November 10, 2025 • 19 mins
Team Reporter Casey Phillips sat down with Tampa Bay Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles following the Bucs’ Week 10 game against the New England Patriots in the 2025 NFL season. They discussed the importance of executing assignments, rookie WR Tez Johnson’s play, and keys to success.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome into the Todd Bowles show Casey Phillips here with
head coach Todd Bowles. So, I know it's always more
fun to learn from wins than losses. But what were
some of the things that you feel like the team
was able to learn from that game and take forward
moving from here?
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Just execution? You know we prepared well. I thought we
prepared well. We just got to execute. We can't have
busts on defense, and then we got to execute third
down better on offense. So overall, I think we had
our chances to stay in and win this ball game,
but New England, credit to them, made a bunch of
plays that kept us out of it.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
I know that Tz Johnson did have a couple of touchdowns,
a big day for him and his first career game
with multiple scores. So what did you see from particularly
those two touchdown plays, from.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
Him getting a lot better with the offensive system. People
forget we're playing with two rookies starting at wide out
and Taz came in late, extremely fast, extremely quick, very
good route runner that way, getting more comfortable with Baker
as far as from a scramble standpoint, knowing where to be,
and you know it showed it one.
Speaker 3 (00:59):
Of the touchdown I know.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Now he's had at least forty receiving yards in five
straight games, tied for the longest streak by a rookie
in the NFL this season. So you know, also among
wide receivers with at least thirty targets, he has a
one hundred and thirty passer rating when targeted, which is
seventh in the NFL for everybody, not just rookies, of
all wide receivers. So what have you seen about the
(01:21):
biggest ways he's been able to grow outside of just
as you've said, kind of learning the system and knowing
that there's the opportunities, but then the way he actually
has handled those opportunities.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Them great, just keeping them on the move and understanding
when he has to go down because of his frame,
when guys come around in the pile trying to knock
him out, and.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
Just his speed is unbelievable.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
You won't know how fast he is really until you're
out there up against him. He doesn't have a great
forty time, but that forty time is so much faster
on the field. So he continues to play fast, he
continues to impress, and he continues to make plays and.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
What does your head and heart do when he does
a flip after a touchdown? What are our thoughts?
Speaker 2 (02:00):
I feel like I'm at my son seven on seven
games because that's the only time I see it.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
I like it. And then man a Mecca one hundred
and fifteen yards in a touchdown for him as well?
What stood out about his game?
Speaker 2 (02:12):
He's been playing like that all year. He plays fast,
he plays tough, very sharp route runner, outstanding hands, great toughness.
I thought he did a great job.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
And what does it mean about the fact that he's
now doing this now that teams of a had games
to look at, but b that he's the guy they're
focusing on now. When you don't have Mike, when you
don't have Chris, it's one thing to play at that
level when those other guys are pulling coverage away. What
does it say about the fact that he's still able
to do this now as yet? The number one guy.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
Tells you how much he prepares, how much, how determined
he is when he goes out there and he finds
a way to get open no matter what, and all
the good ones do.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
I know that he's now tied Mike for the most
receiving touchdowns by a Buccaneers player in their first nine
career games. Anytime you tie Mike at anything, not a
bad idea. And it was his third game of at
one hundred yards and he has more of those in
the first ten weeks of the season, third most by
a rookie since twenty sixteen. So looking at these numbers
and the idea of where he could go from here
(03:11):
is what can you feel like you can predict about
the type of guy he can be if he's having
this kind of success this early.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Scott's the limit for him.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
I mean, he prepares, he practices, he studies, he's a workhorse,
He catches ponts, he does all the little things that
the great receivers try and do. He doesn't try to
be one dimensional outside or a slot or anything like that.
He wants to cover the full gamut and he works
at it. And he loves to know how they're trying
(03:39):
to defend him, so he could try to defeat it.
So he's always learning when he's out there, and that's
a great thing.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
And then I mean to have you guys, the first
team in the NFL this season have multiple rookie wide
receivers with a touchdown grab in the same game, and
you lead all teams in receiving yards receiving touchdowns by
rookies this season, and you have the most receiving touchdowns
by rookies going back to the start of twenty twenty three.
What is the key to having that kind of success
both in what you guys are looking at in these
(04:06):
guys that you're bringing in and then the development that's
happening once they're here to have sustained success by rookies
over the course of now three different seasons.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Really their mindset when we're bringing them in here, me
and Jason take a good look at who they are
and their character from that standpoint, their work ethic on
the practice field and all those things. But b Mac,
our wide receiver coach, does a great job developing these
guys and getting them ready. He deserves most of the
credit from that standpoint. And when they go out there,
(04:35):
it's a full complete overhaul of everything they've learned over
the past few weeks. And Mike and Chris are great
guys to learn from, so he's got extra coaches in
them as well. So when they go out there, they're
very fully prepared to play the game.
Speaker 1 (04:52):
I know, the opening drive on offense took just three
and a half minutes and just looked like it was
beautiful drive, smoothly moving down the field, exactly what you
guys would like. What went so well on that? You know,
that drive and how to try to replicate that moving
forward execution?
