Bucs vs. Lions Sport Preview | NFL Divisional Spherical 2023-2024 Playoffs – Buccaneers.com

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For the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the 2023 postseason is being outlined by second possibilities.
The Buccaneers opened their postseason journey on Monday evening with a dominant 32-9 win over the visiting Philadelphia Eagles at Raymond James Stadium. That avenged a Week Three loss – additionally on a Monday in Tampa – that was equally lopsided, however within the different route, because the Eagles totally managed a 25-11 resolution.
By beating the Eagles and advancing to the Divisional Spherical, the Buccaneers earned one other shot at redemption, as they head to Detroit to face a Lions squad that stifled them in Week Six by a 20-6 margin. If they will get previous the Lions and into their second NFC Championship Sport in 4 years, the Bucs will face yet one more group, both the 49ers or Packers, that they performed through the common season. (They misplaced to San Francisco in Week 11 and gained in Inexperienced Bay in Week 15).
“To me, it is like we’re on a revenge tour at this level,” mentioned cornerback Zyon McCollum. “Beating the Eagles after which dealing with the Lions, who we misplaced to earlier within the 12 months, that is the whole lot we might need.”
The Lions are coming off their first playoff victory in 30 years, a 24-23 nipping of the Los Angeles Rams that let out a number of pent-up feelings from Detroit followers, who made Ford Subject a particularly raucous surroundings. Jared Goff and Matthew Stafford, who had been traded for one another in 2021, engaged in a powerful duel, with Goff finishing 22 of 27 passes for 277 yards, one landing, no interceptions and a 121.8 passer ranking. Extremely, the Lions had 4 gamers rating 10 or extra touchdowns through the common season and three of them discovered the tip zone towards the Rams – tight finish Sam LaPorta and operating backs David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs.
“Jared Goff is a very good quarterback,” mentioned Bucs linebacker Ok.J. Britt. “We have simply obtained to verify we get in our throwing home windows, be certain we’re taking away what he is actually good at. He is aware of what he is good at. We’re making an attempt to be sure that we have got to restrict him, as a result of he is a very good quarterback – probably the greatest I’ve seen on movie.”
The one participant among the many aforementioned quartet that did not rating towards the Rams was first-team All-Professional wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown. All he did was catch seven passes for 110 yards after a daily season that noticed him haul in 119 passes for 1,515 yards.
“We positively need to respect all people that they’ve, however St. Brown has been enjoying actually, actually good ball, so we’ve to maintain a watch out on him specifically,” mentioned McCollum. Him, LaPorta…they’ve a number of weapons.”
This would be the second straight recreation by which Goff shall be matched up towards a fellow former first-overall draft choose; Stafford had that honor in 2009, Goff in 2016 and the Bucs’ Baker Mayfield in 2018. Mayfield helps to increase a particularly profitable first season in Tampa and his playoff debut on Monday was spectacular, as he threw for 337 yards, three touchdowns, no interceptions and a 119.8 passer ranking. Mayfield says the playoffs require a “heightened consciousness” among the many gamers due to the do-or-die stakes, however by way of execution it nonetheless comes all the way down to the main points.
“I discussed it previous to final week – groups within the playoffs do not beat themselves,” he mentioned. “The group that makes the least quantity of errors is normally the one which wins, so [it’s] taking good care of the ball, eliminating damaging performs. Simply figuring out your job back and front, figuring out no matter performs and schemes we’ve within the gameplan, figuring out precisely what seems to be we will expect and go execute.”
Heading into Monday evening, the Buccaneers had been certain they may produce a a lot totally different end result towards the Eagles than the primary time round as a result of they believed they’d developed fairly a bit as a group since September. Likewise, the Bucs really feel like they’ve a shot to flip the script towards Detroit in a rematch three months later, however they know that shall be a big problem towards one of many NFL’s greatest groups.
“I believe we have gotten harder over the course of the previous few weeks,” mentioned Head Coach Todd Bowles. “All people has lastly gotten again and is enjoying on the similar time. We have been subbing guys out and in of there – a number of guys have been enjoying. In the event you add the younger guys with that, there was a number of consternation occurring there. The communication has gotten quite a bit higher. All people is trusting the man subsequent to him and so they’re enjoying for one another.”
