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About the Author: Joshua Queipo

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Josh Queipo joined the Pewter Report team in 2022, specializing in salary cap analysis and film study. In addition to his official role with the website and podcast, he has an unofficial role as the Pewter Report team’s beaming light of positivity and jokes. A staunch proponent of the forward pass, he is a father to two amazing children and loves sushi, brisket, steak and bacon, though the order changes depending on the day. He graduated from the University of South Florida in 2008 with a degree in finance.
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The Bucs stood toe to toe against one of the best teams in the NFL and held their own for three quarters on Sundyay. It wasn’t a perfect game. The offense ultimately did not score a touchdown, but the defense stood tall until the final quarter. It was an encouraging performance from a team that wasn’t supposed to be encouraging this year. Here are the Bucs’ post-all 22 game grades from their 20-6 loss to the Lions in Week 6.

Quarterback

Bucs Qb Baker Mayfield

Bucs QB Baker Mayfield – Photo by: USA Today

Baker Mayfield did not have a good game. I know it. You know it. He knows it and he said as much in his post-game press conference.

“We sucked today. I sucked today, we sucked today, it was awful – from the get-go. I mean, just – can’t play like that,” Mayfield said. “We didn’t start fast, we didn’t pick it up in the middle, and we didn’t finish strong, so plain and simple we have to be better. The Lions are a good ball club. If we play like that, we’re going to lose every time. I think the defense and special teams did an amazing job yet again, and offense we just need to pick our [play] up – there’s really no other way around it.”

Mayfield had plenty of opportunities to put points on the board as offensive coordinator Dave Canales schemed up multiple deep shots that the quarterback missed on. Mayfield ended the day 2-of-10 on throws of 20+ air yards with three key misses that would have been touchdowns had they hit. While Mayfield continued his 2023 trend of avoiding sacks (only sacked once on 15 pressures), unlike games before, he was unable to extend those plays into highlight-reel positives. Thus, he led the offense to just six points.

Grade: D

Running Backs

Rachaad White touched the ball 10 times against the Lions and gained just 38 yards for his efforts. But looking at the tape, White was not given many opportunities to get more than 2 to 3 yards. On more than one occasion, White picked up more yards than his blocking would have given him. The more he plays, the more it appears he is not a “game-breaking” back. And with what the blocking in front of him allows, the Bucs are less and less likely to have a plus running game.

But in this game, as with most this season, White’s lack of production was less a function of his individual performance and more a function of the surrounding circumstances. He was able to push through the pocket on a rep and on another he was able to gain extra yards after bouncing off of a would-be tackle. But these aren’t consistent parts of his game. White rarely got less than he should have, but also rarely got more.

Ke’Shawn Vaughn as the backup was fine despite the six-carries-for-nine-yards stat line. Similarly to White, he wasn’t handed much to work with. He missed a gap in the third quarter on a well-blocked weak-side zone run.

And there was the memorable rep where the blocking was blown up behind the line of scrimmage (shout out Cade Otton) and Vaughn tried to freelance to get back to zero. Vaughn was unable to find any room and made the poor decision to keep trying to find a crease by moving backwards. He lost seven yards on the play. But there were just as many reps where he made a good read and got extra yards.

Grade: C

Wide Receivers

Bucs Wr Trey Palmer

Bucs WR Trey Palmer – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Most will remember Mike Evans’ key third-down drop early in the game. It was an unfortunate mental mistake that killed a developing drive for the Bucs. But Evans got open on many of his routes throughout the game. There was the deep vertical that Mayfield double-clutched on that led to an interception. Another rep later in the game saw him beat a jam off the line and Mayfield missed him on the right sideline.

Chris Godwin had a fantastic game, hauling in six of his seven targets for 77 yards and five first downs. Godwin was especially impressive in tight windows, winning all three of his contested catch opportunities. He provided Mayfield with a reliable outlet throughout the game.

Trey Palmer had an almost-breakout game. He showcased his speed and ability to get open deep on multiple reps. He and Mayfield were just unable to connect. Looking back at the tape, Palmer slowed out of his break ever so slightly on both reps. One would hope that as he and Mayfield continue to work together, he starts to trust that he can make those stems without slowing and that Mayfield can throw a ball with a bit more loft to allow Palmer to run under it. Palmer was not shut out though, hauling in two catches for 47 yards.

Deven Thompkins also almost had a touchdown if not for Mayfield being late to throw. Thompkins was open throughout the day on multiple reps, but ended up losing two yards on two catches stemming from attempted screens to him. He was also the target on a 3rd & 3 deep in Detroit territory early lined up as the “X” receiver against press coverage from Jerry Jacobs. Thompkins was unable to beat the jam as the ball fell incomplete. Despite all of this the process for Thompkins was still sound.

Grade: B

Tight Ends

This group continues to be the Achilles heel of the Bucs offense. Inconsistency plagues the room. Cade Otton was yet again a net negative as a blocker. Lions linebacker Alex Anzalone made him look silly on multiple plays, including one where Anzalone blew Otton backward into the running back and another where he was able to cause Otton to whiff with a good old “Ole” move. Otton is one of the biggest reasons the Bucs run game is so inept at the moment, and I don’t foresee any improvement.

Meanwhile, as a receiver, Otton was nondescript, catching one of his two targets for 15 yards. He wasn’t a liability as a receiver, but when coupled with his blocking struggles, the overall product is not good. After a promising rookie year, he has regressed mightily. Ko Kieft was neither great nor bad for his 14 snaps, while Payne Durham looked fine for his limited snaps, including one that saw him make his first NFL catch.

