Todd Bowles & Rashad Johnson on The Task at Hand: Win Out | Bucs Total Access

Reporter Casey Phillips sits down with Tampa Bay Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles and Assistant Secondary Coach Rashad Johnson after Week 16’s game vs. the Dallas Cowboys. They talk about Sunday Night Football in Dallas, players who have been stepping up and the defensive secondary’s process.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Fuck not three?

Speaker 2 (00:01):
What three?

Speaker 3 (00:05):
These buccaneers total access with head coach Todd Bowles.

Speaker 4 (00:09):
That the hell of the job.

Speaker 5 (00:10):
Going back back.

Speaker 6 (00:15):
Here's mate feel shotgun? Look looks right?

Speaker 4 (00:17):
I'm back to up those towards left codball Evans at
the five.

Speaker 3 (00:20):
Another three too, what tousdouts have a bay?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
There you go, Fire the Cannons bike.

Speaker 3 (00:25):
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Your day, at vent Health is here to support you
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whole always speakins at AdventHealth dot com. Fire the Cannons
now your host Bocks team reporter Casey Phillips and head
coach Todd Bowles.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
Welcome into the Todd Bowles Show Casey Phillips here with
head coach Todd Bowles.

Speaker 2 (00:51):
I know all.

Speaker 1 (00:51):
Losses are difficult, but what was your message to the team,
knowing that this one affected the spot in the NFC
South and then also just when it is kind of
a tough last minute and what it means moving forward,
what you said.

Speaker 5 (01:02):
To them just got to keep grinding. We didn't play
our best. Obviously we had a chance to win. We
didn't come down with it. And I don't mean just
the fourth quarter, all four quarters. We had chances to
make plays in all three phases that we didn't make
after playing well for a couple of weeks, so we
got to get ready to play this one. You can't
get nowhere unless you win the next two. So we
got to win the next two and then look up

(01:22):
at the end and see where we are.

Speaker 1 (01:24):
And what happened on the fumble at the end of
the game was that more of a good defensive player
or something that could have been prevented.

Speaker 5 (01:30):
Can always be prevented if you hold on to the football.
But the guy did a good job ripping the ball out.
I wish I was trying to get extra yards. He
did a good job taking it away.

Speaker 1 (01:38):
And then I know you guys were in the position
to get the game winner at the end right there,
And just what did it say about your guys to
be able to come back like that and be in
that position.

Speaker 5 (01:48):
The fight is always there. It wasn't one of the
best games by no means, by all three phases, but
the fight to have a chance to win at the
end says a lot about the guys drive and the
guys want to We just got to execut you better.

Speaker 1 (02:00):
Definitely, one of the areas we see that fight and
that drive is especially you know Baker always, but especially
the ways he's able to extend some of the plays
use his legs.

Speaker 2 (02:08):
He ended up with forty two yards rushing.

Speaker 1 (02:10):
How important were some of those contributions of his scramble
ability and ability to extend it in that way.

Speaker 5 (02:14):
They were huge because we were having tough time getting
first downs, especially on third down with their pressure packages.
But he got loose a couple of times and gave
us a chance.

Speaker 1 (02:23):
And then I also know he had that interception. Can
you take us through that play and what happened?

Speaker 5 (02:27):
Well, I thought it was a good ball. He threw
a deep ball down to j Mac. I think he
got all bounced once he got up in the air.
The guy made a heck of a play raking it out.
We just got to hold on to the football.

Speaker 1 (02:37):
And then I know Baker ended up with over three
hundred passing yards and two touchdowns. He now has five
three hundred passing yard games this season, which ties for
second in the NFL, trailing only Joe Burrow, how do
you evaluate his game?

Speaker 2 (02:50):
Overall?

Speaker 5 (02:52):
It was up and down. Nobody was good enough. Obviously,
we got to take care of the football. Obviously, he
got sacked a couple of times, so we got to
keep him in the pocket, and we just got to
make better decisions all the way around. It's not just
Bakers and offensively, defensively and special teams wise, as well
as coaches.

Speaker 1 (03:09):
I also know Baker was able to recover Payine Durham's fumble,
and I was just thinking about how incredible it is
that he's had multiple of those kind of recoveries this year,
and it seems like he's just always downfield able to
make some of those plays, whether it's that or even
blocking sometimes downfield on these plays, and just what that
says about him as a player and as a quarterback
that he's been the guy in those positions to make
some of those plays.

Speaker 5 (03:30):
He has very good field awareness. He always understands where
the ball is. He's always heading towards the ball, so
if something like that happens, he has a very good
chance to get.

Speaker 6 (03:38):
The ball back.

Speaker 1 (03:40):
And then I know we also rushed for one hundred
and thirty four yards in the game averaged five point
eight yards per carry as a twelve hundred yard rushing
game in fifteen games so far already this season. So
what stood out specifically about the run game to you
to be here and again, just the consistency in those
kind of numbers.

Speaker 5 (03:57):
Oh, we had a few that broke out, but I
think Baker had some of that yards too. As far
as the scrambles, we didn't run it as well as
we'd like to run it. We got to be a
little more consistent that way, considering what we've been doing.
But Baker made up for some of those runs, and
we had some good, hard, tough runs.

Speaker 6 (04:12):
We just got to do more of it.

Speaker 1 (04:13):
And how did you feel about the balance of run
to pass in the game, And with some hindsight on.

Speaker 5 (04:17):
That always shooting ourselves in the foot of lot, be
it by protection purposes, or be it by not getting
yards in the run game, or be it by missing
the pass here or there. They did a good job
getting us in second and long and the first downs
we did make with hard fault.

Speaker 6 (04:32):
We just got to do a better job.

Speaker 1 (04:34):
I know, Bucky ended up with sixty eight yards rushing,
twenty four receiving, and his seventh career touchdown.

Speaker 2 (04:39):
What did you see from his game overall?

Speaker 5 (04:42):
Again, he grinded out hard, tough yards on the inside.
They made it tough on us right there, but he
grinded some tough plays out, especially in the second half
to start the second half, and he gave us a chance.

Speaker 1 (04:52):
I know, he tied Eric Rhett and Lars Tape for
the second most rushing touchdowns by a rookie running back
in team history, and he currently he leads all rookies
in rushing touchdowns with seven and yards from scrimmage and
rushing yards.

Speaker 2 (05:05):
Specifically with the end zone.

Speaker 1 (05:06):
How he's been able to find that so often? We've
seen the chunk plays you know, early in the field,
but to find the end zone that many times as
a rookie, what has he done well in that area?

Speaker 5 (05:15):
Well, his vision is outstanding. His vision and his cut
ability is outstanding. He can see the holes, he's hungry,
he has a great contact balance, and he's a very
good inside zone runner.

Speaker 1 (05:26):
I know Rashad also moved into the six most receiving
yards by a running back in team history. Outside of
that fumble we talked about earlier at the end of
the game, how did he.

Speaker 6 (05:34):
Look he was fighting. He was fighting.

Speaker 5 (05:36):
He gave us a chance. I mean he has some
tough runs as well. He has some good receiving yards there.
Just got to hold onto the ball at the end.

Speaker 1 (05:42):
I know, Jalen McMillan, again, we already talked about that
interception earlier. But fifty seven yards and a touchdown? What
did you see from him in this game?

Speaker 6 (05:50):
He played hard? You know, he played hard, He fought.

Speaker 5 (05:53):
I thought the receivers played hard, even when Stirling came
up shorthanded with the hamstring.

Speaker 6 (05:57):
I thought those guys really competed. They compete, I know.

Speaker 1 (06:01):
He also got his fourth touchdown in three games. It's
the second longest streak of games by a rookie with
a receiving touchdown in team history, which trailing only, of course,
Mike Evans. He joins Marvin Harrison Junior as the only
rookies with receiving touchdowns in three consecutive games this season.
What does it seem like has changed with him or
happened lately where he is suddenly just every game felt

(06:23):
so automatic, such a big target here and especially in
the end zone. To have those kind of stats that
are pretty rare obviously for a rookie receiver.

