FAB 4. BUCS SCRAMBLING FOR BIG PLAYS
The word execution is one of the most-often used terms by football coaches. The reason plays work? Proper execution. The reason why plays don’t work? Failed execution.

To properly execute means that plays come together as scripted. Blocks are perfect, or are just good enough for success. Throws are on the money to receivers running precise routes with favorable results – either a first down or a touchdown.

“Just like we drew it up” is one of the most favorable phrases in any football meeting room or locker room. That’s the goal – to execute a play just like it’s drawn up.

Except in Tampa Bay.

Bucs QB Jameis Winston – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR

The number one pass play last year was the unscripted play – the broken play. When things went wrong in the pocket for Bucs quarterback Jameis Winston during his freshman year they often went right outside the pocket.

When plays broke down last year the script often went out the window and the highlight reel turned on.

“Todd Monken tells the offense all the time that our No. 1 pass play – if you think about it, you’ve got all these concepts – our number-one pass play is ‘scramble,’ Bucs head coach and offensive play-caller Dirk Koetter said. “He did a study and there were, like, 90 of them [last year].”

The scramble play was so effective last year that the Bucs actually committed time to practice plays that weren’t scripted or planned during the offseason. That practice has continued during the weeks of the regular season, too.

The coaches purposefully go off script. They allow Winston to do what he does best – maneuver around, buy time and sling the ball downfield for highlight-reel plays and big first downs and touchdowns.

“When the ball’s snapped, it’s all scripted,” Monken said. “There’s no improv. There is no gray. But what happens is with a guy like Jameis – we did a study and Coach Koetter talked about it and I looked at it like, ‘Okay, our number one pass play last year was scramble. 90 times Jameis scrambled.’ Okay, well that’s not uncommon for an athletic quarterback, you watch those guys scramble.

“So we continue to work on it, it’s going to make a difference in games if you get explosive plays and extend plays and have your guys react to it, so that’s really where that comes about. Everything we do is about eliminating the gray so when we come Sunday, we can play fast.”

In Sunday’s 36-10 victory over the Bears, Winston had a scramble for the ages. On third-and-10 from the Bucs’ 23, Winston dropped back to pass and eluded five sack attempts by three different Chicago defensive linemen, who chased the second-year quarterback two yards deep into Tampa Bay’s end zone before weaving through traffic, finding Mike Evans sprinting downfield and heaving a pass for a spectacular 39-yard gain.

Just like they drew it up.

Not!

What was running through Monken’s mind when he witnessed Winston’s highlight reel scramble?

“Safety,” Monken said with a laugh. “But that’s him. You talk about two plays that – Hail Mary at halftime, go into the locker room, are you kidding me? Come back out, makes that play, the next throw to Freddie Martino [for a touchdown] and now you’ve stretched it back out to 14. What do you want to say? Those are the plays he can make, and that’s what you love about him, his competitive spirit, his will to want to make every play. That’s what I talked about weeks ago, is okay, how do you harness that? Get him better progression in the pocket because he’s going to make those plays. We said it at the beginning of the year, our number one pass play is what? Scramble.”

Winston’s miracle scramble against the Bears lasted 11 seconds. The entire play lasted 14 seasons from the time the ball was snapped until Evans was touched down after his leaping catch at the Bears’ 43-yard line.

What was Koetter thinking when he watched the film of that play on Monday?

“Well, it takes too long, it takes too long,” a laughing Koetter said. “I think that was just one of those crazy plays. That really kind of offsets the Hail Mary before the end of the half. Those plays sort of offset each other. There’s a little bit of luck involved there and it was dangerous at times, I was screaming for Jameis to throw the ball away and he pulled his Houdini act multiple times – 22 yards back, all the way back in our end zone and then to throw it that far down the field and a great catch by Mike.”

Winston wasn’t even fazed about the spectacular play because he practices plays like that all the time. Well, maybe not exactly like scrambling backwards 22 yards and then throwing a bomb downfield.

“Coach Monk says it all the time, that’s our number one play, is to scramble,” Winston said. “So, you’ve got to be able to extend plays. The offensive line does a great job of just protecting me and giving me some extra time to be down there and make some plays for these guys. I take pride in being able to extend plays outside the pocket and I think that’s big for us.”

Bucs QB Jameis Winston – Photo by Cliff Welch/PR

Winston’s teammates were in awe of the play that should be dubbed “The Scramble” in Tampa Bay.

“It’s funny because at first you’re like, ‘Throw it away, throw it away,’ and then you’re like, ‘Oh, what a great play!’” Bucs tight end Brandon Myers said. “I was on the sideline, so I had a great view. It’s just a guy making a play and that’s what Jameis does – he has that never give up attitude. You win some, you lose some, and if Mike would’ve kept his feet then it would’ve actually been a touchdown. That’s the one thing about Jameis – the play is never over.”

Bucs tight end Cameron Brate has been on the receiving end of a few of Winston’s 10 touchdown passes this season that have come on scramble plays outside the pocket.

“For his sake, you kind of hope he throws it away, but as evidenced on Sunday with some of the scrambles he made, he’s never going to give up on a play,” Brate said. “As a receiver, if your quarterback’s not giving, you can’t give up. It’s just another thing the defense has to prepare for playing us.

“Last year against the Falcons when he scrambled and got like 20 yards on that third-and-19, that was incredible. When coach Monken came in, he kind of took a step back and evaluated our offense and he found out we scrambled about 15 percent of the time, so we practice those kind of plays.”

Bucs rookie safety Ryan Smith is on the second-team defense, which often has to try to defend Winston in practice. Smith marveled at Winston’s 39-yard pass to Evans, but said that similar plays happen routinely during the week at One Buc Place.

“You should’ve seen my face when he did it,” said Smith. “I was like, ‘Throw it away, throw it away!’ But big time players make big time plays and he knew he was going to make a play; he wasn’t going to go down. In practice I always tell myself that I’m going to get an interception against him. That’s our quarterback. I want to be great against him, but that’s just what he does – and he does it all the time.”

Bucs WR Mike Evans – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Back in the preseason after Evans caught a touchdown pass on a scramble play against the Cleveland Browns, Koetter said sometimes the goal is to do what Evans does best, which is stay alive downfield, elevate and win 50-50 jump balls.

“How did Mike get used in college? Shoot, Johnny Manziel went back there, scrambled around for 10 minutes and threw a jump ball and Mike caught it,” Koetter said. “That was their offense, and they were great at it, so we have to take advantage of stuff like that.”

The Bucs did on Sunday, and after Winston’s 43-yard touchdown pass to Freddie Martino on the next play, a slim 17-10 lead over the Bears increased to 24-10 and Tampa Bay was never threatened again.

“Monk has done a good job of kind of going through our offense and knowing that our best play is our scramble drill,” said Bucs receiver Russell Shepard. “Jameis already has a natural feel for the scramble drill, but it’s definitely something we actually work on and it’s a testament to what we do on Sundays.

“They coach us to be perfect and play the perfect game, but that doesn’t always happen and the most underrated thing that we do is compete. When we finish, plays like what happened Sunday happen. When we finish, like getting an extra yard on a run play, or make a throw-and-catch like that, that’s what we do best.”

After all, practice makes perfect.