The Bucks started the season strong with wins over the Commanders and Lions. They completely fizzled out in Week 3 against the Broncos as Denver swept them 26-7. The team’s performance was disappointing and took the heat off the home crowd. That being said, here are the biggest disappointments from this week.
Not off to a good start
Broncos QB Bo Nix – Photo courtesy of USA Today
In front of their home crowd at Raymond James Stadium, the Bucs got off to a strong start and had a chance to keep the momentum going against a Broncos team that had struggled to score through two games. Instead of controlling time of possession and tempo, they struggled from the get-go.
Bo Nix completed passes to Courtland Sutton for 22 yards and Josh Reynolds for 31 on the opening drive, then ran in and completed a pass from the 3. Then, on a manageable third-and-4 situation, Baker Mayfield forced a deep pass to Mike Evans that was easily intercepted by safety Brandon Jones.
The score was 14-0 in favor of the Broncos at the end of the first quarter, with Denver outgaining Tampa Bay 96 total yards to 22. This was an inexcusably slow start for the Buccaneers.
Buccaneers Offensive Line
The Buccaneers offensive line was unable to keep Baker Mayfield in the pocket for any extended period of time all afternoon. Be clear The offensive line has sorely felt the absence of right tackle Luke Goedeke, who is a much better starter than Justin Skull and is a physical, trash-talking player who is one of the team’s key to the atmosphere.
Without Goeddeke, the offensive line struggled to step up, especially the interior offensive line, as Mayfield couldn’t consistently evade Broncos pass rushers and was sacked seven times by six different players, many of whom were in the center of the pocket and forced him to scramble, but left tackle Tristan Wirfs also received some blame after allowing a sack and multiple pressures.
It wasn’t a good game for the big men, either, as they struggled to catch blitzes and sim pressure from a crowded front line.
QB Baker Mayfield
Broncos S Brandon Jones – Photo courtesy of USA Today
Baker Mayfield just couldn’t pull off the magic he had earlier in the season on Sunday.
He made poor decisions and didn’t have the momentum he had in the first two wins of the season. The Broncos harassed him up front, pressuring him hard and quickly getting the ball out of his hands, which meant he had to make short passes and play out of structure early on. Mayfield also contributed to some of the sacks he took that day, but it was because he dropped his eyes and ran into a blocked defender.
Coming into this year, the hope was that he would eliminate some of the missteps that held him back last year.
His first goal of the season came at a cost.
The OC Liam Cohen’s Game Plan
The spotlight was firmly on Chris Godwin after his impressive season debut last week, but there were some holes in Liam Cohen’s offensive strategy against the Broncos.
Not only did the offense’s reliance on screen passes work to their detriment, but Mike Evans and the rest of the wide receivers didn’t play very well. No receiving option was able to get more than 10 yards per catch, and while Evans was guarded by star cornerback Pat Surtain II, there was no reason not to work on plays that would give the Blues more of a talent advantage by leaving him open or involving Godwin and Jalen McMillan on intermediate routes.
As for running back, it’s clear Bucky Irving and Rachad White should be split evenly, but White is best suited as a receiving back and not a true bell cow. It’s still early days, but the offensive blueprint has barely borne fruit.
Buccaneers pass rush — Also
It’s hard for a secondary to hold up completely without a consistent pass rush, and it’s clear that the Buccaneers’ front seven is sorely missing defensive tackles Vita Vea and Kalijah Kansey. With them not making an impact in the middle of the trenches, Bo Nix had plenty of time to throw passes to the outside of his number and scramble if necessary. The interior pass rush never happened, and Yaya Diaby and Joe Tryon Soyinka were unable to contain on a quiet day, making it a long day at the office. Anthony Nelson also missed a great opportunity to get his first sack of the year late in the third quarter, resulting in a 22-yard scramble that missed to bring down Nix.
The Broncos were unable to take advantage of that opportunity after placing right tackle Mike McGlinchey on injured reserve earlier this week.
The UDFA RT is making his first start and there is very little pressure from his team.
— Joshua Queipo (@josh_queipo) September 22, 2024
Going back to Diaby, one thing that’s of some concern is his ability to take down opposing quarterbacks. He has no problem applying pressure, but has yet to record a sack this year despite coming into the game with high expectations. Without Bear and Cansey to split the attention, he wasn’t able to generate the much-needed, drive-changing play that capped off his “sub-zero” sack celebration.
CB Jamel Dean
Buccaneers CB Jamel Dean – Photo courtesy of USA Today
Join the gameBo Nix struggled to move the ball through the air, in fact at a historic rate, completing just 11 of 36 passes this season for 212 yards and four interceptions on passes that went more than five yards down the field.
That wasn’t the case Sunday afternoon. Cornerback Jamel Dean had a hard time preventing opposing wide receivers from closing the gap. Every time the ball was thrown his way, it seemed like he was letting it pass. It was the result of an off-coverage play, but he wasn’t aggressive with the ball. That allowed Nix to settle in and complete 25 of 36 passes for 216 yards, his most efficient passing day to date.
A lot of that was down to the team’s top cornerback, who failed to make some well-timed tackles in addition to failing to cover.
Missing early chances slows Broncos’ momentum
The Bucs had a chance to regain some lost momentum in the first quarter when outside linebacker Anthony Nelson sacked Bo Nix, forcing a fumble that was recovered by defensive tackle Logan Hall, but the big play was overturned after Greg Gaines was called offsides.
On fourth down and 1 yard line later in the drive, both Nelson and inside linebacker KJ Britt had chances to stop running back Jaleel McLaughlin from running in. Nelson was fended off, slowing McLaughlin down, but Britt couldn’t catch up and ended up running in to make it 14-0. The defense had chances, but allowed a touchdown drive, giving the Broncos an early two-touchdown advantage.
ILB KJ Britt
Broncos running back Jahlil McLaughlin and Buccaneers intermediate back KJ Britt – Photo courtesy of USA Today
KJ Britt is at fault because he allowed running back Jaleel McLaughlin to get into the end zone on fourth down and the 1-yard line. He simply failed to chase McLaughlin after Anthony Nelson gave him plenty of time to get there.
You have to wonder if Cervosia Dennis could have gotten there with that play.
Britt failed to make an impression in this game, where his lack of speed completely hindered him: he was on the field to make a tackle, but missed it.
Britt finished the game with six tackles.
