The Bucs ran away with a victory late in the game at Carolina in a 26-23 overtime win in Week 13. Amassing 236 yards on the ground, it was their second-highest rushing output of the season, just behind Week 6 when they marched all over the Saints to the tune of 277 yards.

Bucky Irving set a new career high with 152 yards on the ground. Rachaad White added 76 yards on 11 carries, bringing his season-long yards per carry average above four to 4.1.

The team ran early and late, with success building as the game went on.

Bucs Run Game Is Evolving

The best part of Tampa Bay’s run game on Sunday was how the team was running. We documented the early season struggles of the Bucs’ run game were not so much due to who was running the ball, but more so how they were running. Tampa Bay began the season as a zone-heavy team.

Offensive coordinator Liam Coen was trying to get the offense to major in mid-zone. And it just wasn’t working. But as the season has worn on Coen has adapted to his personnel. After all, as he says, “It’s about players, not plays.” The results have been wildly rewarding.

The Bucs have continued to trend to a more gap-heavy team which culminated in 23 gap runs on Sunday to just 12 zone runs. And all of the best runs were of a gap variety.

The Evolution Of Liam Coen

Bucs OC Liam Coen – Photo by: USA Today

The best part is that Liam Coen has not just moved to traditional gap. This isn’t Byron Leftwich’s duo-heavy run game. He’s mixing things up.

Yes, there’s some duo, which are double-team blocks at the point of attack between either the center and a guard or a guard and a tackle. But the Bucs have become a heavy counter team, forcing linebackers to keep their eye-discipline and maintain their gap assignments.

The Bucs are pulling their uber-athletic offensive linemen. Cody Mauch, Ben Bredeson, Tristan Wirfs and Luke Goedeke are all getting opportunities to hit defenders while on the move. The results are incredible.

And Coen is getting into his bag with gap as well.

Crunch isn’t a common run scheme, but you will see it from time to time. The Steelers used to do it a good bit a few years ago. It calls for two wham blocks that earhole defenders with lateral blocks they don’t see coming.

You can see left guard Ben Bredeson execute one on the nose tackle and tight end Cade Otton get to the three-technique with one as well. If center Graham Barton works play side to the safety on his second-level climb this goes for a CHUNK.

But wait, there’s more! Coen is starting to evolve gap as a concept with creative ways to get to more traditional concepts.

Here’s an all-22 angle of what Dan Casey was describing with the closeup.

Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photo by: USA Today

One of the best calling cards of a coach, or any teacher or leader, is their ability to adapt to the circumstances around them. Coen came to Tampa Bay looking to run a base mid-zone run scheme that he had learned from Rams head coach Sean McVay. Funny enough, McVay had already moved away from mid-zone to gap in the last two years.

Coen quickly found that the Bucs offense was more comfortable and efficient running gap as well. And so, he changed to meet them where they were. And in the process, he has started to become an innovator, much like McVay or Detroit’s Ben Johnson.

The arrow is way up on this offense, this run game and this offensive coordinator. And week after week that sentiment keeps getting reinforced.