“We kind of (expletive) the bed everywhere”, said linebacker Connor Barwin, who drew one of the team’s three offside penalties.
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While the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ new quarterback is one reason for their turnaround, the Philadelphia Eagles may need to switch to their old signal-caller with theirs nicked up.
Meanwhile, Tampa Bay rookie quarterback Jameis Winston, who had thrown two interceptions and no touchdowns in his previous two outings, torched the Eagles for five TD passes (his previous high had been two), no interceptions and a QB rating of 131.6. And the Bucs dominated on third down, converting 10-of-16 attempts.
After the Eagles’ first series, their offense was as out of sync as their defense, leading to the ugliest and most shocking loss of coach Chip Kelly’s tenure. “That’s not news to anybody out there”. We have to get that man-to-man guy on the screen like that. It was complete domination on the Tampa Bay side, an opponent many thought Philadelphia would beat.
When tight end Cameron Brate caught Winston’s eight-yard touchdown pass, fans at Lincoln Financial Field began heading for the exits.
Martin’s 84-yard run set it up.
Connor Barwin got in position to make big plays, but he failed to come away with a pass that hit him square in the hands. Tampa Bay finished 10-6 in Freeman’s second year (and his first as a full-time starter); the team went 4-12 and 7-9 the two subsequent seasons, before bailing on Freeman for 2013. “You see how we just kept overcoming adversity”. But we’re willing to bet that even with a possibly damaging documentary airing nationally on Sunday evening, the Buccaneers feel they drafted the right man first overall. Martin’s performance was the most against the Eagles since Emmitt Smith gained 237 yards in 1993. Asked if he believed he’d still had control of the team, he said, ‘Yes, I do.’ Asked if he thought his players quit in the second half, he said, ‘No, I don’t.’ Asked if he remained confident that his staff was emphasizing the right things, he said, ‘Yes, I am.’ And asked if he were certain that he had assembled enough talented players for a turn-around, he said, ‘Yes, I do.
“I’m not sure exactly what happened”, DeMeco Ryans said. It’s hard not to think of a more pleasing trip back to college, when programs such as USC and Miami just fired their coaches.
While that first half was rough, there wasn’t a lower moment for the defense than the opening drive of the third quarter. Martin joins O.J. Simpson and Corey Dillon as the only RBs with two games with 235 yards.
Philadelphia ranks in the bottom third of the league with 11 touchdown receptions, but Tampa Bay’s defense has allowed five receivers to go over 100 yards. You just have no clue as to what you’re doing.
“You can’t give up those big runs”, Davis said.
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The Eagles won’t have time to dwell on their issues though as they take the field again on Thanksgiving against the Detroit Lions. They head to Indianapolis where they’ll face the Andrew Luck-less Colts next week, then they take on the Atlanta Falcons at home – a team they’ve already beaten on the road and one that hasn’t won a game in three weeks.
