Tampa Bay v. Oakland

 

by John Michael

January 26th, 2003. The greatest day in the history of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Playing in their first and only Super Bowl to date (They should have been there in 1999, but it's okay. I'm not bitter.), the Buccaneers would go on to beat the Oakland Raiders 48-21 and hoist the Lombardi Trophy as World Champions. However, that date almost 10 years ago is the last time the Buccaneers have beat the Raiders, going 0-2 against Oakland since. Including Super Bowl XXXVII, the Buccaneers have a 2-6 all time record against the Raiders, without a single win in the Raiders' home stadium.

Obligatory John Gruden Super Bowl Picture.

But the past is the past, and today is today. Tampa Bay rolls into Oakland after a huge road win against Minnesota, led with performances by Doug Martin and Josh Freeman that has the rest of the nation taking note of what is happening in Tampa. Martin was named the Offensive Rookie of the Month for October, leading the NFL in yards from scrimmage with an average of 155.7 yards per game. In the last three games, Freeman has been on fire - He has thrown for nine touchdowns and only one interception, averaging over 300 yards through the air. The offense appears to finally be clicking with Tampa Bay.

Oakland enters this game with the same record as the Buccaneers, riding on a two game winning streak. Those two wins, however, have come against the two teams that most regard as the worst teams in the NFL this year, Kansas City and Jacksonville. But don't let that trick you into thinking that Oakland is a pushover. Their other win came against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and they kept things close to the end with the 7-0 Atlanta Falcons. They have the tenth ranked passing offense led by quarterback Carson Palmer, who has thrown for over 1900 yards this season with 9 touchdowns. His favorite target is Denarius Moore, who has caught four of Palmer's touchdowns. The running game is led by former Arkansas running back Darren McFadden, who rushed over 100 yards in the Raiders' last game against the Chiefs. Oakland has notoriously been a difficult place to play for opposing teams, with members of the "Black Hole" creating one of the most intimidating home-field advantages in the league. Here's what the Bucs have to do to leave Oakland with a victory for the first time in franchise history.

Keys to Victory

Get well soon. Please.

Win in the Trenches. The Buccaneers received some of the worst news it could hear this week besides there being a sale on Adderall. Carl Nicks, one of Tampa Bay's big free agent signings last offseason, was placed on injured reserve with a toe injury. Nicks has been an enormous part of the recent surge in the Buccaneers offense, giving a strength to the Offensive line that the Bucs have rarely seen in recent years. Behind Nicks, Martin has been able to exploit the large holes he creates and Freeman has had more time in the pocket. The loss of Nicks could punch a large hole in the the Bucs' recent consistency if his replacements cannot contain the Raiders' Defensive line. Luckily for the Bucs, the extended week has given them some more time to prepare the additions to the line. In place of Nicks, Jeremy Zuttah will play left guard, and Ted Larsen will start at center.

Contain Darren McFadden. This should not be too difficult for the Bucs to do, as Oakland's rushing attack ranks 30th in the league and Tampa Bay's rushing defense ranks 6th. But McFadden on a good day can cruise through even the best defenses, so it is important for the Bucs to respect McFadden as a potential threat. McFadden was able to rush for over 100 yards in his last game and will look to improve this week, and Oakland will probably seek McFadden out on the field many times. It is no coincidence that the last 5 games McFadden has rushed over 100 yards in have resulted in Oakland wins.

Even Carson Palmer is surprised by Carson Palmer's recent success.

Prepare for the Pass. Carson Palmer has without a doubt noticed that the Buccaneers' passing defense ranks 30th in the league in his preparations this week, so the Bucs will need to be prepared for the air attack. With Aquib Talib "focusing" his efforts in New England now, and Eric Wright playing through a small injury (and possibly facing the same suspension Talib faced), the Bucs are vulnerable at the cornerback position. Should Demarius Moore or Darius Heyward-Bay get loose in the secondary, it could bode a long day for the Buccaneer's defense. However, the return of Da'Quan Bowers could help the passing attack get to Palmer quick and cause mistakes. While Bowers hasn't returned to "every-down" form, the coaching staff has agreed that he will see more playing time today than he saw against Minnesota.

If the Buccaneers win today, it will be the first time the Bucs have had back-to-back road wins since late 2010. With the consistency that Josh Freeman and the Buccaneers offense has shown in the past three games, things are looking well for the Bucs to accomplish that feat. It will be difficult to adjust to the loss of Carl Nicks, but with Jeremy Zuttah, who has started 31 games at left guard, as his replacement, the offensive line should perform well enough for Freeman and Doug Martin to continue their hot streak. The Bucs enter this game a more complete team than the Oakland Raiders, and I believe that they continue to build off of their success seen against Minnesota to improve to a 4-4 record.

John Michael's Prediction:

Tampa Bay wins 31 - 21