The Buccaneers have lost starting RG Davin Joseph for the rest of the season due to a fractured foot.  Joseph started all 11 games for the Bucs this year and he has played in 68 games (67 starts) in his first five years in the NFL.  Joseph has been the best run blocker on the Bucs for quite some time so he’s going to be missed.  24-year old Jeremy Zuttah will replace Joseph in the starting lineup.  Zuttah has played in 10 games (4 starts) for the Bucs this year and he has played in 38 games (25 starts) in his first three years with the team.  Zuttah will do a decent job and the Bucs are lucky to have a backup lineman as good as him.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have placed rookie safety Cody Grimm on the Injured Reserve List ending his season due to a broken left fibula.  Grimm played in 11 games as a rookie for the Bucs and he had 57 tackles, 2 passes defensed, 1 forced fumble and 2 interceptions (0ne of which he returned for a TD).  The Bucs will now turn to 27-year old Sabby Piscitelli at free safety.  He has played in 11 games for the Bucs so far this year and he has 19 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception.  This is going to hurt the pass defense going forward as there is a reason Piscitelli was running with the 3rd team on D  when this season started.

The Buccaneers just couldn’t get the offense going enough to pull this game out.  Josh Freeman was sub par in this game as he completed 17 of 37 passes for 162 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 INTs.  He also carried  the ball 6 times for 27 yards (4.5 ypc) in this game.  RBs LeGarrette Blount (13 carries, 55 yards) and Cadillac Williams (4 carries for 19 yards and 5 catches for 41 yards) helped out offensively in this game for the Bucs.  TE Kellen Winslow led the way in the passing game for the Bucs with 4 catches for 44 yards (11.0 avg) with a TD grab.  The Buccaneers finished up with 101 yards rushing on 23 carries (4.4 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 37 passes for 162 yards.

LB Barrett Ruud (9 tackles), safety Sean Jones (6 tackles, 1 sack, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 QB hit) and CB Aqib Talib (5 tackles, 2 passes defensed and 1 interception) led the way for the Bucs’ D in this game.  The Ravens finished up with 92 yards rushing on 26 carries (3.5 ypc) and they also completed 25 of 35 passes for 257 yards.  The Buccaneers are now 7-4 on the year.

The Buccaneers have won 4 of their last 5 games but they still aren’t getting much respect this year.  That’s because they have yet to beat a team with a winning record.  The Buccaneers are 0-3 against teams with winning records and they have been outscored 96-40 by them.  The Ravens have won 3 of their last 4 games.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Buccaneers have the ball:  The Bucs are going to likely go with what has been working for them.  That means that LeGarrette Blount & Cadillac Williams are going to challenge the Ravens on the ground.  The Ravens are giving up 101.8 yards rushing per game and 4.2 yards per carry.  If the Bucs’ O-Line gives Josh Freeman time to throw the ball there are plays to be made against the Ravens’ secondary.  The Ravens are allowing 210.0 yards passing per game so far this year.  Freeman has to be careful not to lock in on Mike Williams because of Ravens’ safety Ed Reed who is a big time playmaker.

When the Ravens have the ball:  The Ravens are likely going to come out running the football and attacking a Bucs’ D that is allowing 136.5 yards rushing per game and 4.8 yards per carry.  If Ray Rice and Willis McGahee gets things going on the ground then the Bucs’ secondary is going to have a ton of pressure on them.  CBs Aqib Talib and Ronde Barber are outstanding corners but they can only cover two guys (likely Anquan Boldin & Derrick Mason) which means the Bucs could have trouble with T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Donte’ Stallworth and Todd Heap.

PREDICTION:  RAVENS 26, BUCCANEERS 17

The Buccaneers  have released 30-year old DT Ryan Sims.  Sims played in 6 games for the Bucs this year and he had 4 tackles.  Sims played in 46 games in parts of 4 seasons with the Bucs and he had 69 tackles, 3 passes defensed and 3.5 sacks.  The Buccaneers have a lot of younger D-linemen that they like better than Sims to it made perfect sense to let him go.

The Buccaneers played a solid game on both sides of the ball yesterday.  Josh Freeman completed 13 of 20 passes for 136 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 5 times for 15 yards (3.0 ypc).  Josh Johnson completed his only pass attempt good for 7 yards and he also carried the ball 1 time for 7 yards.  LeGarrette Blount did the heavy lifting in the running game for the Bucs with 26 carries for 82 yards (3.2 ypc).  Cadillac Williams had another solid game for the Bucs with 7 carries for 51 yards (7.3 ypc) with a TD run.  Mike Williams (4 rec, 54 yards, TD), Kellen Winslow (4 rec, 34 yards) and OT Donald Penn (1 rec, 1 yard, TD) led the way in the passing game for the Bucs yesterday.  The Buccaneers finished up with 162 yards rushing on 42 carries (3.9 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 22 passes for 137 yards as they had possession of the football for a stunning 36:24.