Speaker 5 (06:31):
I think he's matured a lot as the season went on.
He went through his bombs early on, he got nicked
up a little bit, and he got used to the
scheme and he understood what he was doing, and he
started playing faster and faster, and everybody started trusting them more.

Speaker 6 (06:43):
And he's shown he's paying dividends right now.

Speaker 2 (06:46):
I know.

Speaker 1 (06:46):
Also, we have twelve scrimmage touchdowns for rookies this season,
which is the most among all NFL teams this year.
Bucky has his seven, which is first among rookies and
rushing touchdowns, and then Jalen McMillan has five, which is
tied for third among rookies. Did you anticipate our rookie
class having this kind of an impact on the season
and on these games so much already this year.

Speaker 5 (07:08):
I knew they'd have an impact, didn't know how much
of an impact. They're having a huge impact off of
everything we do. So I'm glad we got them.

Speaker 1 (07:15):
And then also I know Mike finished with sixty nine yards,
including a twenty six yarder. Can you especially take us
through that one longer catch earlier in the game.

Speaker 5 (07:23):
No, Mike can catch it anytime you throw it up
to him. He runs great routes, he plays fast, he
plays hard, and he's a long target, so anytime you
sing him, he can squeeze it in and he can
make plays, and he made him.

Speaker 1 (07:33):
How much did you see him having an effect on
the overall plan and the way that the Cowboys defense.

Speaker 2 (07:38):
Was focusing on him.

Speaker 6 (07:40):
They focused on him a little bit.

Speaker 5 (07:41):
We still missed some shots and we had him one
on one that we could have taken right there due
to other things up front and with the quarterback, so
we can do a better job getting on the ball
in certain situations.

Speaker 1 (07:51):
Casey Phelps here with head coach Todd Bowles. I know
we mentioned that Baker got brought down a few times.
He ended up being sacked four times total. How much
was it on the line Baker coverage? What did you
see from those types of sacks?

Speaker 5 (08:04):
I mean some was pressure, some was the line, and
some we could have got the ball out. So it's
a combination of things that we just got to do
a better job of executing.

Speaker 1 (08:11):
And what did you see from the offensive line overall
in this game? Both in pass protection and the run game.

Speaker 5 (08:17):
Pass protection, we had some we were really good sets
and we had some that weren't so good. Obviously, the
four sacks, you don't want it all. But we've done
a better job in the past than we did last night.

Speaker 1 (08:28):
I know we talked a lot, obviously about Mike Mica
Parsons going into the game. He finished with a sack
and a force fumble. How did you feel like overall
we were able to handle him.

Speaker 5 (08:36):
I thought initially we did a good job on him.
We were holding him at bay for a while. Obviously
he got loose one time, but for the most part,
I thought we have him in Chech.

Speaker 1 (08:45):
I know we mentioned Sterling Shepherd earlier, one catch for
twenty yards and a rush for fourteen. Couple missed opportunities
and ended up getting hurt in the game.

Speaker 2 (08:52):
What did you see from before he got hurt?

Speaker 1 (08:54):
And then just what we know about potentially his future
with the injury.

Speaker 5 (08:58):
Oh, we had the two drops early, especially the one
on fourth down we had a chance to get, and
then we had another one later on after that. But
he competes, he plays hard. We'll see how his injury
is doing.

Speaker 6 (09:08):
Don't know yet. We'll see what the injury report says.

Speaker 1 (09:11):
I know also cad Aughten was not out there. How
much did you end up missing him in the ways
that just his presence and the fact that he does
tend to play so many snaps, do so many things
for this offense.

Speaker 2 (09:21):
How much of an impact did that have?

Speaker 5 (09:22):
Always miss him as a starter? Anytime you missing the starter,
you're missing something. Obviously, Payne went out there and did
a decent job right there. He fought and he plays
hard as well. But when you're missing Kay, you're missing
a lot of the intangibles.

Speaker 1 (09:35):
Yeah, Paine did have his career high and catches in yards.
We saw him get a conversion on third down. How
did he handle stepping into Caid's pretty big shoes to fill?

Speaker 6 (09:43):
Thanks sof He's going to be a good player.

Speaker 5 (09:45):
He's a good football player. We just hadn't used him
in those capacities yet. But his time is coming.

Speaker 1 (09:50):
I know. Ryan Miller also has had to step up
in some big moments so far this season and had
that touchdown at the end to give us that chance
to be fighting for it at the very end. What
did you see from that place and just his ability
to stand in there in those big moments.

Speaker 5 (10:02):
Ryan plays smart, he plays tough, he knows what to do,
he knows how to get open. He has very sure hands,
and you know you're starting to see his production goal up.

Speaker 1 (10:12):
I know their kicker, Brandon Aubrey already has seven career
field goals of over fifty eight yards In NFL history,
only Matt Prater has more. What is the struggle of
your game planning and just facing a team that you
know their kicker can be so accurate from so long.

Speaker 5 (10:26):
It's tough when they get the ball to thirty five
or forty because one first down and they're pretty much
at field goal range and once you get across midfield.

Speaker 6 (10:33):
He's been pretty good at it, and he did a
good job last night.

Speaker 1 (10:37):
Yeah, I mean he puts in a position where maybe
there are times that normally other teams it would have
been a punt situation.

Speaker 2 (10:41):
But outside of his kicking.

Speaker 1 (10:43):
Ability, what wasn't working as well early on on defense?
To know that they ended up scoring on a lot
of their earlier drives in the first half.

Speaker 5 (10:50):
Too many penalties on the outside from holding standpoint, we
missed the coverage as far as an over route was
concerned in the first half, and I think that was
really it. Second half with bogged down and you got
some stops and gave.

Speaker 6 (11:02):
Us a chance.

Speaker 1 (11:03):
Yeah, what did you see that changed so much in
the second half to go from that to holding them
to just three points all second half. Maybe some of
the adjustments you made aways guys started stepping up and executing.

Speaker 5 (11:12):
More, just executing better assignment football, understanding what they were
trying to do to us, and then executing.

Speaker 1 (11:18):
I know you guys were able to hold Dowb little
to a team high twenty three yards rushing. How proud
of your run defense were you? And the fact that
you guys were able to slow him down so much.

Speaker 5 (11:29):
Run defense was really picked up lately. Those guys will
do a good job getting after it upfront. They take
a lot of pride in it.

Speaker 1 (11:35):
I know also, Ceedee Lamb ended up with one hundred
and five receiving yards even while missing some time. We
had talked about going into this game knowing that he's
a tough one to cover, a very talented guy. So
what did you end up seeing out there of the
challenges in covering him and what you feel like your
DB's and corners learned about it.

Speaker 5 (11:52):
I thought we could have been better from a technique
standpoint We talked about.

Speaker 6 (11:56):
It all week.

Speaker 5 (11:56):
We understood what he was going to do. We knew
what he was going to do. He did a good
job getting open downfield on Zion. He misjudged the ball,
but I thought he had a holding call earlier. And
then we dropped coverage on one of the overults right there,
and we missed three tackles when he scored the touchdowns.

Speaker 6 (12:12):
So a lot of that contributed.

Speaker 5 (12:13):
He's a great player, not taking anything away from it,
but we could have played him better.

Speaker 1 (12:17):
Yeah, and then how about specifically in that fifty two
yarder he caught. What did you notice about the coverage there?

Speaker 5 (12:22):
We busted, you know, we busted, and we should have been.
We should have been a lot better. But the one
that's the one he got down the sideline, I'm pretty sure.
But Zion had him and he played bad technique looking
in the backfield. And he'll be the first one to
tell you his eyes got to be better.

Speaker 2 (12:37):
I know.

Speaker 1 (12:38):
Vita's stat line may not have looked all that crazy
or impressive, but definitely seemed like he was making his
presence felt, especially when he slung poor turpentown a hard
day for him. Tell me how much Vita was impacting
the game in ways that maybe didn't show up on
the stat line.

