Yearly Archives: 2020

Buccaneers

20th Anniversary of the Bert Emanuel Catch

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The Date: January 23, 2000.
The game: 1999 NFC Championship game
The Location: Trans World Airlines (TWA) Dome St. Louis, MO
St. Louis Rams 11
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 6 Final

Although the St. Louis Rams lead the league in offensive yards and points scored, which led to their historical nickname of “The Greatest Show on Turf” being coined, they faced a team that was known for the most losses in history. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, however, left those losses where they belong, in the past, and became known for something much greater; the Tampa 2 defense.

For fans and organization, it was a long-awaited trip to the NFC Championship, who coincidentally made last made their last appearance 20 seasons ago against the same team, although then called the Los Angeles Rams in the sold-out Tampa Stadium losing 9-0. Payback was on the minds of every Tampa Fan.

Backup quarterback, Shaun King started for the injured and often inconsistent Trent Dilfer, with 5 games remaining in the season and helped continue the Buccaneers to an 11-5 record, which surpassed the 1979 team’s record by one win, winning 4 out of the last five games of that season.

Today, marks the 20th Anniversary of the Bert Emanuel catch. Needless to say, unless you have been living under a rock, the Emannuel catch rocked the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and fans to their very core.

Late in the NFC Championship Game, the Buccaneers were getting close to Rams Red Zone when quarterback Shaun King threw a pass to wide receiver Bert Emanuel. That’s when everything got tricky. As the NFL’s instant replay was in its infancy, many results were pretty bad, but this particular one changed the course of NFL history forever. The pass was caught, so everyone believed, and by everyone, I mean the fans in the stadium, the players on the field, the coaches for both teams, John Madden and Patt Summerall, but much to the surprise of everyone, the referees were reviewing the play.

The pass was a 13-yard connection to Bert Emanuel to the 22-yard line, which would have resulted in moving the chains. I can still hear John Madden’s words during the referee review as they echo through my soul, “Yeah that’s good, nothing wrong there, I don’t think you can take that away from him.”

Despite the referees initially calling the ruling the pass complete, after reviewing the play and suspecting that the nose of the ball touched the Astroturf before Emanuel had full possession of the ball, head referee, Bill Carollo determined that the play was incomplete and ended the Buccaneers’ potential game-winning drive. This situation changed the way the NFL looks at catches during reviews, as it was later determined that although it does look like the nose did touch the turf, Emanuel had full control of the football, and it was a catch which is called the Bert Emanuel Rule.

The Rams went on to win the game and went on to win Super Bowl XXXIV. The rest is history.  – Written By Erik Riggs

 

 

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Godwin and Evans Won’t Play in The Pro Bowl.

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Having to deal with hamstring injuries, neither Chris Godwin or Mike Evans will be playing in this year’s Pro Bowl.

Evans sustained his injury against the Indianapolis Colts on December 8th, 2019, and was eventually placed on the injured reserve on December,18th ending his season. Mike Evans had a great first season in Bruce Arians’ offensive system catching 67 passes for 1,157 yards and 8 touchdowns.

Although Evans had a great 2019, it was Chris Godwin that caught the eye of everyone. Godwin’s seasons was his best to date. He caught 86 passes for 1,333 yards and 9 touchdowns, which earned him PFF’s highest receiver grade on January the 4th. Godwin finished the season early with a devastating hamstring on December 15th against the Detroit Lions. Head Coach Bruce Arians made it abundantly clear that getting Chris Godwin a contract extension will be a Buccaneer priority. -Per Scott Smith, Senior Writer for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Despite neither being able to play in this Pro Bowl, it’s amazing to see two Buccaneer receivers voted in for the first time in franchise history. However, the Buccaneers will have a representative on the field as Sack Master Shaq Barrett was voted in as well and will be out there having some fun!

Greg Auman of the Athletic was the first to bring everyone the sad news about Godwin and Evans.

