Tampa Bay: A potential breakout scenario

 Contents of the following article ; 

• Discussion of our Potential Breakout

• Explanation on why we chose him 

• What an improved version of this player offers

POTENTIAL BREAKOUT;YAYA DIABY

I know what you're thinking, Pat, Yaya broke out last season though? 

Correct he certainly established himself after taking Joe Tryon~Shoyinka's reps,however I know he has a lot more to offer.

Last season the third round rookie amassed 25 TAK , 7.5 sacks (3rd among rookies) , 1 forced fumble and 2 fumbles recovered.

These stats would be respectable for most mid-tier edge rushers , but Diaby only made 7 starts in 2023. This is why I believe he is bound to take that next step,with JTS on borrowed time , all signs point to Diaby making all 17 starts in 2024.

(Diaby’s first career sack , dropping superstar Josh Allen)

What does an improved Diaby offer? 

Tampa’s 2023 struggles

Firstly let’s see why Tampa need a player to step up on the front seven.

The 2023 season was one of up and down proportions for Todd Bowles’ team , particularly his famous defense , known to disguise coverages and send intense blitzes , Bowles prides himself and his team on stuffing the run and getting to the quarterback , however as stated , 2023 didn’t provide enough of this for Bowles side. 

In Rushing defense Tampa ranked a very respectable 5th in the league behind the Bears , Lions , Patriots and 49ers. 

Tampa allowed an average 95 yards per game on the ground and limited scoring to 11 Touchdowns. 

Pass rushing however , was unfortunately a poor factor on Bowles famous defense. 

Tampa ranked eight in sacks with 48 on the season however the stats only tell half of the tale , in many games it was clear to see the Buccaneers poor third down defense come down to a lack of pressure on opposing quarterbacks (TB ranked 23 with a 41% completion average Vs on third down). 

Yaya Diaby as the Fix for Tampa; 

By the end of the 2023 campaign it was clear , Diaby was the starter, as he started every regular season game after facing Jacksonville and started both playoff games VS Philadelphia and @ Detroit. 

This showed the faith in diaby and as we saw with the stats , it paid off. Diaby has been active in the offseason as we saw on Twitter , he claims his only concern with the Bucs is the weight room being closed on Sunday , evidently Diaby is putting in the work to retain his starting job. 

He’s also around 5 pounds lighter this offseason allowing for a potentially better overall performance with more speed. As a pass rusher , based off of last season , if Diaby started all 17 games we would’ve seen 14+ Sacks , and that is merely a projection. Should he start all 17 games this upcoming season I believe we may see a phenomenal leap in Yaya and potentially even solidify himself as a top 10 edge in the league. 

In the run game, Diaby wreaked havoc and even managed to stuff The King Derrick Henry (known to be impossible to tackle behind the LOS) for a loss of 2. 

Final statement ; 

Firstly , it’s nice to be back writing and hopefully this is the first of a new weekly issue. 

Secondly I’d massively appreciate a follow on our Instagram linked on the top header or on the right hand side of the column. 

Finally , I cannot wait for Football Season. Go Bucs! 

Tampa Bay and what’s up this offseason

 Contents of the following article-

•Pending free agents , who’s coming back for the Bucs?(top 3)

Pending Free Agents 

It’s no secret that the post-Brady era in Tampa Bay would cause some cap problems; however, General Manager Jason Licht has done a fantastic job so far in keeping his most prized possessions. This offseason, however, may be deemed the most challenging of his tenure yet.

 

Career-long Bucs and Canton-bound legends Mike Evans and Lavonte David are both ready to hit the free agent market with their contracts expiring this offseason. Lavonte’s impact on this defence is one of those things you just don’t question. He’s been arguably the most consistent LB of the decade gone by. His teammate Mike Evans continues to build a very strong case for the Hall of Fame, as he has eclipsed his 10th straight 1,000-yard receiving season, second only to Hall of Famer Jerry Rice.

Pictured : Lavonte David with Mike Evans. 

What does this mean for the Bucs, you might ask?

 

 

Lavonte David, who had his fourth-best season in the NFL at age 33, took a hometown discount of sorts last season to remain with the Bucs, signing a $7 million, one-year deal. The worry is not whether Lavonte will accept the same deal this offseason; rather, will he actually play another season in the league? Time will only tell, but sadly, Bucs fans, I’m not holding my breath.

