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About the Author: Matt Matera

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On a windy day in Tampa Bay, the Bucs had practice early before answering questions from the media later. At this time of year it’s chillier in the morning, which may actually help the Bucs as they prepare for the elements of a cold Baltimore afternoon on Sunday.

One note to make at practice was that S Isaiah Johnson was participating in it. Johnson has been out with a concussion, and was able to come back on Thursday, but was wearing a non contact jersey.

At the podium to start things off was head coach Dirk Koetter. Plenty has been made about the struggles of the offensive line from Caleb Benenoch down. Koetter shot back that he doesn’t look into the grades that people give players, saying that it’s a team game where wins and losses matter most. He then pointed out that the Bucs lead in seven offensive categories, so you got to focus on the good as much as the bad.

One difficult task about playing against the Ravens is the types of looks that their defense will give. You’ll see it’s a common theme among the other players who spoke, but each snap brings out something different. Koetter expressed what it’s like planning against that.

During his first year coaching at Arizona State, Koetter had the pleasure of coaching Terrell Suggs. Years later they meet again on opposite sides. If you were taking tabs on their time in the NFL, Suggs actually has spent more years in the NFL then his former coach has.  Koetter discussed the type of player that Suggs is.

Moving over to the locker room, the big focus was both overcoming a loss that felt given away, and preparing for a Ravens team that has a dynamic QB and a defense that’s tough to figure out.

Someone that knows a thing or two about the Ravens would be Ryan Jensen, who played for Baltimore all of his career until signing with the Bucs this offseason. He talked about what it will be like playing against former teammates and good friends of his, while also dissecting what makes them so difficult.

Jensen’s current teammate and fellow offensive lineman also chimed in on the Ravens defense. Ali Marpet said that the fact that they can change so many formations for each individual opponent makes them so effective.

He then went into how the Bucs have to pick themselves back up and continue to try and get better each week despite a loss to the Saints in which they let the lead slip away.

The line is going to have a rough time as it is blocking Terrell Suggs and company, but it’s not any easier for the pass catchers as well. Cam Brate talked about slowing down the pass rush while being able to get out of his breaks and make a play.

An individual part of the game that Brate won’t have to worry about is his synchronization with Jameis Winston. These two just always seem to find each other in the red zone, and its continued ever since after Winston took over starting QB duties again and Brate became the number one TE when O.J. Howard went out for the season with his injury that put him on IR. Brate has had three touchdowns over the past three games, with two coming last Sunday.

While the Bucs offense has their own stuff to worry about, the defense has some problems of their own. Much like Wednesday when Jason Pierre-Paul said that Lamar Jackson is like playing against Michael Vick, Gerald McCoy took it even a step further Thursday, saying that he’s a reincarnation of Michael Vick, and that he looks identical to him.

The biggest problem for the Bucs more than like will be stopping Lamar Jackson from moving so much on Sunday. McCoy gave some insight on how to do that.

Closing out the day was QB Jameis Winston. It wasn’t his best performance last week against the Saints, so he’s looking to get back on track on Sunday against the Ravens. Winston, much like everyone else, went on to say that the Ravens give you problems with their looks. He also voiced that he is fighting for coach, just like many others are as well.

Koetter started the day by fighting for his offensive line, and now his players are showing the same for him.

 

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