2008 Bucs' Schedule: PNG

Wednesday, November 05, 2008

Bucs Beat Chiefs In OT: 30-27

Now that I have time, the Bucs sure managed to pull that game out of their *BEEP!!*! Needless to say, it wasn't pretty. The Bucs basically stunk outright for most of the first half, then played well and like crap during the second half. But, in the end, they won.

Offense: First offensive play for the Bucs and Graham fumbles after gaining 4 yards. Not good. The Bucs got down so quick on the scoreboard that they were unable to really concentrate on the running game and take advantage of KC's inability to stop the run. KC also consistently commited a safety to stop the run, which made it even more difficult. Garcia continues to have issues getting the ball down the field. On one shot, he missed Galloway, who had his man beat going into the endzone, by throwing behind him to the point that the defender almost picked it off. Garcia also failed to either see or throw the ball to receivers that were open on a number of plays, prefering to check down. Thankfully, he still managed to get it done and threw a TD pass to Antonio Bryant and then hit Smith for the 2 point conversion which sent it to overtime. Clayton made some big plays catching 4 passes for 57 yards and making several big blocks. He also had a short catch, in OT, where he broke the tackle and went down the sidelines for 29 yards. Hilliard hauled in 6 passes for 55 yards, and Bryant led the receivers with 8 passes for 115 yards and a TD. Smith also hauled in a TD pass from Graham who faked a blast play and threw the halfback pass to a wide open Smith. In the end, the Bucs' offense finished with 423 yards of offense and managed to make up for Graham's two fumbles, a fumble by Clifton Smith, and a pick by Garcia. They drove the ball right down the field in OT to setup Matt Bryant's field goal to win it. They did enough to win the game in the end despite 4 turnovers.
Overall grade: B

Defense: The defense just outright blew during the first half of play. Quite frankly, it was utterly disgusting to watch for a good chunk of this game. Barber was toast on a couple of plays including getting fulled on a halfback pass to the QB, when Barber decided to look in the backfield and start to come back. When he realized it would be a pass, it was too late. The linebackers were caught out of their gaps a lot on run plays, and the result was KC's pathetic offense racking up big yards on the ground, rushing for 183 yards, and letting Charles be the first back this year to rush for 100 yards agains them. Jackson had several good plays, though, including a forced fumble and recovery right after the Smith fumble. The offense would score on the next play via the Graham to Smith pass. Piscatelli had a solid game, but got caught holding a receiver when Buchannon had picked off a pass to setup first and goal. What was also bad was the fact that the Bucs only got one sack against a team that had given up 22 sacks already. The pass rush has disappeared and needs to come back. The defense did manage to make some adjustments and started making KC punt. In the end, they just barely did enough to give the team a chance to win it late.
Overall grade: C+

Special Teams: This was a good week for Special Teams. They only allowed 4.5 yards per punt return and 18 yards per kick return. Meanwhile, Clifton Smith had a great day returning punts and kicks. He returned punts at a 13.5 yard per return clip. But, more importantly, brough the team back to life with a 97 yard kick-off return for a touchdown, only the second time in team history. He averaged 27 yards on the other 5 kick returns, which is a far cry better than what the Bucs had been getting out of Jackson. Matt Bryant nailed all three of his kicks, including the OT game winner from 34 yards out. Bidwell was solid on punts. This was definitely one of the best efforts all year for this group, and the kick return for a TD got this team jump started.
Overall grade: A

Coaching: Gruden seemed to have a decent game plan, but it went down the tubes early with poor execution, a fumble on the first offensive possession, and with a QB failing to take advantage of targets further down the field. Nevertheless, the offense managed to make a comeback and get the Bucs in position to win the game. Monte had one of his worst games for much of the first half. Once he got settled, however, the defense started to come alive. Bisaccia's men finally appeared to be well coached. The effort of the special teams unit was one of the biggest keys in the Bucs' victory. Needless to say, the coaching job was both good and bad. A lot of the bad play, however, falls on the players who failed to execute far too often, perhaps looking forward to the BYE. But coming back and winning a game in which they were down 21 points, and setting a franchise record for the largest comeback, can't be overlooked.
Overall grade: C+

This is the type of game that can really cement a team. They've now come back twice this season in games where they were down by two or more scores. That's tough to do in this league, and something Jon's teams have had problems with since he's been here. This game is proof positive that the Bucs have a very good team, as bad teams don't come back like that.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home