Todd Bowles Calls Out Buccaneers' Running Back After Eagles Loss

After averaging just 2.7 yards per carry on Monday night against the Philadelphia Eagles, Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles says Rachaad White's issue may have been too much effort.

When is effort a bad thing for teams like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and an offense that hasn't produced a 100-yard rushing game in four of their last five games? 

According to Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles, it's a bad thing when the ball carrier is trying to do too much and doing very little as a result.

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"We've got to stay on our blocks a little longer. Obviously, it goes hand in hand. Rachaad [White] has to hit it," Bowles said when asked about his running game's struggles this season. "I think he tried to make too many big plays when it was a grind-it-out type of game. You're not going to get big plays on these guys. You've got to start hitting it up in there, getting two, three, and four yards, and hope you can break one later on. He probably had too many cuts trying to make an explosive play - something out of nothing - as opposed to taking what they gave him. Given the magnitude of the game, knowing it was going to be one of those types of games, just from an experience standpoint he can get better that way and he will."

That's a lot laid at the feet of the Bucs' second-year running back who has yet to notch a 100-yard rushing game in 20 tries.

Similarly, the Tampa Bay offensive line was often at the feet of White as he tried to navigate through a lot of debris as he tried to find the two, three, and four yards Bowles was referring to. 

Despite the offensive line's struggles blocking the Philadelphia Eagles' defensive line for most of the night - and especially on first down runs - the Buccaneers continued to send White into the teeth of their opponent. 

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"I think people load up when they see certain things," Bowles said when asked about his team's first-down run efficiency. "Maybe we start out passing a little more and open it up a little bit later, but we've got to block it better. We've got to continue to grind it. You don't want these guys [pinning] their ears back and trying to come after Baker [Mayfield] like that. We've got to do a better job of executing - it's really that simple."

Simple, maybe, but we're now in the second-straight season of the Bucs having massive blocking problems up front, and whether Bowles thinks White is doing too much or not there aren't a lot of NFL backs that can take two-yard gains when defenders are two yards in the backfield on a consistent basis. 

Fortunately, Bowles didn't put it all on the players, saying he himself and offensive coordinator Dave Canales can do things to call the game better for their players as well.

This is good because it's going to take a full team effort to get over the bumps and bruises earned in Week 3 and to take the lessons forward to New Orleans for a key NFC South Division matchup in Week 4.

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