Mistake On The Field: No

The stats above speak for themselves, right? I say they don’t – don’t ever let numbers without context root the be-all, end-all for an argument.

DeSean Jackson’s offensive presence has been underwhelming, but is that his fault? I’d argue that it’s not. Look, you can’t play wide receiver all by yourself. There are many elements that go into a long touchdown pass. There’s the conception of the play deign, the repetition of it in practice, the instincts to call it at the right time, the blocking to buy the time for the throw and the quarterback putting the ball where it needs to be all before a catch is even made. I would argue that Jackson was failed by those around him at some point in that process before his numbers took their decline.

It’s no secret that I’ve had my complaints about how head coach and player caller Dirk Koetter has not only designed this Buccaneers offense, but how he’s called and executed it as well. To this point, Jackson has spent most of his time as the team’s outside receiver opposite Evans. Most of Jackson’s routes have been used to “take the top off the defense,” if you will, meaning he’s used on deeper routes. That’s what you’d like to use Jackson for, but if you know that and I know that, you better believe that professional defensive coordinators who are paid to do this for a living know that as well.

You can’t just send Jackson deep all the time. There’s rolling and cloud coverage with safeties that will make deep throws more difficult on their own. What you need to do is then set things up with disguise, say with play action, or have a good combination of routes where another receiver takes that extra safety away from spying a guy like Jackson, or whoever is going deep.

The Bucs don’t do that.

WR DeSean Jackson – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

For one, they don’t emphasize running the ball. I wish I was about to get to cover a team playing in the postseason, but part of me is also glad that I only have one more game where I have to watch a team constantly go four or five wide on third-and-short. Imagine putting your team in a running situation on third-and-short and calling play action after you get the defense sucked in like they’ve done for every O.J. Howard touchdown this season. Imagine then calling that with a little more speed on the field for Jackson to be the player Winston goes after on third-and-short because they’ve set themselves up for it with run plays on third down.

And other than that, where are the drag routes, the quick slants, anything with a player using momentum in space from the slot, and why in the world is Jackson not the one running them? Jackson has played in the slot this year, but not to its maximum efficiency. One of the reasons I was excited to see Jackson in this offense wasn’t just for the deep ball effect, but also for his ability to keep drives moving as a slot player who could get matched up against linebackers on quicker routes. That’s what he did with great success in Washington and that not something he’s been allowed to do in Tampa Bay. It’s plays like that that we see from Rams coach Sean McVay which has given his young quarterback Jared Goff easier throws and more open space. Life could be much easier for Winston, and Jackson in that kind of role would help that cause.

Jackson’s decline in numbers in 2017 aren’t on him, at least I don’t put them on him. The mistake here is the offense being designed and called the way it is.