Jeff Tedford's participation for Rams vs. Buccaneers still in doubt

When the Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense sputtered against the Carolina Panthers, fingers were quickly pointed in the direction of offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford's absence. He was operated on a heart issue during the preseason and has missed the past two games. And while his participation continues to ramp up, it's still not clear whether he'll be able to call plays during Sunday's game.

QB coach Marcus Arroyo noted that the current setup is similar to last week's, with what he calls a "collaborative" approach to game-planning. We'll have to wait and see whether Tedford is healthy enough to get back to full-time work. Arroyo noted that the Bucs definitely missed him: it's never easy to have to miss any coach anywhere on the team, let alone the offensive coordinator. And Tedford simply can't participate fully while he's recovering from heart surgery.

That may have been a factor in the Bucs' dismal offensive performance last week, though Josh McCown's individual mistakes played a heavy role in the loss, too. We'll have to wait and see whether this will play a big role against the St. Louis Rams, but it would be foolish to expect smooth sailing when your offensive coordinator can't participate completely.