TAMPA, Fla. — If there's one thing we learned about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-4) in their last outing, it's that the team's offense is still lethal. But playing offense can only get you so far if players on the other side of the ball aren't doing their part.
The Bucs' defense has allowed 30 or more points in three of the last four games, while the offense has put up more than 30 points in four of the last five games.
Complementary football is critical for a team to stack up wins and make the playoffs. Head coach Todd Bowles knows his defense has issues to fix to get back in the winning column, but it's easier said than done.
“It’s personal as a group – it’s not just for me," Bowles said. "I’m not trying to do well for myself, I’m trying to do well for the team and win. We’re making strides. We can make 62 good plays and five bad plays, and it goes haywire. We’ve got to cut out the bad plays. We understand that. We’re working on it daily. If we cut out the bad plays and play the rest of the game, we’ll be OK. We’ve just got to cut out the bad ones. We Just gotta keep working. Keep your head down, making sure they can do the things they can do, cross your T’s and dot your I’s. Make sure they’re coming around and understand everything and make sure they’re in position. They’ve got to make plays. It’s a constant process of coaching it better and playing it better.”
The Bucs' defensive issue lies in the trenches, with pass rushers failing to get to the opposing quarterback. Outside linebackers Yaya Diaby and Joe Tryon-Shoyinka have shown in multiple games that they are unable to put pressure on the quarterback quickly. This puts the team's secondary in a tough position to cover offensive players during extended plays — and it'll only be more challenging when they face an undefeated Kansas City Chiefs (7-0) on Monday night.
The Chiefs are led by three-time Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes along with offensive weapons Travis Kelce, the rejuvenated Kareem Hunt and new addition DeAndre Hopkins. This is on top of the team playing without starting running back Isiah Pacheco and No. 1 wide receiver Rashee Rice due to injuries.
Giving a quarterback like Mahomes plenty of time to look down the field is something Tampa Bay cannot allow.
“I think he sees the game so much better," Bowles said of Mahomes. "Obviously, since he’s older, he’ll see it a lot better, but he sees stunts at the line, he knows when he can take off, he knows where the line of scrimmage is when to dump the ball off. He knows what to do to win the game. He’s not really looking for stats, he’s looking to win the ballgame. That’s very rare as a quarterback. That’s a winning formula. The ability – the athletic ability – he has is unquestioned with his arm and his legs. He can see the game. It comes easy to him. He makes all 11 guys play honest and be on their A-game to beat him.”
On the other hand, Kansas City poses problems for a Tampa Bay offense that will be without Mike Evans and Chris Godwin.
Bucs tight end Cade Otton was the team's top receiver against Atlanta, logging nine receptions for 81 yards and two touchdowns. The Bucs have also been creative with the usage of Rachaad White and Bucky Irving in the running and passing game.
On Monday night, White and Irving will face a Chiefs-run defense that is among the best in the league.
Quarterback Baker Mayfield knows he also has to do his part in making sure Kansas City stays aware of Tampa Bay's attack in the run and passing game.
"Their defense is a unit that, you can tell, plays for each other, plays for that team, and they have great players on all levels," Mayfield said. "Obviously, up front, you’ve got [George] Karlaftis and Chris Jones that can be your game wreckers, and those linebackers are flying around, and the defensive backs – I mean, a lot of them are interchangeable, but that’s what ‘Spags’ (Steve Spagnuolo) wants to do. He wants those guys to be able to do every single job, give you the same look and run a completely different scheme. They do a really good job of playing with each other, of showing you different looks and presenting it certain ways. So we just have to – for me, it’s reading my keys, going through it one step at a time and understanding what scheme or concept we have on and trust those reads.”
Mayfield was able to throw for more than 300 yards and recorded three touchdown passes against Atlanta with Evans and Godwin sidelined, but threw two interceptions in critical areas of the field. He understands he needs to stop turning the ball over to give his team a better chance of winning games. Accumulate that by getting young receivers involved in the game early, such as Jalen McMillan and Trey Palmer, Mayfield believes his team can get a result in what will be a noisy atmosphere inside Arrowhead.
"Guys have to be dialed into the plan, everybody has to know it even more so, because in the huddle you might not hear everything," Mayfield said. "That’s just the environment going into it. For us, it’s just focus, one play at a time, and not get ahead of yourselves, hearing every word in the huddle and going from there.”
Watch the game on ABC Action News this Monday night. Our pre-game coverage, ABC Action News Redzone, starts at 7 p.m. and can be found on over-the-air and all our streaming platforms.
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