Speaker 6 (12:52):
Vita was huge. He impacted the run game a lot.

Speaker 5 (12:55):
He took the doubles, he crossed the face, he got
in the backfield quite a few times. He helped other
guys make plays. And you have a guy in the
middle like that that can control a run game completely,
you know, you never underestimate the value of him.

Speaker 1 (13:08):
I know there was a shared sack by Yaya and Elijah.

Speaker 2 (13:12):
Take us through that plane.

Speaker 5 (13:12):
What they did well, we had a pressure going on.
They both got around the corner pretty good. They met
at the quarterback. Elijah's very active on the inside.

Speaker 6 (13:21):
Yah.

Speaker 5 (13:21):
Yah, He's getting pressure from a power standpoint. Just got
to use his hands a little more to come around
the corner, but he got back there that time.

Speaker 2 (13:29):
Kalija now has the team lead in sacks.

Speaker 1 (13:31):
Did you anticipate that this is the kind of season
Kelijah could be having in particularly in that category.

Speaker 5 (13:38):
I thought if he didn't miss the first five games,
he'd be in double digits right now.

Speaker 1 (13:42):
And what do you feel like has led to him
being able to come in second year and even missing
time both years so far to be able to have
those kind of stats and put that up.

Speaker 5 (13:50):
His work ethic is confidence, and he's a very intelligent player,
and he's hungry.

Speaker 1 (13:55):
And I know Christian Izian led the team with thirteen tackles,
a career high for him. What did you see from
his game and how you ended up using him?

Speaker 5 (14:02):
He plays fast, he plays hard. Is he's gonna make
a lot of plays. He missed a couple, but he
made a lot of plays. He gave us a chance
to win. He came up with some big stops at
the end of the ball game one third down.

Speaker 1 (14:14):
JJ Russell tell us a little bit about his role
on how you were using him, and then I know
he had the chance at that interception at the end
of the game, and so just evaluate that play and
his game overall.

Speaker 5 (14:23):
Got to come down with it. Got to come down
with that ball. In those situations, if they give you
a gift, you got to take it. You've got to
be able to come down with that. He tackles in
the run game, well, still working through some things in
the passing game.

Speaker 2 (14:35):
I know Lavante ended up with two tackles for loss.

Speaker 1 (14:38):
Since the league started tracking that stat, he leads the
league in games with multiple TFLs. What makes him so
good at that specifically and then again at this point
in his career to be able.

Speaker 6 (14:48):
To do that slithery and smart.

Speaker 5 (14:50):
He can read offensive line blogs, He understands what the
offense is trying to do, and he can see a
hole and.

Speaker 6 (14:56):
He can go get it.

Speaker 2 (14:57):
I know.

Speaker 1 (14:58):
Also Mike Edwards back from injury and was able to
get in there. How did you decide to use him?
And what did you see of him coming back from injury?

Speaker 5 (15:07):
Use them sparingly, just bring them in slowly. But he
understands the past game very well. He took his drops
and he's where he's supposed to be.

Speaker 1 (15:14):
I know, we saw Kevon Merriweather also go down hurt.
Because of course, if you get one guy back, you're
gonna you have to lose another one. That just seems
like how the season has gone for you so far.
How did you end up shuffling things around when that happened,
and just how you chose decided to use him With
Mike Edwards and what that looked like after he.

Speaker 5 (15:30):
Got injured, Well, before he got injured, he played most
of the bass stuff. Mike played more of the nickel stuff,
and when he got injured. Tavier played some of the bass,
Mike played most of the nickel, So you're trying to
hide their injuries while they getting playing time.

Speaker 1 (15:44):
And then I also know you had Chase handle the
kickoff instead of Jack.

Speaker 2 (15:49):
Went into that decision making.

Speaker 6 (15:51):
Well, we were scared that turpin.

Speaker 5 (15:54):
Jack hasn't really gotten him in the end zone the
whole time, and they got a dangerous return man. So
we put Chase in there. Chase that he get it
out of the end zone, and he did.

Speaker 1 (16:02):
I know, also special teams on the day, there were
some starts with some tough field position due to a
few different special teams things from them all overall, kicking, punting, coverage, units, returns.

Speaker 2 (16:12):
All of that. What did you kind of notice special
teams wise.

Speaker 5 (16:14):
Didn't like the penalties. Did not like the penalties at all.
That kind of set us back. We're already backed up,
they backed us up even more. We got to do
a better job in that aspect, and the punting was
kind of up and down. We got to do a
better job there consistently, and we got to judge the
ball better when we're back there catching it.

Speaker 1 (16:31):
I know that on Mondays, it's very early in terms
of injury things. But what do you know or not
know overall, especially defensively, but the team totally and you know,
is their chance Jordan Whitehead gets to start coming back soon,
and is there a chance you get just more guys.

Speaker 2 (16:43):
Back in general?

Speaker 6 (16:44):
Hopefully we're gonna need them.

Speaker 5 (16:45):
Injury report hasn't come out yet, we'll wait and see
what that looks like, and hopefully we'll see what the
other guys look like as well.

Speaker 1 (16:51):
Getting the rematch now again against the Panthers pretty quickly.
What is the difference in when you're facing a team
after just a few weeks versus maybe if it's your
opponent you play first month of the season and then
a couple months later.

Speaker 2 (17:03):
How interesting is that from a game planning standpoint.

Speaker 5 (17:05):
Well, not much has changed from us or them, and
that'll be the interesting part when the overtime. Obviously, the
first time we played him was a tough game, and
we got two tough division opponents that's going to be
real tough at the end.

Speaker 6 (17:16):
We need to win.

Speaker 5 (17:17):
They got a big win over Arizona last week, so
they're momentums riding high as well, and we got to
really take care of business.

Speaker 1 (17:24):
I know, Bryce Young we've watched as he's been able
to have a bit of a resurgence here towards the
end of the season after getting benched earlier in the season.
One of the biggest things that you've noticed that you
think have enabled him to do that and some of
his biggest strengths that now that you've especially faced him once.

Speaker 5 (17:38):
Better commanded of the offense, he understands the scheme a
lot better. He knows where to go with the football.
The trouble with him is he can run with the football.
He's very good getting up inside. He's very fast, He's
very quick. We got to do a heck of a
job as far as pocket presence, understanding where he is.

Speaker 1 (17:55):
I know Xavier Lagette has had an injury recently. How
much does that change their offense if he's able to
go or not, and the things you learned about playing.

Speaker 6 (18:01):
Against him, I don't know if it changes it much.

Speaker 5 (18:04):
It gives them another weapon, obviously, the incorporate with what
they already.

Speaker 1 (18:07):
Have, and what are some of the other weapons that
you learned about, especially in that first matchup, and how
to try to cover them and face them this next time.

Speaker 5 (18:15):
Hubbard's been doing the heck of a job all year. Obviously,
they got feeling back feeling. He's a big reception he's there,
medium range recepting guy. He gets a lot of receptions.
David Morris shows up, Tompkins shows up, and they got
their tight ends back and them all of them do
a heck of a job getting open.

Speaker 1 (18:32):
And how about their offensive line? What did you learn
in that first matchup?

Speaker 5 (18:36):
Huge, huge, real huge guys that can run the ball,
especially strong up in the inside. Both guards are very tough.
Both tackles do a very good job in pass.

Speaker 1 (18:45):
Bro And what did you learn about their defensive front
in the first matchup?

Speaker 5 (18:49):
They can give you problems. They mix things up a
little bit. We got to do a better job of
identifying it early. I think we got a beat on
it later on. We got to do a better job
of identifying it early and stand on blocks.

Speaker 1 (19:00):
And how about their secondary Who are some of the
guys back there that have done a good job.

Speaker 5 (19:03):
The horn will be the main guy. He's tough in
the run game, he's tough in the past game. He'll
probably go against the best guy. They'll probably put him
on mic more or less. He's a very good press
corner and he can make a bunch of plays, so
everything starts with him.

Speaker 1 (19:16):
And with the holidays this week, how does that affect
the schedule or does it not in the way that
you guys try to do things and also let guys
celebrate with their families and also celebrate as a team.

