Bucs Gameday

Frustrations Looming in Bucs Locker Room Following Loss to Bengals

When asked to describe what happened on the fake-punt fiasco, Bucs' running back, Giovani Bernard, was not interested in discussing.

Collin Haalboom

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In a home game that saw the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lose 34-23 to the Cincinnati Bengals, after leading 17-0 late in the first half, it's easy to understand why frustration and disappointment would be looming after the game.

Many mistakes were made in this game by the Buccaneers. An incredible amount, in fact. The Bucs turned the ball over on their own half of the field, on five consecutive possessions to start the second half.

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The first of which, and most confusing to understand while the game was going on, happened on the Bucs' opening drive in the third quarter.

Facing a 4th down from their own 25-yard line, while lining up to punt, the ball was snapped directly to running back, Giovani Bernard, but hit him up around his facemask before he fell on top of it. 

The result of the play was a turnover on downs for the Bucs, deep in their own territory. 

It was a stunning development because of how confusing the play appeared to transpire. Was this a planned fake punt? Or a terrible snap?

The confusion of that particular turnover quickly became a distant memory though, as the Buccaneers continued to put on a clinic on how to give away prime field position, and squander a substantial lead. 

Once the game had ended, and the media flocked into the locker room to gain an understanding of what exactly happened on that play, it immediately became clear that Gio Bernard was not interested in discussing what happened.

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From the video taken above, by JP Peterson, it appears as though Bernard attempted to avoid questions after suggesting the media wasn't interested in talking to him all year leading up to this point.

Jenna Laine, of ESPN, brought up a good point by stating "we would have talked to you during the season but you were injured" when Bernard was visibly defensive while being approached for questioning. 

After reluctantly agreeing to take questions, he addressed the botched fake punt and described what happened, "miscommunication that's all it was, on my part. I take complete fault for that." When asked whether he knew it was a fake, he stated "Ya. I messed up." 

The frustration displayed by Bernard postgame is surely a result of the negative chain of events that followed the fake-punt fiasco – which led to an incredibly demoralizing loss for him and his teammates. 

With three games to play for the Bucs, two against NFC South opponents, and each team in the division within one game of each other, it looks like the Buccaneers' postseason chances may come down to the wire.

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Collin Haalboom
COLLIN HAALBOOM

Prior to joining BucsGameday and Sports Illustrated, Collin's written content was provided through Bucs Banter, and NFL Draft Lounge. He is also the creator and host of the Bucs Banter Podcast. He is a graduate of the Communication Studies program at McMaster University, where he was also a varsity basketball player, and later an advanced scout. He lives with his wife and two children in Hamilton, ON. You can follow Collin on YouTube and Twitter.