The Bucks’ offense is unstoppable force They beat the Eagles 33-16 on Sunday. And the defense was almost immovable. Here are my notes from watching the tape of the Bucs defense vs. the Eagles offense.
Schematic Schematic/Global Notes
- The Bucs ran a ton of Cover 2s early, challenging Jalen Hurts and beating them with big-time throws to deep outside holes.
- The initial pressure was not brought on by lightning, but by simulated pressure.
- The Bucs tried to isolate Yahya Diaby at right tackle for the Eagles, and Fred Johnson had great success. Pressure right after the match started.
- The Bucks’ tackling was much more healthy in this game. His missed tackle rate was just 8.1%, compared to 17.7% so far this season.
- Everything about Todd Bowles’ pressure game seemed to be working. The Eagles O-line struggled with passing/picking up throughout the game, and Hurts couldn’t find an answer with his quick outlets.
- As the game progressed, the Bucs worked in Cover 3 and Cover 4, with the rotated Cover 2 look they had shown earlier in the game, firing off firezone blitzes from a robbed and overloaded front.
- It was nearly impossible to read where Hurts wanted to go before the snap.
backs secondary
- Great rebounding game from CB Jamel Dean. His click and close was back to what it was against Detroit, pinching routes and contesting every ball thrown.
- There were two plays that were considered losses.
- Missed tackle on dump-off to Saquon Barkley in the flat.
- He fell on a deep corner route to Dallas Goedert’s near end zone.
- Even if he went down, the play wouldn’t have been stopped and it was a good call on PHI vs. Cover 3. Dean had to carry the post inside and the corner hit a blind spot in coverage.
- He made an unreal play with a pull lead and faced 6-foot-7, 350+ pound RG Mekhi Becton, knocking Becton to the ground. On my first drive.
- He covered a deep vertical to John Ross in the end zone, but it fell incomplete.
- There was a great play with the ball in the near pick in Q4.
- Tackles other than one catch and Barkley’s run, it was a good day.
- There were two plays that were considered losses.
Watch Jamel Dean take on 6’7 350 player Mekhi Becton and drive him to the backside.
I understand that Dean is frustrating the fans. But he does so much that goes unnoticed. pic.twitter.com/huTuur1wh4
— Joshua Quaipo (@josh_queipo) October 1, 2024
- Zion McCollum continues his rise to the upper echelon of NFL corners.
- In the scramble drill, he was able to cover the first route and the first scramble break, allowing 1 TD. Parris Campbell finally created some separation with a second reaction back inside.
- In the 4th quarter, he did a good job of covering deep vertical areas with man coverage.
- He dodged traffic on a perimeter screen and on the final drive, No. 3 and 15 Jahan Dotson made a tackle for a mere 4-yard gain.
- He continued to challenge every pitch.
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Bucks SS Jordan Whitehead and Eagles RB Saquon Barkley – Photo courtesy of USA Today
jordan whitehead
- It’s Whitehead’s second straight off game.
- Maneuvered by Hurts in coverage, pulling Goedert away for a deeper route that wasn’t there and was the responsibility of another player.
- He blitzed for an easy sack, but a pump fake forced Hurts to run away.
- He allowed Goedert to cross his face on a low red-zone Texas route to the Tampa Bay 2.
- He stopped Saquon Barkley’s 59-yard run for a TD.
- tykey smith
- Great day as a pass rusher from the slot. By selling late and making sudden moves, he was always on the back foot.
- He got a shot on Jalen Hurts on the first rush on third-and-10, forcing a soft pass and allowing a defender to tackle him before the first down was achieved.
- In coverage, he was a 3×1 concept side, which looked like a cover-4 defense to me, but he had really good reps. Isien doubled up on the perimeter receivers on the outside late, and Smith, along with Lavonte David, helped narrow down the routes for the two inside receivers (Tykey on the outside and David on the inside).
- If they narrow down their route and pass vertically to a deep defender, they quickly drop back down to a shallow cross from the other side and make an immediate tackle for no gain. (Q4 6:48)
- My negative impression of him was on Saquon Barkley’s 59-yard run, when Barkley unusually didn’t stick his head inside when he took the shot into the hole. It’s a play he usually does.
- Christian Isien
- He made a good play on the second drive of the game, reading Goedert’s Y-cross that was unfolding behind him. Drop deeper and make the contest for passes even more intense.
- This was the main reason for Barkley’s long run. Barkley took a bad angle and allowed an additional 39 yards on what should have been a 20-yard goal.
- In the third quarter, he made two good plays near the goal line.
- Goedert immediately activated the Texas route to prevent him from scoring.
- The next play he took a shot into the backfield and tackled Kenneth Gainwell for a loss.
linebacker
Defensive line/outside linebacker
- Vita Vea made a big difference compared to week 3.
- I took extra care on most reps and allowed other reps to win one-on-one.
.@buccaneers @VitaVea It is the “anchor” that any grest defense needs to control LOS. #BaldysBreakdowns pic.twitter.com/Jw2D6FZ3aj
— Brian Baldinger (@BaldyNFL) September 30, 2024
- Logan Hall made a great play deflecting a play-action screen that would have been hit by an explosive.
- He added a sack late just by running around Landon Dickerson, and Dickerson gave him a light push.
- Hall showed great flexibility in the rep, twisting back into the pocket and connecting Hurts with the sack.
- He added a sack late just by running around Landon Dickerson, and Dickerson gave him a light push.
- Will Golston applied quick pressure multiple times, beating Fred Johnson and Mekhi Becton on separate reps.
- Chris Braswell’s athleticism was on display when he read a zone read run by Jalen Hurts and held the play to just four yards.
- Anthony Nelson had a solid day as a pass rusher, receiving some pressure but still being able to get inside left tackle Jordan Mailata at the top of the arc.
- His best win of the day came on the final play of the game when he took a nice cross hop to Mailata and finished with a lip move to win the corner cleanly and sack Hurts.
- Yaya Diaby had multiple wins over Eagles right tackle Fred Johnson and some convincing wins overall.
- I bullied him with a bull rush on the first drive.
- Win the T/E stunt inside the loop.
- He uses his long, strong arms to defeat Johnson.
- He got his first sack of the season on a late rip, forced a fumble and won near the arc.
- Joe Tryon Soyinka
- He won against Mailata with his long arms.
- Bull rushed to put pressure on Johnson.
- Although he was able to display his long arms many times, he lacked the leg strength and leg strength to push opponents back quickly enough to create consistent pressure.
