Pittman’s Still Got It

By Dave Shepherd  |   Friday, October 21, 2005  |  Comments( 0 )

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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No Cadillac? No problem. Michael Pittman showed flashes of brilliance, much like he did in the Super Bowl last week, and that's good news for Tampa Bay Buccaneers fans everywhere. Against what usually is a pretty tough Miami defense, he rushed for 127 yards on 15 carries, a whopping 8.5 yards per carry average, not to mention the one touchdown. The Buccaneers may still be able to roll without Carnell ‘Cadillac' Williams. Is he a big key to the Bucs? Yes. Do they need him to win games? No.

In other Tampa Bay news, Michael Clayton still isn't performing up to expectations. It can't be all Clayton's fault though; part of it has to be the play calling. He only had one reception for an unimpressive 2 yards Sunday against Miami.

Gruden said last week that he plans to use Clayton in the game plan more, and send more balls his way. However, since QB Brian Griese has been placed on injured reserve, third year man Chris Simms will be the one throwing the ball, limiting Clayton, especially in terms of fantasy value.

The biggest question in Tampa Bay right now is: Can Chris Simms handle the pressure? I think he can. He's a good young quarterback, and has game experience under his belt. He played well in relief duty, going 6/10 for 69 yards against Miami, and he'll have the bye week to prepare for the San Francisco 49ers, which have been less than stellar this year, allowing 343.6 yards a game.

Even if he doesn't, given the bye-week, newly acquired QB Tim Rattay should have time to learn the basics of Jon Gruden's offense, just in time for the game against his former team. Don't count on him playing too much though - Chris Simms can handle it. Will he perform as well as Roethlisberger? Doubtful, but he can play, and that's all the Tampa Bay Buccaneers need.
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