Speaker 5 (19:25):
Well, we switched Tuesday and Wednesday. Tuesday at their normal
day off. We give him Wednesday as a day off.
We bring them in on Tuesday to have a full
day till Tuesday will be Wednesday for us, so they
can have the day off with their families and then
we'll come back and finish the rest of the week
out normal.

Speaker 1 (19:39):
And are the ways you guys try to celebrate as
a team or as coaches together work work? That sounds
about right the best Christmas present you could possibly get, right, Well, coach,
thank you so much as always for taking the time.
We really appreciate it, and good luck this next week
and Merry Christmas.

Speaker 6 (19:55):
Merry Christmas.

Speaker 1 (19:56):
Case coming up next on Buccaneers Total Access, we'll have
Assistant Secondary coach Rashad Johnson. Brought to you by Advan Health.
This is Buccaneers Radio.

Speaker 3 (20:04):
Buccaneers Total Access brought to you by Ad Van Health
shotgun look, Jared Goff, Bill high snapped.

Speaker 7 (20:10):
There comes a pressure, Peace sacked on the back, be
a little thirty one yard line love Monte David shoots
like a rocket one and got it Bill high after rocket.

Speaker 3 (20:17):
Now more with Bucks team reporter Casey Phillips.

Speaker 1 (20:21):
Welcome back into Buccaneers Total Access. First half of the show,
we had head coach Todd Bowles. Now I'm so excited
to be joined by assistant secondary coach Rashad Johnson.

Speaker 2 (20:29):
Rashan, thanks for being with us.

Speaker 4 (20:30):
Yeah, of course, Casey, thanks for having me, man.

Speaker 1 (20:32):
And you get so many brownie points with me coming
in on the on the short week after the Sunday
night football and no rest going to the holidays and
a loss, so I really do appreciate it. And just
tell me that, you know, a game like that, any
loss is hard, but especially when it has such implications
on the playoff run. It's a last second, you're fighting
until the end. There's just so many elements of it
that I'm sure make it tough. What's the message to
the team after a game like that?

Speaker 8 (20:52):
Yeah, you know, message to the team after you know,
a tough loss like that on the road, you know
everything in your hands. H. You just got to tell
them to go to work. That's all you can do
in a moment like this. You can't look at last night.
You can look at the mistakes. See how we can
maximize and capitalize and erase the things that we couldn't
do in the moments and.

Speaker 4 (21:10):
Make those plays that we would like to make.

Speaker 8 (21:12):
Get off the field on third down, you know, convert
some of those fourth downs on offense. So just take
those opportunities and work on them this week and just say, hey,
let's dive back in and let's get back to work.
That's the only thing you can do. Everything we want
to do is in front of us, two games ahead
and do what we got to do. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (21:28):
And I know also some that I heard Coach Bull
say multiple times after this game and a few other
times during the season is just the tackling and it's tough.

Speaker 2 (21:37):
When I know that's not something y'all can really do
in practice.

Speaker 1 (21:40):
So what are the ways that you know you were
a player and now also as a coach, the ways
that that can get improved or some of these things
that are tough to practice but need to get work done.

Speaker 8 (21:47):
Yeah, tackling is definitely something that's very hard, you know,
to kind of to do or mimic if you're not
doing it live all the time, you know, but the
best way to do it is to is to do
it during practice. Where you step on the guys is
what we call it. And when you come through the line,
you step on their toes, you open up and you
tag the hip. It's all about targeting the hip. It's
all about angles and a lot of things with tackling.

(22:08):
If you look at the film and you watch the game,
is understanding leverage, where's my help? At times when you
miss tackles, guys are gonna be great athletes on the
other side. It's gonna happen. That's part of the game.
But am I leveraging the ball? And when I missed
the tackle, I'm sending it back to my help? Or
when I'm missing the tackle, I'm cutting off the rest
of my help. So those are a lot of things
that you got to look at and understand when you're
going in to tackle and you're working on the element.

(22:28):
And we got to understand as well, tackling is not
a one man thing. Tackling is a group effort. So
the more guys we can get to the ball. The
more guys we can get around the ball, the better
opportunity we got to get them on the ground.

Speaker 1 (22:38):
Early in the game, they scored on five of their
first six drives, or is partially it's because they have
a kicker who can kick from the moon, where some
of those might have been things that other teams are
punting on at that point, but what seemed like defensively
wasn't working quite as well early in the game.

Speaker 8 (22:51):
Yeah, the biggest thing there was first down. They were
converting on first down, making their third downs really convertible.
They were third and two a lot of the time
in that first half. I think they were five out
of eight, you know, on third down, and three or
four of those where third and two or third and
three just short yards downs. That means on first down
that they're winning the down, sending guys down the field,
checking it down to the running back getting five or

(23:13):
six yards. Then on second down and kind of having
the defense on the heels because they can run it
or pass it in that moment to get it to
a third and manageable. So they were getting in too
favorable third down situations. And then the other element of
it was when we did have them third and long
and we had opportunity to get off the field. We
go back to the thing you just talked about tackling.
We had a chance third and ten, missed the tackle,
converted first down, going down at drive and score a touchdown.

(23:35):
You know, those are points that we keep off the board.
You know, in a three point game, you know, we
win this game. And then ultimately at the end of
the half as well, you know, two minutes it is
such a critical part of the game. You know, seventy
eighty percent of the games, if you could score right
before the half, you end up winning those games. So
as a defense have to do a better job of
keeping them from getting opportunity to kick three in those
moments when you have them backed up.

Speaker 1 (23:56):
You guys were able to hold them just three points
in the second half. Yeah, it feels like they're There's
been a few times this year where we've seen this
of first half to second half or you know, second
quarter and things like that. What are the adjustments you
feel like you guys were able to make in this
game or what it says about you know, either coach Bowls,
the other coaches, the players that you guys have been
able to take these and do a pretty big turnaround
at half.

Speaker 4 (24:16):
Yeah, it says two things.

Speaker 8 (24:17):
It's a twofold thing when you talk about that. For one,
it says that, you know, we got to do a
better job starting. You know, you go back to the
Charges game. We gave up some big plays in that
game that ended up giving up points, seventeen points in
the first half. Then the second we make the adjustments. Hey,
we're not gonna give up the big plays. We're gonna
get off the field, which we did a great job
on third down against them doing that. And then this week, hey,

(24:38):
first down, we got to do better first down and
then when we get the third down opportunities, we got
to rally to the ball. We got to get them
off the field. And you saw that late with Vidavea
coming out of the middle, you know, on a huge
third down making the play outside the numbers. You know,
guys making those adjustments and understanding what we got to do.

Speaker 4 (24:52):
So, you know, it's twofold.

Speaker 8 (24:53):
We got to do better to start, but we're doing
a great job making the adjustments. Now just put them
all together to complete the sixth two minute ball game
that you want to do having played our best ball.
The good thing about it, we got two games ahead
of us to put it together and you know, fingers
crossed to everything else falls.

Speaker 2 (25:08):
In his place, ceedee lamb.

Speaker 1 (25:09):
I mean we knew he's a tough one to cover.
What do you feel like you guys learned watching that
and what were the struggles and trying to face a
guy like him.

Speaker 8 (25:17):
Yeah, you know, just first thing we learned is, you know,
just got to do a better job with a guy
like that at the line. You know, there's times to
where you know, he was able to move us off
the spot. We weren't, you know, as confident in our
hands looking in the backfield. It's small technique things that
you can fix, you know. But sometimes when you're going
to get a better athlete, you begin to press at
times and you get to come outside of your box
at times when you got the skill set and you

(25:38):
got the ability to get the job done. So just
getting those guys back to balance, calming them down, which
they did a better job in the second half. Obviously
he didn't play as much, but we did a better
job in the second half manning those plays and understanding
those one on one opportunities. And not giving up the
big shots that we gave in the first half.