Speaker 2 (05:08):
We executed very well. We got some runs in there,
we got some quick passes in there. Everybody was in rhythm.
I thought we got we got in a good rhythm.
And after that drive, I thought we struggled a little
bit on third down converting.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
Yeah, that was gonna be my next question of four
punts on the next five drives after that opening score.
So was it mainly the third down situation?
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Mostly the third down situations? We got to be able
to execute on third down?
Speaker 1 (05:30):
I know. Tell me about Baker's game and what stood
out to him and the things that I know he
was frustrated after the game, both you know, with the
offense and the team overall. What did you see from
from him and just the thoughts on the comments after
the game.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Most of our leaders should be if you're not frustrated
after the loss, you're probably in the wrong game, you're
in the wrong game.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
He's a winner. He wants to win.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
You get frustrated over the little things that we got
to execute that we know we've executed in practice, that
we did not execute in the game, that we can.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
Prepare better, we can play better.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
So their frustration is as well well devised, and he
should be as well as everybody on his team, including
the coaches as well.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
So we got to get better from there going forward,
and we will.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
I know it must be nice having Luke Gettikey back
in the game. So what kind of a boost did
you see that give? And then how much of full
Luke Gettikey is he at this point?
Speaker 2 (06:24):
He did better than I thought he was gonna do
out there. You know, he's a little ginger at first,
but he went out there and he played a very
good ball game.
Speaker 3 (06:29):
He played a.
Speaker 2 (06:30):
Very solid ball game, and he came out okay too,
which was more important than anything else. But I have
wanted your right start and right tackle out there, having
missed him the whole year.
Speaker 3 (06:39):
Very comforting to see.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
And then, of course, because this is just how the
season has gone for us, we have to then lose
another offensive line and we can't just get somebody back.
We have to lose somebody else in the process. So
what did it mean to lose Brettison midgame and the
role he plays?
Speaker 2 (06:55):
It was huge loss for us there because Bredison, obviously
he played center early in the season when all the
guys were down, then he went back to guard. He's
very smart, he communicates very well. He's one of our
big communicators up there. Very tough, built, loads to the ground,
very stout. So when you lose somebody like that, it
kind of takes some.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Out of you.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Casey Phillips here with head coach Todd Bowles, tell me
about the offensive line overall, especially in the run game.
I know you guys were able to have one hundred
and thirteen rushing yards, which is the third most allowed
by the Patriots in a game this season, and the
yards per carry you guys had was the most allowed
by them in any game this season. So what did
you see that both your backs and the O line
did to be able to have more success against them
(07:35):
the most people endgame.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
I didn't think it was very good, but then I
went back and looked at the tape. We did a
good job connecting the blocks and made some hard run,
so I really thought it was a lot better than
it was during the game. So, you know, to go
against a team like that with two interior tough guys
and big guys on the end set in the edge,
and those guys still gained some ground, I.
Speaker 3 (07:54):
Thought it was good.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
And then what did you think of your O line
in the past game?
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Gave up some pressures. We got to protect a little
better than that. Obviously, when he got two new guards.
Communication is going to be an issue, but as we
get continuity going forward, it'll be better.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
I know that Sean Tucker was the first running back
to have more than fifty yards rushing on the Patriots
this year. What did you see that he was able
to do successfully?
Speaker 2 (08:18):
Sounds tough. He's been a good run since we've had him.
He understands holes. He's very explosive and has a great
burst going outside. He's has a thick lower body where
he bounce off of people, but he knows how to
run and he knows how to get to the edge.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
I know Caid tied his career high in catches with
nine and he had eighty two yards. He now also
moved into the six most receiving yards among Titans and
franchise history. How cool has it been for you to
just watch Kaid do everything asked of him this year,
whether that be a lot of blocking or a game
like this where now he ends up being one of
our most targeted guys. So what did you see from
(08:53):
him in that game? And then just how much he's
meant to this offense all year?
Speaker 2 (08:57):
Very steady. I thought he came up early for us.
He was continuously good through every quarter that way. He
made some great catches for us, got some first downs
his run after catch, Uh, he's hard to bring down
by the first guy. He really falls forward five or
six yards, So he got some key first downs for
us that way, and he's been reliable every week. If
(09:17):
Baker gets in trouble, he knows.
Speaker 3 (09:18):
Where to go.
Speaker 1 (09:19):
And then on the defensive side of things, you guys
basically stopped the run completely except for two gigantic plays,
so we'll get to those in a second, But first,
what worked well outside of those big plays to be
able to stop the run on basically every other possession.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Everybody was gap sound, everybody was fit where they were
supposed to fit, and then we were fine and on
the big runs. We did not fit well we were
supposed to fit, and you know that that's a huge problem.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
And then I knows, Uh, can you take us through
a little bit the fifty five yard Henderson touchdown and
then the second play of the second half and that
sixty nine yard run as well, which is kind of
what you saw on each of those.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
Uh, the second play after the second half, we misfit
the gap. We jumped out of our gap right from
the start and left wide open. And he has great
speed and once you give him a gap, he's going
to take it and go. But that should never happen
for us. That's never happened. You know, it happened against Detroit.