 

Lavonte stated after the season that he is “just taking it day by day” and not thinking about next year right now.

Mike Evans’ production this season can be arguably a “career year” for the 10-year veteran, as he leads the league in touchdowns at 13, tied with Tyreek Hill. Evans is coming off a relatively "team-friendly" deal that allowed Tampa to make genuine progress towards their second Super Bowl title. However,, with the inflation of the wide receiver market, it begs the question: will the 31-year-old  play for sub-20 million again or will he command 30+?

 

Evans’ teammates clearly hold him in high regard, as superstar left tackle Tristan Wirfs stated, “Mike will be a Buccaneer for life... He deserves it."

His quarterback, Baker Mayfield, also said he is “the best wide receiver (he’s) ever played with." Mayfield also stated the importance of Evans remaining a “Buc for life.”

 

 

One potential team to keep an eye on is the Houston Texans, Evans’ hometown team, who have recently “turned the screw” in their franchise by drafting CJ Stroud and Will Anderson. Stroud, who won Offensive Rookie of the Year, may attempt to recruit Evans in pursuit of a Super Bowl.

Now comes the defensive maestro, Antoine Winfield Jr. If you’ve been clued in with NFL media this season, you’ll know the story behind his season.

Winfield broke multiple records this season from his free safety position; however, the most impressive to me is the fact that he is the first player since 1994 to record 100 tackles, 5 sacks, and 5 forced fumbles.

Surprisingly, despite this and the season-saving end zone breakups, Winfield was snubbed from the pro-bowl; he was however selected for the First Team All-Pro.

His importance to the Bucs is evident, and it’ll be worrying for head coach Todd Bowles as we tick closer to free agency with him still unsigned.

Personally, I believe Winfield should be the top priority this offseason for the Bucs as they look to "build for the future."

Mike Evans is where my second priority would be right now. It's clear that Evans wants to remain a Buc, and it's clear that his contribution to the team is still as important as ever.

Lavonte David would be priority three for me, only due to his age factor. Personally, I believe his play has gotten better, and he's almost a "fine wine" of sorts. It's also important to note that Tampa has young linebackers on the roster who'll need mentoring, and who better than a man who's done it for 12 seasons?

Pictured : Lavonte David and Antoine Winfield 

Inside enemy lines : SAINTS

 A new series here where we ask a rival fan 5 questions about the past game/their team. 

Today I interviewed saints fan @AC_SaintsStan on Twitter, shout out to him for the great fun we had doing this. 

Question 1- How do you feel about Derek Carr heading into week 5? 

Answer - 1. Im honestly not sure. I’ve always considered Carr to be above average but the shoulder injury showed us he isn’t 100% being inaccurate most of the game. I feel like they were forcing deep balls but having a sore shoulder we should try a different game plan. Judon being out will also help. 

Question 2- Is Pete Carmichael your biggest worry?

Answer- 2. Not the biggest but definitely an issue. You never know with PC. But I’m a little biased cause I don’t like our coaching staff 

Question 3- Do you consider the saints to be a playoff team?

3. Seeing how this season is going I do believe so. Our defense is one of the best in the league and we have great weapons on offense. If the coaching staff manages to make the proper changes I believe we’re a divisional round team at best 

Question 4- Who do you see winning the NFC south ?

4. As of right now it’s the Bucs but I don’t think it’s a done deal. Saints can get back in track and Falcons can improve also. We’ll have to wait and see 

Question 5 - What was your favourite play of the game ?

5. You gotta go with PC’s trick play where he thought the Bucs defense were gonna chase Carr as if he was Lamar Jackson lmao but honestly tho I’m going to try to be original and say Bryan Bresee’s tackle for loss just because he’s showing us each week what a good pick he was.

Are you a lions fan and want to do this for week 6? Shoot me an email @NFLpat9@gmail.com

The bucs thrash the saints to sit atop the south , Alone

 Contents of this article 

Bucs Vs saints recap 

Caesars Super Dome- Bucs Win

Tampa bay at 2-1 travelled to New Orleans to face the 2-1 saints in a game Cameron Jordan referred to as “not a rivalry” … 

Early in the game Tampa struggled to keep their offence on the field but after their defence kept themselves on the sideline and held the saints to 3 points , Tampas offence began to click. 

Mayfield drove the bucs downfield and found Otton for the score . 

