The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a lot of their younger receivers stepping up so far this year.  2nd year WR Mike Williams has not been playing too well this year though.  He has caught 31 passes for 317 yards (10.2 avg)  with 1 TD grab so far this year.  The explosive plays he made in 2010 just aren’t there so far this year for Williams.  Preston Parker has literally come out of nowhere to be a solid WR for the Bucs.  He has caught 23 passes for 310 yards (13.5 avg) with 2 TD grabs in 2011.  Arrelious Benn has been making a lot of plays down the field for the Buccaneers so far this year as he has caught 15 passes for 243 yards (16.2 avg) with 2 TD grabs.  Dezmon Briscoe has also been productive for the Bucs in 2011 with 16 grabs for 196 yards (12.3 avg) with 1 TD grab.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have waived 23-year old long-snapper Christian Yount.  Yount played in 7 games for the Bucs this year.  29-year old Andrew Economos will replace Yount.  Economos played in all 16 games for the Buccaneers last year.  He has played in 67 games (0 starts) in his first five years with the Bucs.  I have a feeling that Ecomomos is going to be a huge improvement over Yount the rest of the season.

The Buccaneers have lost 31-year old RB Earnest Graham for the rest of the season as he tore his Achilles tendon yesterday.  Graham played in 7 games for the Bucs this year and he carried the ball 37 times for 206 yards (5.6 ypc).  He also caught 26 passes for 163 yards (6.3 avg) in 2011.  If LeGarrette Blount isn’t ready to return after the bye week, 27-year old Kregg Lumpkin will likely be the featured back in the Bucs’ offense.  Lumpkin has played in 7 games for the Buccaneers so far this year and he has 12 carries for 35 yards (2.9 avg).  He has also caught 12 passes for 79 yards (6.6 avg) so far this year.  The Bucs are probably praying for Blount to be ready to go against the Saints after the bye week.

The Buccaneers were lucky to be as close as they were yesterday because they played awful on both offense and defense in this game.  Josh Freeman looked colorblind like Vinny Testaverde yesterday as he completed 29 of 51 passes for 264 yards with 2 TD passes and 4 INTs.  Kregg Lumpkin led the way on the ground for the Bucs in this game as he carried the ball 8 times for 15 yards (1.9 ypc).  He also caught 6 passes for 37 yards (6.2 avg) in this game.  Earnest Graham carried the ball 2 times for 13 yards (6.5 ypc) before he left this game due to an ankle injury.  WRs Mike Williams (6 rec, 75 yards) and Dezmon Briscoe (6 rec, 73 yards, TD) led the way for the Buccaneers in the passing game yesterday.  WR Preston Parker (4 rec, 42 yards) and TE Kellen Winslow (4 rec, 25 yards, TD) also pitched in for the Bucs in this game.  The Buccaneers finished up with only 30 yards rushing on 11 carries (2.7 ypc) and they also completed 29 of 52 passes (55.8%) for 250 yards as they had possession of the ball for 26:48.

The Buccaneers’ D got pushed around by the Bears’ in the running game yesterday, and it cost them big time.  Safety Sean Jones (8 tackles), LB Geno Hayes (6 tackles and 2 tackles for a loss) and CB Ronde Barber (5 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, 1 sack, 3 passes defensed and 1 QB hit) led the way for the Bucs on D in this game.  Safeties Corey Lynch (4 tackles, 3 passes defensed and 1 interception) and Tanard Jackson (an interception that he returned 43 yards) also made big plays for the Bucs in this game.  The Bears finished up with 177 yards rushing on 33 carries (5.4 ypc) and they also completed 17 of 32 passes (53.1%) for 218 yards in this game.  The Buccaneers are now 4-3 on the season.

The Buccaneers and Bears both had impressive home wins last weekend.  The Bucs will be “at home” this weekend in London.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Buccaneers have the ball:  The Buccaneers are going to try to be balanced in this game offensively.  It’s hard to ignore the fact that the Bears are giving up 121.8 yards rushing per game and 5.4 yards per carry.  That means that Earnest Graham might be in for a very solid game this Sunday.  The Bears’ pass D hasn’t been too good either as they are giving up 275.5 yards passing per game.  If the Bucs O-Line gives Josh Freeman time to throw the ball, he could have a field day.  Look for him to continue to spread the ball around to Earnest Graham, Kellen Winslow, Mike Williams, Preston Parker and Arrelious Benn.

When the Bears have the ball:  The Bears are going to feed the ball to Matt Forte early in this game, so the Bucs’ front seven better be ready for that challenge.  The Bucs need to get to Jay Cutler or he’s going to have a good chance of making plays down the field in the passsing game as he is one of the more underrated QBs in the NFL right now.  He likes to spread the ball around and he has two really good deep threats in Devin Hester and Johnny Knox.

