What Stood Out to Lions Immediately about Buccaneers

Physicality will be key factor in Sunday's game.

The Detroit Lions are just one win away from the NFC Championship Game.

Standing in their way is a Tampa Bay Buccaneers team which has many of the same elements driving it as the Lions. Top among them is an element of physicality that mirrors Detroit's, as evidenced by Tampa Bay's thorough 32-9 beatdown of the Philadelphia Eagles Monday night. 

Watching the game on television last night, Lions coach Dan Campbell said he noticed the Buccaneers' toughness right away. 

"I know this, the first note I wrote, which doesn't surprise me one bit, is Tampa Bay is freakin' physical and tough, and they fly to the football on both sides of the ball," Campbell told 97.1 The Ticket Tuesday. "This is a tackling, tough football team. So, that was evident, that popped on the tape. There's one team that's aggressive and flying around here. So, we know we've got our hands full, we've played these guys before. This is gonna be a mirror image of us, two heavyweights going at it. Body blows. It ought to be an exciting game."

Detroit and Tampa Bay met early in the season, a Week 6 showdown that the Lions won, 20-6, at Raymond James Stadium. After that game, Campbell and his staff felt there was meat left on the bone, while also acknowledging a number of adjustments that needed to be made. 

“I think that we came out of that game, we did so many things right to win that game and did them well," Campbell explained. "But, we also came out of that game, and said, man, I know from an offensive perspective, there’s things we can do so much better and need to do just schematically."

Lions Are 6.5-Point Favorite against Buccaneers

Among Tampa Bay's premier defensive playmakers is Vita Vea. The 28-year-old finished the regular season with 5.5 sacks and eight tackles for loss, plus has the ability to derail the Lions' potent run game. 

As a result, neutralizing the defender's impact will be key to the Lions earning a victory Sunday. 

"That Vita Vea, he’s a hell of a player, he really is. I think he’s one of the most underrated interior D-linemen in this league," Campbell stated. "I mean, he is a load, and he’s powerful, he’s strong. He can push the pocket in the pass game. And so, there’s just these things, man, you think about, alright, how do we attack them better than we did the last time. I think until you actually get into battle and you do that, you don’t know entirely what it’s like. So, I think that helps."

Having played each other already this season, each team can curate a gameplan based around what they've seen. Yet, each team has made strides in its development, making the Lions and the Buccaneers much different to attack. 

"Honestly, both of us have evolved since that game we played each other. That was an early game in the season, out at their place," Campbell said. "They’re a better team than they were then, but I believe we are, too. There’s a chess game to it, Ben Johnson and A.G. (Aaron Glenn) are gonna put together a hell of a gameplan, Fipp’s gonna have some good stuff for us. And then, we’ve just got to go at it. It’s us versus them, they’ve got plenty of weapons. It’s a championship head coach over there, man, he understands what it’s about. And, they’re tough and physical. We’re looking forward to it.” 

Notes

After playing through a knee injury Sunday, tight end Sam LaPorta emerged from the game in a good spot health-wise. Campbell said that there was no new damage to the injury and that the rookie was feeling good after treatment Monday. 

"He came out good. Certainly didn't add to any of the injury, went through treatment yesterday and sounds like he's even better," Campbell explained. "So, I feel like we're over the hump with him. There will always be a little soreness in there, but I think we got away unscathed there and he's gonna be feeling even better this week."

As for linebacker James Houston, the Lions are still evaluating whether the defender will be activated this season. He showed improvement last week, a trend that Detroit is hoping will continue. 

"We're open to anything. He was better last week than he was the week before. We'd anticipate that he'd be even better this week," Campbell said. "But, until we see where he's at, I can't tell you if he'll be able to go or not. But, look, we're hoping. We want to take the best players we can, the guys that fit a niche or a role and can help us win."