Week 2: Vs. Atlanta Falcons

Bucs Defense Dominates Supposedly Highly Touted Falcons, Media Darlings Pout As They Lose 24-9.

The Bucs supplied plenty of pop Sunday as held the Falcons to just three field goals from inside the red zone. All of the elements were there: strong pass rushing, two interceptions, great running game, and the typical come from behind feel of the Bucs being broadcast on FOX. The Bucs never trailed, having scored a touchdown off an interception that put the offense in great field position and provided Tampa with a lead they never relinquished. You wouldn't have known that from the how the broadcasters responded, however. 

Even in the end, while the Bucs defense was finishing the job of dismantling the Falcons, the FOX commentators were trying to think of ways to not give the Tampa any credit for the win, scheming ways that Atlanta could possibly get back in the game. This carried on even through the Bucs sacking QB Matt Ryan on a 4th and long play. "You have to love this young man", speaking of Atlanta's rookie QB, "through this tough game he's never let his head hang down." Bullshit. He was smothered out there. But c'mon folks, hats off to the offensive coordinator! Give me a fucking break. Hats off to Monte Fucking Kiffin for dialing the proper defensive coverage to keep Atlanta out of the endzone for 60 minutes. How about that? 

I had a great time yelling at the TV as the Bucs creamed the Falcons play after play. Here is how I think they did in particular...

Quarterbacks: B

There was a lot of murmuring this week not only in Tampa but throughout the nation about Jon Grudens controversial decision to bench veteran QB Jeff Garcia in favor of fellow journeyman Brian Griese. Though the decision was made on Tuesday of last week, Garcia came out in the media saying that he was not too injured to play and wished he was given the opportunity to "work through" his problems on the field. This decision threw me for a bit of a loop as well, prompting me to write an article that began as an informative piece on the QB change and ended up as a rail against Gruden himself.

Whatever the implications, Griese held the line in his first start, completing 18 of 31 for 160 yards and a touchdown. He wasn't helped by a number of dropped passes from Alex Smith and Antonio Bryant, though. He did overthrow a number of great down field passes, however, including a huge one to Joey Galloway that would have been a sure 6 points. All in all he performed well. 

The true intrigue begins now that Gruden has announced that Griese will start next week in Chicago. Hmmmm.... I wonder what Garcia will say about that to the media...

Runningbacks: A

Earnest Graham rushed for a solid 116 yards and a touchdown, including a 68 yard tear on one carry. Warrick Dunn strung together 49 yards for a crucial touchdown, his long being the 17 yard run that earned him that TD. The stats speak for themselves. The running game dominated the field Sunday, proving that the combo of Graham and Dunn is a serious threat to score on any given carry. 

This combination will be huge for us down the stretch as teams with one featured back like Minnesota and San Diego start to see the carries add up as their star runningbacks begin to succumb to injury later in the season. Graham had 15 carries and Dunn had 12. Perfect. Each stays fresh and ready to work on the next play while they each offer different traits that linebackers have to worry about. Beautiful!

Recievers: C 

It was an up and down game for our receiving corps. A lot of dropped passes and clutch catches. Tight End John Gilmore lead the Bucs in receiving yards with 41 yards for one touchdown. Yeah, it was that kind of day. For the second straight week Joey Galloway was a none factor, catching two passes for 18 yards. He was missed a couple times on deep routes by Griese, but his presence in the medium to short game was very unimpressive. This leads me believe that Galloway may be injured in some way because he can't seem to be able to get open quickly enough to be an option on many passing downs. Galloway left the game in the 4th quarter due to an ankle sprain.

Ike Hilliard put together a nice outing, catching 4 passes for 41 yards. What the stats don't tell you is that all of these catches were clutch, with many of them being on 3rd down. He is quickly rising to the top as our go to guy on the field.

Oh, and drop addled Micheal Clayton caught a pass for 6 yards! And then promptly spent the rest of the game struggling to get open. Hi Ho.

