Tampa Bay’s Defense Is Good But Not As Good As They Looked In Super Bowl

[Aven8]

Bowles has had an offseason to plan for Moore……gulp…..

 

[LACowboysFan1]

Tampa's defense doesn't necessarily have to be all that great, as far as the d-line goes, what with Dallas having Williams, a journeyman at best and second year guys as center and right guard (McGovern missed his rookie year due to injury). On the surface that indicates a big advantage for Tampa, with a solid veteran d-line.

But this is the NFL, let's not forget the on-any-Sunday way it goes sometimes. Every year is different and every team is different every year.

While I'm not going to predict a Dallas win, neither am I going to predict a loss. I think it will be a loss, I expect a loss for many reasons.

But I'm not going to turn on the game with the "all is lost" attitude either. I will watch and see what happens...

 

[LACowboysFan1]

As Jimmy Johnson once said it is not always the team that makes the most plays who win but the team who makes the fewest mistakes.

Every coach has said that at some point. Not unique to Jimmy, mainly because that's the way it works. Watch any drive, most times it's not a sparkling defensive play that stops the drive short of a score - it's a missed throw, dropped pass, missed block, missed hole, penalty or a player slipping/falling down.

Executing every play perfectly is impossible and executing all but a few of them is nearly so. That's the "secret" of the Patriots' success the last 20 years, watch their screen passes, it's so many times when the defense isn't expecting it, and if they do expect it every block is made and the receiver picks just the right path through the defense.

The Giants certainly knew that Emmitt was going to get the ball when the Cowboys had to get one last drive to win the game, but it worked because the blocking was perfect, or nearly so and Emmitt could find a crease to run through.

Execute your game plan better than the other team and you'll win most of the time...

 

[Doomsday101]

Every coach has said that at some point. Not unique to Jimmy, mainly because that's the way it works. Watch any drive, most times it's not a sparkling defensive play that stops the drive short of a score - it's a missed throw, dropped pass, missed block, missed hole, penalty or a player slipping/falling down.

Executing every play perfectly is impossible and executing all but a few of them is nearly so. That's the "secret" of the Patriots' success the last 20 years, watch their screen passes, it's so many times when the defense isn't expecting it, and if they do expect it every block is made and the receiver picks just the right path through the defense.

The Giants certainly knew that Emmitt was going to get the ball when the Cowboys had to get one last drive to win the game, but it worked because the blocking was perfect, or nearly so and Emmitt could find a crease to run through.

Execute your game plan better than the other team and you'll win most of the time...

I agree but I would go further than that, it is killing yourself with stupid penalty giving the opponent a fresh set of downs after stopping them on 3rd down or on offense the penalty that kills the drive. Great teams do not hurt themselves and put themselves in negative spots, especially in crunch time.

 

[LACowboysFan1]

I agree but I would go further than that, it is killing yourself with stupid penalty giving the opponent a fresh set of downs after stopping them on 3rd down or on offense the penalty that kills the drive. Great teams do not hurt themselves and put themselves in negative spots, especially in crunch time.

Have to expect some of that with young players, problem is we had players like Michael Bennett in 2019 doing that, so it's not just youth, coaching has to come into that as well.

Though you can't eliminate it entirely, how many veteran Falcons last year watched a live onside kick ball slowly moving on the ground and made no attempt to down it, thus ensuring a Falcons win? Wasn't Leon Lett a veteran in the infamous Miami loss in the 1990's? How about Randy White trying to change hands with a recovered fumble with a giant cast on his hand? The emotion of the game catches up with the best of them.

Dallas' problem is there's too many of those "doh" moments. If they could just cut them down it'd be a huge help...

 

[Doomsday101]

Have to expect some of that with young players, problem is we had players like Michael Bennett in 2019 doing that, so it's not just youth, coaching has to come into that as well.

Though you can't eliminate it entirely, how many veteran Falcons last year watched a live onside kick ball slowly moving on the ground and made no attempt to down it, thus ensuring a Falcons win? Wasn't Leon Lett a veteran in the infamous Miami loss in the 1990's? How about Randy White trying to change hands with a recovered fumble with a giant cast on his hand? The emotion of the game catches up with the best of them.

Dallas' problem is there's too many of those "doh" moments. If they could just cut them down it'd be a huge help...

Well in the end the difference is stupid gets you beat. It falls to coaches but also players putting in the time on and off the field to get themselves ready to play. To know their responsibility and be disciplined in executing their responsibility. As you said no team plays perfect but stupid teams find ways to lose ball games.