This was not the result that the Buccaneers were looking for in their second preseason game.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers looked like a different team in Nashville Saturday than they did a week ago against Maimi as they dropped a 13-3 decision to the Titans to fall to 0-2 in the preseason.
After a stellar preseason debut against Miami, Quarterback Kyle Trask struggled in the loss.
It wasn’t all on Trask, as he was under pressure a good share of the night as the offensive line could not keep the Titan’s defense off of Trask.
Trask completed 11/24 passes for 105 yards with one interception. He was also sacked four times,
His best pass of the night, a ball that went 50 yards in the air, was dropped by Scotty Miller. Unfortunately for Miller, this was a perfectly thrown ball over the Titans defender Caleb Farley, and Miller couldn’t make the catch.
Miller had one catch for 15 yards, and it seems more and more likely that he doesn’t make the team.
Blaine Gabbert started the game at quarterback and played the first two series before giving way to Kyle Trask, who played the rest of the game.
Leonard Fournette started at running back and looked in mid-season form, netting 20 yards on five carries and catching two passes.
The Bucs may have lost another offensive lineman in the game. Aaron Stinnie, battling Luke Goedecke for the starting right guard spot, injured his leg when Ke’Shawn Vaughan was knocked into him by a Titans defender. Stinnie could not put any pressure on the leg as he was helped to the cart by his teammates.
In his post-game press conference, Bowles said Stinnie had a knee injury, but they wouldn’t know the extent of it until more tests were done on the knee.
Goedecke, the rookie from Central Michigan, got the start, and his debut left a lot to be desired. He was called for two holding penalties and gave up a sack.
The Bucs have serious issues on the offensive line. They should be making a call to every free agent offensive linemen available today and give them a look. The offensive line was a disaster, and the team has three weeks to figure things out before the season opener in Dallas.
If I’m Tom Brady, I’m considering extending my leave from the team until the offensive line issues are fixed.
Brady is not a mobile quarterback, and he will be in for a long season if this offensive line can’t block any better than they did against Tennessee.
The defense played much better than the offense but was far from perfect. There was a lot of sloppy play from the defense, and missed tackles continue to be an issue.
Joe Tryon-Shoyinka started at linebacker and was the best defender on the field for the Bucs in the short time he played. He had three tackles on the night, two of those for losses.
Free agent linebacker Olakunle Fatukasi led the team with ten tackles and one-and-a-half sacks. Fatukasi could be working his way onto the roster with the depth thin at linebacker.
The Bucs defense only allowed the Titans 255 yards of offense, but the Bucs offense could only muster 145 yards and generate nine first downs in the game.
At one point in the first half, the Bucs were 0/9 on third down conversions.
Between the dropped passes and the poor play of the offensive line, Kyle Trask didn’t have much of a chance to have any success tonight.
Another area that has been an area of concern for the Bucs is special teams. They let the Titans average 19.8 yards on punt returns to Kyle Phillips and Terry Goodwin.
It was another disappointing night for Jaelon Darden as he netted zero yards on his only punt return opportunity.
So what did we learn in preseason week two?
-The offensive line is a disaster
-Special teams’ play leaves a lot to be desired.
-The Punt return game is sub-par
-The tackling on defense on special teams continues to be a problem.
What went well in the game?
-Ke’Shawn Vaughan had a strong night with 54 yards on ten carries.
-Leonard Fournette looked ready for the season as he totaled 26 yards in limited playing time.
-Joe Tryon-Shoyinka looks ready to take that next step in his development.
Our BucsBanner player of the game is linebacker Olakunle Fatukasi who led the defense with ten tackles, one and a half sacks, and two tackles for loss.
The Buccaneers are now 0-2 in the preseason and will play the Indianapolis Colts next weekend to wrap up the preseason.