Near the end of the second , a baker mayfield int seemed to kill Tampas hopes of more points in the half but star safety Antoine Winfield Jr punched the ball out and saw the bucs regain possession at the 7 , baker found rookie WR trey palmer for his second career touchdown. 

Bucs WR deven thompkins also found the endzone late in the 4th with one of the best efforts you’ll see all season. 

The saints scored 2 field goals in the second half and nothing more . Jameis winston replaced the injured Derek Carr late in the game and finally he threw the ball to a bucs player , Dee Delaney picked it off. 

The bucs ran out victorious 26-9.

My brief views for the season ahead 

I’ll keep this short 

Personally I’ve never been this excited for a bucs team to do well as I am with these guys after the crap they got all offseason ,I personally see the bucs rallying after the bye and winning 3 straight to take firm control of the NFC south which I do see us winning at 10-7

Bucs saints , recap and match pack

 Contents of this article 

Saints , bucs  game recap and player of the game. 

New Orleans saints 

The New Orleans saints travelled to lambeau this past week to face Jordan love in his first home start for the pack. The saints at 2-0 took a big lead and scored 17 unanswered points. However , qb Derek Carr left the game in the 3rd quarter with a shoulder injury. This caused winston and the saints to sputter allowing the packers to GAIN the lead with 18 4th quarter points. 

The saints drove into packers territory late and had a manageable field goal go wide right , Saints fall at lambeau 18-17. They sit at 2-1.

Player of the week for NO- Chris Olave , 8 catches for 104. 

Tampa bay Buccaneers 

The Tampa bay Buccaneers at a surprise 2-0 faced off with the losers of last years Super Bowl , the Philadelphia eagles in a Monday night matchup. Tampa came into this one without a turnover on offence , but sirriani’s eagles are known to force those. Tampa bay turned the ball over twice , missed easy reads , dropped passes and lost in the trenches, leading to a first loss of the year 25-11

However in the words of one bucs fan on Twitter 

“ Not a lot of ppl thought the Bucs would be 2-1 after 3 games. The Bucs didn’t play well on offense in the 1st half and the defense got tired. This one’s on the O. The O has to give the defense some help. It didn’t help the Bucs had their top 2 CB’s out. I’m not worried”

And I fully agree , the bucs without carlton Davis and Jamel dean for a majority of this game with a struggling ground game were always looking like they were 2-3 plays away in this one. 

Moving on to Sunday in Caesars Super Dome.

The bucs face off against foes the saints in a battle for the lead of the NFC south. Key matchups will be 

• Evans Vs Lattimore. 

• White VS saints D-line

• vita vea Vs saints O-line 

• Baker Vs turnovers 

If the bucs win 3 of these matchups , im going for a win. 

The saints have won 3 of the last 5 matchups against Tampa but the bucs won when it mattered. 

This one really matters , two 2-1 teams facing off in a battle for the lead in the south , im taking the bucs in a 17-10 victory

Baker Is Baking.

 Contents of the following article - 

The 2023 season so far 

Bakers stat line so far and how he’s proving doubters wrong 

One man that is stepping up from last year. 

2023 season so far 

The buccaneers heard it over and over again after Tom Brady’s retirement. Get ready to go 3-14 , it’s tanking time , Caleb Williams is a buc”

This couldn’t be any further from the start the buccaneers have got off to. 

Your Tampa bay Buccaneers are sitting at 2-0 after a couple of stifling defensive games and a great show on offence. The buccaneers found a way to beat the Minnesota Vikings and the Chicago bears in the opening weeks of the season. 

Bakers journey and step up to the plate in Tampa 

It’s no doubt that people had their fair share of negative comments with baker mayfield coming in to Tampa this season , with good reason. 

Baker Mayfield played on 2 different teams last season the Carolina Panthers and the LA Rams. 

Baker was traded from Cleveland to Carolina last offseason and played a handful of games in Carolina before being benched for PJ walker then inevitably cut after poor performances. Baker found a new home in LA with Matt Stafford down for the year and McVay needing a QB to finish the year strong , baker did just that. He led the rams to 2 wins in 4 starts with 850 passing yards , 4 TDs and 2 INTs. 

Now , a buccaneer baker has played 2 games , and led the bucs to 2 wins. He has 490 Passing yards , 3 touchdowns and 0 turnovers so far , a huge improvement from bakers disastrous tenures in Carolina and Cleveland.