The Bucs sacked 49ers’ QB Troy Smith six times yesterday and six different defenders had them.  Safety Cody Grimm (7 tackles), CB Ronde Barber (INT) and LB Adam Hayward (3 tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass defensed, 1 QB hit and 1 fumble recovery) led the way for the Bucs’ D in this game.  The 49ers finished up wtih 71 yards rushing on 18 carries (3.9 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 31 passes for 118 yards in this game.  The Buccaneers continue to roll as they are now 7-3 on the year.

The Buccaneers are 3-1 on the road this season as they have outscored their opponents 103-90.  The 49ers are 2-2 at home this year but they have won two games in a row with Troy Smith under center.  Here is a closer look at the matchups in this game:

When the Buccaneers have the ball:  With WR Mike Williams getting arrested this morning the Bucs might have to change the gameplan a bit (DUI).  He is supposed to fly out to San Fran and start.  The Buccaneers will likely run a balanced offense this Sunday.  Running room might be hard to find against a 49ers’ D that is allowing 100.7 yards rushing per game and 3.7 yards per carry.  The 49ers are giving up 230.8 yards passing per game this year so Josh Freeman should be able to make some plays down the field if he has time to throw the ball.  Mike Williams, Arrelious Benn, Cadillac Williams & Kellen Winslow will be the guys targeted the most by the Bucs in this game.

When the 49ers have the ball:  The 49ers have been pretty balanced since Troy Smith has taken over at QB.  That being said, I think Frank Gore is going to have a really heavy workload against a Bucs’ D that is allowing 143.8 yards rushing per game and 4.8 yards per carry.  The Buccaneers only have 8 sacks this year so Troy Smith should have plenty of time to throw the ball.  He favors throwing to the TEs (Delanie Walker & Vernon Davis) and Frank Gore out of the backfield.  When Smith decides to go down the field Michael Crabtree and Josh Morgan will be his targets.

PREDICTION:  49ERS 23, BUCCANEERS 20

The Buccaneers are a surprising 6-3 on the season and a lot of the credit should go to 34-year old head coach Raheem Morris.  Morris has gotten his team up and ready to beat the teams they should.  The combined record of the teams the Bucs have beaten this season is 14-40 (25.9%).  But, in the three losses the Buccaneers have had they were outscored 96-40 by teams with a combined record of 19-8 (70.4%).  Regardless of not being able to beat any good teams this season, 34-year old Raheem Morris needs kudos as the Bucs are now 9-16 (36%) under him in his first two years.

The Buccaneers pushed the Panthers around yesterday in front of a very small crowd.  Shame on Bucs’ fans as they are missing watching a exciting, young football team!  Josh Freeman was outstanding once again yesterday as he completed 18 of 24 passes for 241 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs.  He also carried the ball 5 times for 19 yards (3.8 ypc) in this game.  LeGarrette Blount led the way on the ground for the Bucs in this game with 19 carries for 91 yards (4.8 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Cadillac Williams pitched in with probably his best game of the year with 5 carries for 62 yards (12.4 ypc) with a TD run.  He also caught 2 passes for 23 yards (11.5 avg) in this game.  WR Mike Williams (4 rec, 68 yards), TE Kellen Winslow (6 rec, 65 yards, TD), TE John Gilmore (3 rec, 52 yards) and WR Arrelious Benn (2 rec, 29 yards, TD) led the way in the passing game  for the Bucs yesterday.  The Buccaneers rushing for 186 yards on 30 carries (6.2 ypc) and they also completed 18 of 24 passes for 235 yards. 

LB Barrett Ruud (10 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss, 1 sack and 1 QB hit) and CB Aqib Talib (8 tackles, 1 tackle for a loss and 1 pass defensed) led the way for the Bucs’ D yesterday.  Safety Sean Jones pitched in with a fumble recovery in this game.  The Panthers finished up with 118 yards rushing on 31 carries (3.8 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 29 passes for 182 yards.  The Buccaneers are now 6-3 on the year.

The Buccaneers beat the Panthers earlier this year 20-7 at Carolina and they are a injury ravaged team.  If the Buccaneers can get out to an early lead I see them blowing out the Panthers on Sunday.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Buccaneers have the ball:  The Buccaneers are likely going to mix things up against the Panthers this weekend.  LeGarrette Blount will likely have a heavy workload against a Panthers’ D that is allowing 124.8 yards rushing per game and 3.8 yards per carry.  After the running game is established that’s when I see Josh Freeman taking shots down the field to Mike Williams, Michael Spurlock and Sammie Stroughter.  Kellen Winslow will also get a lot more work than he has been getting this year this weekend.

When the Panthers have the football:  The Buccaneers only have six sacks this year so Jimmy Clausen will have time to throw the ball.  But, the Buccaneers have 14 interceptions so far this year as corners Aqib Talib and Ronde Barber have been outstanding.  If Clausen forces the ball to Steve Smith I see the Bucs making a lot of big plays in the passing game.  If the Panthers were smart they would feed the ball to RB Mike Goodson against a Bucs’ D that is allowing 147.0 yards rushing per game and 5.0 yards per carry.

PREDICTION:  BUCCANEERS 27, PANTHERS 3