Then again it turned around and happened yesterday. And the
last play we were actually in gold line. We stopped
(10:15):
the same play for no gain on the gold line.
And then we don't fit where we're supposed to fit
and we let the runout.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
And then I know Taike got that interception in the
end zone. That was a really big play, especially at
the time. What did he do so well there and
what did it mean for the team at that point?
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Came off his guy actually read the quarterback camilf His
guy made a heck of a play, gave us a chance.
At that time it was twenty one sixteen, got the
ball back for us, gave us a chance.
Speaker 3 (10:39):
He played a heck of a ball game.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
Since the start of last year, he is one of
only two safeties with at least one hundred tackles, fifteen
passes defense, and multiple interceptions and sacks. What does that
say to you about the kind of guy he is
and then also the way you've chosen to use him
to set him up for those kind of statistics.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
He's tough, he's tough, he's smart, and he comes to
play every week. Every week he comes to play. So
he's one of our leaders on defense. He's one of
our tone setters on defense, and he'll take on anybody
from lineman to wideoutse and he's a very tough player
and he's a very good football player.
Speaker 1 (11:16):
What did you see from your three corners of Jamel
and Zion and Morrison and the ways you were rotating
Jamel and Morrison and just the three guys, how they
looked in the game.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
Uh, the three Dean played the best.
Speaker 2 (11:26):
He had some PBUs and he tackled well, but Marrison
had a rough one. He gave up the touchdown and
he had a penalty. I thought Zion from a fundamental standpoint,
he can be a lot better than he played yesterday.
Speaker 1 (11:38):
And what did you see from your defensive line.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Defensive line played well, especially Roberts. I thought Roberts did
a very good job yesterday. He could actually get off
blocks and get to the quarterback and got some quarterback hits.
And he's really settling in at the position and making
plays for us. I thought Beta was very solid that way.
I thought Logan was in and out. When he stays low,
he can play. When he plays high, he gets in trouble.
(12:02):
But we got to do a better job on the edge.
Knowing the balls going outside, we make our run fits,
and they made their run fits. They made it very
tough for him to run the ball inside.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
Yeah, Vina actually tied a career high with seven quarterback
pressures on the day, and so even though there was
only one sack in the game and it wasn't his,
what did that What was working so well for Vita
in that area and what he added to the quarterback pressures.
Speaker 2 (12:26):
He was pushing a pocket from the inside. We knew
the quarterback likes to run up the middle, so he
didn't create any gaps for the quarterback to run through,
so he's really getting pressure that way.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
We talked a little bit about Elijah Roberts earlier, but
I definitely wanted to highlight him a little bit more.
It got his third pass defense to the season, which
is tied for the most in the NFL among rookie
defensive linemen, second sack of the season, which is tied
for the second most by a rookie, and now four
total sacks from rookies this season is also now the
second most in the NFL. For you guys, so tell
(12:56):
me about him specifically of looking at some of these
different things of both sacks and passes defense and what
he's able to do at his specific position into.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
Really been coming on for us.
Speaker 2 (13:06):
He has a knack for getting off blocks and understanding
he can throw body weight and then go back the
other ways. One of the few guys we have down
there that can do that. Vita can do it with strength.
He can do it with athleticism as well as strength,
So that makes him very dangerous in the passing game,
and he's gotten very.
Speaker 3 (13:24):
Good in the run game.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
He was taking on double teams, he was p piling
up the holes. I mean, he did a very good job.
I thought it was his best game to date.
Speaker 1 (13:32):
And I knew he had to make a bit of
an adjustment in terms of what he had to do
in college versus what he's doing here. So can you
explain a little bit about that in the way he's
handled having to not only make the adjustment to the NFL,
but even to be, you know, used a little bit differently.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
It took him minute. I mean, he was out on
the edge more or less in college.
Speaker 2 (13:49):
He was doing some of those things, but they were
moving him so much he never had to really take
the blocks on. So it took a while for his
hands and feet to catch up a little bit. And
once he put him together. He's a very tough kid.
He studies a lot. He wants to be very good.
He cares, he really cares, and he's starting to show it.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
And then his sack was the only one of the game.
We talked about Vita having a lot of passes defensed overall,
How did you feel about the idea of the pass
rush as a whole, both outside, inside and everybody that
was a part of that.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
I don't think they gave us many opportunities, especially on
third down. They max protected where we covered more first
second down, the balls were coming out so fast. We
had guys running free, but the balls were coming out
so fast that they tried to negate it with the
quick screens and the quick passes in the flat and
everything else. But I thought they were getting after it.
I thought Yao did a good job because they had
four pressures out on the edge that way. And you know,
(14:44):
sometimes you get a bunch of pressures and not a
lot of sacks. Sometimes you get a lot of sacks,
but not as many pressures.