Speaker 1 (25:53):
Yeah, and just think about the whole mindset of how
you approach a game. You know, the Cowboys had found
out that they were eliminated before the game, and it
seemed like they were therefore able to play kind of
just loose and enjoying it.

Speaker 2 (26:03):
And it's been, i know.

Speaker 1 (26:04):
Tough these last few weeks of where it's been like
the playoffs almost for so long, and about all these
must win games, and do you feel like there is
a bit of it where the guys are pressing a
bit or is there you know, what is that ideal
mindset as you're trying to approach these games where it's
been a lot of and now it definitely is all
these must win situations.

Speaker 8 (26:21):
Well, I mean the ideal mindset is to approach every
game the same.

Speaker 2 (26:24):
You know.

Speaker 8 (26:24):
That's something that I learned in college, you know, under
coach Saving. That's something that I was reminded of with
Bruce Arians and here with Todd Bowles as well during
my time and tenure. You know, we approach every game
the same. You know, it's not a playoff game.

Speaker 4 (26:36):
You know, at the end of the.

Speaker 8 (26:37):
Season, it's a playoff game in September. You gotta win
in September, form the matter in December, you know, and
then December you gotta win in order for people to
remember you later on in January. So they all matter.
They're all playoff games, you know. For us, we just
got to make sure we're honing in on the details,
sticking to the fundamentals of who we are, and not quitting.
You know, these are games that we all have been
able to win. We know the NFL are gonna be

(26:58):
close games. Finding a way to make those plays with
the guys that we got, we've been.

Speaker 4 (27:02):
Able to make those plays.

Speaker 8 (27:03):
Look back on that and just continue to push forward.

Speaker 1 (27:06):
We're talking to assistant secondary coach for Shaw Johnson. Tell
me specifically about Zion and Jamel's games. What are some
of the things you noticed about them.

Speaker 8 (27:12):
Yeah, you know, Zion mccolum, I really enjoy his game. Uh,
he's a guy that plays a high effort. He's an
IQ guy as well, understands, you know, what teams are
trying to do against him. I mean, he does a
really good job of making end game adjustments as well.
You know, you can talk to him on the sideline.
You know, he's very personable and understanding what you're trying
to say and making those adjustments and talking your language.

Speaker 4 (27:32):
He has has tremendous ball skills as well.

Speaker 8 (27:34):
You know, he's got over you know, ten pass breakups,
you know, a couple interceptions.

Speaker 4 (27:37):
So really love the aspect of his game.

Speaker 8 (27:40):
Mean, he's a physical corner as well. He doesn't mind
sticking his face in there and tackling with a big
presence for us. So he's stepped up and you know,
had a really you know, nice year for us. So
really excited about Zion and everything he has for us
moving forward. And then Jamail, you know, just a guy
that's a leader, a quiet leader amongst you know the guys,
but he does it with his work. You know, he's
a guy that shows up. You know, we ca in

(28:00):
and week out, you know, try and lead the guys
with the right way. He's had some few injuries this year,
you know, didn't let it hold him back, but still
in the room. Still a guy you know that was
around the guys and giving them the things they needed,
you know during that time. So you just enjoy when
you have good guys, great character in the room. You know,
it's gonna play hard weekend and week out for you. So,
you know, I love Jamal's game as well in terms
of his physicality, you know, to come up in the

(28:22):
run game and play on the outside and his long
arms to affect the routes at the line of scrimmage.
You know, you want to do you know, those things
at the top of the line all the time. So
just continue to hold those hold on those details to
where he can be you know, elite at that because
he has the skill set and the link to do that.

Speaker 1 (28:36):
I don't know, there's a you know, I know you
you played defensive backs, but there's some stereotypes occasionally, especially
about some outside corners about the dvs. Jamel and Zion
do not seem to fit any of those stereotypes. What
is that kind of meant to have guys like them
that are a little so much more I feel like,
how about low key than a lot of other Yeah,
not pretty Madonna's you know, yeah, what does that meant

(29:00):
to the room and to have guys like that in
those positions specifically.

Speaker 8 (29:04):
No, it means a lot, because, like you said, you know,
those guys are sometimes you know, the five star high quality.
You know, big pub guys, and sometimes you know, the
outside noise can influence the inside work, you know, and
the inside relationships. You know, they begin to think too
much of themselves and too big of the organization.

Speaker 4 (29:20):
It's the eye thing it sometimes.

Speaker 8 (29:22):
But this organization has done a great job with the
guys that we have, you know, that have great character,
you know, like Jammel Dean and anxiety, and who are
open to the guys who are willing to give them
what they know, not worried about hey can they take
my job, or hey can they push me out the door?
Understanding this is a collective effort.

Speaker 2 (29:38):
You know.

Speaker 8 (29:38):
If I win, you know, and they win, we all win.
And that's gonna make us a better team, you know
at the end of the day, because our starters aren't
gonna play the whole season. We know that, you know, Unfortunately,
somebody is gonna get hurt. It's a violent game that
we play. So the better off that I can impart
into these other guys and make them able to be
able to play, the better we're gonna be. And those
guys see that and they do a great job with that.

Speaker 1 (29:58):
And then I know, also coming into the game, we
got Mike Edwards back he'd been injured a little bit,
and then keve On Merriweather was also in there, had
come back from.

Speaker 2 (30:05):
The Lions practice squad.

Speaker 1 (30:07):
What were the plans of how you guys wanted to
use each of them and then how that got changed
a little bit when Merriweather went down in the game.

Speaker 8 (30:13):
Yeah, you know, so typically the plan was Merriweather more
of an interior box safety, a guy that's physical in
the run, does a really good job of understanding the
blocking scheme's two back run game and does a good
job with that.

Speaker 4 (30:25):
So you know, just try to play him a lot
in the earlier.

Speaker 8 (30:27):
Downs closer to the line where he could be comfortable.
And then we all understand Mike Edwards ball skills that
he has. You know, the ball just seems to find him.
There's guys in the league that that happens too, and
he just happens to be one of them. But it's
not by luck, it's because he understands the process. He has,
you know, a special gift gifting comes with getting the ball.
There was the different guys to play the game. Some
were physical hitters, some are trackers of the ball, you know,

(30:49):
some are just intelligent to help other guys get lined up,
But you have to understand your gifting and I think
that's what Todd Bowles does the best in terms of
his players and being around them and understanding our gifting
and how to put him in the right place. So
Mike Edwards is in on passing downs and opportunities where
he can make those plays on the ball. He done
a tremendous job on at third and nine when they
ran the toss sweep to come down the lane and

(31:10):
making a play on a tackle. So I would just
you know, commend you know, Tie by using the guys
and the best way that he can and then getting
the most out of them in those situations as well,
because a lot of times guys don't want to rotate
that way, you know, they want to play the whole time.
But our guys are unselfish and they and they buy
into what we do and I really enjoy that.

Speaker 2 (31:28):
That's really cool.

Speaker 1 (31:29):
And also, I mean, man, the injuries this year, it's
just been wild in the secondary. I mean there has
been not even there has not been a full game
where you guys had all the intended starters.

Speaker 2 (31:41):
Play the whole game.

Speaker 1 (31:42):
Yeah, that the first Game of the Year was the
only time they've all started together.

Speaker 2 (31:46):
They didn't finish that game.

Speaker 1 (31:47):
That is an incredible thing to be here now, only
a couple weeks away from the end of the regular season.
How difficult is that for this unit because we hear
a lot about the idea of the communication and chemistry
for like the O line. Yeah, but how how wild
has it been for you guys as coaches to try
to make a different group every week mesh together.

Speaker 4 (32:05):
Yeah?