 

 

 

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Shaq Barrett: Confident He Will Remain In Tampa

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There’s no doubt in anyone’s mind that Shaq Barrett wants to remain a Tampa Bay Buccaneer, and why not? He not only had the chance to start on defense, but he also had the chance to unleash his inner beast. Shaq Barrett certainly freed this past season, making opposing offenses nervous, especially the quarterback. Barrett recorded a sack, whether a whole sack, multiple sacks, or a half-sack; in 12 games last season. He only went sackless four times. His performance earned him the top spot in Buccaneers franchise history and put him atop the league with 19.5 sacks. Shaq Barrett worked out better than anyone could have imagined.

A perfect fit in Todd Bowles’ system is exactly what he is and will remain to be, so getting this guy back on this football team has to be a top priority. I don’t believe he will demand a mountain of cash so he can dive into his bank vault-like Scrooge McDuck, but Barrett knows he is about to get paid.

“I’m not thinking about the exact values I just know whatever it is is going to set me up and my family for the rest of our lives. It will take care of my kids and their kids,” Barrett said per the Tampa Bay Buccaneers official website. “I’m here right now, just taking advantage of this next step right now, I don’t know where it’s going to end up at, but I’m confident that I’m going to be where I should be, which is Tampa. It’s up to Tampa Bay right now, whatever they want to do. We’re on board with them, and our plan is to get whatever we can out of anybody, but I’d be planning on Tampa. I’m planning on Tampa. I don’t know if it’s going to be done before March, but I love that confidence that it gives me. I’m just ready to get it done and start building my life in Tampa and being here for the long haul.”

Barrett finished the season with one interception, six forced fumbles, 58 tackles, two passes defended, and of course, 19.5 sacks.

There plenty of upsides when it comes to Barrett, and Tampa will surely look to lock him up in a hefty contract, but if not, there should be quite a few teams looking to snag the sack master for the 2020 season. Bruce Arians made it clear that Shaq wasn’t going anywhere and that he would like to bring back everyone on that defensive line as well, to continue the onslaught generated from the trenches and the outside.

“The sky’s the limit! I’m so excited about the potential of bringing certain people back or almost everybody back and seeing where we could go because we made a lot of progress throughout the year. We’ve still got a lot of progress that we can make, and that’s what’s scary.” said Barrett via the Tampa Bay Buccaneers official Website.

Barrett may not have won Defensive Player of the Year per the NFL, but was given the honor by Pro Football Talk, NBC Sports back on January the first. Despite, not making the official list yet, he is still the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Defensive Player of the Year and maybe even the decade.

 

 

Buccaneers

The Bucs Should Be Taking Notes From Playoff Team’s Run Game

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If we look at the playoff teams his year, especially the final four, all have something in common. They all have a good running game. That is something that the Tampa Bay Buccaneers need to take note of. The two games from this weekend showed that having a running game can change a team’s game plan. The Buccaneers showed once again this year that they were virtually one dimensional on offense. Now I am not blaming all of the offense blunders on the lack of a running game, but I think it played a big role. Especially, when you have a quarterback who has issues with turning the ball over like Jameis Winston. Last season, Winston had 30 interceptions with 7 returned for touchdowns along with fumbling issues. If Peyton Barber and Ronald Jones had been more productive, maybe the turnovers wouldn’t have been there; which, could have led to more wins.

The Tennessee Titans were 9-7 and qualified for the playoffs as a wild card team this year. One of the biggest factors was Derek Henry and the running game, propelling their rushing offense to rank 3rd overall in the NFL. The Titans averaged 139 yards per game as Henry had 1,540 yards on 303 carries for an average of 5.1 yards a carry.

Let’s look at that. When the football was handed to Henry, he could pick up half of the yards needed to move the sticks, in the first two rounds of the playoffs this was evident for everyone to see. The Titans ran right into Foxboro and defeated the defending Super Bowl champions. The week after that, they went to Baltimore and beat the best team in the AFC.

