Baker Mayfield and the Bucs offense fell apart against the Lions and there’s plenty of blame to pass around
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a crucial opportunity to extend its lead on the NFC, as well as earn a big road win against the Detroit Lions. That didn’t happen, however, as the Bucs suffered their worst loss of the year in Motown.The defense showed up, but it’s certainly suffice to say the offense didn’t. […]
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers had a crucial opportunity to extend its lead on the NFC, as well as earn a big road win against the Detroit Lions. That didn’t happen, however, as the Bucs suffered their worst loss of the year in Motown.
The defense showed up, but it’s certainly suffice to say the offense didn’t. Baker Mayfield and Co. were harassed all night long by a well-structured and aggressive Lions defense to the point where they put just nine points on the scoreboard.
There isn’t one main factor, either. It was a complete mess and Josh Grizzard has to find ways to get more from his guys regardless of opponent because the Bucs won’t beat any of the NFC’s top teams if they play like they did on Monday night.
Bucs offense failed on all levels because of the Lions’ game plan
It always starts up front, right?
The Bucs offensive line was bad. Per Next Gen Stats, Mayfield was pressured 20 times against the Lions, which tied for the third-highest mark among all QBs in Week 7. The ironic part is the Lions didn’t blitz a ton either – their 27.8% blitz rate ranked 15th for the week. Aidan Hutchinson was able to get several wins on Charlie Heck, but it was the interior offensive line that got exposed the most.
“They were up and down,” Todd Bowles said Monday when asked about his thoughts on the interior offensive line’s pass protection. “We had some plays. Sometimes we had the protection. We couldn’t get nobody open. So then they got through late on those things, and a few times they had some gains and some pressures go up the middle that went a little fast for us. So for the most part, they’ve been doing a good job. We can be stouter.”
A lot of the onus is on the offensive line, but Bowles’ point about the lack of separation from the receivers is on point, too. The Lions secondary didn’t give Bucs receivers an inch all night long. There was always a Lions defender around, whether it was zone or man coverage. They stuck to the Bucs receivers like gum on the bottom of your shoe and it added to the misery.
But now it’s Mayfield’s turn for criticism. When the line did protect and when the receivers did separate Mayfield simply couldn’t connect. He looked jumpy and rushed all night long. To the Lions’ credit, a lot of that had to do with their defensive game plan, which was tailored perfectly.
Per Next Gen, the Lions mixed up zone and man coverage calls to the tune of a 55%-45% ratio. That, along with the constant pressure all night long and the lack of separation, is the perfect formula to defend a potent offense like the Bucs have. It created confusion for both Mayfield and his receivers.
I mean, think about it: You’re never going to get settled in and you’re not going to find a rhythm as a QB if you’re getting a different look on almost every single play and you’re getting pressured on almost every single play. Mayfield simply didn’t know how to react on a play-to-play basis and it held him in check.
“It’s tough,” Bowles said when asked about the difficulty of playing QB under these circumstances. “When you’re chipping with the tight end and the [running] back and trying to just get three guys open, it’s awfully tough when they were mixing the coverages like that. They were getting pressure up the middle, even if they weren’t getting there, they were kind of disrupting where his (Mayfield’s) feet were, and we got to do a better job of protecting him, but we have to do a better job of getting open, as well.”
Overall, it was the definition of a losing team effort. The Bucs couldn’t get anything going at any level and you have to tip your hat to the Lions defense, as the unit always looked to be one step ahead of Grizzard and the Bucs. It’s a tough learning lesson and it’ll be interesting to see how Tampa Bay responds when it takes on the New Orleans Saints in Week 8.
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