History clashes with Zac Robinson’s game plan.
So Bucs officials have crowed about how Bucky Irving is back to his 2024 self and how fellow running back Kenny Gainwell is a natural receiver and a dangerous one at that.
Yesterday, in a must-win game with a rookie quarterback starting his first game, the Bucs found just two targets for those playmakers. Gainwell caught both for 22 yards and 1 touchdown.
Only two throws to running backs, Joe thinks that might be close to an NFL record for a rookie QB starting and finishing his first full game.
Joe went back to the history books.
In Jameis Winston’s starting debut in 2015, the Bucs threw seven times to running backs. It was the same total for Josh Freeman’s first start in 2009, ironically a 38-28 win against the Packers in Tampa. When QB Chris Simms made his inaugural start, he threw 10 times to running backs/fullbacks. It was similar for QB Bruce Gradkowski in 2006; he threw 8 times to Bucs running backs in a 24-21 loss to the Saints.
But yesterday, Zac Robinson, a guy without the pedigree of those past Bucs playcallers (Dirk Koetter, Greg Olson and Jon Gruden), thought it was a great idea for first-time QB Jalon Daniels to barely throw to his running backs.
Joe finds that very interesting, especially considering how everyone at One Buc Palace raves about how Irving is fantastic at making the first defender miss. He didn’t get a target yesterday.