GAME AND BROADCAST DETAILS
ALL-TIME HEAD-TO-HEAD SERIES
The Buccaneers-Lions sequence dates again to 1977 and is among the extra even ones on Tampa Bay’s listing of won-loss information towards varied opponents. The Bucs had pulled to inside three on the all-time ledger with wins in each 2019 and 2020, however Detroit fired again with a 20-6 win earlier this season to extend its result in 32-28. The Bucs’ report in Detroit can be practically even, at 15-16.
That is the second postseason assembly between the 2 golf equipment, and the primary in a quarter-century. The Buccaneers broke a 14-year playoff drought in 1997 and landed a house recreation towards Detroit within the Wild Card Spherical, as 4 totally different groups from the outdated NFC Central made the postseason. The Bucs and Lions had cut up through the common season however the playoff recreation in Tampa on December 28 was all Tampa Bay in a 20-10 remaining that wasn’t that shut. RB Warrick Dunn and FB Mike Alstott mixed for 140 speeding yards and Alstott’s 31-yard landing run within the third quarter gave the Bucs a 20-0 lead that was sufficient to ship them to the following spherical of the playoffs on the dwelling of yet one more NFC Central group, the Inexperienced Bay Packers.
Detroit’s win in Tampa in Week Six included a powerful efficiency from quarterback Jared Goff, who threw for 353 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions, hitting All-Professional large obtain Amon-Ra St. Brown 12 instances for 124 yards and a rating. Detroit’s protection restricted the Bucs to 251 yards of offense and Baker Mayfield was intercepted as soon as, marking the one recreation all season by which he threw an interception however no touchdowns.
Previous to this 12 months’s recreation, the Bucs two current wins within the sequence had been each blowouts, at the least by way of the ultimate rating. In 2019, Tampa Bay left Detroit with a 38-17 win in Week 15, and virtually precisely a 12 months later went again to the Motor Metropolis for a dominant 47-7 rout. Within the former recreation, the Bucs ran out to a fast 21-0 lead on three lengthy landing passes by Jameis Winston, two to Breshad Perriman and one to Scotty Miller. Detroit rallied behind fill-in quarterback David Blough, ultimately pulling to inside seven factors within the fourth quarter, however Detroit native Sean Murphy-Bunting ended any comeback ideas with a 70-yard pick-six. Within the latter recreation, Tom Brady had 4 landing passes by halftime so he ceded the second half to Blaine Gabbert, who threw two extra. Mike Evans and Rob Gronkowski had been each on the receiving finish of two of these scoring passes. The Lions prevented a shutout because of a 74-yard Jamal Agnew punt return landing, however the Bucs completed the sport with a yardage benefit of greater than 400 yards, 588-186.
The Bucs have a deep shared historical past with the Lions as a result of they had been fellow members of the aforementioned NFC Central from 1977-2001. Then the NFL realigned in 2002 and the five-team NFC Central grew to become the four-team NFC North, with solely the Buccaneers departing to begin over within the extra geographically correct NFC South. Regardless of that cut up, the Buccaneers and Lions nonetheless noticed one another steadily within the years that adopted. The truth is, from 2005-17, the 2 groups met eight instances, with the Lions holding a 5-3 edge in that span. That included the 2 most up-to-date conferences earlier than the 2019 rematch, a 24-21 Detroit win in Tampa in 2017 and a 34-17 Lions resolution in Detroit in 2014. Tampa Bay’s greatest run within the sequence spanned that 2002 divisional divorce, with the Bucs profitable six of the eight video games performed between 1999 and 2005.
The Buccaneers and Lions spent most of their shared 25 years within the NFC Central punting the sequence lead backwards and forwards. The top-to-head report was tied at 5-5 after the primary 10 video games, 11-11 after the primary 22, 15-15 after the primary 30, and so forth. Detroit did draw back a bit bit within the first half of the Nineties by profitable 5 straight, at a time when the nice Barry Sanders was typically tormenting the Buccaneers, however the aforementioned 1999-2005 run evened issues again up a bit.
Though the 1997 recreation was the one time Tampa Bay and Detroit met within the postseason earlier than this week, it wasn’t the primary time they performed what was primarily an elimination recreation. The Buccaneers visited Detroit within the remaining week of the 1981 common season, with every group proudly owning an 8-7 report. The winner would take the NFC Central crown and a playoff berth; the loser can be eradicated. The Buccaneers gained, 20-17, keyed by an 84-yard Kevin Home landing catch and a 21-yard fumble return by David Logan after a sack by Lee Roy Selmon.
