With the Bucs 2021 training camp approaching, questions loom about how the Bucs wide receivers will each function within the offense. To gain some insight, let’s look back at how Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Antonio Brown were used during the 2020 season. From there we can determine what changes to the offense we can expect in 2021.

Bucs WR Usage In 2020

Given the difference in the offense after the bye week, we will be looking exclusively at the roles and stats during that period to the Super Bowl. Below are the receiver box scores after the bye week. Note that the targets are relatively the same, especially taking into account that Brown missed a game-and-a-half in the playoffs. Evans also missed a large portion of the Week 17 game against the Falcons.

Bucs Receiver Breakdown Post Bye Week

Each receiver produced at an extremely high level within their own designated role. Evans saw his regular share of deep targets, specifically on ‘Go’ and ‘Comeback’ routes. But the Bucs did continue using him from the slot or in a tight split alignment, on horizontal routes such as ‘Slants’ and ‘Deep Ins’. The off-coverage from this alignment allowed Evans to exploit space and get open quickly.

Godwin was certainly the “volume” receiver. This lines up with his role in Arians offense and Brady’s love for the slot receiver. After the bye week, Godwin saw 53 percent of his snaps in the slot. For comparison, Antonio Brown only saw 24 percent. His most productive routes in terms of EPA/PA (Expected Points per Pass Attempt) were the ‘Slant’ and ‘Shallow Cross’, especially in the red zone. He got open deep as well, recording a 128 passer rating when targeted 20+ yards downfield.

Antonio Brown was unbelievable in all areas of production. Look simply at the completion percentage, touchdowns and passer rating when targeted. He certainly has a great chemistry with Brady, and his understanding of defensive coverages made him lethal on ‘Whip’ and ‘Option’ routes. He was most productive in the intermediate range of the field, 10-19 yards, where he saw a 100 percent completion percentage on six targets for 19.0 YPA and a perfect passer rating.

What’s New For Bucs Offense?

Play-Action

After the bye week we certainly saw a change in the offense. One change was the increased use of play-action passes. Below are the comparisons between the receivers for their production off play-action.

Bucs Receiver Play-Action Breakdown

As you can see, all performed tremendously. Targets to Godwin need to increase in efficiency if he is going to continue to be the team’s most targeted receiver. Antonio Brown and Mike Evans saw the best production per target off play-action. Both used in-breaking routes such as the ‘Deep In’ and ‘Deep Over’ to produce at an ungodly level. The Bucs play-action scheme was the most potent in the NFL throughout the season. If the Bucs play-action usage continues to increase in 2021, these numbers should improve.

Patriots-Style Plays

Another addition after the bye week was the use of some New England Patriots plays, this is a play from the 2016 Patriots playbook. With Antonio Brown (X), Chris Godwin (Z), Rob Gronkowski (Y), Cam Brate (F) and Leonard Fournette (H). This was a 3rd down play that ended up in a touchdown pass to Brown on the “Viper” route. Taking advantage of his lightning quick feet, he separates by faking inside, before breaking back out to the boundary.

Patriots Play Week 17 vs ATL

The play is designed for Godwin on the ‘Juke’ route. Godwin should sit if it’s zone and keep moving against man coverage. Atlanta plays man, thus Godwin keeps going but is doubled by the mike linebacker. Hence, Brady goes to the one-on-one with Brown for the touchdown.

This continued usage of Patriots plays indicate that we will see an increase in short-to-intermediate route combinations. Especially routes such as ‘Juke’, ‘Slant’ and various option routes.

RPO WR Screen

One final adjustment after the bye week was the use of the run-pass-option WR screen. The Bucs have a called run play, and Brady gets to the line to assess the situation. He sees eight defenders in the box, marked in red. Brady knows that the box count is now 8-to-8. With the Bucs run scheme, having 16 men in such a confined space gives the RB no room to hit a hole or make someone miss.

Brady sees the cornerback over Antonio Brown in the slot is off by eight yards. The 21-year veteran knows he is more likely to get a positive gain throwing the quick screen to AB instead of handing off to Ronald Jones. When the Bucs were even or outnumbered in the run game, Brady often went to an RPO. Brown picks up five yards on this play and gets the offense in a manageable second-and-5.

RPO WR Quick Screen Week 17 vs ATL

Mike Evans’ Role

Evans should continue to be one of the best deep threats in the NFL in 2021. But with his expanded role in the slot and usage on isolation routes, Evans could dominate over the middle of the field as well. With the increased use of play-action, Evans could better his relatively low career catch percentage, adding efficiency to his typical bevy of explosive plays.

Chris Godwin’s Role

Godwin will remain the team’s slot receiver, as he is best-suited for the blocking assignments in Arians offense. If we don’t see a change to the Bucs run scheme, Godwin will be a shoe-in for the designated slot role. Being in this role almost guarantees him to be the most targeted receiver on the team by the end of the season, barring injury.

One interesting wrinkle is that the Bucs have more slot options than ever before. Evans just saw a career high snap count in the slot in 2020, while Brown is fully capable of picking up a few reps on the inside. The development of Tyler Johnson could also play a role in allowing Godwin to move around even more than he has in the past.

Antonio Brown’s Role

Brown is an interesting one. He excels at so many areas within the Bucs offense. Due to his outstanding yards-after-catch production, Brown will continue to be used on screen passes, both RPO and play-action variants. 47 percent of Brown’s post-bye yardage came after the catch. The addition of orbit motion WR screens, could be a welcome source of production for Brown in 2021. Keep in mind, Brown will almost always get the attention of the opposing team’s second or third best cornerback.