Grade: D

Offensive Line

Aidan who? The NFL leader in pressures was largely shut down for the vast majority of the game, totaling just one pressure on 39 pass rushes. This was in large part due to the man, the myth, the legend… Luke Goedeke. Goedeke had perhaps the best game of his career as a pass blocker, shutting down Hutchinson throughout the game. Tristan Wirfs matched Goedeke on as the other bookend and Matt Feiler had a solid game. Even Robert Hainsey looked… better.

There were still reps he struggled on, losing to power. But Hainsey’s recovery skills aided him in not getting completely blown away.

Rookie right guard Cody Mauch had perhaps his worst game of the season in pass protection, as he struggled to pass off rushers in response to some of the games Detroit played along the line.

Where the line struggled was another common story, which was in the run game. Bucs offensive coordinator Dave Canales appears to not trust that the line is ready to really employ the mid zone scheme, opting for more inside zone, counter and gap runs. Most of these require an initial double team near the desired run gap, followed by one of the offensive linemen moving up to the second level to block a linebacker.

The Bucs’ offensive linemen were unable to accomplish that second assignment, either getting to those second-level defenders too late or not at all. This left unblocked defenders feasting on the Bucs running backs. This is an area that needs to improve and quickly.

Grade: B-

Defensive Line

Bucs Dt Calijah Kancey

Bucs DT Calijah Kancey – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

If there was a star group on the day, I would give the award to this group. Logan Hall was solid as a pass rusher and decent as a run defender. Vita Vea was at his best in defending the run, clogging lanes and moving blockers. Joe Tryon-Shoyinka, Yaya Diaby and Shaq Barrett were fantastic setting the edge and chasing backside runs to limit the Lions rushing attack to just 40 yards on 22 carries. Will Gholston, Greg Gaines and Mike Greene all made solid contributions to eliminating an entire facet of the Lions’ offense.

The most exciting, and I would say impressive, player of the group was rookie defensive tackle Calijah Kancey. Kancey pressured Lions quarterback Jared Goff six times and had a pressure rate of 21.4%. He showcased power and a pass rush plan while not getting moved in the run game that much despite his smaller stature.

The Lions offensive line is very good and more than held their own against the Bucs’ defensive front, but this was not the drubbing they have forced upon other teams this year. Call it a battle of titans where the Bucs looked every bit the part of a worthy adversary.

Grade: B

Linebackers

What else can be said about Bucs linebacker Lavonte David that hasn’t already been said? The man is transcendental. And he played like it on Sunday. Lions rookie tight end Sam LaPorta has given most defenses fits this year. Detroit hoped to get him one-on-one with David as they saw it as an advantage for them. They got their wish, but not necessarily the result they envisioned.

LaPorta was targeted six times with David in coverage and only came away with three catches for 36 yards. Most of that was in zone, as David was very good in his man coverage reps. It was a great bout between two very good players.

Beyond the matchup, David was excellent in run defense and as a pass rusher. In short, he was disruptive and at times during the game, it felt like he was everywhere.

As for his running mate, I thought Devin White played well on the day. He filled his gaps, got off a couple of blocks, helped limit the Lions’ rushing attack and wasn’t out of position in coverage. His season overall thus far has been less flash and more substance in my opinion, and the defense is better off for the improvement in consistency. It was a solid game from the fifth-year linebacker.

Grade: B+

Cornerbacks

Carlton Davis III and Jamel Dean both played very well on the day for the Bucs. Dean was credited with allowing five catches for just 23 yards on six targets. Davis was even more impressive, allowing just two catches on four targets for nine yards. Both were asked to play man coverage early and looked fantastic doing so.

As the game wore on, the Bucs’ defensive strategy transitioned into a zone-heavy approach and both defended their deep thirds well. I wish Bucs head coach Todd Bowles would have leaned into the man coverage approach, as I believe it would have limited Detroit’s passing attack to far fewer than the 353 yards they generated on the day. Nickel corner Christian Izien played well working in underneath zones, although there were a few communication issues for him.

Grade: B

Safeties

Bucs safety Ryan Neal had a bad game. There’s no other way around it. He missed several tackles, took multiple bad angles in pursuit and was the primary reason Lions receiver Amon Ra St. Brown was able to squirrel free on an underneath route and take it to the house to open up Detroit’s lead late in the first half.

If the Bucs want to move from good defense to elite defense, it will require better play from Neal. However, he wasn’t to blame for the Jameson Williams touchdown. And I question whether Neal is being put in the best position to succeed.

Neal is a very good box safety. This game notwithstanding, he has been solid as a run defender and as a tackler. If he is put in those positions more often, he should be fine going forward.

Antoine Winfield was not the game-wrecker he has been previously this season, but he was very good at keeping a lid on the Lions’ vertical passing attack. He missed a couple of tackles, but did his job fine on the day.

Grade: C-

Special Teams

Bucs Punter Jake Camarda had several impressive punts that forced Detroit to start at their own 20-yard line or worse four out of six times. He did have one punt that left a little to be desired in the first quarter when he booted one 42 yards to the Detroit 35. He was bailed out on the effort by a holding call on Lions’ special teamer Ifeatu Melifonu, which backed Detroit up an additional 10 yards.

Other than that, the Bucs’ kicking unit was solid. Kicker Chase McLaughlin was once again perfect, connecting from 33 and 36 yards for Tampa Bay’s only points of the day.

Returner Deven Thompkins fair caught both of the punts he fielded. He was unable to reach the Bucs’ 25 on any of his three kick returns, which was a bit of a negative.

Grade: B

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