Speaker 1 (14:51):
Can you take us through the goal line? Stand that
finished with that corner touchdown catch for Diggs and what
you guys did well up to that point, and then
why that play ended getting through.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
And Gains made a heck of a play on first
down and stopped it, and the guys made a heck
of a play on second down and they rallied to
the ball third down, no different. We made a heck
of a play and he made a hell of a
throwing fourth down to get Diggs in the corner of
the end zone.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
I know Elijah Simmons was definitely a big part of
being in there and has been another guy in addition
to Vida to bring a lot of strength and size.
What has he meant to your defensive line in the
week of losing Collijah and just the way you've been
able to rotate and use guys a little bit differently.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
Different type of player.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
He more comes in when Vita comes out, and more
short yards than goal line, but he's very strong, brute strength.
With him and Vita in there, we feel like we
can get a push up the middle. So he had
a lot to do with the short yards type of
stuff and the goal line st I.
Speaker 1 (15:48):
Know we mentioned that the wish of our offense having
a little bit more success on third down, but your
defense did hold them to five or fourteen on third down.
What did you see that worked really well? There?
Speaker 3 (15:57):
Covered?
Speaker 2 (15:58):
You know, we covered, We got a lot of covers
that where where there's nowhere to throw the ball before
him to dump it.
Speaker 3 (16:02):
So did a good job on.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Third down cover Looking ahead to this Bill's game, So
when you know a team like them are coming off,
you know, a tough loss to the Dolphins, does that
make it where in your mind knowing they're probably going
to be even more fired up in the idea of
what their mentality will be coming in.
Speaker 3 (16:18):
I don't think it matters. I'm worried about our mentality.
Speaker 2 (16:21):
Our mentality needs to be the same, and we need
to be fired up, and we need to correct the
mistakes we made, and we need to go in there
and we need to win the ball game.
Speaker 3 (16:29):
And that's all I worry about.
Speaker 1 (16:31):
And then what are some of the communication things that
you guys are going to be hoping to work on,
especially knowing it is a very loud place to play,
you know, is that the kind of stadium where you
guys will be practicing for that noise this week?
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Definitely, and we'll have some silent counts and it's a
loud place. And you know, Bill's Mafia is a thing.
They travel well, they play well at home, They're very loud.
Speaker 3 (16:52):
So we got to come in, We got to make place.
Speaker 1 (16:54):
Josh Allen, tell me the challenge of going against a
guy like him, and what the certain things are you
guys have to prepare for. Knowing the dual threat.
Speaker 2 (17:02):
He is, He's a triple threat because he can run
with it, he can throw it, and he can get
third and one on the toush push, So he's got
to try factor working for him. And he's a good
sized quarterback. You know, he's about six y five and
he's a good two fifty plus or a two twenty
something plus, and he really can run with the football.
But he has a very strong arm, very active with
(17:23):
that way. They have very quick receivers and one of
the best tight end cords we're gonna see, and one
of the best running backs we're gonna see as well.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
Yeah, tell me about James Cook and what he does
so well.
Speaker 2 (17:33):
He makes the first guy miss very quick, very fast,
very tough. You look up and we're not in our
gaps and he's going down the field. We're not gonna
catch this guy. He's a very good football player. Admire
him a lot. Reminds me a lot of Bucky very
good straight line speed. He's more like a Jamiir Gibbs
type of guy. And he's very explosive.
Speaker 1 (17:54):
You mentioned some of the other weapons they have. Dalton
kin Kate as their leading receiver. He was hurt in
this last game, so how much would that matter of
his involvement or out how much that could change things
for them? And their offense O would.
Speaker 3 (18:05):
Be huge for him. He he's a big weapon for him.
Speaker 2 (18:07):
He's a tight end trapped in a RECEI he's a receiver,
a tight end trapping the receiver's body. And he can
he can do both. He can go outside, he can
go inside. He plays against corners, safeties, in linebackers and
he and he can block well.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
And how about their defensive front. I know they got
Joey Bosa, ed Oliver going on IR definitely made a
difference for them. So you know, what are the things
you notice about their front and who they have available? Uh?
Speaker 2 (18:29):
They win first down and then they get you behind
the sticks and they come after you. Bosa's a great
pass rusher. Obviously they have some very quick ones up there,
but they have a very good secondary as well, So
we gotta make sure we do a great job on
first now.
Speaker 1 (18:41):
Yeah, and what does stand out about their secondary to you?
Speaker 3 (18:44):
Speed?
Speaker 1 (18:44):
Uh?
Speaker 2 (18:45):
Speed, They got a lot of speed back there, so
they can run with the deep balls. And they communicate
very well because they played nickel the entire time, so
they've seen a bunch of different looks and they understand each.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
Other very well.
Speaker 1 (18:56):
Well. Coach, thank you as always for your time, We
really appreciate it. After this last game, and good luck
this next week going up to Buffalo. Coming up next
is offensive line coach Brian Pacuchi on Buccaneers Total Access,
brought to you by Advent Health. This is Buccaneers Radio
Welcome into the Todd Bowles show Casey Phillips here with
head coach Todd Bowles. So, I know it's always more
fun to learn from wins than losses. But what were
some of the things that you feel like the team
was able to learn from that game and take forward
moving from here?
