Better Secondary Play is Due to Coaching

Last year there were too many times where opposing receivers had open space and separation from Bucs defenders leading to big plays every Sunday. The root cause of this was mainly due to the secondary having no clue where to be on the field most of time, too much thinking going on instead of reacting and playing fast. The Bucs had three secondary coaches last season which is way too many and there were just too many voices in the room causing confusion and leading to guys doing things they are not comfortable with on the field. The Bucs had talent in the secondary last year but failed with poor communication and not being detailed in where to be on the field.

Going into this off-season, the Bucs secondary improved just by hiring secondary coaches in Jon Hoke and Brett Maxie respectively. Jon Hoke is one of the more respected defensive backs coaches out there in the NFL, and Brett Maxie helped developed some good corners when he was with the Titans including Bucs CB Alterraun Verner. Now the Bucs did add talent to the secondary by adding Brent Grimes, Josh Robinson, Vernon Hargreaves, and Ryan Smith which has brought more speed and athleticism to the group. However, the Bucs also kept pretty much the same group from last year which was quite telling that the coaching staff was not doing a good job with the secondary.

Just by re-watching the Eagles game from last week, I could tell the players on defense were more comfortable and every player was in position and able to make plays on the football. It was assignment football as guys got to their spot and everyone was working together on the field. It also helps to have smart football players like Vernon Hargreaves watch below.

Fun to watch Vernon Hargreaves move. Carries into one zone, releases back into his assignment. https://t.co/fjIU1HlBAn

— Josh Norris (@JoshNorris) August 14, 2016

This is perfectly executed as he drives the wideout to his teammate's zone then gets back into his area and cuts off the open option for the Qb. This is what we call team defense and on Thursday it was fun to see that again. Players understanding their jobs and going out on the field and actually doing them was refreshing. Still long way to go as it is just preseason, but I saw a lot of positive signs from the defense in that first game.

Someone Needs to Step up!

It's getting closer to the start of training camp for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers which will be the start of some intense position battles along with tough decisions for coach Koetter and Gm Jason Licht. Licht and his staff have put together a solid roster this off-season and could make a playoff appearance this year. However, there are still question marks surrounding the roster, and one of them is the safety position. The Bucs stood pat at the position bringing back the same group from last year with rookie Ryan Smith being the only new addition. Who is going to step up this year and become a impact safety for this team?

I say it's going to be Bradley Mcdougald, this is a good fit defensively for him and should allow him to play to his strengths. Mcdougald was decent at times last year which is good considering the secondary was below average in 2015. Mcdougald has the physical tools and has the experience now to allow him to play even faster. He is only 25, and last season was his first full season as a starter in which he had 87 tackles and 2 ints. Now being coached by Jon Hoke and Brett Maxie along with Mike Smith who helped developed some good safeties in Reggie Nelson and Thomas Decloud, hopes he can do the same with Mcdougald. Someone out of the safety group has to step up, so why not Bradley Mcdougald.

What Will The Bucs Do With Alterraun Verner?

Now that the Bucs have a new found depth at the cornerback position with the addition of Vernon Hargreaves in the draft, what will the Bucs do with high priced Alterraun Verner? Many Bucs fans are pushing to cut Verner since he is due 6.75 million this year, yet only 2 million of it is guaranteed. In my opinion that is a pointless move.

The Bucs have roughly 14 million still remaining in cap space this year and can still look to sign or trade for other high priced players, so the fact of his contract shouldn't matter. Verner is also a past pro bowler who knows what it takes to play at a high level and now is reunited with his old CB's coach from the Titans who made him that pro bowl corner. Another point to note is by looking at the current corners the Bucs have collected all look very similar to Verner in stature, as they all are smaller and quick in space.

Just because he has a high price tag doesn't mean he can't fit somewhere on this roster. If the Bucs have the luxury of cap space then use it. Let him play until that cap number needs to be fixed but until then let iron sharpen iron and let him compete with all of our corners.

Return to Form?

The Bucs signed Alterraun Verner in 2014, expecting him to play at pro bowl level like he has done in past years with his former team the Titans. In his first year with the Bucs, he had a decent year with over 70 tackles, 2 int, and 9 pass breakups. However in 2015, his play suddenly declined as he made only 6 starts, and was demoted to playing nickle back. Verner needs to find his 2013 form where was outstanding, putting up 23 pass breakups to go with 5 ints.

So Verner is still a good player, you just don't go from putting up all-pro numbers to being a average player playing half of the time. I think there were two issues that cause the decline in Verner's play. One was too many voices in the defensive backs room, the Bucs had three secondary coaches which is just insane and it obviously caused confusion because the secondary was terrible. Second issue was scheme fit, where Verner was asked to play off coverage which is not his strength and needs to be in more press coverage.

Good news is both of those issues look to be solved with the Bucs hiring Verner's former coach in Brett Maxie, who coached Verner when they were at Tennessee.  Also Mike Smith will provide a scheme that fits the players strengths which is good for a lot of the players on defense. Hopefully with coach Maxie on board, Verner can return to 2013 form and the Bucs can worry less about their defensive backfield.