Baker has looked comfortable in the pocket this season and rightly so , he’s only been sacked once. He’s also had an average of 2.5 seconds in the pocket ranking him at 19th. 

A huge factor for mayfield in canales’ offence has been his ability to extend plays and convert 3rd downs with his legs. Baker mayfield won the game in Minnesota for the bucs with his “angry run” on 3rd down .Soon after he was able to find a wide open Godwin to seal the game on another 3rd down. 

The player who’s stepped up 

Short piece to close on a player who has really impressed me so far with his step up. 

Offensive lineman Luke Goedeke was no doubt a weak link for the buccaneers last season allowing 2 sacks in 520 snaps holding a PFF of 43.7. 

The former 2nd round pick however has seemingly turned it around since switching to right tackle this offseason as he now has allowed 1 sack in 139 snaps but holds a PFF of 72.8. 

There’s no doubt he’s been more effective in the pass game but the run game is where he’s caught my eye. Pushing edge rushers outside allowing for gaps to open up for white / mayfield to run into , Luke Goedeke is no doubt , a massively improved player. 

Have any suggestions for my next article? 

Email them here ! 

Nflpat9@gmail.com

Possible Surprise departure for the bucs

 In Jason lichts most recent presser he came right out and spoke about Devin white after the trade rumours saying “we all have all the respect in the world for devin … he’s done some great things for us , he’s a player and we look forward to more from him in the future , he’s on our team we are looking for to this season… looking forward to him being on the team and having the year we think he’s capable of” 

That does not sound like a guy who’s going anywhere so who could I be mentioning when I say a surprise departure ? Well it’s shaq Barrett . 

It’s no doubt that Barrett has had a huge impact on the defence since he’s come to Tampa  let’s just look at his stats 

• 197 TAK

• 40.5 Sacks 

• 2 ints 

So you might be wondering , why would they move him on? Well let’s look at his contract in 2023 he’s acting as a $21,252,941 cap hit whilst also carrying a dead cap of $23,154,000. 

The bucs are still not in the best cap situation for this season but offloading him post June 1st would save the bucs over 14 million dollars… allowing the team to strengthen in other positions 

The bucs resigned olb / edge Anthony Nelson this off-season who I feel would do well in Shaq Barrett’s  role this season

My final point would have to look at Barrett’s injury - age ratio , he only played 8 games last year after a nasty injury and shaq is turning 31 this season and we don’t know if he’ll be ready week 1 , chances are he won’t be the same player he was beforehand and could experience a significant drop off in impact ratings. 

Bucs signed update

 Bucs updates 

Firstly , on the opening day of free agency the bucs (out of nowhere) retained star cornerback Jamel dean who had a “breakout” season last and is now back for another 4 year stint. The contract details are as follows - 4 years 52 million , with 26 million guaranteed. In my opinion it’s an absolute steal for the bucs and it proves that Jason Licht is capable of keeping this team in the loop.

Former playoff hero G Aaron Stinnie was signed to a one year contract worth upto 2.5 million dollars , good deal for Tampa and for Aaron who is capable of being a starter. 

Staying with the O-Line, star G shaq mason was traded to the Texans for pick 179 and pick 230 , good rental player for the bucs this past season.

Today , pass rusher Anthony Nelson was signed to a 2 year deal worth upto 13 million dollars , Nelson who impressed last year , has 10.5 sacks for Tampa over the past 2 years. Good deal again by Licht in my opinion , maybe a slight overpay but Nelson still has time to develop. 

The big news you were waiting for … LAVONTE IS STAYING HOME. Yeah that’s right folks , about an hour ago the bucs signed lavonte David to a one year , 7 million dollar deal . Personally I’m just happy LVD will have the chance to retire a buc and maybe get another run at the playoffs. 

Last piece I’ve got - Bucs signed QB baker mayfield , yeah I’m not so sure on this . Baker who struggled at Carolina last season found himself impressing in LA at the end of the season , however, I still think the bucs could’ve found a better veteran to compete with trask in camp. (Worth upto 8.5 million dollars, base of 4 million) 

Tampa bay X 2023.

 So far-

The bucs have had a lot of changes so far this offseason , the most notable being Tom Brady’s retirement after a playoff loss to Dallas. The Bucs also fired a host of coaches with OC byron leftwich in the middle of it. To follow this up they hired former Seahawks QB coach Dave canales to take charge of the offence. Perhaps fresher on the memory , Tampa have released LT Donovan Smith and are going to be cutting RB Leonard Fournette and TE Cam Brate. 