The scenario was very comparable a 12 months later when the Bucs and Lions matched up in Tampa within the penultimate week of the common season. As a result of a gamers’ strike that shaved seven video games out of the center of the season, the Bucs and Lions had been every 3-4 with two video games to go. Tampa Bay rallied from a 21-6 deficit to win 23-21, then gained once more the following weekend towards Chicago to sneak into the playoffs. This time, nonetheless, the Lions additionally gained their final recreation and made the playoffs, too, at 4-5.
NOTABLE CONNECTIONS
SENIOR COACHING STAFFS
Tampa Bay:
Detroit:
2023 ROSTER ADDITIONS
Buccaneers:
Lions:
ADDITIONAL 2023 CHANGES/DEVELOPMENTS OF NOTE
Buccaneers:
Lions:
INJURY REPORT
Key:
DNP: Didn’t take part in apply
LP: Restricted participation in apply
FP: Full participation in apply
NL: Not listed
Buccaneers:
Lions:
WEATHER FORECAST
Domed stadium. Out of doors climate: Sunshine and clouds blended. Excessive of 24, low of 14, 7% likelihood of snow, winds out of the SW at 9 mph.
GAME REFEREE
Head referee: Invoice Vinovich (18th season, fifteenth as referee)
BETTING LINE
INDIVIDUAL STAT LEADERS (common season)
Buccaneers-
Factors Scored: Ok Chase McLaughlin, 120
Touchdowns: WR Mike Evans, 13
Passing Yards: QB Baker Mayfield, 4,044
Passer Score: QB Baker Mayfield, 94.6
Speeding Yards: RB Rachaad White, 990
Receptions: WR Chris Godwin, 83
Receiving Yards: WR Mike Evans, 1,255
Interceptions: S Antoine Winfield Jr., 3
Sacks: OLB Yaya Diaby, 7.5
Tackles: LB Lavonte David, 133
Lions-
Factors Scored: RB David Montgomery/Ok Riley Patterson, 80
Touchdowns: RB David Montgomery, 13
Passing Yards: QB Jared Goff, 4,575
Passer Score: QB Jared Goff, 97.9
Speeding Yards: RB David Montgomery, 1,015
Receptions: WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, 119
Receiving Yards: WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, 1,515
Interceptions: S Kerby Joseph, 4
Sacks: DL Aidan Hutchinson, 11.5
Tackles: LB Alex Anzalone, 129
TEAM STAT RANKINGS (common season)
Buccaneers-
Scoring Offense: twentieth (20.5 ppg)
Whole Offense: twenty third (313.0 ypg)
Speeding Offense: thirty second (88.8 ypg)
Passing Offense: seventeenth (224.2 ypg)
First Downs Per Sport: twenty fifth (17.6)
Third-Down Pct.: tenth (41.5%)
Sacks Per Go Try Allowed: 14th (7.04%)
Pink Zone TD Pct.: thirtieth (45.8%)
Scoring Protection: sixth (19.1 ppg)
Whole Protection: twenty third (344.2 ypg)
Speeding Protection: fifth (95.3 ypg)
Passing Protection: twenty ninth (248.9 ypg)
First Downs Allowed Per Sport: twenty first (19.8)
Third-Down Pct. Allowed: twenty third (40.9%)
Sacks Per Go Try: seventeenth (7.86%)
Pink Zone TD Pct. Allowed: third (42.6%)
Turnover Margin: ninth (+8)
Lions-
Scoring Offense: fifth (27.1 ppg)
Whole Offense: third (394.8 ypg)
Speeding Offense: fifth (135.9 ypg)
Passing Offense: 2nd (258.9 ypg)
First Downs Per Sport: fifth (22.1)
Third-Down Pct.: eleventh (41.5%)
Sacks Per Go Try Allowed: third (5.12%)
Pink Zone TD Pct.: third (64.1%)
Scoring Protection: twenty third (23.2 ppg)
Whole Protection: nineteenth (336.1 ypg)
Speeding Protection: 2nd (88.8 ypg)
Passing Protection: twenty seventh (247.4 ypg)
First Downs Allowed Per Sport: twenty second (19.9)
Third-Down Pct. Allowed: twelfth (37.1%)
Sacks Per Go Try: twenty second (6.97%)
Pink Zone TD Pct. Allowed: twenty ninth (66.0%)
Turnover Margin: t-Sixteenth (0)
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
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