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Just execution? You know we prepared well. I thought we
prepared well. We just got to execute. We can't have
busts on defense, and then we got to execute third
down better on offense. So overall, I think we had
our chances to stay in and win this ball game,
but New England, credit to them, made a bunch of
plays that kept us out of it.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
I know that Tz Johnson did have a couple of touchdowns,
a big day for him and his first career game
with multiple scores. So what did you see from particularly
those two touchdown plays, from.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
Him getting a lot better with the offensive system. People
forget we're playing with two rookies starting at wide out
and Taz came in late, extremely fast, extremely quick, very
good route runner that way, getting more comfortable with Baker
as far as from a scramble standpoint, knowing where to be,
and you know it showed it one.
Speaker 3 (00:59):
Of the touchdown I know.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Now he's had at least forty receiving yards in five
straight games, tied for the longest streak by a rookie
in the NFL this season. So you know, also among
wide receivers with at least thirty targets, he has a
one hundred and thirty passer rating when targeted, which is
seventh in the NFL for everybody, not just rookies, of
all wide receivers. So what have you seen about the
(01:21):
biggest ways he's been able to grow outside of just
as you've said, kind of learning the system and knowing
that there's the opportunities, but then the way he actually
has handled those opportunities.
Speaker 2 (01:30):
Them great, just keeping them on the move and understanding
when he has to go down because of his frame,
when guys come around in the pile trying to knock
him out, and.
Speaker 3 (01:38):
Just his speed is unbelievable.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
You won't know how fast he is really until you're
out there up against him. He doesn't have a great
forty time, but that forty time is so much faster
on the field. So he continues to play fast, he
continues to impress, and he continues to make plays and.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
What does your head and heart do when he does
a flip after a touchdown? What are our thoughts?
Speaker 2 (02:00):
I feel like I'm at my son seven on seven
games because that's the only time I see it.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
I like it. And then man a Mecca one hundred
and fifteen yards in a touchdown for him as well?
What stood out about his game?
Speaker 2 (02:12):
He's been playing like that all year. He plays fast,
he plays tough, very sharp route runner, outstanding hands, great toughness.
I thought he did a great job.
Speaker 1 (02:22):
And what does it mean about the fact that he's
now doing this now that teams of a had games
to look at, but b that he's the guy they're
focusing on now. When you don't have Mike, when you
don't have Chris, it's one thing to play at that
level when those other guys are pulling coverage away. What
does it say about the fact that he's still able
to do this now as yet? The number one guy.
Speaker 2 (02:40):
Tells you how much he prepares, how much, how determined
he is when he goes out there and he finds
a way to get open no matter what, and all
the good ones do.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
I know that he's now tied Mike for the most
receiving touchdowns by a Buccaneers player in their first nine
career games. Anytime you tie Mike at anything, not a
bad idea. And it was his third game of at
one hundred yards and he has more of those in
the first ten weeks of the season, third most by
a rookie since twenty sixteen. So looking at these numbers
and the idea of where he could go from here
(03:11):
is what can you feel like you can predict about
the type of guy he can be if he's having
this kind of success this early.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Scott's the limit for him.
Speaker 2 (03:19):
I mean, he prepares, he practices, he studies, he's a workhorse,
He catches ponts, he does all the little things that
the great receivers try and do. He doesn't try to
be one dimensional outside or a slot or anything like that.
He wants to cover the full gamut and he works
at it. And he loves to know how they're trying
(03:39):
to defend him, so he could try to defeat it.
So he's always learning when he's out there, and that's
a great thing.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
And then I mean to have you guys, the first
team in the NFL this season have multiple rookie wide
receivers with a touchdown grab in the same game, and
you lead all teams in receiving yards receiving touchdowns by
rookies this season, and you have the most receiving touchdowns
by rookies going back to the start of twenty twenty three.
What is the key to having that kind of success
both in what you guys are looking at in these
(04:06):
guys that you're bringing in and then the development that's
happening once they're here to have sustained success by rookies
over the course of now three different seasons.
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Really their mindset when we're bringing them in here, me
and Jason take a good look at who they are
and their character from that standpoint, their work ethic on
the practice field and all those things. But b Mac,
our wide receiver coach, does a great job developing these
guys and getting them ready. He deserves most of the
credit from that standpoint. And when they go out there,
(04:35):
it's a full complete overhaul of everything they've learned over
the past few weeks. And Mike and Chris are great
guys to learn from, so he's got extra coaches in
them as well. So when they go out there, they're
very fully prepared to play the game.
Speaker 1 (04:52):
I know, the opening drive on offense took just three
and a half minutes and just looked like it was
beautiful drive, smoothly moving down the field, exactly what you
guys would like. What went so well on that? You know,
that drive and how to try to replicate that moving
forward execution?
Speaker 2 (05:08):
We executed very well. We got some runs in there,
we got some quick passes in there. Everybody was in rhythm.
I thought we got we got in a good rhythm.
And after that drive, I thought we struggled a little
bit on third down converting.
Speaker 1 (05:20):
Yeah, that was gonna be my next question of four
punts on the next five drives after that opening score.
