Game Review - Week 5

As I mentioned yesterday, this game was ugly. The Bucs traveled up to Indy and came in and played scared. They played not too lose, instead of playing to win, as they had the last 4 weeks. Hopefully, this game will be a reminder to this team, and coaching staff, of what happens when you play not too lose in the NFL.

On Offense, the Bucs got the ball first, but the middle of the offensive line had huge problems initially dealing with the speed of the Colts DL. The OL should have been able to get on them and knock them on their way undersized butts, but they weren't aggressive in their blocks and allowed way too much penetration. The result was a running game that never had a chance to get going and pound the Colts, as it should have, and an over-reliance in the passing game to try and get back into the game. After the initial issues, and an early sack, the offensive line settled down and began to pass block like normal, and even started to open some holes in the running game. By then, however, it was too late to get the running game going, and Garcia was trying to get us back into the game via the air, which he briefly did. Garcia actually finished with solid numbers and a passer rating in the 120's, higher than Manning's 101. Galloway dropped a couple of passes, and the connection just seemed to be off. Garcia almost connected with Galloway on a play that would have gotten the Bucs into the lead due to the extra point block against the Colts. But it was not to be, as the offense only managed 177 yards of offense, a whopping 17 on the ground. The failure to come out swinging hard early cost them dearly in this game.

On Defense, the Bucs, for whatever reason, decided to come out with a soft cover 2 scheme, basically designed to force Mannning to move the ball slowly and methodically. It worked, except for the fact that Manning only really made one mistake in the game and scored TD's on virtually every drive. The defense didn't play anything like it had during the first 4 weeks except for a brief period when Jackson killed Clark, then picked off Manning shortly after. That brief return of the aggressive Bucs defense allowed the offense to get on the field, score a TD, and start to make it a game. Only, the defense decided to keep playing like pansies with that soft coverage crap. Quite frankly I'm amazed Monte didn't switch up and just go for it and press the receivers hard and give his line an extra second or two to get to Manning. Instead, it was pitch and catch. Adams actually played well, making some plays, including hitting Manning just as he got rid of the ball. The pass was completed, but Adams nearly got Manning on a number of occasions, and seemed to be the most determined DL during this game. The tackling wasn't very good against the run either, but a lot of that can be attributed to the length of time the defense was on the field. Some of which is their fault; some of which is the offenses. I will say this, after the first offensive 3 and out, the defense allowed the Colts to run a very long drive, and did it again after the next offensive series. Nothing makes it harder for an offense to find some rhythm than to be sitting on the bench for 7-8 minutes in between drives. I sincerely hope that this is the last time we see this soft cover 2 and we see a return to the aggressive flying defense of the past 4 weeks.

On Special Teams, this unit had some problems containing the Colts on kick and punt returns, allowing a couple of big returns which made it difficult on the defense. The return units also failed to deliver the consistently big returns that they had provided the past 3 weeks. While Jones did manage a couple of solid returns, most were short, and the Bucs drive starts were consistently deep in their own territory, which didn't help them in their struggles. The kick block team was excellent, blocking an extra point attempt, and nearly blocking two more kick attempts, including the late field goal by the Colts. They showed good penetration. Punting was solid, and kickoffs were good. Bryant did not attempt a field goal.

Coaching was not as good as you would like. The entire team seemed flat...playing scared for most of the game, and the adjustment in their play never came. Gruden never got his offense into a rhythm and had to abandon the run. Monte's defense had a plan, but it was passive and it killed us, and he never adjusted what we were doing, despite the fact that we had corners that were more than capable of pressing the receivers they were playing. And Bisaccia's unit played OK in spots, but didn't provide the consistent return game the Bucs needed to shorten the field and allow the offense to better apply the pressure to the Colts' defense. This was an all-around letdown. I think we will see a fired up team this weekend, though, and I expect them to rebound with a win.