Buccaneers pass rusher YaYa Diaby is starting to turn pressure into production, and Todd Bowles says the difference is showing up in the finish.
Bowles pointed to Diaby’s recent progress on the edge, saying the outside linebacker has been “our most pressure guy without getting the sacks … yesterday the sacks kind of came to fruition like we talked about last week and his growth is understanding what offensive linemen are trying to do to him and having counterattacks.”
“ He has been rushing good the last couple of weeks it just has not worked out for him, ” Bowles said, via the team’s website. “ He finished them yesterday.
He has been our most pressure guy without getting the sacks … yesterday the sacks kind of came to fruition like we talked about last week and his growth is understanding what offensive linemen are trying to do to him and having counterattacks. ”
In Atlanta, Michael Penix Jr. keeps stacking clean performances. Over his last two weeks, the Falcons quarterback has thrown six touchdowns without an interception, and in his five starts since returning from a torn ACL, he has only one pick overall. That stretch included a strong showing in the Week 7 upset of the 49ers, when he went 25 of 34 through the air.
Penix has put that together while working without a full offseason in Kevin Stefanski’s system because he was rehabbing. Stefanski said Penix handled that stretch with unusual focus.
“I’ll tell you, he’s a very, very diligent person,” Stefanski said via Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. “And even going back to the spring, where he’s not taking team reps, he’s doing everything in his power to learn the new system.
He’s doing everything in his power to get his body right. And then we’re just following the lead of the medical team, and he does a little bit more here, a little more there.
But all the while, working to get ready to play.
“Now, I didn’t know when he was going to get cleared. We didn’t know when that time was going to come. But he works like a crazy man to get his body right, to get his mind right.”
In Carolina, left tackle Ikem Ekwonu is still moving forward, but the Panthers aren’t putting a timetable on his return to the practice field after Week 7.
Dave Canales said Ekwonu is hitting encouraging checkpoints, but there’s still a long way to go before the team is ready to expose him to full-speed work.
“Every week seems like good milestones, good progression,” Canales replied, via Panthers Wire. “I can’t tell you exactly how close that is, how far that is.
But I know that he’s trending in the right direction, getting into some more individual drills where he can start to really load and anchor and do all those things. But it’s gotta get to a point where we feel really comfortable about sending somebody at him full speed.
We’re not quite there yet. So, I can’t really tell you, specifically.”
In Other News...
Bucs May Have Found The Identity Todd Bowles Has Been Chasing
Todd Bowles has spent much of the season talking about the kind of team he wants the Buccaneers to be, and Sunday in the 43-13 win over Carolina offered another clear example of the blueprint. Tampa Bay leaned into its running game, stayed physical and handled the Panthers with the sort of discipline Bowles has pushed for since camp, turning a lopsided division win into another sign that the offense can impose its will when the ground game is humming.
Bucky Irving has become a big reason why. The second-year back has climbed to eighth in the NFL in rushing yards and is on pace for a career-best season after last years injuries slowed him down, giving the Bucs a runner who can keep drives moving and help control games. With the backfield producing and the offense looking more balanced, the bigger question now is whether this version of Tampa Bay can keep that edge when the competition tightens. [Read more 🡒]
Buccaneers Suddenly Have A Trade Deadline Decision Fans Didn't Expect
At 2-5, the Buccaneers are in a spot where every week can reshape the conversation around the trade deadline. A team that still sees a path in the NFC South has to balance the urge to stay patient with the need to patch obvious holes, and inside linebacker has emerged as one of the areas worth watching if Tampa Bay keeps itself in the race after Week 8.
One possible name being tossed into that conversation is Philadelphias Zack Baun, a player whose recent rise has made him a natural fit for teams looking to upgrade the middle of the defense. The question for Tampa Bay is whether the cost of making that kind of move matches the urgency of its season, since any pursuit would have to line up with both the salary and the draft capital such a deal would demand. [Read more 🡒]
Bucs Win Didn't Silence One Big Baker Mayfield Debate
The Buccaneers win over Carolina gave them a needed lift and nudged the record to 2-5, but it did not erase the larger conversation around how this roster is built around Baker Mayfield. The offense has had enough moments to stay competitive, yet the long view still points toward the same question Tampa Bay has been wrestling with: how much help can the quarterback realistically expect from the players around him?
One recent evaluation of the roster frames the next stretch of team building around the skill positions, where the Bucs need more impact and consistency to take pressure off Mayfield. There are still contract questions, current production to weigh, and younger pieces trying to establish themselves, but the bigger concern is whether Tampa Bay can keep asking the passing game to carry so much of the load without adding more difference-makers on the outside and at tight end. [Read more 🡒]