Speaker 8 (32:05):
You know, it's just you know, part of the journey
that we're on, and you know you take on those tasks.
You know, each year is different in this league. You
know that you understand that those injuries are going to happen.
But you know, we've just done a collective effort, you know,
with Coach Tropone, myself, Tim, Coach Rock just coming together
and what's best for the guys. What's the best way
to get this job done. Taki may you know, be
a nickelback, maybe a guy that I'm coaching, but he

(32:26):
may have to play more safety this week. Well, you
can spend more time with Coach Ropone this week and
doing the things that you need to learn on that side.
So when we do come back together that where we
need to be. So it's just been a collective effort
of moving the guys around doing what we have to do,
and guys being willing to do that. You know it
Christian Isy and you know, it's moved around from safety
you know, to Nickel and then had to play some
corner for us as well early on. So I mean

(32:47):
it's just it just speaks a lot to be able
to be able to do that as well in terms
of just our scouting department to grab guys that can
play multiple positions. You know, in this league, a lot
of times you get stuck in one spot. He can
only play corner, or he can only play Nickola, can
only play safe. We have a versatile group of guys
that actually can move around play different positions.

Speaker 4 (33:04):
And I think that's.

Speaker 8 (33:05):
Very you know, smart and commemorative on the scouting department
to do that, understanding that guys can go down at
any moment and you got to be able to plug
and play in this league and not miss a beat.
And I think we've been able to do that. Obviously
not play at to our level of standard the entire season,
but we started to hit our strides here after the
buy and trying to you know, continue to stand that mode.

Speaker 1 (33:23):
Yeah, after this, I imagine that the scouting department is
going to want players to play all eleven positions like
we just.

Speaker 2 (33:28):
Never know, Well we might need here.

Speaker 1 (33:29):
All right, we're gonna take a quick break here in
Buccaneer's Total Access.

Speaker 2 (33:32):
We are brought to you by Advan Health. This is
Buccaneers Radio.

Speaker 3 (33:35):
You were listening to Buccaneers Total Access with head coach
Todd Bowles at Bucks team reporter Casey Phillips. Brought to
you by Advan Health.

Speaker 2 (33:44):
Welcome back into Buccaneers Total Access.

Speaker 1 (33:46):
We were joined by assistant secondary coach Rashad Johnson.

Speaker 2 (33:49):
We were just before the break.

Speaker 1 (33:50):
You brought up Christianizzi and which I'm so glad he did.
First of all, he led the team with a career
high thirteen tackles in the game yesterday. And I know
you have worked really closely, especially last year, worked lot
with the nickel spot and with Izzian and getting him
ready and so to hear just him stepping into that
nickel role last year as this undrafted you know, free
agent guy and knowing Bulls ass a lot of that
position and then now again like you mentioned, he's just

(34:12):
been this little Swiss army knife all over the place.

Speaker 2 (34:14):
So tell me what.

Speaker 1 (34:16):
Stands out to you about Christian and explain to people
how hard what he's had to do actually is.

Speaker 8 (34:21):
Yeah, you know, the biggest thing that stands out to
me is going to be his character. You know, for
a guy to come in, you know, play sixteen games,
you know last year, seventeen games as a starter at
a position and then to see another guy get drafted,
you know, to possibly play that position like that, you.

Speaker 4 (34:38):
Know sometimes that can that can call some friction for him.

Speaker 8 (34:41):
Came back into the building, just worked hard, continue to
take the rolls, take the place, understand the assignment, and
then when his numbers was called, was ready to play.
So I mean, you know, a guy of high character,
of high work ethic, and a guy that's dependable that
you can count on. So you know, for what he did,
you know on the mental part, just from that speaks
volumes to him. But also just to be able to
play multiple positions, like you said, you know, from safety

(35:04):
room to nickel back, those are two totally different skill
sets and viewpoints from the ball game that you're watching
the game and how you're fitting it and positioning yourselves.
So for him to be able to take what he
learned from Nickel applied to now what he's doing at safety,
you know, and growing that position, it's been, you know,
really fun to watch him, you know, just grow and
mature into the player that he is. And I mean

(35:24):
the guy has a really right future because he lights
it up on special teams as well, you know, as
a gunner, you know, if he has to do that
as well. So just really right future and a really
great you know pick up as an undrafted free agent.

Speaker 2 (35:35):
Yeah, that's wild.

Speaker 1 (35:35):
And tell me a little bit about some of the
things that Bowles wants out of the different positions within
his secondary. Of the outside guys which he seems to
have a definite body type he goes for on that,
and then the Nickel and how challenging it is, and
then the different types of safeties. As you talked about
the ways all these guys are getting used specifically for
his defense. What are some of the challenges and things
he asks of these different guys and position groups.

Speaker 8 (35:57):
Yeah, you know, just I guess starting from the outside,
you at that corner position, you know, those guys are
going to be placed in some difficult positions, some one
on one opportunities a lot of the times because he's
gonna want to put pressure on the quarterback and you know,
the way to do that is to bring more guys
than they can block, you know, for one, so that's
going to leave you in one on one opportunity. So
you got to be a guy, you know that can
handle the pressure. For one, you got to be great

(36:18):
at the line and press coverage because you want to
knock off the timing of the routes that the quarterback
and the receiver are trying to do. And then the
third thing is that you want to be have great
ball skills. You know, if you don't have great, great
ball skills, then you can be in great position, you're
not gonna be able.

Speaker 4 (36:30):
To make the play. So that's the third thing we're
looking for.

Speaker 8 (36:33):
And then obviously, you know, the fourth thing you want
to have is to be able to be able to tackle.
There's gonna be times the way you're gonna be called
upon to be on the run game and get involved,
and we have guys that can do that. So from
the outside, you know, those are hard tasks, very difficult
task and a lot of weights on their shoulders because
they're gonna get called you know, cover one, cover zeros,
fire zones, and critical situations.

Speaker 4 (36:52):
Get us off the field, make the play, and then
you move back, you know, into the nickel roll.

Speaker 8 (36:56):
This guy, you know, has to be able to do
some of the similar things they do outside in terms
of playing man a man, but also being able to
play vision zone. It means to be able to spot drop,
see the quarterback, break on the angles, and make plays
and read routes through combinations two to the flat.

Speaker 4 (37:11):
I'm getting an inside route by one understanding those type
of things from a.

Speaker 8 (37:14):
Nickel position, but also be able to blit. So he's
kind of like a corner safety backer all in one
position in one player.

Speaker 4 (37:21):
So it's just a really cool.

Speaker 8 (37:23):
You know, skill set that player has to have and
be able to do and bring to the table in
our defense.

Speaker 4 (37:27):
And then the safeties. You know, there's two different.

Speaker 8 (37:30):
Types of a guy that can play in the run game.
You know, a true run fitter, you know, a force
forcer in that nature like a Jordan.

Speaker 4 (37:37):
Whitehead, you know, a cave on Meriweather.

Speaker 8 (37:40):
And then you got a rangy guy in the back
end that can make plays on the ball, you know,
and flip guys upside down and make those open field
tackles you know, like Antoine Winfield or Christian Easy and so,
you know.

Speaker 4 (37:51):
Just those different skill sets. And I think also from
the safety safety position, you.

Speaker 8 (37:55):
Got to be a very great communicator, you know, because
we change a lot. You know, we have multiples within
our defense. There's different things and indicators that drive what
we're calling and what we're trying to do on the
back end, because we want to put ourselves in the
best position, you know, each and.

Speaker 4 (38:08):
Every time we're out there.

Speaker 8 (38:09):
So you got to be great communicators to get everybody
on the same page. And you got to bring handled
away if it doesn't go that way, yeah, you know,
which is okay, we'll press so on then we'll get
the next one.

Speaker 2 (38:18):
I love it that.

Speaker 1 (38:19):
That's great, and we're talking assistant secondary coach for Shaw Johnson.
I want to talk a little bit more about Tyke
Smith because he's been this rookie class overall. I mean
we've watched how you know, Jalen McMillan, Bucky Irving doing
amazing things on that side of all, Graham Barton holding
down in the line, Tyke on the defensive side has
just done such amazing things and has earned some praises

(38:39):
from coach Bowls when that's not always a forthcoming thing,
particularly publicly into the media. Of like I mean, right
out the gate talking about his IQ and the way
that he wasn't even having to treat him like a rookie.
So how did you see that come in? And what
when you guys were looking at Tyke and scouting him
and looking at his tape. I know it's going to
pain you to praise it a Georgia guy. I'm sure

(38:59):
that your Alabama self is hurting here. But tell me
what you've noticed about Tyke as you were scouting him
and then once he got in the building.

