JTS has the build to be NFL strong. He’s got a build like a basketball player. He’s make a good tight end if he had the coordination.
July 20th, 2023 at 9:07 am
Perform or get out.
July 20th, 2023 at 9:07 am
That means you too Todd.
July 20th, 2023 at 9:19 am
One of the big issues that contributed to less pressure is that teams figured out they could run the ball against the Bucs defense. The Bucs faced 110 less pass attempts year over year. That’s a 20% decrease and if you adjust for that it puts the Bucs back in the top 10 for pressure in both categories.
Bowles did what he could with what the Bucs had last year. Let’s hope JTS and some of the young talent on the roster show something!
July 20th, 2023 at 9:21 am
Playing from behind would contribute to that number as well which means the offense needs to score more than 18 ppg. After all it’s a team sport and you need all three phases to complement each other in some way to win.
July 20th, 2023 at 9:44 am
Tall Noah Spence
July 20th, 2023 at 9:48 am
I do think the bucs will get their pass rush this year, which should make the secondary deadly.
This D is going to be great. question is can the Offense stay on the field long enough to keep them fresh.
July 20th, 2023 at 10:23 am
Watching NFL rewind of the our games last year. JTS is always soo close. If he could get the QB down even half the times he’s back there he would probably lead the league in sacks.
July 20th, 2023 at 11:44 am
Looks like a couple of the newly drafted could be great at this. One can hope.
July 20th, 2023 at 12:01 pm
Ryan Smith I agree completely with your observation. If JTS can simply learn to “finish” he’ll be fine.
July 20th, 2023 at 12:29 pm
“Last year the Bucs, despite having Tom Brady, had a losing record and were embarrassed in the playoffs by the Cowboys.
Why did this happen? Inconsistent pass rush:”
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Yea Joe – I’m sure it had NOTHING to do with the Bucs offense dropping from 30 ppg to 18 ppg….
SMH
July 20th, 2023 at 1:43 pm
Suh!
July 20th, 2023 at 2:02 pm
JTS will be much approved this season due to the presence of Kancey on that D-Line. The entire Bucs defense is going to shock the NFL. Kancey is going to wreck opposing offenses. And because he will be that good. JTS’s play will be significantly improved. Go Bucs!
July 20th, 2023 at 2:09 pm
There’s a 3rd question: Can you run the ball effectively and get short yardage when needed?
In 2020 an 2021 the Bucs could.
In 2022 they could not.
Hopefully we’re not going into this year being 0 for 3 on those questions.
H-O-P-E Joe’s favorite word! 😂
July 20th, 2023 at 2:10 pm
Either play better or get better players. Simple as that.
July 20th, 2023 at 4:22 pm
Jts Kinda reminds me of the ‘mad stork’.
Hope he plays like him this year!
July 20th, 2023 at 5:23 pm
How come we never hear about JTS getting stronger in the off-season
July 20th, 2023 at 5:31 pm
Ocean might get rough this season guys. Something truly tells me our Bucs are not going to be able to bring the Pirate ship in without massive blows and injuries. Grab some wood. Its gonna be a long season.
July 20th, 2023 at 5:39 pm
Poor ol’ Todd Bowles and JTS, always roasting oven the coals.
July 20th, 2023 at 6:01 pm
JTS needs to spend the summer with Simeon Rice! Same build and quickness, just needs to learn the minutiae and finer points of being a great D end…and that cat would be a hellofa hang!
July 20th, 2023 at 6:17 pm
I plan on working with JTS, in his off time. To tweak his game, and get his moves right.
July 20th, 2023 at 6:22 pm
PREDICTION – JTS will have 8-10 sacks and a ton of QB pressures.
His film is solid. Has all the tools to be a dominant pass rusher in the NFL.
Just needs to learn to be more effective at the point of attack.
July 20th, 2023 at 6:27 pm
Again he is our best pass rusher…
What could go wrong….
July 20th, 2023 at 6:38 pm
I would do it, but I’ve lost a step or two.
“The mind is willing, but the body is weak”
July 20th, 2023 at 8:06 pm
JTS is soft. Zero dog in him. Old azz JPP can get more pressure at 40.
July 21st, 2023 at 1:03 am
Yup
Bowles did a great job manufacturing sacks last year without JPP, Suh, and Shaq. How long can he keep that up?
Those stats for pressures are not too surprising to me. We had to blitz and stunt for sacks. Pressures, and hurries can also produce INTs. (INTs More important than sacks?)
Go Bucs!
July 21st, 2023 at 4:30 am
No JPP. No Suh.
No heart!!!