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The Buccaneers have released 30-year old RB Derrick Ward. Ward played in 14 games for the Bucs last season and he carried the ball 114 times for 409 yards (3.6 ypc) with 1 TD run. He also caught 20 passes for 150 yards (7.5 avg) with 2 TD grabs last season. Kareem Huggins and Earnest Graham will likely see increased touches with Ward out of the picture. I don’t think Ward will be unemployed too long.
It’s amazing to me that the Bucs stayed as close as they did last night as the Jaguars were pushing them around the whole game. Josh Johnson started at QB for the Buccaneers and he looked good completing 9 of 14 passes for 122 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs. He also carried the ball 1 time for 18 yards last night. Rudy Carpenter played pretty awful in this game as he completed only 4 of 13 passes for 37 yards with 1 INT. Derrick Ward led the way on the ground in this game for the Bucs with 19 yards on 4 carries (4.8 ypc). Rookie WR Mike Williams continues to impress as he caught 3 passes for 83 yards (27.7 avg) last night. TE Ryan Purvis pitched in with 3 grabs for 28 yards (9.3 avg) for the Bucs last night. The Buccaneers rushed for 42 yards (2.8 ypc) and they passed for 149 yards as they only had the ball for 21:00 last night.
The Buccaneers’ D didn’t play that well despite only giving up 19 points last night. CB Ronde Barber (7 tackles) and LB Quincy Black (7 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss) led the way for the Bucs’ D in this game. LB Nike Koutouvides was busy with 4 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 INT last night. Barrett Ruud pitched in with 2 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception in this game. The Jaguars rushed for 109 yards (3.5 ypc) and they passed for 287 yards. The Buccaneers fall to 1-2 on the pre-season with this loss.
With Josh Freeman out at least the rest of the pre-season it will give the Bucs an extended look at Josh Johnson and Rudy Carpenter. Johnson will be the #2 Qb for the Bucs in 2010. He has played well so far in the pre-season for the Bucs. In two games this pre-season, Johnson has completed 14 of 23 passes (60.9%) for 185 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT (82.7 QB Rating). He has also carried the ball 5 times for 27 yards (5.4 ypc) during the pre-season so far. Rudy Carpenter has also looked solid for the Bucs so far. In the Bucs first two pre-season games, Carpenter has completed 14 of 23 passes (60.9%) for 151 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs (94.7 QB Rating). He has also carried the ball 1 time for -1 yard.
The Buccaneers will be without starting QB Josh Freeman for at least the rest of the pre-season due to a fractured tip of his right thumb. Freeman was looking good in the pre-season for the Bucs. In the Bucs first two pre-season games, Freeman completed 6 of 8 passes (75%) for 74 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs (142.7 QB Rating). The Bucs hope that Freeman is ready to go on Opening Day against the Cleveland Browns in Tampa. They think he will improve on the numbers he put up as a rookie in 2009. Freeman played in 10 games (9 starts) for the Bucs last year and he completed 158 of 290 passes (54.5%) for 1,855 yards with 10 TD passes and 18 INTs (59.8 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 30 times for 161 yards (5.4 ypc) as a rookie last year. The Bucs need Freeman to have a speedy recovery because the dropoff to the backups appears pretty big.
The Buccaneers didn’t play too well on Saturday Night despite winning this game. Josh Freeman completed 2 of 4 passes for 21 yards before leaving the game with a fractured tip of his right thumb. Joe Johnson followed Freeman in the game and he has solid in completing 6 of 10 passes for 113 yards with 1 TD pass. He also carried the ball 3 times for 10 yards (3.3 ypc) in this game. Rudy Carpenter looked solid at QB too for the Bucs as he completed 8 of 11 passes for 79 yards with 1 TD pass. Kareem Huggins led the way on the ground for the Bucs in this game as he carried the ball 8 times for 44 yards (5.5 ypc). Carlos Brown also had a solid game pitching in with 32 yards rushing on 5 carries (6.3 ypc). WRs Michael Spurlock (3 rec, 75 yards, TD), Mike Williams (3 rec, 44 yards) and Terrence Nunn (1 rec, 5 yards, TD) led the way in the passing game for the Bucs last Saturday. The Buccaneers finished up with 99 yards rushing (3.8 ypc) and 213 passing yards in this game.