The 23’ season-

Well it is not the best looking season on paper for Tampa as they have a whole lot of key players heading for free agency with the most notable two being longtime linebacker lavonte David (who has mutual interest in a return) and standout CB Jamel Dean, per source the bucs will not franchise tag either of these players. The bucs are not going into a “full rebuild” rather , they believe they can still compete for the NFC south title and snag a playoff berth, with Kyle trask. The Bucs GM Jason Licht stated he was confident with trask and believes he is capable of winning the bucs starting job. The bucs are heading into the 23’ season as a different team to the last three seasons and with that I do believe they will definitely struggle . 

My top 3 draft picks 

The bucs could draft a host of players at pick 19 but here’s my top 3

- CB Kelee Ringo , ringo is one of the youngest DBs to step foot into the nfl draft and definitely has a high ceiling despite still being a lot younger than the other guys plus with smb and Jamel dean likely leaving , I think it would be a good fit 

- RB Bijan Robinson , before you go bonkers let me explain , last season the bucs struggled on the ground , badly , now that can be pinned on coaching , oline or other backs but there’s no doubt Rachaad white was part of it , I think bijan would give him healthy competition for the rb1 spot , also bijan is not only a better back than white but he is also stronger 

- EDGE BJ Ojulari - the bucs struggled getting to the qb last season no doubt and I think the addition of ojulari would not only help sack numbers but also help keep the rushing total down for Tampa in 23’

The 2020 bucs are almost wiped out.

 Sentimental value holds nothing for the bucs.

Today we heard from multiple sources (after we reported it a while back!) that longtime bucs LT Donovan smith and Super Bowl hero RB Leonard Fournette are locks to be cut when the new league season begins in March. 

I already have spoke about my thoughts on both of these players but I’ll recap , I love the move to cut smith because his lacklustre play in 2022 and crazy amount of amassed penalties just did not help Tampa bay as he wiped out a few crucial game altering plays with holding. Note , smith was to be one of the top 10 highest paid bucs this season.

Fournette on the other hand , I don’t know yet , of course he was sluggish last season and had nowhere near the impact of the previous seasons but I still think he had time left in a Tampa uniform , we’ll always remember Lombardi Lenny. 

However it’s all but done now and I’ll have to look ahead at future rb1 Rachaad white. 

Ryan succop got some praise from Jason licht today but he claimed he has to be able to hit from outside 50 although his accuracy inside 50 is valuable, personally I’d let Ryan walk and address a kicker in the draft.

Strap in for this one , bucs fans, Jason licht also spoke about LVD 54, saying “he’s an awesome player … it’s not out of the real of possibility he plays for us next season , but it takes two to agree to that” 

I really really didn’t like the sound of this , licht didn’t sound confident in retaining David and definitely didn’t seem overly pushed either. 

Bucs are locking in around one guy

 Quotes and key notes from this week

Dave canales’ first presser was one of excitement , especially for fans who had no idea about the qb situation in Tampa next season. 

Canales spoke about  a host of players but the one that caught my eye most was trask , canales said “I liked him coming out of college . The thing we’re going to help Kyle continue to build on here is to just be a point guard. Point guards dont have to be the one to score all the points , just distribute it.” 

I picked out of this that new OC canales knows Kyle trasks best chance in this league is as a pocket passer, not a scrambler or anything else. 

Canales also spoke about getting the ball away on time and not taking sacks saying “you’ve got these bears chasing you and if you don’t like (that) get the ball out of your hands”

Sounded like to me that Dave knew about the bucs struggles with pass protection and holding on too long last season. 

Arians and licht chip in- 

Bruce arians also spoke about trask this week as he was the one to draft him he was asked multiple questions , but the answer I found most important was “ I think we’re in good hands with Kyle trask , I love trask … he saw Tom work , knows how to get there and gabbert was an excellent mentor for him” this pretty much tells us Arian’s is also locked in on Kyle trask and believes he is as good an option as anyone. 

Licht also had a word or two to throw around on Kyle this week saying “I believe Kyle trask is the best in the division” , that is a huge statement from the gm but one I can live with as long as they don’t turn their back on Kyle now. 

My assessment on this : start trask this season but , make sure he has a mentor / backup capable of helping him if things go pear shaped.