The Tampa Bay Buccaneers shook up the sports world in Week 1
Destiny Vaeao Jerseys 2019 , dropping 48 points on the New Orleans Saints with veteran backup Ryan Fitzpatrick at the helm. Trevor Sikkema of Pewter Report
joined me to try and explain what happened.While Sikkema didn’t foresee the
offensive bonanza that the Buccaneers had on Sunday (who did?), he did give
credit to Dirk Koetter for handing over play-calling duties to offensive
coordinator Todd Monken. From his recent Cover 3 article:Fitzpatrick’s 417 yards
and 4 touchdowns was enough to stave off the explosive Saints in a thrilling
48-40 win, but consistency issues have plagued his career. Making matters worse
is the potential loss of DeSean Jackson, who suffered a concussion in the
win.Additionally, a Buccaneers secondary which already lacked proven, quality
depth is beat up. Vernon Hargreaves was placed on injured reserve today and
veteran cornerback Brent Grimes has been dealing with a groin injury.Still,
given how they performed with zero expectations in Week 1, sleeping on the
Buccaneers would be a mistake. The Super Bowl Champion Philadelphia Eagles will
have to deal with a red hot offensive coordinator in Monken and star wide
receiver Mike Evans. Their white-hot offense gave Sikkema the confidence to pick
the Buccaneers to cover as 3-point underdogs at home.We talked about all of this
and more on episode 9 of The Kist & Solak Sikkema Show. Stream it on the
media player below or click here if it doesn’t load.There are more previews to
come from both The Kist & Solak Show and BGN Radio so make sure you’re
subscribed and don’t miss a thing! Fly Eagles Fly! PHILADELPHIA (AP) — When
injuries ravaged the secondary, the Philadelphia Eagles turned to inexperienced
guys and castoffs.The no-names are making themselves known.Cre’von LeBlanc, Tre
Sullivan, Rasul Douglas and Avonte Maddox have stepped up in a big way down the
stretch
Black Cameron Johnston Jerseys , helping the Eagles (10-7) win four straight games and advance to an NFC divisional playoff at New Orleans (13-3) on
Sunday.LeBlanc had only joined the team 13 days earlier when the Eagles were
destroyed by the Saints, 48-7, on Nov. 18. The third-year pro saw his first
action with his new team at cornerback in that game and was part of a defense
that Drew Brees tore apart.“Back then I was just coming in trying to figure
things out,” said LeBlanc, who began the season in Detroit. “Now I’m more
comfortable, I’m more at ease and I know the game plan.”LeBlanc has become a key
player, filling in for Sidney Jones at nickel cornerback. He shut down Chicago’s
leading receiver, running back Tarik Cohen, in Philadelphia’s 16-15 win over the
Bears in the wild-card round. Cohen had only three catches for 27 yards.“I don’t
know where we’d be without Cre’Von,” defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz said. “I
never heard of Cre’Von LeBlanc before (the scouting staff) said they were
thinking about claiming this guy. … We owe a lot of our season to that.”LeBlanc,
who was released by the Patriots
Cameron Johnston Jerseys 2019 , Bears and Lions in his first three seasons, deflected the credit.“I appreciate everything Jim said about me. It’s a big
honor. I’m thankful for it but I wouldn’t say I saved the season,” LeBlanc said.
“It was a team thing. We did it collectively. We’re on a roll right now and we
believe in each other.”The Eagles already were missing starting cornerbacks
Ronald Darby and Jalen Mills and starting safety Rodney McLeod going into the
first meeting against New Orleans. Maddox and Jones were injured in the game and
things got ugly. Brees threw for 363 yards and four touchdowns and the offense
racked up 546 yards.“Night and day,” LeBlanc said about the difference between
then and now. “We had a lot of new guys out there trying to figure things out on
the fly, on the run. All the hard work we put in week in and week out and
getting together each day to communicate and study film helped us
build.”Douglas, a third-round pick in 2017, was buried on the depth chart before
all the injuries forced him into the starting lineup. He led the team with eight
tackles against the Bears and coaches have praised his physical style.“Guys
don’t block corners. They leave us to tackle so I try to get the guy on the
ground,” Douglas said.Sullivan began the season on the roster, got released
after a critical mistake on special teams in Week 1, returned to the practice
squad and now has been seeing plenty of action at safety. He dropped an
interception in the end zone last week, but has been solid overall.“We’re
learning by experience
Black DeAndre Carter Jerseys , we’re still growing, still getting better,” he said.Maddox, a rookie fourth-round pick, has been one of the biggest surprises
this season. He’s played safety, nickel cornerback and outside cornerback.“I’ve
said before I don’t know where we’d be without Avonte,” Schwartz said.The anchor
in the secondary is two-time Pro Bowl safety Malcolm Jenkins. While everyone
around him got hurt, Jenkins has played every snap. Jenkins was a rookie on the
Saints when they won the Super Bowl nine years ago. He left in free agency after
five seasons.“He was probably one of the most important parts to our Super Bowl
run,” Saints coach Sean Payton said. “Letting him out of the building certainly
wasn’t a smart decision.”
