Key Takeaways From Week 2 vs Carolina
The Buccaneers narrowly escaped their home opener with a win on Sunday.
The game was a tale of two halves for both sides. The first half had plenty of excitement for the Bucs side on both sides of the ball. The second half, however, the offense struggled mightily.
A win is a win. But, there will be some questions asked of this team moving forward.
For a second there, it seemed like the the Bucs we have all watched for years, might just come back to haunt them.
Here are a few takeaways from the Bucs’ Week 2 victory….
The Defensive line is a force to be reckoned with
The defensive line had five sacks on Sunday in the Bucs win against the Panthers. Teddy Bridgewater is a pretty mobile QB and the defensive line still managed to get to him.
In addition to the sacks the line produced, the Bucs also held Christian McCaffrey to 59 yards on 18 carries. Just last week, they held Alvin Kamara to 16 yards on 12 carries. The Bucs had the best run defense in the NFL in 2019, allowing 73.8 yards per game to opposing RB's. This year the story looks to be very similar.
The difference?
The secondary looks like they’re on the verge of taking the next step. After two interceptions yesterday, the defense looks primed for another big week in Denver against Jeff Driskel. The Broncos have been hammered with injuries to key players all over the field. This is another matchup which could give the Bucs secondary more confidence. Like I discussed in Week 1, this defense could be elite really soon.
The lack of discipline is still evident
Bruce Arians was supposed to fix all of that. We were told he was the guy who was going to step in and bring the leadership Tampa Bay so desperately needed.
In 2019, Tampa Bay was the most penalized team in the NFL. Tampa has been top five in that category since 2017. So far, this season looks no different. Of course, no team is going to be penalty free. But the amount of procedural and avoidable penalties on Tampa Bay have been unacceptable for years.
The Bucs, so far this season, have 2 false starts and 4 neutral zone infractions in just two games in 2020. It may seem like a small issue, but down the stretch of a close contest, penalties can cost teams games. 14 penalties through two weeks isn't a great start to the season.
We can definitely give the Bucs a flyer considering there was a limited offseason and no preseason. But it's something to watch moving forward.
Where are the tight ends?
A position group we all thought would be a strength of the team has basically been a no show so far this season.
Reading the list of names the Bucs have available to them at tight end, one would think the numbers they produce would be game-changing. Yes, the Bucs have quite a few weapons at their disposal. But the production from the tight end spot has been abysmal. The Bucs tight end positions players combined have garnered 13 targets yielding 7 receptions for 58 yards and a single touchdown.
O.J Howard and Rob Gronkowski have combined for 95 total snaps and have failed to produce to the level we expected. Gronkowski is still learning the offense, but what about Howard? Also, where has Cameron Brate been? He has seven total snaps. Keep in mind Brate has proven to have sure hands in the past. With the drops on Sunday, will Brate get some looks this coming Sunday?
I'm not suggesting they force the ball to these guys, but both Gronkowski and Howard are walking mismatches. Why not use it?
Bruce Arians commented on Monday regarding the tight ends "We're not throwing it 50 times to the tight ends. That's what we have receivers for."
That begs the question... Why are the Bucs investing so heavily in the position then? To not use them?