You won’t catch Joe downplaying this massive Buccaneers road win today to up their record to 4-1.
Putting 38 points on the Seahawks is no small accomplishment. Only the Lions carved up the Seattle defense like that last season. This season’s highest total on the Seahawks this season had been 20 points.
What’s got Joe all jacked up is the Bucs are humming on offense with journeyman Charlie Heck at right tackle, who offensive line analysts treated as a punching bag all offseason, and Luke Haggard at right guard.
Haggard, 25, was undrafted out of Indiana University in 2023 and has hung around the Bucs practice squad long enough to develop into a solid player. Another find by O-line whisperer and Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht.
In fact, the Bucs ran _right_ with Rachaad White on a critical third down late in the fourth quarter to set up the game-winning field goal.
They could have run behind Tristan Wirfs. Nope, they went the other direction.
Not only are the Bucs playing with what many considered NFL dumpster scraps on the right side of their line, today they were down Mike Evans and Bucky Irving, bona fide studs, guys who keep defensive coordinators up all night.
It didn’t matter.
The Bucs offense was creative, explosive and Baker Mayfield was hit just twice all day on 38 dropbacks.
What happens when Luke Goedeke returns at right tackle, and Evans and Irving return while Chris Godwin sheds more rust?