The San Francisco 49ers were 13-3 and the top team in the NFC. Like the Titans, they had one of the league’s premier rushing attacks, the 49ers rushing attack was 2nd overall in the NFL, averaging 144 yards per game. The 49ers had two backs that carried most of the load with Raheem Mostert and Tevin Coleman. Mostert, so far this season, had 772 yards and is averaging 5.6 yards per carry, Coleman has 544 yards and is averaging 4 yards per carry. Both of these gentlemen have one more game left on February 2nd. Their opponent, of course, is the Kansas City Chiefs who were able to slow down Derek Henry. Like the Titans, the 49ers have been able to move down the field easily, keeping their opponent’s defense on their toes and on the field.

Right now, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers should be thinking, “Hey, this would help out our offense that relies too much on the pass.” The Buccaneers rushing game averaged 95 yards a game, which was good for 24th in the NFL. On the flip side, they were the top-ranked passing team in the NFL. The Buccaneers had a running game by a committee with Ronald Jones, Peyton Barber, Dare Ogunbowale, and Jameis Winston, all contributing to the yards gained on the ground, but failed to have a 1,000-yard rusher.

The player who finished with the most yards, Ronald Jones, ended the season with 724. In fact, the last time the Buccaneers had a 1,000 yard rusher was 2015 with Doug Martin, who finished with 1,402 yards. That was five years ago. This is something that Jason Licht and Bruce Arians need to address in the draft and the off-season. Maybe with the 14th pick draft, they should select J.K. Dobbins out of Ohio State, who could help boost the running game.

In this writer’s opinion, this has been a problem, outside of Doug Martin, since Mike Alstott and Warrick Dunn were in the backfield. Maybe if they could get a threatening run game going, it would make the decision to bring back Jameis Winston look a lot better, but we will have to sit back and see.

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Thunder and Lightning?

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Jameis Winston led the league in 2019 with 30 interceptions, but the Buccaneers failed him by not putting together an adequate run game. The Buccaneers need to be able to run the ball efficiently in 2020 in order to be successful. Ronald Jones would be the feature back as the season came to a close. Peyton Barber is a UFA, so who will compliment Jones in 2020?

The rumors are flying that Arizona Cardinals’ running back David Johnson could be the perfect fit in Tampa Bay’s offense. Head Coach Bruce Arians would obviously love to bring in Johnson, considering he played for him in Arizona. Johnson is under contract for the next two seasons. He will be a UFA in 2022. He is due to make close to $11 million this season and $7.9 million next season. Johnson is 28 years old but has been plagued with some injuries. The Cardinals acquired Kenyan Drake last season, so the Cardinals could just cut David Johnson.

Why does it make sense? JoeBucsFan.com believes this a no-brainer for the Buccaneers. Johnson could be brought in on a 1-year contract making $3 million-plus some incentives to prove he can still be effective. Ronald Jones has proven he can run the ball every down, but he needs someone to compliment him. David Johnson would take the Buccaneers to another level on the ground in 2020.

Around the NFL

Around the NFL: Sherman/Revis at it again

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It wasn’t long after the 49ers beat the Packers to advance to Super Bowl LIV, former All-Pro corner Darrelle Revis was on Twitter taking shots at Richard Sherman…..AGAIN! If you have followed football longer than a day than you know that these two stars have been at it over the years as to who’s the best corner in the game.

Revis who tweeted speaking on Sherman’s “fear of getting beat in man to man coverage” after the game. Sherman responded in a savage way to continue the beef telling Revis,

“I would go in on this has been but I have a Super Bowl to prepare for. Enjoy the view from the couch. Your ninth year looked a lot different than this. Lmao”

The Twitter beef did continue with Revis attempting to put some stats out about his ninth season as he said “My 9th year I lead the entire league in turnovers. 5 Ints and 4 Fumble Recoveries.” Sherman’s response again was savage as he told Revis, “I get my hands on the football in the playoffs something you will never know anything about” while later stating Revis has “selective memory” while posting up a picture of Revis giving up a big play to Buffalo Bills receiver Marquis Goodwin.