Speaker 8 (39:07):
Yeah, you know, just when I was watching his tape,
you know, he jumped off the screen because he could
do multiple things. You know, he was very physical in
the run game. You could see his presence there, strong hands.
You know, he's knocking off tight ends, taking on offensive linemen,
you know, and then making the plays on a perimeter
with very great skilled players you know at Alabama and
Tennessee and different schools that he's playing against. And then

(39:28):
not only that, you're seeing him now Blitz the quarterback,
you know, affecting the past game in that aspect and
then making plays on the ball down the field, whether
it's past breakups or interceptions. His numbers, you know, each
and every year, whether he was at West Virginia you know,
or at Georgia, he was progressively getting better. And that's
something you you know, love to see. And then when
we have the opportunity to bring him in on the

(39:48):
visit and sit down with the guy and just talk
to him, you could tell, I mean, he's all ball,
you know.

Speaker 4 (39:53):
And for me, like I love guys that love ball, you.

Speaker 8 (39:56):
Know, because this game is hard, as much as people think,
like the NFL is something that's just glamorous and it's
a wonderful thing to do, Like you really have to
love it in order to be great at it and
to be able to sustain in it. So for me,
I want to look for guys that loved the game.
And it was simple to see that he had a
drive to love it. And I don't have a problem
praising this UGA guy because Kirby Smart, who was Abama guy,

(40:17):
I guess he was a UGA guy before that.

Speaker 4 (40:19):
But Obama guy, you know, of course, it all.

Speaker 1 (40:21):
Comes back to being Alabama's what caused all the good things.

Speaker 2 (40:24):
That's what I Yeah, that sounds about right.

Speaker 6 (40:26):
I love it.

Speaker 1 (40:27):
And now I know also with Jordan white Head coming
back this year, you like were ships passing the night
with him of you joined the Bucks esafally right as
he was leaving for the Jets, and then now he
came back. So what did you know about him prior
to him coming back now? And then the player that
we got, you know this time is what you've heard
for the first time some of the ways that maybe
he's grown and learned even since leaving us.

Speaker 8 (40:48):
Yeah, I mean when everything I heard about him was
like a glue guy, you know, And then when you
watch the film, you see why they say that because
he had a motor. He was a guy that was
separating people from the ball, that was like sacrificing his body.
He had no regard for it in terms of how
he was approaching and hitting guys and playing the game
like you know, you love to see guys play it.

Speaker 4 (41:05):
But he was a guy that was just selfless.

Speaker 8 (41:07):
And in the same way that he you know, approached
the game. Then when he came back here, he's been
the same exact way. Whatever he's been asked to do
whatever his calling was, he's been able to do that.
And I've loved everything about Jordan. He's been a great
addition to the locker room, great leader, and even like
I said with Dean when he was out, in his time,
he's been around, he's been helping these young guys. He's
in keveon Zier every day. So it's just been been

(41:28):
a great pick up to bring him back in the
group and bring that energy, you the motor of a
guy that he is, you know, down in and down out.

Speaker 1 (41:35):
And then Mike Edward same thing of it's sort of
interesting to have multiple guys getting a second stint here.
That's not always something that happens. But you brought up
the ballhawk part of him. But what are the things
that you've noticed about his game and why that's the case,
why he's the guy that it's just wild per snap
he plays, how many interceptions he had the first time
he was here with us, and just what getting him
back could potentially mean, especially with all these injuries.

Speaker 8 (41:57):
Yeah, you know, you get a guy back that can
you know, get the ball back for your offense, Like
that's the biggest thing in this in this game. Like
we want to watch the plays and do all these
other things, but.

Speaker 4 (42:06):
We're watching the ball. It's all about the football.

Speaker 8 (42:09):
And this guy does a great job of being in
the right place, understanding route combinations, reading a quarterback out
of the middle field, and then not only that, having
the ability to make the play. You see guys all
the time in position in a PBu they can't make
the play. He's confident in his hands, confident in his
ability after the catch as well. So just you know,
just a tremendous athlete in the aspect. So he's gonna be,

(42:31):
you know, really good for us going forward as we
continue to you know, make this push because you're gonna
have to win it in the air. Guys are gonna
throw the ball. They're gonna win it with the receivers.
So we got to have someone on the back end
that can help being those positions and you know, make
some of those takeaways and get our offenses more opportunities
to put points on the board.

Speaker 4 (42:47):
That's what it's gonna be about.

Speaker 1 (42:48):
All right, We're gona take one more break here on
Buccaneers Total Access, brought to you by Advan Health.

Speaker 2 (42:52):
This is Buccaneers Radio.

Speaker 3 (42:54):
Buccaneers Total Access with head coach Todd Bowles now continues
brought to you by Ad Van.

Speaker 1 (43:00):
We are talking to assistant secondary coach Rashad Johnson. I know,
also we had guys like Josh Hayes and Tyreek Thunderberg
getting some thrown into the fire reps earlier this season,
and I'd love to hear a little bit about their potential,
and especially a guy like Tyreek who was hurt most
of the preseason and was also an undrafted guy. So
what he showed you all that made you say, hey,
we got to put this guy on a roster. He

(43:22):
and Josh Hayes, What are some of the things that
you feel like are their potential that we could see
in yours moving forward?

Speaker 8 (43:26):
Yeah, Tyreek, you know, I'll start there with him, like
you said, you know, a tremendous feat for him to
be able to make this team being injured, you know,
doing some of that time and training camp.

Speaker 4 (43:35):
But he came in.

Speaker 8 (43:36):
You know, he's a guy that the playbook wasn't too
much for him. Sometimes when rookies come in, the weight
of that playbook is too much. He understood those concepts,
was really great on the field in terms of understanding
route combinations and making plays in practice. So he showed
us a lot of flashes, a lot of things that
you like to see that showed that he could tran
up and be you know, possibly a starter you know

(43:56):
in that outside corner position you know, and maybe flex
some even in a nickel spot you know, down the.

Speaker 4 (44:02):
Road once he gets comfortable there.

Speaker 8 (44:03):
So just having that two play dual aspect as well
is something that you like about him, you know, as
a player.

Speaker 4 (44:09):
So I think Tyreek has a you know, a future
in this league.

Speaker 8 (44:12):
I think he has an opportunity to grow, you know
as a starter or not possibly to be a potential starter.
But you know it's all gonna be the off season.
You know that the technique, work, the small things here
and there to grow as a player. You know that
he's still understanding, you know, at this next level. So
you know, we're gonna put the work in and just
looking forward to see, you know, what happens there. And

(44:32):
then you know, you talk about a guy Josh Hayes
now from you know Kansas State, really really tremendous athlete,
you know, has a great quick twitch, great burst, a
physical player you know that will hit you and you
know what I loved about him is that he got
a chance to play, you know, in a week, didn't
play as well as he wanted to, came back the
next week and get San Francisco and and really had

(44:52):
a tremendous week. You know, to have four pass breakups,
you know that it's a lot in in one game,
just shows you his ability to close on the ball
once it's in the air. So I think for this guy,
you know, the more time he gets on the job,
the only better he's going to be, you know.

Speaker 4 (45:05):
And in terms of his potential, you.

Speaker 8 (45:07):
Know, and the one true potential that I love about
him that you know, every player just doesn't have is
that he can line up and he can play man
to man, like you can scrap him up on somebody
and say go play this guy. And every guy can't
do that, don't have the skill set to do that.
So that's something that you know, if he hones in
and he works, can really separate him not only you know,
on this team, but I think other cornerbacks throughout this

(45:30):
you know, National Football League.

Speaker 1 (45:31):
We're talking to assistant secondary coach for Shaan Johnson. Also
whenever we have a coach on here for the first time.
We'd love to hear a little bit about your background
and how you got to this point.

