The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have lost 28-year old DE Jimmy Wilkerson for the season due to a torn ACL.  Wilkerson played in 15 games for the Bucs this season and he made 46 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, he forced 2 fumbles, defensed 2 passes and he had 6 sacks which was second on the team.  The Buccaneers will miss Wilkerson against the Falcons this weekend as he is one of the best pass rushers on the team.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have placed RB Earnest Graham on I.R. ending his season due to a torn ligament in his right big toe.  Graham played in 13 games for the Bucs this season and he carried the ball 14 times for 66 yards (4.7 ypc) and he also caught 14 passes for 109 yards (7.8 avg).  The Buccaneers simply don’t use Graham right and he would be smart to leave in free agency.

The Buccaneers shocked the world yesterday by beating the Saints in New Orleans.  It wasn’t just that they beat the Saints it’s how they did it.  The Bucs scored 14 points in the 4th quarter to send the game into O.T. then Josh Freeman led them down the field to set up the game winning 47-yard field goal by Connor Barth.  Josh Freeman was solid completing 21 of 31 passes for 271 yards with 0 TD passes and 2 INTs.  He also carried the ball 2 times for 7 yards (3.5 ypc) yesterday.  Cadillac Williams was outstanding for the Buccaneers yesterday with 129 yards rushing on 24 carries (5.4 ypc) with 1 TD run and he also caught 3 passes for 19 yards (6.3 avg).  Derrick Ward pitched in with 32 yards rushing on 7 carries (4.6 ypc) yesterday.  Ernest Graham only carried the ball 1 time for 8 yards but he also added 4 catches for 43 yards (10.8 avg).  TE Kellen Winslow (4 rec, 76 yards) and WR Antonio Bryant (5 rec, 52 yards) led the way in the passing game for the Bucs yesterday.  The Buccaneers finished up with 439 total yards on offense (176 rushing, 263 passing) in this game as they had possession of the ball for 36:15.

The defense was in a bend but don’t break mode yesterday as they gave up a lot of years without giving up a lot of points.  Linebacker Geno Hayes led the way for the Bucs yesterday with 10 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit.  CB Ronde Barber pitched in with 9 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 QB hit and a fumble recovery.  The Saints finished up with 373 total yards on offense (124 rushing, 249 passing) yesterday.  But, the Bucs also got a huge play in the third phase of the game (special teams) as Michael Spurlock returned a punt 77 yards for a TD with only 2:25 left in the game to tie it.  The Buccaneers are now 3-12 on the season as they have now won 2 games in a row.

24-year old safety Tanard Jackson missed the first four games due to a NFL suspension but he has made up for lost time.  Jackson has played in 10 games for the Buccaneers this season and he has made 61 tackles, 3 tackles for a loss, defensed 6 passes, forced 1 fumble and he has 4 interceptions (two of which he returned for a TDs).  Jackson gives the Buccaneers a playmaker at the back end of the defense so they need him to keep out of trouble off the field.

26-year old linebacker Barrett Ruud is having another great year for the Bucs.  He has played in 14 games for the Bucs this season and he has 121 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 6 passes defensed and 1 interception.  Ruud has been a tackling machine since getting drafted by the Bucs and he is showing that he is a guy they can build a defense around.

Despite catching passes from three different QBs this season 26-year old TE Kellen Winslow has played well all year.  Winslow has played in 14 games this season for the Buccaneers and he has caught 68 passes for 752 yards (11.1 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Winslow has played in every game this season which dispels the thoughts that he was a injury prone player.  He leads the Bucs in catches, receiving yards and receiving TDs this season.

I hope the Buccaneers had fun winning on the road last week because they won’t have that feeling Sunday afternoon.  The first time the Bucs played the Saints in Tampa they got destroyed 38-7 and I have to reason to think this Sunday it will be any closer.  It’s really too bad that the Bucs don’t run the ball too well because the Saints are giving up 114.4 yards rushing per game and 4.4 yards per carry.  The Saints already have 24 interceptions this season so if the Bucs get behind look for Josh Freeman to start throwing the ball to them.

I have a feeling that the Saints will come out more balanced than normal this week.  That means the Bucs will have to defend the run and the pass and they just don’t have the manpower to match up with the Saints’ O.  The Bucs will have to try to slow down Drew Brees who is one of the best QBs in the NFL, but, even if they have some success doing it then the Saints will just unleash Pierre Thomas, Mike Bell and Reggie Bush on them.

PREDICTION:  SAINTS 38, BUCCANEERS 0

The Buccaneers have claimed 27-year old WR Mark Bradley off waivers from the Chiefs.  Bradley has played in 13 games this season for the Chiefs and he caught 24 passes for 320 yards (13.3 avg) with 2 TD grabs and he also carried the ball 2 times for 20 yards (10.0 ypc).  Bradley also returned 7 kickoffs for 123 yards (17.6 avg) and he has completed a pass for 26 yards this season.  Bradley has now played in 57 games in his NFL career and he has caught 92 passes for 1,283 yards (13.9 avg) with 9 TD grabs.  He has also returned 11 kickoffs for 193 yards (17.6 avg) in his career.  Bradley will likely replace Stroughter on kickoff returns and in the offense.

The Buccaneers have lost 23-year old WR/KR/PR Sammie Stroughter for the rest of the season due to a broken foot.  Stroughter was a 7th round pick out of Oregon State last April and he looks like a keeper for the Bucs.  He played in 13 games for the Buccaneers this year and he caught 31 passes for 334 yards (10.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Stroughter was also a huge help on special teams this season.  He returned 11 kickoffs for 324 yards (29.5 avg) with 1 TD return and he also returned 12 punts for 119 yards (9.9 avg) this year.  He pitched in with 3 tackles on the year too.  This injury will really hurt the Bucs as Stroughter is a player who was wearing many hats on the team.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-12) forced 5 turnovers on their way to a nice win over the Seattle Seahawks (5-9).  Josh Freeman really stepped up in this game, as the rookie quarterback bounced back in the second half very nicely after a slow first half.  He threw one pick in the first half, but came out in the second half and took care of the ball on his way to two touchdown passes.  He finished with the 2 touchdowns and 1 interception for 205 yards on 16/26 passes.  Freeman also got a lot of help from his running backs, with Cadillac Williams and Derrick Ward combining for 133 yards on 31 carries and each catching a touchdown pass.  They Bucs may only have two games left, but their offense is finally showing signs of life.

The Bucs’ defense, particularly the secondary, played very well.  They took advantage of Seahawks’ quarterback Matt Hasselbeck and his erratic throws.  They picked off Hasselbeck four times and also forced and recovered a fumble on the former Pro Bowl quarterback.  They didn’t do great against the run, giving up 128 rushing yards, but the Bucs defense did not look like a 1-12 team.  It looks like the Bucs finally have some positive things to build on for next year.