A new Pewter Report Roundtable debuts every Tuesday on PewterReport.com. Each week, the Pewter Reporters tackle another tough question. This week’s prompt: Which Bucs player must shine in primetime against the Falcons in Atlanta on Thursday Night Football?
Scott Reynolds: This Could Be A Dominant, Pro Bowl Season For Vita Vea
DT Vita Vea – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR
Vita Vea has had more statistical success against Atlanta than any other team in his seven-year career in Tampa Bay. So why would that change when the Bucs take on the Falcons in primetime on Thursday night? Vea has totaled five sacks, seven quarterback hits and even caught a touchdown versus the Falcons with that receiving TD also coming in Atlanta when he was lined up at fullback in a 35-22 win in 2019. Wouldn’t that be something if he scored another touchdown against the Falcons this year – this time in primetime?
Vea appears to be a fast healer, missing just one and a half games after suffering a knee injury in Detroit in Week 2. He returned to action against the Eagles in Week 4 and played the most snaps of any defensive tackle and also recorded his first sack of the season. That quarterback capture helped kick off a day in which Tampa Bay’s defense broke a two-game sack slump and erupted with six sacks. Vea was a force in not only holding Eagles running back Saquon Barkley under 100 yards rushing, but also collapsing the pocket on Jalen Hurts and setting up sacks for other Bucs defenders.
After last year’s playoff loss at Detroit, Vea vowed to come back in 2024 in better shape and reportedly shed at least 20 pounds this offseason. As a result he’s quicker and more agile this year and has been called on to become a more consistently dominant force by Tampa Bay’s coaches. Vea is just scratching the surface on what could be another Pro Bowl season. If he can have another great game against the Falcons like he’s had in the past – and like he had last week versus the Eagles – Vea can help shut down Atlanta’s running game and get a sack or two against Kirk Cousins, who isn’t very mobile. More importantly, Vea could help the Bucs improve to 4-1 with a great game.
Matt Matera: It’s Time For Yaya Diaby To Truly Break Out
Bucs OLB YaYa Diaby and Falcons QB Desmond Ridder – Photo by: USA Today
They say that turnovers come in bunches, but at times sacks can come in bunches as well. I think that might be the case for starting outside linebacker Yaya Diaby, who recorded his first sack and forced fumble of the season last Sunday. It’s been a bit of a slow start for Diaby as far recording sacks. He’s been generating a fair amount of pressures with 21 on the season through four games and it appears he’s turned a corner in getting back on track with taking down the quarterback.
While he hasn’t missed a game, Diaby missed a full month of training camp from August to September. His ankle is healed up, but the missed reps may have caused him to knock some rust off when the regular season came around. Diaby is relied upon to be the top edge rusher for the Bucs. Tampa Bay had only two sacks before rattling off six on Sunday. That might just be the catalyst that the defense need.
Heading into the Thursday night game, this is a fantastic opportunity for Diaby to has his imprint all over this divisional matchup. Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins is a statue with his lack of mobility. He’s not going to be able to escape the pocket the way other quarterbacks have this season. With Diaby’s ability to generate pressure, Cousins isn’t avoiding Diaby when he gets to him in the pocket. Should Tampa Bay be able to get pressure up front, it opens up the door for several possibilities for Todd Bowles to call up different looks. This might be a game were Diaby gets more than one sack.
Bailey Adams: Mike Evans Needs To Keep Being A Falcons Killer
Bucs WR Mike Evans and Falcons CB AJ Terrell – Photo by: USA Today
The Bucs were wise to get Mike Evans involved right from the jump in Sunday’s win over the Eagles. After he was targeted just three times in the Week 3 loss to the Broncos, Evans was targeted on Tampa Bay’s first offensive play against Philadelphia, and he would go on to catch eight passes on 14 targets for 94 yards (all team-highs) and a touchdown. When the team heads up to Atlanta on a short week, keeping Evans firmly at the forefront of the offense once again would be smart — especially considering his history against the Falcons.
Over 18 career games against Atlanta, Evans has 92 catches for 1,407 yards and 11 touchdowns. Those 1,407 yards are his second-most against any team, while the 11 touchdowns are tied for his most against one team. Even after being limited to one catch on six targets for just eight yards in the last meeting with the Falcons, Evans still averages 5.1 catches and 78.2 yards against the Dirty Birds in his career.
Playing in line with those averages — or even better, going over 100 yards for the first time this year — in addition to bringing in a touchdown or two would go a long way toward a Bucs primetime victory. Since 2020, the Bucs are 9-3 in games when Evans scores multiple touchdowns (after somewhat hilariously being 3-6 in such games between 2014 and 2019). So, for as much as it helps to get Chris Godwin going and see him be the chain-mover for the offense, getting big No. 13 in the end zone typically means good things for Tampa Bay. A big day for the Bucs legend could just be the key to getting the team to 4-1.
Josh Queipo: Yeah, It’s Obviously Baker Mayfield
Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today
The Atlanta Falcons currently rank 19th in the league in drop back EPA/play allowed. And as we have seen over the first four weeks of the season that the Bucs offense goes as the quarterback goes. In Weeks 1 and 4 Baker led a passing attack that unlocked his receivers, the running game, and yes, even the offensive line.
When Mayfield is going everything else gets easier. It will be important for him to get into a rhythm in order to get guys like Chris Godwin, Mike Evans and Rachaad White feeling good about their contributions. And if Mayfield can start out hot and lead the offense to a couple of scores it will allow the defense to pin their ears back and go after the immobile Kirk Cousins on the other side of the ball.
The Bucs threw the ball 67% of the time on first down early in their Week 4 shellacking of the Eagles, 33-16, and those early down throws helped keep the offense ahead of schedule while simultaneously taking pressure off of Mayfield’s shoulders that if he didn’t complete his attempted pass the team still had two more downs to work with. If they continue to do that this week it opens up everything both offensively as well as defensively and sets the team up to win.
Adam Slivon: Chris Godwin Is Vital To Get Going For Bucs’ Offense
Bucs WR Chris Godwin and QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: Cliff Welch P/R
Chris Godwin has had a nice start to the 2024 season in Liam Coen’s offense. Godwin has 27 receptions in four games for 322 receiving yards and three touchdowns. He has been a key playmaker for Baker Mayfield, recording at least six receptions in every game. That run can continue Thursday night, as he has had plenty of success against the Falcons. He has 72 catches on 100 targets for 998 receiving yards and nine touchdowns in 13 games versus the team’s NFC South rival. That is a significant ratio of his career numbers, and he has every chance to keep it going.
Atlanta’s secondary now features Jessie Bates and Justin Simmons at safety and A.J. Terrell at cornerback, but Godwin should be able to affect the game if the defense keys in on Mike Evans. The star veteran wide receiver has been able to get open this season consistently and has shown more explosiveness in his new role than he did under Byron Leftwich and Dave Canales after his ACL tear. When Mayfield needs to make a big throw to move the chains, Godwin has been there with reliable hands. Pro Football Focus backs up that he has been one of the NFL’s best wide receivers this year, grading third out of 121 players with an 89.4.
He has proven that he can again find success and be the perfect complement to Evans back in the slot. Coen has shown that he can get him involved not just for short throws, but game planning opportunities for him to use his short-area quickness to stretch the field. A short week always makes it difficult to formulate a fully cohesive blueprint, but this one is simple. Get the ball to Chris Godwin early and often to set the tone, and the offense is sure to find success.
