What's the Game Plan for Tampa Bay?

Buccaneers vs. Redskins: What's the Game Plan for Tampa Bay?By Luke Easterling Oct 24, 2015Mitchell Layton/Getty Images The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will look to put together their first winning streak since 2013 this week when they head out on the road to face the Washington Redskins.The Bucs are coming off a bye week with a 2-3 record, while Washington currently sits at 2-4 on the year.Doug Martin and the Tampa Bay running game helped propel the team to a 38-31 home win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 5, sending it into the bye with improved morale and the most positive momentum it's had all season. Washington is coming off a 34-20 loss to the New York Jets and is dealing with a plethora of injuries on both sides of the ball.Let’s take a look at what Tampa Bay needs to do on both sides of the ball to come out victorious on Sunday.Offensive Game PlanAfter back-to-back 100-yard rushing performances by Doug Martin, Washington’s primary focus this week will be trying to shut down Tampa Bay’s ground game. Combine this with an injury-riddled Washington secondary, and you have the perfect recipe for the Bucs to make the play-action pass a big part of their offensive attack on Sunday.Wesley Hitt/Getty ImagesDoug Martin's success this season should open up the play-action game for Tampa Bay this week.Martin’s impressive outings over Tampa Bay’s past two games have come against two defenses ranked in the top five in the NFL heading into each matchup. Over those two weeks, Martin racked up 301 total yards on 52 touches, scoring three times on the ground and once through the air.Backup Charles Sims made his own statement in Tampa Bay’s Week 5 win over the Jaguars, carrying the ball 12 times for 51 yards while leading the team with 85 yards receiving on just four catches.Tampa Bay will still want to establish a consistent presence on the ground this week, but it needs to plan on running the ball more as a diversion to suck in the Washington defense with the play-action fake. This should open things up considerably at the second and third levels, allowing Jameis Winston to take advantage of the linebackers’ over-pursuit.Alex Brandon/Associated PressMike Evans destroyed Washington last year, catching seven passes for 209 yards and a pair of touchdowns.One key ingredient to Tampa Bay’s offensive attack this week should be receiver Mike Evans, who has had a quiet season so far in 2015 after setting a franchise record with 12 touchdown catches as a rookie last year. After injuring his hamstring in the preseason, Evans has yet to return to form, struggling with drops and failing to show his ability to stretch the field on a consistent basis.If ever there was a week for Evans to break out, the stars are aligning for it to happen this week in the nation’s capital. Though Washington currently ranks eighth in the NFL in pass defense—allowing 222 yards per game—injuries have left the Redskins thin in the secondary. If Tampa Bay is able to freeze the linebackers consistently with the play action, Evans should have plenty of room to roam in the defensive backfield.Defensive Game PlanTampa Bay’s game plan on defense should focus on one central objective: making life absolutely miserable for Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins.Cousins has struggled with consistency and decision-making all season, throwing multiple interceptions in four of his six starts so far this season. Despite playing behind an offensive line that has only surrendered seven sacks all year—good for third fewest in the NFL—Cousins has managed a quarterback rating of just 77.4, throwing six touchdowns and eight interceptions.Patrick Semansky/Associated PressWashington's Kirk Cousins has thrown multiple interceptions in four of his six starts this season.The Bucs are coming off their best pass-rushing performance of the season, when they sacked Jacksonville’s Blake Bortles six times in Week 5. The pressure came from all over the place, with recent practice-squad call-up Howard Jones leading the way with two sacks, and linebackers Lavonte David and Kwon Alexander each accounting for one of their own.Washington’s best hope for success on offense is to run the ball effectively on Tampa Bay, but the Redskins are averaging just 3.9 yards per carry so far this year, the same average the Bucs have been surrendering on defense through five games. On the plus side for Washington, rookie running back Matt Jones was a full participant in practice this week and, per the team's website, is listed as probable to return to game action on Sunday despite a toe injury.The Buccaneers should stack the box on defense early and often this week, focusing on shutting down the run and keeping consistent pressure in Cousins’ face, forcing him to beat them with his arm from a messy pocket. Even if they don’t come away with too many sacks, a handful of hits and batted balls could lead to a few takeaways, which should be all the offense needs to put enough points on the board for a win.Top Matchups and Players to WatchDon Juan Moore/Getty ImagesThe return of Johnthan Banks should be a huge boost for the Tampa Bay secondary.CB Johnthan Banks vs. WR Pierre GarconWith DeSean Jackson likely to still be out with an injury this week, per Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com, Garcon will be Washington’s primary target against a Tampa Bay secondary that isn’t giving up many yards through the air but has given up 12 touchdown passes already this season.The Bucs have had a particularly tough time in the defensive backfield over the past two games due to the absence of Banks, who is easily their best cover man and the only one on the roster with the size to hang with bigger receivers. He should return to the starting lineup this week and be counted on to shut down Garcon and improve the entire unit’s performance across the board.DT Gerald McCoy vs. RG Brandon ScherffWashington spent the No. 5 overall pick in this year’s draft on Scherff, who played tackle at Iowa but has made a seamless transition to guard at the next level. His play so far this season is a huge reason why Washington currently ranks third in the league in fewest sacks allowed.After signing a huge contract extension last season, McCoy is on pace to notch the first double-digit sack season of his career, having bagged 4.5 through five games this year. Facing a rookie is usually a welcome assignment for a veteran like McCoy, but Scherff is no slouch, especially in pass protection, thanks to his experience at left tackle in college.Whoever wins this battle will go a long way toward determining who wins the war for the line of scrimmage, both in the run game and when Cousins drops back to pass.PredictionLast year, the Bucs made this same trip to Washington in Week 11, coming away with a dominant 27-7 win on the back of a huge performance from Evans.This time around, the Bucs are a better team in many ways, from a resurging Doug Martin and promising young quarterback to an improved pass rush. They have plenty of positive momentum coming off a big home win two weeks ago and will have the added advantage of the bye week, which should have given them extra time to prepare for their opponent.Mark Tenally/Associated PressGerald McCoy and the Bucs are primed for another comfortable win over Washington again this year.Washington is struggling behind a rocky quarterback situation and a laundry list of injuries. You could argue that this year’s team is worse than the group that gave the Bucs one of their only two victories last year, while the Bucs have gotten better.The Bucs have been able to establish an identity with the running game over their past two games, and even though Washington is likely to key on that this week, Tampa Bay will still do its best to commit to the run early. If the Bucs can find enough success on the ground early, it should open up plenty of opportunities to take advantage of Washington with the play action.On defense, the Bucs should be able to rattle Cousins early, forcing him into costly mistakes. Tampa Bay should come out of this game with multiple takeaways, setting up favorable field position and helping take pressure off the offense.This may be the most winnable game left on Tampa Bay’s schedule, and it has the capability to come away with a two-score victory.Final Prediction: Bucs 30, Redskins 17link