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Roy Cummings' Keys To Bucs-Saints

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 1, 2007

Finish What You Start

We're talking offense here. That game last week against Washington would have been over in the first quarter had the Bucs finished their scoring drives properly. Instead, the Skins were allowed to hang around, and the Bucs had to rely on their defense to save the day - again. Yes, this has been a problem all season for the Bucs. They come into this game ranked 24th in the league in red-zone offense, having scored 13 touchdowns in 29 red-zone opportunities, so finishing drives with field goals instead of touchdowns is not a new problem.

The Bucs won't keep winning if this trend continues, so the offense has to do a better job of maximizing its scoring chances no matter how they're created. The defense will greatly appreciate it.

Give The Offense A Chance

Continuing a trend that dates back about three weeks, the Bucs defense did a great job of taking the ball away from the Redskins last Sunday. Their six turnovers were a season-high, but in the second half of that game, the defense constantly put itself into positions where it had no choice but to force turnovers. The reason was poor play on third down.

The Bucs allowed the Redskins to convert 60 percent of their third-down tries in the second half, and 53 percent overall. That's not what coordinator Monte Kiffin is looking for. If the trend continues today, the Bucs will have a hard time keeping the Saints out of the end zone. Getting off the field more quickly and at least giving the offense a chance to score is something the Bucs must do better today.

Keep Up The Pressure

The Bucs pass rush has really come to life the last couple of weeks. It's humming now in much the same way it did when Warren Sapp and Simeon Rice were leading the charge a few years ago. Good thing, too, because the loss of RB Deuce McAllister has turned the Saints into mostly a throwing team, and QB Drew Brees pretty much needs a tight pocket to be at his best when throwing. If you can make Brees run around or even move just a little, he tends to get a little wild with his throws, and that leads to incompletions and interceptions. Brees will get the ball out quickly, so the Bucs have to generate a speedy pass rush to get the desired effect. That may require running some blitzes.

Bottle Up Bush

The Bucs don't use spies, but they'll need to have somebody assigned to take care of Reggie Bush on every play. Bush is not even close to being the running threat he was in college, because defenses are smarter and faster at this level, but his athleticism still makes him a unique weapon. The Saints try to take advantage of that by matching him against slower linebackers, getting him the ball and hoping he can break tackles for long gains.

The best defense against a player like that is a Cover 2 defense, which is precisely what the Bucs run. With so many players back in pass coverage, it's hard for Bush to break free of everyone and make big gains after the catch. The Bucs' speed also gives them an edge in this matchup. Still, the Bucs must rally to Bush and tackle well to keep him from delivering a knockout punch.

Take Some Chances Deep

The Saints have struggled to defend the deep ball this year. Truth be known, they also have struggled to defend the short and intermediate balls as well as the run. But it's the deep ball that really gives them fits. They tend to play a lot of man coverage, which is part of the problem, so the Bucs will want to look for that and get the ball to Joey Galloway when those match-ups present themselves. Saints cornerback Mike McKenzie can run with just about any receiver, but Galloway has the edge against him, and the Bucs need to take advantage of it.

If they can get the ball to Galloway, they can open running lanes for their backs, because it likely will force the Saints to take that eighth defender out of the box. That, in turn, will allow the Bucs to be more balanced on offense and less predictable.

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