10 Things We Think We Learned - Buccaneers vs. Rams

Tampa Bay gave the fans at Ray Jay a lump of coal in their stocking with a 28-13 defeat to St. Louis. Did we learn anything from this latest debacle?

Buccaneers 13 Rams 28 - Tampa Bay gets clobbered again

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are ending another season on a down note, as they lost 28-13 to the St. Louis Rams.

Rams vs. Buccaneers Fourth Quarter Open Thread

Blowout, or are the Bucs coming back?

Midway through the third quarter, the St. Louis Rams lead 28-13. This got out of hand fast. A completely blown coverage in cover 2 got the Rams an 80-yard touchdown on their first drive, and three plays later they got another interception. That one happened because of a bad route by Mike Williams, a great play by cornerback Trumaine Johnson, and a less-than-perfect throw by Josh Freeman.

But the Bucs aren't out of it yet, although it sure feels like it. A 61-yard Mike Williams touchdown turned it back into a two-score game. Williams weaved his way through a poor tackling secondary breaking several tackles before going into the endzone.

Can the Bucs get back in it, or will they get back to being awful?

Two Freeman interceptions give Rams 14-6 lead at halftime

Bad Josh Freeman has shown up again. He was efficient on the first drive, getting the Bucs into the red zone before the drive stalled. Since then, things haven't been as pretty. Mike Williams falling down led to a pick six, while Freeman decided to throw another bad interception before the half to give the Rams another shot at a touchdown -- and they converted easily.

Meanwihle, the secondary has been pretty bad as usual. The Rams are consistently converting third downs through the air, and they moved the ball fairly easily on that last drive. The result is a 14-6 deficit for the Bucs at halftime.

Buccaneers vs. Rams Third Quarter Open Thread

Janoris Jenkins pick six gives Rams 7-3 lead

The Buccaneers appeared to be doing fine. They were struggling in the secondary, but an endzone interception took care of the first (and only) Rams drive. And yet, the Bucs are down 7-0 after a Janoris Jenkins pick six.

So what happened on that play? It wasn't all that complicated: Freeman had pressure at his feet, threw the ball before Mike Williams made his cut -- and then Williams fell down, giving Jenkins an easy pick-six. Oops.

Meanwhile, the Bucs offense is really struggling with the the Rams defensive line, which is blowing up running plays and getting consistent pressure. The Bucs have been forced to go with quick passing plays and failed runs because of that.

Rams vs. Buccaneers: Second Quarter Game Thread

Rams vs. Buccaneers First Quarter Open Thread

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