The Buccaneers have an opportunity to go into their first postseason berth in 13 seasons with some momentum as they face a familiar foe in the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday at home. They'll close out the regular season with a chance to go 11-5 after going 7-9 a season ago.
It'd be quite the feat.
"We're going to play to win," said Head Coach Bruce Arians. "Eleven and five, that's very rare. To have a chance to get to 11-5, keep that seeding – we want that seeding just for pride. We don't care who we play, it's more for pride. I'd probably have to beat some guys in the head with a stick to try and get them not to play anyway. I talked to them about it before and [they said], 'I'm playing.' We're going to practice and play like everything depends on it. It's not going to be an easy game, either."
Facing a division rival for the second time in three weeks means pretty much anything can go – but there are a few things and few players you might want to keep an eye on in the process.
1. WR Mike Evans
It's no secret that all eyes will be on Evans as he attempts to become the only player in NFL history to start his career with seven consecutive 1,000-yard season. He and Randy Moss are currently the only players to do it for their first six but Evans now has the opportunity to stand alone in the NFL record books.
And Arians hasn't made a secret of his desire for Evans to attain the milestone. It seemed out of reach as recently as a week ago, needing 221 yards to get to 1,000 heading into Week 16 against the Lions in Detroit. But that was before quarterback Tom Brady got on board with Arians' desire to help Evans. See, as a head coach, Arians didn't want to influence his quarterback and have him force anything. But in a blowout win where Brady himself got pulled at halftime because the Bucs had all but locked the game up, Evans went off for 181 yards on 10 catches. He also caught two touchdowns, surpassing his previous single-season high of 12, recording 13 on the year. Now, Evans sits at 960 yards this season. Make sure you're watching carefully to see if and when Evans crosses the 40-yard threshold.
2. RB Ronald Jones
Speaking of milestones, running back Ronald Jones is staring down his first 1,000-yard season even after missing time on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. Arians said Jones would be active for the last game of the season, needing an even 100-yard game to reach 1,000 yards.
"We need to get him going," said Arians. "It's a totally different speed than practice. He's looked great in practice – he's catching the ball really OK with that thing on his hand, kind of like Chris [Godwin] did. It was a struggle at first, but he's getting better at it. We need his explosiveness out there and hopefully we'll get him a ton [of reps] this week."
Jones has already had four 100-yard games this season, including setting a career-high of 192 yards in a single game against Carolina, thanks to a 98-yard touchdown run on a handoff from Brady at the two-yard line. Moral of the story: 100 yards on Sunday is feasible for Jones, especially with Arians 'jonesing' to get him there.
"to" - Google News
January 03, 2021 at 03:25AM
https://ift.tt/3od9Yy6
5 Bucs to Watch Against Atlanta - Buccaneers.com
"to" - Google News
https://ift.tt/368wPko
https://ift.tt/3dnyzdH
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "5 Bucs to Watch Against Atlanta - Buccaneers.com"
Post a Comment