So was it mainly the third down situation?
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Mostly the third down situations? We got to be able
to execute on third down?
Speaker 1 (05:30):
I know. Tell me about Baker's game and what stood
out to him and the things that I know he
was frustrated after the game, both you know, with the
offense and the team overall. What did you see from
from him and just the thoughts on the comments after
the game.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
Most of our leaders should be if you're not frustrated
after the loss, you're probably in the wrong game, you're
in the wrong game.
Speaker 3 (05:49):
He's a winner. He wants to win.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
You get frustrated over the little things that we got
to execute that we know we've executed in practice, that
we did not execute in the game, that we can.
Speaker 3 (05:59):
Prepare better, we can play better.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
So their frustration is as well well devised, and he
should be as well as everybody on his team, including
the coaches as well.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
So we got to get better from there going forward,
and we will.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
I know it must be nice having Luke Gettikey back
in the game. So what kind of a boost did
you see that give? And then how much of full
Luke Gettikey is he at this point?
Speaker 2 (06:24):
He did better than I thought he was gonna do
out there. You know, he's a little ginger at first,
but he went out there and he played a very
good ball game.
Speaker 3 (06:29):
He played a.
Speaker 2 (06:30):
Very solid ball game, and he came out okay too,
which was more important than anything else. But I have
wanted your right start and right tackle out there, having
missed him the whole year.
Speaker 3 (06:39):
Very comforting to see.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
And then, of course, because this is just how the
season has gone for us, we have to then lose
another offensive line and we can't just get somebody back.
We have to lose somebody else in the process. So
what did it mean to lose Brettison midgame and the
role he plays?
Speaker 2 (06:55):
It was huge loss for us there because Bredison, obviously
he played center early in the season when all the
guys were down, then he went back to guard. He's
very smart, he communicates very well. He's one of our
big communicators up there. Very tough, built, loads to the ground,
very stout. So when you lose somebody like that, it
kind of takes some.
Speaker 3 (07:12):
Out of you.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Casey Phillips here with head coach Todd Bowles, tell me
about the offensive line overall, especially in the run game.
I know you guys were able to have one hundred
and thirteen rushing yards, which is the third most allowed
by the Patriots in a game this season, and the
yards per carry you guys had was the most allowed
by them in any game this season. So what did
you see that both your backs and the O line
did to be able to have more success against them
(07:35):
the most people endgame.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
I didn't think it was very good, but then I
went back and looked at the tape. We did a
good job connecting the blocks and made some hard run,
so I really thought it was a lot better than
it was during the game. So, you know, to go
against a team like that with two interior tough guys
and big guys on the end set in the edge,
and those guys still gained some ground, I.
Speaker 3 (07:54):
Thought it was good.
Speaker 1 (07:55):
And then what did you think of your O line
in the past game?
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Gave up some pressures. We got to protect a little
better than that. Obviously, when he got two new guards.
Communication is going to be an issue, but as we
get continuity going forward, it'll be better.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
I know that Sean Tucker was the first running back
to have more than fifty yards rushing on the Patriots
this year. What did you see that he was able
to do successfully?
Speaker 2 (08:18):
Sounds tough. He's been a good run since we've had him.
He understands holes. He's very explosive and has a great
burst going outside. He's has a thick lower body where
he bounce off of people, but he knows how to
run and he knows how to get to the edge.
Speaker 1 (08:32):
I know Caid tied his career high in catches with
nine and he had eighty two yards. He now also
moved into the six most receiving yards among Titans and
franchise history. How cool has it been for you to
just watch Kaid do everything asked of him this year,
whether that be a lot of blocking or a game
like this where now he ends up being one of
our most targeted guys. So what did you see from
(08:53):
him in that game? And then just how much he's
meant to this offense all year?
Speaker 2 (08:57):
Very steady. I thought he came up early for us.
He was continuously good through every quarter that way. He
made some great catches for us, got some first downs
his run after catch, Uh, he's hard to bring down
by the first guy. He really falls forward five or
six yards, So he got some key first downs for
us that way, and he's been reliable every week. If
(09:17):
Baker gets in trouble, he knows.
Speaker 3 (09:18):
Where to go.
Speaker 1 (09:19):
And then on the defensive side of things, you guys
basically stopped the run completely except for two gigantic plays,
so we'll get to those in a second, But first,
what worked well outside of those big plays to be
able to stop the run on basically every other possession.
Speaker 2 (09:33):
Everybody was gap sound, everybody was fit where they were
supposed to fit, and then we were fine and on
the big runs. We did not fit well we were
supposed to fit, and you know that that's a huge problem.
Speaker 1 (09:44):
And then I knows, Uh, can you take us through
a little bit the fifty five yard Henderson touchdown and
then the second play of the second half and that
sixty nine yard run as well, which is kind of
what you saw on each of those.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
Uh, the second play after the second half, we misfit
the gap. We jumped out of our gap right from
the start and left wide open. And he has great
speed and once you give him a gap, he's going
to take it and go. But that should never happen
for us. That's never happened. You know, it happened against Detroit.
