The Tampa Bay Buccaneers got a massive wakeup call this past week in their 9-0 shutout loss to the New Orleans Saints. The team clearly has some soul-searching to do. But one analyst believes he knows what will make the Bucs whole again.
On Wednesday’s edition of NFL Live, ESPN NFL analyst Marcus Spears said that the Bucs defense needs to lead the way again. He said that they will have to play with the same level of dominance down the stretch as they did last season.
“The front seven for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers led the way to a championship last year,” Spears said. “They are going to have to reassert themselves in that same way this year in order to try and get it done.”
Despite failing to score, the Buccaneers defense held its own, allowing just nine points to the Saints. But that hasn’t been the case all season.
.@mspears96 wants to see the Bucs’ defense get back to their ways.
“The front seven for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers led the way to a championship last year. They are going to have to reassert themselves in that same way this year in order to try and get it done.” pic.twitter.com/mW66BzCr7g
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) December 22, 2021
Last year the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defense ranked in the top 10 and ranked 1st in every rushing defense category. This year they rank just outside the top 10 on defense and aren’t defending the run as well.
Fortunately for the Bucs, the final three games won’t exactly be daunting for their defense. They play the Carolina Panthers twice as well as the New York Jets. Those two teams rank near the bottom of the league in all offense categories.
We may see the same dominating defense that won a Super Bowl last year return after Christmas.
Will the Bucs defense stay dominant into the playoffs?
The post ESPN Analyst Names The 1 Thing Buccaneers Need To Improve appeared first on The Spun.