After finishing short of an NFC Championship appearance, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers looked to make positive strides in the offseason in hopes of going further in the playoffs.
Defensive star and starting strong safety Antoine Winfield Jr. became the highest-paid defensive back in the league during the offseason and said that he wanted to see this defense lead the league and be one of, if not, the best unit in the NFL.
Winfield’s vision hasn’t come to fruition as the season has progressed and the secondary defense ranks near the bottom in almost every category. Questions have risen as to what has gone wrong within the room.
Granted, injuries have played a massive part in hindering the defense. Season-ending injuries to cornerback Bryce Hall in Week 1 and linebacker SirVocea Dennis in Week 4 impacted meaningful depth. Secondary defensemen Tykee Smith and Jamel Dean missed several games with injuries. Dean’s ailment called for a stint on injured reserve, keeping him sidelined for at least four games.
The unit being fully healthy has been elusive. The defense has been spread so thin that even a star like Winfield has been whiffing on tackles and caught out of position in critical downs.
Coming off a much-needed Week 11 bye, pass game coordinator Larry Foote discussed what he’s seen from the defense as it pertained to missing tackles.
“You’ve really got to concentrate on everybody getting to the ball – that’s just my belief. Sometimes, kind of like baseball, you go into a slump. Winfield – he hasn’t missed a lot of tackles, and it seems like he’s missed a majority of his tackles in one season than he did through all of his career,” said Foote. “It’s tough. We’ve got to concentrate. More hats to the ball – it’s tough to bring guys down in this league. We gave up some big plays by some missed tackles, and we all know that. We’ve got to take one more step, we’ve got to harp on the fundamentals – wrapping guys up, keep your head up. The main thing to focus on is getting off of blocks. We need more hats to the ball.”
As the team heads back to One Buc Place to begin their preparations for a Week 12 matchup against the New York Giants, the defense looks to hit the reset button, start the second half of the season on a strong note, and dispel any doubts of what the unit can look like.
As the adage goes, “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”
And for the Bucs, a strong finish creates the opportunity to play meaningful football in January.
After finishing short of an NFC Championship appearance, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers looked to make positive strides in the offseason in hopes of going further in the playoffs.
Defensive star and starting strong safety Antoine Winfield Jr. became the highest-paid defensive back in the league during the offseason and said that he wanted to see this defense lead the league and be one of, if not, the best unit in the NFL.
Winfield’s vision hasn’t come to fruition as the season has progressed and the secondary defense ranks near the bottom in almost every category. Questions have risen as to what has gone wrong within the room.
Granted, injuries have played a massive part in hindering the defense. Season-ending injuries to cornerback Bryce Hall in Week 1 and linebacker SirVocea Dennis in Week 4 impacted meaningful depth. Secondary defensemen Tykee Smith and Jamel Dean missed several games with injuries. Dean’s ailment called for a stint on injured reserve, keeping him sidelined for at least four games.
The unit being fully healthy has been elusive. The defense has been spread so thin that even a star like Winfield has been whiffing on tackles and caught out of position in critical downs.
Coming off a much-needed Week 11 bye, pass game coordinator Larry Foote discussed what he’s seen from the defense as it pertained to missing tackles.
“You’ve really got to concentrate on everybody getting to the ball – that’s just my belief. Sometimes, kind of like baseball, you go into a slump. Winfield – he hasn’t missed a lot of tackles, and it seems like he’s missed a majority of his tackles in one season than he did through all of his career,” said Foote. “It’s tough. We’ve got to concentrate. More hats to the ball – it’s tough to bring guys down in this league. We gave up some big plays by some missed tackles, and we all know that. We’ve got to take one more step, we’ve got to harp on the fundamentals – wrapping guys up, keep your head up. The main thing to focus on is getting off of blocks. We need more hats to the ball.”
As the team heads back to One Buc Place to begin their preparations for a Week 12 matchup against the New York Giants, the defense looks to hit the reset button, start the second half of the season on a strong note, and dispel any doubts of what the unit can look like.
As the adage goes, “It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”
And for the Bucs, a strong finish creates the opportunity to play meaningful football in January.
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