Offensive Line: A

When your QB only gets sacked twice against a defensive end like John Abraham you're doing your job. When you block to allow for 164 yards rushing you're doing it well. String that together and you get to see how good this O line is beginning to get. Jeremy Zuttah redeemed himself this week, helping hold back Atlanta's large defensive line. These guys can do a lot better than they are doing now. They are really starting pick up the pace. Look to next week for another strong showing.

Defensive Line: B

Despite not getting the maximum pressure they are capable of, the D line managed to pummel the FOX poster boy Matt Ryan 4 times, 2 of which were tacked on by human monster defensive end Gaines Adams. Against the rush they were decent, stopping some runs in the backfield but allowing most to pass to the linebackers and secondary. They gave the Falcons offensive line trouble all day, often coming within inches of Ryan before he released the ball. Greg White turned in a great performance as well. Bravo, boys!

Linebackers: B

Barret RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUD has a great showing, clocking 8 solo tackles and 5 assists. He always finds a way to get to the ball and Sunday was no different. The linebackers were generally responsible for holding runningback Micheal Turner to only 42 yards, down from the franchise high 220 yards he racked up against Detroit next week. Along with Cato June and Derrick Brooks, the line backers allowed only 106 yards rushing on the day. Good stuff.

Defensive Backs: A

This crew turned in some great business. Rookie cornerback Aqib Talib intercepted his first pass in the NFL as well as deflected one as well. Ronde Barber put up 3 solo tackles and kept Falcons receivers covered up for most of the game. While tackling well, Matt Ryan picked on starting left corner Phillip Buchanon, allowing Falcons receiver Roddy White to break from coverage and catch several clutch passes. 

One big standout was the play of second year safety Sabby Piscitelli. Check these stats: 2 solo tackles, 2 forced fumbles, 1 pass deflection, and 1 interception. Solid play. I like Sabby a lot. He reminds he a lot of a young John Lynch. But his bone head play in the 3rd quarte could have cost us a lot.

Sabby forced a fumble by dislodging the ball from runningback Jerious Norwood. The ball fell on the ground, only to be recovered Sabby as well. Your boy then, with his knees still off the ground (a.k.a. still in play), attempted (and accomplished) an illegal forward pass. This illegal pass rolls on the ground, now live. The Falcons recover. And gain about 12 yards in the process. Most player are called for this in college bacaue the rules are different. 

In college, a player is considered down and out of play when their knees touch the ground. Some players try to make the most of a fumble by "bumping" the ball forward toward another one of their players that are still up and running in the hope that they will pick the ball up and advance it farther. It's still illegal in college, but, like most interactions between players and refs, it's all a matter of selling it.

I don't know what went through Sabby's mind when he tried that gimmick, but I can guarantee that it won't happen again. He's probably sitting in the film room right now watching that play over and over again, having to face the music.

All in all, though, the defensive backs provided great coverage of the passing game as well as plenty of support for the running game. Next week we'll get to pick off Kyle Orton. Can't wait.

Special Teams: A

Special teams did their job this week. Josh Bidwell did hid usual job of earning Pro Bowl rights by punting his ass off. Matt Bryant kicked off well and hit a 33 yard field goal right through the middle, once again disproving over dramatic "journalist" and book burning hypocite Martin Fennelly. Coverage was as good as can be expected. Kickoff and punt returner rookie Dexter Jackson had a couple of good returns but other wise just fell on his face a lot.

Coaching: A

For once I don't really have much to say about Gruden or his playcalling. Halftime adjustments were pretty good and the Bucs kept a handle on the Falcons in check throughout the game. Monte Kiffin kept up the pace as always, sending in the right players and guiding the Bucs to their first victory by securing turnovers and keeping the Bucs offense on the field. 

Conclusion

The Bucs looked great defensively this week. We kept Atlanta to three field goals on three redzone shots. That looks a lot like the Bucs defense of a few years back. Offensively, we managed the game well and kept the ball in our hands or in the endzone. If we keep this up, we may be yelling at the TV, telling the commentators on the Superbowl broadcast to shut the hell up. The Bucs are here to win, bitches! 

(photo courtesy of AP photo/ Reinhold Matay)