Then again it turned around and happened yesterday. And the
last play we were actually in gold line. We stopped
(10:15):
the same play for no gain on the gold line.
And then we don't fit where we're supposed to fit
and we let the runout.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
And then I know Taike got that interception in the
end zone. That was a really big play, especially at
the time. What did he do so well there and
what did it mean for the team at that point?
Speaker 2 (10:29):
Came off his guy actually read the quarterback camilf His
guy made a heck of a play, gave us a chance.
At that time it was twenty one sixteen, got the
ball back for us, gave us a chance.
Speaker 3 (10:39):
He played a heck of a ball game.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
Since the start of last year, he is one of
only two safeties with at least one hundred tackles, fifteen
passes defense, and multiple interceptions and sacks. What does that
say to you about the kind of guy he is
and then also the way you've chosen to use him
to set him up for those kind of statistics.
Speaker 2 (10:58):
He's tough, he's tough, he's smart, and he comes to
play every week. Every week he comes to play. So
he's one of our leaders on defense. He's one of
our tone setters on defense, and he'll take on anybody
from lineman to wideoutse and he's a very tough player
and he's a very good football player.
Speaker 1 (11:16):
What did you see from your three corners of Jamel
and Zion and Morrison and the ways you were rotating
Jamel and Morrison and just the three guys, how they
looked in the game.
Speaker 3 (11:24):
Uh, the three Dean played the best.
Speaker 2 (11:26):
He had some PBUs and he tackled well, but Marrison
had a rough one. He gave up the touchdown and
he had a penalty. I thought Zion from a fundamental standpoint,
he can be a lot better than he played yesterday.
Speaker 1 (11:38):
And what did you see from your defensive line.
Speaker 2 (11:41):
Defensive line played well, especially Roberts. I thought Roberts did
a very good job yesterday. He could actually get off
blocks and get to the quarterback and got some quarterback hits.
And he's really settling in at the position and making
plays for us. I thought Beta was very solid that way.
I thought Logan was in and out. When he stays low,
he can play. When he plays high, he gets in trouble.
(12:02):
But we got to do a better job on the edge.
Knowing the balls going outside, we make our run fits,
and they made their run fits. They made it very
tough for him to run the ball inside.
Speaker 1 (12:12):
Yeah, Vina actually tied a career high with seven quarterback
pressures on the day, and so even though there was
only one sack in the game and it wasn't his,
what did that What was working so well for Vita
in that area and what he added to the quarterback pressures.
Speaker 2 (12:26):
He was pushing a pocket from the inside. We knew
the quarterback likes to run up the middle, so he
didn't create any gaps for the quarterback to run through,
so he's really getting pressure that way.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
We talked a little bit about Elijah Roberts earlier, but
I definitely wanted to highlight him a little bit more.
It got his third pass defense to the season, which
is tied for the most in the NFL among rookie
defensive linemen, second sack of the season, which is tied
for the second most by a rookie, and now four
total sacks from rookies this season is also now the
second most in the NFL. For you guys, so tell
(12:56):
me about him specifically of looking at some of these
different things of both sacks and passes defense and what
he's able to do at his specific position into.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
Really been coming on for us.
Speaker 2 (13:06):
He has a knack for getting off blocks and understanding
he can throw body weight and then go back the
other ways. One of the few guys we have down
there that can do that. Vita can do it with strength.
He can do it with athleticism as well as strength,
So that makes him very dangerous in the passing game,
and he's gotten very.
Speaker 3 (13:24):
Good in the run game.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
He was taking on double teams, he was p piling
up the holes. I mean, he did a very good job.
I thought it was his best game to date.
Speaker 1 (13:32):
And I knew he had to make a bit of
an adjustment in terms of what he had to do
in college versus what he's doing here. So can you
explain a little bit about that in the way he's
handled having to not only make the adjustment to the NFL,
but even to be, you know, used a little bit differently.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
It took him minute. I mean, he was out on
the edge more or less in college.
Speaker 2 (13:49):
He was doing some of those things, but they were
moving him so much he never had to really take
the blocks on. So it took a while for his
hands and feet to catch up a little bit. And
once he put him together. He's a very tough kid.
He studies a lot. He wants to be very good.
He cares, he really cares, and he's starting to show it.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
And then his sack was the only one of the game.
We talked about Vita having a lot of passes defensed overall,
How did you feel about the idea of the pass
rush as a whole, both outside, inside and everybody that
was a part of that.
Speaker 2 (14:21):
I don't think they gave us many opportunities, especially on
third down. They max protected where we covered more first
second down, the balls were coming out so fast. We
had guys running free, but the balls were coming out
so fast that they tried to negate it with the
quick screens and the quick passes in the flat and
everything else. But I thought they were getting after it.
I thought Yao did a good job because they had
four pressures out on the edge that way. And you know,
(14:44):
sometimes you get a bunch of pressures and not a
lot of sacks. Sometimes you get a lot of sacks,
but not as many pressures.
Speaker 1 (14:51):
Can you take us through the goal line? Stand that
finished with that corner touchdown catch for Diggs and what
you guys did well up to that point, and then
why that play ended getting through.
