Extra Point: Top Takeaways From Bucs' 30-7 Win Over The Giants

BucsGameday writer JC Allen delivers his biggest takeaways from the Buccaneers' 30-7 win over the New York Giants.

Nov 24, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield (6) gestures after scoring a rushing touchdown during the first half against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers got a much-needed win on Sunday In New York, snuffing out the Giants 30-7. Fresh off the bye week, a lot of the mistakes the team was making prior were corrected on both sides of the ball. An excellent game plan by head coach Todd Bowles kept the pressure on Giants quarterback Tommy DeVito all game long while offensive coordinator Liam Coen dialed up the explosives through the air while keeping his back churning on the ground.

The return of Mike Evans opened everything up for the other receivers and backs on the roster with quarterback Baker Mayfield connecting with 11 different targets. Now it is the Giants, so that needs to be put into perspective, but it was a great start if the Bucs are going to make a stretch run.

Defense Bounces Back After Rough Couple Of Weeks

Things were rough for the Bucs' defense over the last four weeks of play. They allowed explosive play after explosive play, missed a staggering 46 tackles and struggled to get pressure from anywhere other than the interior. That all flipped on Sunday against the Giants. The Bucs as a team missed just three tackles on the day, shoring up what had been a serious issue. They notched four sacks on DeVito and while two came from Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey, Anthony Nelson and Antoine Winfield Jr also got into the action from two different levels of the defense.

On the whole, the Bucs defense allowed just four explosive plays, two through the air and two on the ground, and just looked like a tighter more cohesive unit than in weeks past. The return of Mike Edwards was felt when he was on the field and the linebacking corps played a much crisper game, with Lavonte registering a forced fumble. These are good signs for a team that needs to go on a stretch run and playing strong defense will be a major key.

Offensive Line Is Playing Elite Football

The big guys in the trenches never seem to get enough love, but they have been the story of the Bucs' turnaround in the run game and passing efficiency. The Buccaneers' offensive line has been playing phenomenal football over the last few weeks and that really culminated against the Giants, and that was without All-Pro left tackle Tristan Wirfs. Coming into the game, New York was second in the league in sacks with dangerous pass rushers in Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, Azeez Ojulari and Dexter Lawrence wreaking havoc on the interior. On Sunday, they were pretty much rendered meaningless. The Bucs o-line held the Giants defense to zero sacks and just six total pressures on the day.

It wasn't just the pass protection that was stellar. The run game was dominant in New York on Sunday. And while the Giants have struggled in that area this season the Bucs imposed their will on them to the tune of 156 total yards on the ground and four (!) rushing touchdowns by four different players, the first time that has happened in an NFL game all season. They had several explosive plays on the ground and Mayfield and running back Bucky Irving both averaged 7.3 yards per carry on the day. The offensive line usually doesn't get the love the skill position players do but everyone on the unit certainly deserves it after Sunday's performance.

Could Liam Coen Be Punching His Head Coaching Ticket?

It's getting harder and harder to hide offensive coordinator Liam Coen from potential head coaching opportunities as he continues to string together excellent game plans. Coen is the Bucs' third offensive coordinator in as many years. After moving on from Byron Leftwich, Tampa Bay brought in Dave Canales to run the offense last year. While there wasn't an improvement in the Bucs ground game, he displayed growth in his playing calling, unique concepts, and an innate ability to connect and resonate with his players. He parlayed his only season as an offensive coordinator into the Carolina Panthers head coaching job, and the Bucs will face off against him this week.

Coen is on a similar path, except he is much more polished than Canales at this point in his career having four years of experience at the position between the NFL and college ranks. He has all the players bought in and has turned around a rushing attack that has finished dead last and toward the bottom of the league the last several years. His playcalling feels natural with the flow of the game and his passing concepts and the way he gets his players into positions to make plays has been impressive. Every week the broadcast gushes about his creativity and the job he has done with the Bucs offense, and it's just a matter of time until franchises come knocking asking him to run the show.

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