Just to put things into perspective about what Revis’ ninth NFL season (2015) had looked like compared to Sherman’s ninth season(2019)

2015: Revis coming off his lone Super Bowl (XLIX) trip, which was a victory with the Patriots (ironically against Sherman and the Seattle Seahawks), and being named 2013 SN Comeback Player of the Year in his lone season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was beginning his second stint with the New York Jets. Revis at the time already had 28 INTs and 3 TDs to go with his 131 passes defended.

Currently, in his ninth season, the former “Legion of Boom” member is preparing for his third Super Bowl in his career (Super Bowl XLVIII, XLIX w/ Seattle). During Sherman’s nine seasons in the NFL, he has the most interceptions (35) and passes defended (114) of any active player in the NFL. (In 14 playoff games, Sherman has not allowed a single touchdown while recording 12 pass deflections and 4 interceptions).

 

Below are some of the Fun back and forth between the two:

 

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Rumor Mill: Does Philip Rivers to Tampa even make sense?

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Much like every off-season, the news is in short supply, and small stories can be blown out of proportion. The latest occurrence of this situation is the news that long-time Chargers quarterback Philip Rivers has moved to the state of Florida. Of course, after hearing such news, fans and media alike began to speculate that the aging quarterback would be playing for one of the three Florida teams this coming season. Would he be a good fit for Tampa?

Let’s take a look at the stat lines. In many ways, Winston and Rivers had a very similar season. Rivers threw for a whopping 4,615 yards, 23 TDs, and 20 INTs. Winston, as many of us know, threw for 5,109 yards, 33 TDs, and 30 INTs. Both QB’s have that “boom or bust” quality to them. Every throw could warrant something incredible or something disastrous. Although Jameis has a slight edge in stat lines, they are generally very similar to each other, and it would be tough to make a decision on stats alone.


In my opinion, Philip Rivers is a 38-year-old, declining QB. The most you will get out of him is another 2 seasons. We know what he is, he’s played 16 seasons in the NFL, there is no changing what he is at this point in his career. Tampa making a move for Rivers makes little sense because you are essentially trading in a young, promising QB, for someone who may only play one more season. He would also have to learn a brand new system in Tampa, and we all know how difficult Arians’ system is to pick up on. Adding in a previously turnover prone QB, who only has 1 season left, is not what Tampa needs. Keep Jameis Winston, in whatever capacity, (Contract extension/Franchise tag), and start building this team around him.

 

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Rough Waters in Tampa

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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers became part of the NFL in 1976. The Buccaneers finished their inaugural season with a record of 0-14. This would be good enough for the last place in the division. I know most of you are shocked by that outcome. The Buccaneers would have only two winning seasons from 1976-1996.

The Buccaneers would turn things around from 1997-2007. The Dungy and Gruden Eras would bring seven playoff appearances, which included the ultimate prize in 2002. These are considered the “Golden Years” for our beloved Bucs. The Buccaneers were loaded with talent in 2002 but needed the right guy to lead them to the promised land. Jon Gruden was the man for the job. The ultimate prize would lead to several years of disappointment for the Buccaneers again. They have not made the playoffs since 2007.

Enough from the past, let’s look at the 2019 Buccaneers. This was a big year for our franchise. When I say franchise, I mean number 1 pick, Jameis Winston. What will he do with Bruce Arians whispering in his helmet? The Buccaneers quarterback threw for 5,000 yards and 30 touchdowns. Outstanding right? Not so fast, Winston threw 30 interceptions to accompany those eye-popping statistics. Can we rely on him to figure it out for the future?