PREDICTION:  BEARS 21, BUCCANEERS 20

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are running the ball well so far this year as they are averaging 111.8 yards rushing per game and 4.3 yards per carry.  LeGarrette Blount is leading the way for the Bucs’ running game so far this year as he has carried the ball 77 times for 328 yards (4.3 ypc) with 3 TD runs.  He has also caught 4 passes for 58 yards (14.5 avg) so far in five games this year.  The Bucs hope that Blount will be able to return from injury soon.  Earnest Graham has been a lifesaver for the Bucs once again this year.  Graham has played in all six games for the Bucs so far this year and he has carried the ball 35 times for 193 yards (5.5 ypc).  He has also caught 25 passes for 165 yards (6.6 avg) in 2011.  He will continue to be the main man in the backfield until LeGarrette Blount returns to action.  Kregg Lumpkin is the #3 in line for the Bucs this year, but he’s #2 in line right now.  Lumpkin has played in all six games for the Bucs so far this year and he has carried the ball 4 times for 20 yards (5.0 ypc).  He has also caught 6 passes for 42 yards (7.0 avg) so far this year.  The Bucs need the backs to keep up the good work.

The Buccaneers played a solid game on both sides of the ball to hold off the New Orleans Saints yesterday.  Josh Freeman completed 23 of 41 passes for 303 yards with 2 TD passes and 0 INTs in this game.  Earnest Graham led the way on the ground for the Bucs yesterday as he carried the ball 17 times for 109 yards (6.4 ypc) and he also caught 2 passes for 22 yards (11.0 avg).  WRs Arrelious Benn (3 rec, 83 yards, TD), Mike Williams (6 rec, 59 yards) and Preston Parker (2 rec, 32 yards, TD) led the way for the Bucs in the passing game yesterday.  WR Dezmon Briscoe (2 rec, 49 yards) and TE Kellen Winslow (5 rec, 40 yards) also pitched in for the Bucs yesterday.  The Buccaneers finished up with 117 yards rushing on 25 carries (4.7 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 41 passes (56.1%) for 303 yards as they had possession of the ball for 31:27 of this game.

The defense made big plays when it had to yesterday despite giving up a lot of yards.  CB Ronde Barber (7 tackles and 1 pass defensed) and LB Geno Hayes (7 tackles) led the way on D for the Bucs in this game.  Safety Tanard Jackson (5 tackles, 1 pass defensed and 1 interception) and CB E.J. Biggers (4 tackles, 4 passes defensed and 1 interception) made huge plays in this game for the Bucs.  LB Quincy Black (interception) and DE Da’Quan Bowers (fumble recovery) also made some big plays in this game.  The Saints finished up with 70 yards rushing on 20 carries (3.5 ypc) and they also completed 29 of 45 passes (64.4%) for 383 yards.  The Buccaneers are now 4-2 on the year.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers could be in big trouble tomorrow afternoon against the Saints.  The Saints have won two games in a row on the road and they pasted the Bucs 31-6 in Tampa last year.  The Buccaneers are really going to have to step up tomorrow after getting destroyed 48-3 by the 49ers last week.  Here is a look at the matchups in this game:

When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have the ball:  The Buccaneers are going to have to get physical with the Saints tomorrow.  The Saints are giving up 107.6 yards rushing per game and 5.2 yards per carry, so look for the Bucs to feed the ball to RB Earnest Graham in an effort to control the clock some.  The Saints already have 14 sacks this year, but they blitz to cover for their weak secondary.  If the O-Line gives QB Josh Freeman time to throw the ball, the Bucs are going to be able to move the ball through the air.  This is the week the Bucs really need WR Mike Williams to step up and start being the player he was in 2010.

When the Saints have the ball:  The Saints are going to attack the Bucs’ front seven with their three-headed RB (Darren Sproles, Mark Ingram and Pierre Thomas), so they better be ready.  The Bucs must also find a way to get pressure on Drew Brees, because he’s going to shred the Bucs’ secondary if he has time to throw the ball.  Brees uses everyone in the passing game, making it virtually impossible to double on anyone.

PREDICTION:  SAINTS 33, BUCCANEERS 17

The Buccaneers have waived 22-year old rookie RB Allen Bradford.  Bradford played in 1 game for the Bucs and he carried the ball 5 times for 13 yards (2.6 ypc).  Bradford was a 6th round pick out of USC last April.  The Bucs needed Bradford’s roster spot to activate safety Tanard Jackson.  If Bradford clears waivers, the Bucs might sign him to the practice squad.

UPDATE:  (10/15/2011) – The Buccaneers have lost Allen Bradford on waivers to the Seahawks.

23-year old QB Josh Freeman was incredible for the Bucs last season as they led their unlikely rise from a 3-13 team in 2009 to a 10-6 team in 2010.  But he has regressed big time so far this year for the Buccaneers.  Freeman has played in 5 games for the Buccaneers so far this year and he has completed 114 of 178 passes (64.0%) for 1,156 yards with only 3 TD passes and 6 INTs (74.1 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 24 times for 106 yards (4.4 ypc) with 2 TD runs so far this year.  The Buccaneers don’t have a good enough running game on offense or a defensive team to cover up for him if he has a bad day.  They need him to get back to the player he was in 2010, pronto.