There’s rightfully lots to be involved about with the Bucs via the primary two and a half months of the 2024 season. In a really primary sense, their 4-6 document and what’s basically a three-game deficit within the NFC South race stand out as probably the most problematic.
Underneath that umbrella, there are accidents, an absence of move rush from the workforce’s edge rushers, poor linebacker play and erratic performances from the secondary to be anxious about.
Bucs RB Rachaad White – Photograph by: USA Right this moment
However one of many vibrant, shining lights of the primary 10 weeks for the Bucs has been the drastic enchancment of their run recreation. 12 months over 12 months, the soar that Tampa Bay’s backfield has made is nothing wanting exceptional.
Tampa Bay’s dashing assault has been abysmal for a very long time now. It averaged 95.1 yards per recreation in 2019, which was Bruce Arians’ first 12 months because the workforce’s head coach. That was solely good for twenty fourth, however contemplating what adopted, the Bucs most likely would’ve killed for that rating within the years since. They had been twenty ninth in 2020 (94.9 YPG) and twenty sixth in 2021 (98.4 YPG) in the beginning actually bottomed out.
In 2022, Tampa Bay averaged 76.9 yards per recreation on the bottom. That was dead-last within the league, and it was a part of the explanation Todd Bowles fired Byron Leftwich because the workforce’s offensive coordinator after that marketing campaign. There was some enchancment below first-year offensive coordinator Dave Canales in 2023, because the Bucs’ common jumped from 76.9 to 88.8. However that 88.8 mark nonetheless made them dead-last within the NFL.
Now, via 10 video games in 2024, it’s been an evening and day distinction. Tampa Bay is averaging 125.3 dashing yards per recreation. Coming into play on Sunday, that ranked them eleventh in all the NFL. The Bucs haven’t even been top-20 in dashing since 2015, once they averaged 135.1 yards per recreation on the bottom and ranked fifth. The following 12 months, they averaged 101 dashing yards per recreation – and that was the final time their common hit triple digits.
What Has Led To This A lot-Improved Bucs Speeding Assault?
The advance in Tampa Bay’s run recreation has loads of contributing components. For starters, an overhaul to the offensive teaching workers has helped. Whereas Canales changed Leftwich because the Bucs’ offensive coordinator heading into 2023, little else modified. There was a change in philosophy with Canales coming in, however a lot of the workers remained the identical because it was below Arians.
Bucs OC Liam Coen and C Graham Barton – Photograph by: Cliff Welch P/R
This offseason noticed extra sweeping adjustments. When Canales left to take the Panthers’ head teaching job, he took offensive line coaches Joe Gilbert and Harold Goodwin (additionally the run recreation coordinator) with him. With that, Bowles introduced in Liam Coen as his new offensive coordinator and together with Coen got here offensive line coaches Kevin Carberry and Brian Picucci. That trio has confirmed to be an enormous improve for the workforce’s run recreation.
A part of it’s Coen’s scheme, and a part of it’s the work Carberry and Picucci have executed with the offensive line. Personnel adjustments up entrance have contributed as effectively, with first-round middle Graham Barton changing Robert Hainsey and left guard Ben Bredeson stepping in to switch the mixture of Matt Feiler and Aaron Stinnie.
The improve of going from Hainsey to Barton (at the same time as a rookie) has helped, and the large leap from 12 months 1 to 12 months 2 for proper guard Cody Mauch has been one other issue. Throughout, the operating lanes are there way more typically for Tampa Bay’s operating backs than they’ve been in recent times.
That has helped Rachaad White, who’s in his second season because the workforce’s beginning operating again. His carries are down from the place they had been at this level final season, largely as a result of emergence of rookie Bucky Irving and the truth that he missed a recreation in October. White did go on to place up a blazing-hot end to the 2023 season and fell simply shy of the 1,000-yard mark. However via 10 video games of final 12 months’s schedule, he was averaging 3.3 yards per carry. Proper now, his common is as much as 3.8 yards per carry.
Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photograph by: USA Right this moment
However although White is operating extra effectively, the largest supply of enchancment for the Bucs’ dashing assault has been the addition of Irving, a fourth-round draft select of Oregon.
By the primary 10 weeks of the season, Irving is Tampa Bay’s main rusher. He has 492 yards and 4 touchdowns on 92 carries, and he has a 5.1-yard common to date. Like White, he has benefitted from Coen’s run schemes and the lanes that the offensive line has been creating. However Irving is shiftier and might break tackles in addition to anybody. He’s a creator, with 30 missed tackles compelled after a rush (per PFF). That’s the Tenth-highest mark of any operating again within the league.
Sean Tucker might have light again into the background in current weeks for no matter purpose, however there’s no forgetting that he contributed big-time to the Buccaneer dashing assault in Week 6. He received NFC Offensive Participant of the Week honors for a 14-carry, 136-yard efficiency on the bottom (in addition to one other 56 yards receiving and two whole touchdowns).
Bucs’ Backfield Has Been The NFL’s Most Improved In 2024
The Bucs’ enchancment within the run recreation hasn’t simply been drastic by their very own measure. It’s additionally the most-improved throughout the league, as advised by Professional Soccer Focus. In a current article titled “Probably the most-improved NFL groups at each place group in 2024,” operating again went to Tampa Bay by a big margin. Primarily based on the distinction between total PFF grades from 2023 to 2024, Buccaneer operating backs are up 23.2 factors. The following-closest when it comes to enhancements had been the Falcons (+15.2) and Eagles (+11.0).
Bucs RB Bucky Irving – Photograph by: USA Right this moment
Right here’s what PFF’s Bradley Locker needed to say in regards to the upgraded Bucs run recreation:
“Tampa Bay could also be extremely shorthanded at vast receiver, however its operating again room has been spectacular in Liam Coen’s first 12 months as offensive coordinator. All three of Sean Tucker, Bucky Irving and Rachaad White have earned total grades of 72.6 or higher, with Tucker and Irving eclipsing an 80.0 mark. The Bucs have a legit three-headed monster at RB in 2024 after White posted solely a 67.5 total grade final season.”
What’s been particularly spectacular about Tampa Bay’s enchancment on the bottom is that it’s largely been on show week in and week out. Even when the Bucs took on the Ravens’ top-ranked run protection and the Chiefs’ third-ranked run protection, they ran for 125 yards (4.2 avg.) and 95 yards (5.0 avg.), respectively.
With the remainder of the schedule together with six of seven video games towards porous run defenses, may the Bucs offense attempt to trip their improved run recreation to a playoff push?
Bucs’ remaining schedule vs. the run:
Giants: twenty eighth (147.1 yards per recreation)Panthers: thirty second (160.1 yards per recreation)Raiders: twenty second (129.9 yards per recreation)Chargers: ninth (110.6 yards per recreation)Cowboys: thirty first (152.1 yards per recreation)Panthers: thirty second (160.1 yards per recreation)Saints: twenty seventh (141.0 yards per recreation)