Speaker 2 (45:38):
So take us through a little bit.

Speaker 1 (45:39):
Of your college career, your NFL career, and the playing
days of Rashad Okay.

Speaker 4 (45:44):
The playing day.

Speaker 8 (45:45):
So former walk on at the University of Alabama from
a small town Alabama. I was a running back, initially
moved over to safety. Coach Saban came my coach my
junior year, which was a tremendous opportunity. I learned a
lot from him, how to study the game. You know,
how to watch film, how to approach the day to day,

(46:05):
the process. You know the team ivy before we before,
you know, I just all those small things that it
takes to be great. And then I was drafted to
the Arizona Car No.

Speaker 4 (46:14):
Third round, ninety fifth pick.

Speaker 8 (46:16):
I was able to spend seven years in Arizona with
a lot of great players. You know, this tremendous staff
is here now was a lot of these coaches. Was
my coaches then in Arizona in twenty thirteen, Bruce Arians,
you know, Tabos, Coach Ripone, coach rock so So, the
whole crew for the most part, Coach Foot I played
with him, so you know, my journey was a pune one,

(46:38):
and I finished up in Tennessee with the Titans my
eighth year in twenty sixteen. After that, I had a
little girl and decided to retire. No one called, so
it was kind of a little bit of both. So
I went in and retired, became a father, and then
the next year I went to the Giants, New York Giants.
I started an internship there under a Pat Shermer and

(47:01):
coach James Betcher was the DC at the time, who
was also one of my coaches out in Arizona. And
then coach Saban called, hey, you know heard you back
into coaching. Would you like the opportunity to come back home,
you know, and a guy that had been out in
the West Coast for seven years, you know, I'm from
the South, wanted to get back close to family. You know,
I'm only an hour and a half from home. So
moved back to Tuscaloosa. Worked there for three years. Player development,

(47:24):
defensive analysts, weight room. I did it all, you know,
everything you could think of, D line, oh whatever. So
just in there, just working, trying to learn, trying to
be a sponge. And then the opportunity came to get
an opportunity to come here. You know, I had my
second child at that time, and I wanted to get
a little bit better lifestyle in terms of the coaching lifestyle,
with the college life and the.

Speaker 4 (47:45):
Recruiting, which now is different.

Speaker 8 (47:47):
You know, they don't do as much on the road
as they used to then when I was there. So
got an opportunity to come here do the internship and
they kept me on here and it's just been a
tremendous journey.

Speaker 1 (47:56):
You know.

Speaker 8 (47:56):
I'm just looking forward to continue to help guys, part
of them the things that you know, I learned through
my journey, and you know, try and make them come
out on the other end better than I did. That's
my ultimate goal, just to give and to serve so
any the capacity that I can do that at at
whatever level I can.

Speaker 4 (48:12):
Do that at.

Speaker 8 (48:13):
Just trying to be the best at doing that and
hopefully God takes care the rest.

Speaker 1 (48:17):
What was it like to now be coaching alongside people
who coached you.

Speaker 4 (48:20):
Yeah, that's got to be.

Speaker 2 (48:21):
An interesting day.

Speaker 8 (48:22):
Oh yeah, it's really cool. You know, it goes full circle.
It speaks a lot to you know, handling the season
that you're in because you how you handle the season
that you're in, it's gonna birth, you know, opportunities for
the next season that you want to be in. So
just you know, being a great player, you know, someone
that they can rely on, someone they could trust, allow
them to say the same thing about me now as

(48:43):
a coach and giving me the opportunity. And I'm forever
thankful for that, you know, because they didn't have to
do that. And you know, I'm gonna give them my best,
this organization of my best, and I'm truly thankful to
be around family and friends.

Speaker 1 (48:54):
Did you find some extra empathy for your former coaches
once you had to coach?

Speaker 4 (49:00):
No doubt, no doubt. It is much harder than it looks. Man,
we just don't listen. We just don't listen.

Speaker 2 (49:09):
And now you read the car back around.

Speaker 4 (49:12):
Full circle, full circle. I am sorry for not listening.

Speaker 2 (49:15):
I love that. That's great.

Speaker 1 (49:17):
What are some of the biggest challenges from adjusting from
player to coach?

Speaker 8 (49:21):
The biggest challenge probably would be I'll probably say schedule,
because player, you know, you can do a lot of
things that we do here at home, you know, like
when I'm done here as a player, I go home
and the extra film that I'm watching, I do it
from my home iPad. I do it for my home office.
Different things that nature.

Speaker 4 (49:38):
But we do a lot of our you know, extra
work in office in time here, So that was probably
just the biggest difference for me.

Speaker 1 (49:45):
So now looking forward to this next week, gotta rematch
with the Panthers, gotta be kind of wild when you
face a team so close together. How does that change
some of the game planning and the fact that both
teams are probably pretty similar to they work a few
weeks ago.

Speaker 8 (49:58):
Yeah, I think sometimes it's better to play, you know,
kind of in that short window because you typically go
from you know, the past three or four game breakdown,
and sometimes those things are gonna be very similar in
terms of what they're doing. Haven't you know, had a
chance to break out of you know, the things that
they are similar to or what they're accustomed to. If
you're playing 'em, you know, the beginning of the season
to the end of the season, you're you could possibly
playing two totally different teams, you know, from injuries to

(50:20):
guys they've picked up, to guys catching their steam as
players too, from rookies to you know, now not playing
as a rookie, you know, sixteen seventeen weeks into the season.
So but you know, big game, like you said, NFC opponent,
We're gonna know each other regardless, especially with Dave being
in the building and you know, being the head coach
there now. But this game is gonna be you know,
who's gonna be.

Speaker 4 (50:40):
The most physical team?

Speaker 8 (50:41):
Uh, who can win the turnover battle and and who
can commit to battling through that versus There's gonna be
some of us and downs.

Speaker 1 (50:47):
So what are some of the things you remember most
from the last matchup about Uh, let's say Bryce Young
and the way that he has grown a lot over
this season. Yeah, and the Bryce Young we're seeing these
these two matchups here as compared to the guy before
he ended up getting benched and now coming back.

Speaker 2 (51:01):
What did you guys learn about him?

Speaker 8 (51:02):
Yeah, I mean the best, the biggest thing has been
you know, his accuracy in terms of his decision making.
You know, earlier in the season, you know, not as accurate,
not making the best decisions, you know, getting the ball
out to the guy that's opened, trying to force you know,
the pressing early on, and that happens, you know, in
the new system, new coach, you know, trying to be
that guy.

Speaker 4 (51:20):
But then when you get a chance to.

Speaker 8 (51:21):
Sit back, you know, And I had opportunity to be
around Bryce at the University Alabama, so I knew that,
you know, he would be a guy that could sit
back and bounce back because he had the skill set
and the mentality from a great family. And he's done
a great job of that, you know, just taking the
opportunity to sit back, learn from those mistakes, and now
you can tell that he's much more confident in the offense.

Speaker 4 (51:41):
He has total command of it a lot better, you know.

Speaker 8 (51:44):
And what lets you know that is how he's ending
and finishing games. You know, if you look at the
Kansas City game, if you look at you know, our game,
if you you know every game that they've basically played
in here in the past five or six games, he's
driven them down the field and put him in position
to win the game, and it's been on the other
side that they haven't able to finish it.

Speaker 4 (52:00):
So you know, he's playing tremendous ball.

Speaker 8 (52:02):
So defensively, you know, we we have our hands full
with him, you know, and hubrid At in the running
game as well, you know, to to make sure that
we can go out and handle our business on the
own our end, you know, to put us in the
best feet to when this thing is all said and done,
be where we want to be.

Speaker 1 (52:16):
All right, Well, coach, thank you so much for joining us.
We really do appreciate it, and I hope you have
a wonderful Christmas with the family and spending time. Yeah,
we appreciate good luck this next week as well. That's
going to do it for us. Thank you guys for
listening to us here on Buccaneers Total Access, brought to
you by Advent Health.

Speaker 2 (52:31):
This is Buccaneers Radio