Five Takeaways from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Wild Card Win

What did we learn about the Buccaneers in the Wild Card round?

Depending on who you ask, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers either proved they belonged in the 2020 NFL Playoffs on Saturday night, or raised concerns about their legitimacy as a contender.

After a strong end to the regular season offensively, quarterback Tom Brady carried a string of impressive performances into the postseason with his third game of 375+ passing yards in the past four weeks. Running back Leonard Fournette earned a surprise start and made the most of it, inking his name into the Bucs postseason history book with his production.

Yet, the Bucs' pass defense had a miserable night, allowing the Washington Football Team's backup quarterback Taylor Heinicke to pass for over 300 yards and put himself in the conversation as Washington's future starting signal-caller.

So, some good, some bad. What did we learn about the Buccaneers in the Wild Card round?

Buccaneers passing game passes a huge test

Entering the matchup, all eyes were set on the slugfest between the Buccaneers' offensive line and the Football Team's pass rush. The task seemed simple: If Washington's usually disruptive front four could rattle Tom Brady, the Football Team would be in this game.

WFT finished the regular season ranking sixth in the NFL in sacks, averaging 16.6 quarterback pressures per game, per Pro Football Focus. Edge rusher Montez Sweat, in his second year as a pro, put together nine sacks and 20 QB hits during the regular season. On the opposite edge, rookie Chase Young, famous for saying he wanted Brady after a Week 17 win, finished the year with three of his 7.5 sacks over the last four games.

The thing is, Young was basically a non-factor against Brady, and the WFT pass rush didn't get the job done as it normally does. Although the interior offensive line began to allow Brady to be pressured as the game went on, the Buccaneers' tackles got the job done. Brady was sacked three times and hit seven, across 43 dropbacks.

Sweat made an impact with one sack and two QB hits, but it wasn't on a consistent basis. Defensive tackle Daron Payne led the way with two sacks and three QB hits, coming alive after Tampa Bay right guard Alex Cappa went down with an ankle injury.

Otherwise, WFT's pass rush was quiet. In return, Brady went 22-of-40 passing for 381 yards and two touchdowns. The Bucs suffered from numerous drops by wide receivers, Chris Godwin leading the way with four, which kept Brady from an even more explosive performance on paper, and perhaps a larger margin of victory. 

“I think it was the biggest storyline of the week, just because one guy says, ‘I want Tom,’ all of a sudden," head coach Bruce Arians said about the matchup after the game. "They’ve got a great front. Our guys took it to heart, they were going to block them. I thought we blocked them really, really well. They didn’t scare us.”

Leonard Fournette stepped up when needed

As we featured following the game, Fournette went from backup to Ronald Jones II to starter in a matter of moments pre-game. Jones, who played in Week 17 after missing two games, had a quad injury flare-up pregame, presumably after the inactive list came out as he wasn't featured on it. 

Fournette turned the surprise start into his best game as a Buccaneer, compiling 93 yards and a touchdown on 19 rushing attempts and 39 yards on four receptions as well. His 132 scrimmage yards on the night ranks as second-most in Buccaneers postseason history.

“Leonard played great, probably the best he played all year," said Arians. "Knew it was going to be a big game, we only had two backs. I hated the Ke’Shawn [Vaughn] fumble because he was playing [well]. Couldn’t say enough about Leonard and how he stepped up.”

The Buccaneers were relatively balanced in their offensive approach, with a total of 29 rushing attempts to go with 40 passes. Adding Jones back into the mix, should he be healthy for the Divisional Round, could balance out the attack even more and take stress off of Brady. 

But one way or another, no matter who's touching it, the Bucs are moving the ball at will right now.

Right guard conundrum

Washington's pass rush did begin to pick up some steam after Cappa left the game at the end of the first half with what is believed to be a fractured ankle, notably Payne coming from the interior. Ted Larsen stepped in for Cappa and at times resembled a turnstile in pass protection, allowing a sack and two pressures. The rushing game still sufficed, but after averaging 5.4 yards per carry in the first half, the Bucs average dipped a yard to 4.4 yards per attempt.

Joe Haeg was swiftly benched when he was forced into the lineup earlier in the season at left guard, and has allowed pressure on 11.6% of his pass-blocking snaps this season. Aaron Stinnie, who was inactive on Saturday, had just 30 total snaps in three games during the regular season, although he did not give up a sack or a pressure in that action.

While Larsen didn't play all too well, the Bucs' next couple of options to replace Cappa are either unproven or have struggled, too. A.Q. Shipley's career-ending neck injury suffered earlier this season could hurt the Bucs in the long run with Cappa's season expected to come to an end entering the next round of the playoffs.

Devin White's return will be welcomed graciously

After missing two games while on the reserve/COVID-19 list, linebacker Devin White is expected to be cleared and return to the Buccaneers this week.

This is great news because the Bucs sure do need him.

Taylor Heinicke's impressive performance, in his second career start, raised red flags in regards to the Buccaneers defense, which could be seen at times throughout the season but have been amplified without White. White has not been a perfect coverage defender in 2020, but his presence as a rusher and spy on the quarterback has inarguably changed games for the Bucs.

Without White, the Bucs' pass rush suffered and couldn't finish plays as Heinicke was a threat with his feet. He was successful in making throws on the run and turning dropbacks into scrambles for positive gains, ending the night going 26-of-44 passing for 306 yards, a touchdown and an interception, along with a team-leading 46 rushing yards and a score on the ground.

White is known to be a play-maker. His team-leading 140 tackles, nine sacks, 15 tackles for loss, one forced fumble, and four pass breakups speak for themselves. Meanwhile, his replacement Kevin Minter missed three tackles against Washington, more than White allowed in any game in 2020 (per PFF).

The Bucs run defense as a whole did its job against Washington, but the passing defense was a disappointment. The hope is White could mend some of these issues as the Bucs advance.

The Buccaneers will go as far as their passing defense takes them

Following the notes on White, one thing is clear: The Buccaneers offense can keep them in games with anyone. The Buccaneers defense, rather, could be the team's kryptonite.

Over the last five games, Brady has averaged 342 yards per contest while the Bucs are averaging 35.8 points in those matchups. After a midseason cold streak, Arians has his offense firing on all cylinders and proving that it can do what it wants against even the NFL's best defenses.

On the other side of the ball, Tampa Bay just gave up 300 passing yards to a quarterback who had only one other start under his belt, and it came in 2017. It was the fourth time in the last seven games that Tampa Bay has allowed at least 300 passing yards.

The New Orleans Saints, as Drew Brees has been healthy, have dominated through the air this season, including 471 yards and six touchdowns vs. Tampa Bay in two matchups. The Chicago Bears, going back to Mitchell Trubisky at quarterback after Nick Foles (who started against Tampa Bay in Week 5) suffered an injury, have found a spark offensively in the second half of the year.

Tampa Bay will face one of these teams in the Divisional Round, depending on who wins on Sunday. Perhaps White's return will be enough to slow opposing air attacks down, but as a whole, Tampa Bay's passing defense will need to improve quickly in order to stay alive.