There is no doubt in my mind that Winston WILL be the franchise quarterback for the Buccaneers from 2020 and beyond. Next season, I believe the Byron Leftwich offense will lean on the run game and short passes. I see the Buccaneers mirroring the Titans offense that has made Ryan Tannehill look like Tom Brady. Tampa Bay will lean on Ronald Jones to carry the load in 2020. A good run game is exactly what Winston needs to be successful. Jameis Winston has arguably the best receiving core in the entire NFL. The combination of Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and O.J. Howard can keep any defensive coordinator up at night.

The Buccaneers came on strong at the end of the season. They would finish the campaign with a 7-9 record (2nd Place). Matt Gay solidifies the kicking game. The defense will hopefully bring back Sack Barrett and Ndamukong Suh. We haven’t seen a defensive front like that since 2002. Tampa Bay was a missed kick and two terrible officiating calls from making the playoffs in 2019, so there should be growing excitement for next season. Stay positive and trust that Bruce Arians can get us to the playoffs once again. Go Bucs!

Fan Feature

Grow up…Now!

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It is truly sad when I breeze through the comment sections of posts about Jameis Winston. The amount of immature comments is mind-blowing!

I’ve mentioned this in other articles, but man, Rome wasn’t built in a day! This means that just because you want the Bucs to win, doesn’t change the fact that anyone who would be our starting quarterback would need time to grow, mature, learn, etc.

All of his interceptions make me fill up with rage just as much as the next guy, but some seem to not realize how young he is! Yes, it’s been five years, but young people need to grow in their understanding and their abilities in life in general; but it seems as though, “we gotta win now!” is more important.

Do you remember that Super Bowl that we enjoyed? Yeah, some of you fans kinda fell butt backward into that glory!

Others, such as myself, have suffered many defeats, interceptions, fumbles, coaches, horrible offenses, rain-soaked games, ridicule from opposing fans as they marched out of our stadium with shouts of victory.

So I say to those of you fans that want Winston gone: “Grow up right now! No process! No time to learn! Whatever it is you do in life… be the best-perfected person you are meant to be, but skip the learning process because you are interrupting my life, and I’m mad…”

Do you see my point? Stop and look at who we have and what he’s been doing at such a young age!

Cheer for him. Stop judging him as though you could do better, or that there is an “instant” recipe that would make your fandom better!
Hey Jameis Winston, keep striving to be the best you, you can be! Trust the process and your coach.

Get those turnovers fixed, and we’ll dominate the league!
As always, Go Bucs!

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Steve Young: I think Jameis is their future.

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Doug Williams, Trent Dilfer, and Steve Young all have two things in common; they played for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and they went on to win Super Bowls with another team. Could that happen with Jameis Winston? Steve Young believes that the Buccaneers would be nuts to find out.

“I think they would be nuts to turn the corner from Jameis. I think Jameis is their future, let’s re-sign him, let’s get him coached up to get rid of all the recklessness, and let’s go all in.”

Those are some big words from a big-time quarterback.

There’s no doubt that Jameis Winston has all the potential in the world to become the quarterback that Bucs fans can appreciate. While many do appreciate him, others believe that there is no way to stop Jameis Winston from playing with what seems at times to be reckless abandonment. But as Steve Young pointed out, his recklessness at times was just downright spectacular.

Many point to Jameis Wintons 30 interceptions as proof that the young man, who is in heading into his 6th season and he is only 26 years of age, cannot be successful in this league, especially for Tampa. Film review by Trevor Sikkema of Pewter Report has clearly shown that a little more than half of the interceptions were, in fact, Jameis Winston’s fault. But that is not enough to steer the minds of fans who are dead set on not giving the young man who came in the league under so much pressure. Let’s not forget how heavy his situation was. Multiple head coaches, ever-changing scheme, with only two constants, before Arians’ arrival, three offensive coaches and backlash from fans over sexual misconduct allegations. It’s a lot for a young man to go through.

As 50/50 as I have been about Jameis this season, keeping Jameis Winston makes more sense rather than drafting a new quarterback and starting over, as it seems to be the theme in Tampa, whether it be coaching or quarterbacks.