The Bucs’ D gave up a lot of yards in this game but they kept tightening up the closer the ball got to the end zone. Linebacker Quincy Black led the way for the Bucs’ D in this game with 6 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit. Rookie 7th round pick (S) Cody Grimm (5 tackles), S Corey Lynch (5 tackles, 1 pass defensed) and S Tanard Jackson (5 tackles) all pitched in. CB Brandon Anderson of Akron University (that’s where I went to school) had a good game for the Bucs Saturday Night with 4 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 INT. The Chiefs rushed for 152 yards (4.5 ypc) and they passed for 214 yards in this game.
The Buccaneers’ offense looked stuck in the mud on Saturday Night as they turned the ball over 4 times. They did look good with Josh Freeman under center though as he completed 4 of 4 passes for 53 yards with 1 TD pass. Joe Johnson didn’t look near as good as Freeman did. He completed 8 of 13 passes for 72 yards with 1 INT. He also carried the ball 2 times for 17 yards (8.5 ypc) but he also lost a fumble too. Rudy Carpenter finished up the game at QB by completing 6 of 12 passes for 72 yards. RB Kareem Huggins led the way on the ground for the Bucs last night with 8 carries for 55 yards (6.9 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 16 yards. Derrick Ward had a rough time Saturday night with 20 yards on 12 carries (1.7 ypc) and he also lost a fumble. Chris Brooks (3 rec, 50 yards, LF) and Sammie Stroughter (3 rec, 33 yards, TD) helped out in the passing game Saturday night. The Buccaneers finished up with 139 yards rushing (4.2 ypc) and they also passed for 170 yards on Saturday night.
The defense was outstanding for the Bucs in this game. Safety Corey Lynch (5 tackles and 1 pass defensed) and CB E.J. Biggers (4 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 pass defensed and 1 fumble recovery) each looked sharp in this game. The Dolphins finished up with 50 yards rushing (2.4 ypc) and they also passed for 156 yards on Saturday night.
25-year old RB Clifton Smith and 24-year old WR Sammie Stroughter will duke it out for the starting kickoff return job in training camp. Smith has had concussion problems in the past but he’s a go for this year. Smith played in 11 games for the Bucs last season and he returned 31 kickoffs for 902 yards (29.1 avg). He has now played in 20 games for the Bucs and he has returned 67 kickoffs for 1,894 yards (28.3 avg) with 1 TD return. Smith is a excellent return man and I think he will get his old job back if healthy.
Sammie Stroughter stepped in for Smith when he got injured. Stroughter played in 13 games as a rookie for the Bucs last season and he returned 11 kickoffs for 324 yards 29.7 avg) with 1 TD return. Despite his success returning kicks he might be more important to the Bucs on offense in 2010.
PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BUCCANEERS KICKOFF RETURNERS in 2010: A
LT Donald Penn is a improving player as he’s a decent pass and run blocker. LG Jeremy Zuttah also brings a lot of power in the running game but he could improve a tad in pass blocking. Center Jeff Faine is one of the better technicians at center in the league. But he can also get blown up and knocked backwards by big time power players in the middle. RG Davin Joseph is by far the best run blocker on the Bucs as he plays with a very nasty attitude. RT Jeremy Trueblood is a high strung player who commits too many penalties but he still has a nice upside.
PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BUCCANEERS O-LINE in 2010: B
The Buccaneers have claimed 25-year old TE Martin Rucker off waivers from the Eagles. He did not get into any games last season. Rucker played in 5 games (1 start) as a rookie for the Browns in 2008 and he caught 2 passes for 17 yards (8.5 avg). Rucker has the reputation of being a solid receiver but he hasn’t shown it in the NFL as of yet. He will have a very hard time making the Bucs who have a lot of depth at TE.
UPDATE: Martin Rucker failed his physical today so the Bucs waived him. No loss here.
33-year old head coach Raheem Morris got a baptism by fire last season as a rookie coach. He fired a lot of coaches before the season even started which was a very bad sign as the Buccaneers finished 3-13 (18.8%). But the Bucs were 3-6 after the bye week and the wins they had were over the Packers (home), Seahawks (away) and Saints (away). So maybe the light clicked on for both Morris and the Bucs in the second half of the year. It will be interesting to see what the Bucs do this season because they have not improved much on the offensive side of the ball…..but the defense could be a lot better in 2010.