Speaker 2 (15:01):
And Gains made a heck of a play on first
down and stopped it, and the guys made a heck
of a play on second down and they rallied to
the ball third down, no different. We made a heck
of a play and he made a hell of a
throwing fourth down to get Diggs in the corner of
the end zone.
Speaker 1 (15:16):
I know Elijah Simmons was definitely a big part of
being in there and has been another guy in addition
to Vida to bring a lot of strength and size.
What has he meant to your defensive line in the
week of losing Collijah and just the way you've been
able to rotate and use guys a little bit differently.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
Different type of player.
Speaker 2 (15:33):
He more comes in when Vita comes out, and more
short yards than goal line, but he's very strong, brute strength.
With him and Vita in there, we feel like we
can get a push up the middle. So he had
a lot to do with the short yards type of
stuff and the goal line st I.
Speaker 1 (15:48):
Know we mentioned that the wish of our offense having
a little bit more success on third down, but your
defense did hold them to five or fourteen on third down.
What did you see that worked really well? There?
Speaker 3 (15:57):
Covered?
Speaker 2 (15:58):
You know, we covered, We got a lot of covers
that where where there's nowhere to throw the ball before
him to dump it.
Speaker 3 (16:02):
So did a good job on.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Third down cover Looking ahead to this Bill's game, So
when you know a team like them are coming off,
you know, a tough loss to the Dolphins, does that
make it where in your mind knowing they're probably going
to be even more fired up in the idea of
what their mentality will be coming in.
Speaker 3 (16:18):
I don't think it matters. I'm worried about our mentality.
Speaker 2 (16:21):
Our mentality needs to be the same, and we need
to be fired up, and we need to correct the
mistakes we made, and we need to go in there
and we need to win the ball game.
Speaker 3 (16:29):
And that's all I worry about.
Speaker 1 (16:31):
And then what are some of the communication things that
you guys are going to be hoping to work on,
especially knowing it is a very loud place to play,
you know, is that the kind of stadium where you
guys will be practicing for that noise this week?
Speaker 2 (16:42):
Definitely, and we'll have some silent counts and it's a
loud place. And you know, Bill's Mafia is a thing.
They travel well, they play well at home, They're very loud.
Speaker 3 (16:52):
So we got to come in, We got to make place.
Speaker 1 (16:54):
Josh Allen, tell me the challenge of going against a
guy like him, and what the certain things are you
guys have to prepare for. Knowing the dual threat.
Speaker 2 (17:02):
He is, He's a triple threat because he can run
with it, he can throw it, and he can get
third and one on the toush push, So he's got
to try factor working for him. And he's a good
sized quarterback. You know, he's about six y five and
he's a good two fifty plus or a two twenty
something plus, and he really can run with the football.
But he has a very strong arm, very active with
(17:23):
that way. They have very quick receivers and one of
the best tight end cords we're gonna see, and one
of the best running backs we're gonna see as well.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
Yeah, tell me about James Cook and what he does
so well.
Speaker 2 (17:33):
He makes the first guy miss very quick, very fast,
very tough. You look up and we're not in our
gaps and he's going down the field. We're not gonna
catch this guy. He's a very good football player. Admire
him a lot. Reminds me a lot of Bucky very
good straight line speed. He's more like a Jamiir Gibbs
type of guy. And he's very explosive.
Speaker 1 (17:54):
You mentioned some of the other weapons they have. Dalton
kin Kate as their leading receiver. He was hurt in
this last game, so how much would that matter of
his involvement or out how much that could change things
for them? And their offense O would.
Speaker 3 (18:05):
Be huge for him. He he's a big weapon for him.
Speaker 2 (18:07):
He's a tight end trapped in a RECEI he's a receiver,
a tight end trapping the receiver's body. And he can
he can do both. He can go outside, he can
go inside. He plays against corners, safeties, in linebackers and
he and he can block well.
Speaker 1 (18:20):
And how about their defensive front. I know they got
Joey Bosa, ed Oliver going on IR definitely made a
difference for them. So you know, what are the things
you notice about their front and who they have available? Uh?
Speaker 2 (18:29):
They win first down and then they get you behind
the sticks and they come after you. Bosa's a great
pass rusher. Obviously they have some very quick ones up there,
but they have a very good secondary as well, So
we gotta make sure we do a great job on
first now.
Speaker 1 (18:41):
Yeah, and what does stand out about their secondary to you?
Speaker 3 (18:44):
Speed?
Speaker 1 (18:44):
Uh?
Speaker 2 (18:45):
Speed, They got a lot of speed back there, so
they can run with the deep balls. And they communicate
very well because they played nickel the entire time, so
they've seen a bunch of different looks and they understand each.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
Other very well.
Speaker 1 (18:56):
Well. Coach, thank you as always for your time, We
really appreciate it. After this last game, and good luck
this next week going up to Buffalo. Coming up next
is offensive line coach Brian Pacuchi on Buccaneers Total Access,
brought to you by Advent Health. This is Buccaneers Radio
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