Tampa Bay: Three simple rules for beating Baltimore

By Connor Byrne  |   Wednesday, September 06, 2006  |  Comments( 0 )

Tampa Bay Buccaneers
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On Sunday, the defending NFC south winners, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, will open their highly anticipated season by matching up with the Baltimore Ravens in Raymond James Stadium. In order for Tampa to defeat the improved Ravens, there are certain things it must do, even though some are quite elemental.

Establish the run:

Obviously, the Bucs will need to get a ground game going to have any chance at victory. Considering Tampa Bay has defending Rookie of the Year Cadillac Williams in its backfield, that probably shouldn't be incredibly difficult. However, the Ravens bulked up an already stout defense by adding proven lineman Trevor Pryce through free agency and 340-pound tackle Haloti Ngata in the first round of April's draft.

If the Buccaneers fail to move the ball on the ground, they'll have an extremely tough time winning the game. The Ravens' secondary includes cornerbacks Chris McAllister and Samari Rolle, plus safety extraordinaire Ed Reed. Strong safety Dawan Landy can be picked on by Chris Simms and the passing game, since he's a fifth-round rookie making his debut.

Again, though, to open up the aerial attack, the running game needs to be respected first. For that reason, Cadillac Williams and the run blocking of the Bucs' offensive line are the keys on offense.

Don't let Ray Lewis dominate:

Much of the offseason in Baltimore has been spent talking about the likely resurgence of Lewis, arguably the best middle linebacker in football. By adding Pryce and Ngata up front, the Ravens believe they've compensated enough on the line to eat up blockers, thus letting Lewis roam free and control the game. Undoubtedly, the Bucs' blockers will need to give efforts of a lifetime to keep him away from Williams, Simms and the pass catchers. It won't be easy, that's for sure.

Get in Steve McNair's face:

The longtime Tennessee Titans QB has moved on to Baltimore, where many are expecting him to put the offense over the top. However, as McNair's proven in previous years, the 33-year-old is not the same passer he used to be, especially against pressure.

Led by end Simeon Rice and the blitzes of cornerback Ronde Barber, Tampa's defense shouldn't face an impossible task in trying to disrupt McNair. Look for coordinator Monte Kiffin to call plenty of complex blitz schemes designed to exploit what has become a relatively questionable Baltimore offensive line.

Who's going to win?

Judging by the personnel on the two defenses, this ought to be one of the lowest-scoring affairs of the opening weekend. In the end, however, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are the slightly better team and have the home-field advantage. They'll win it, 14-10.

Injury report:

Tampa Bay: G Dan Buenning (Questionable, ankle); G Davin Joseph (Questionable, knee); LB Shelton Quarles (Questionable, groin).

Baltimore: RB P.J. Daniels (Questionable, thigh); DT Aubrayo Franklin (Questionable, thigh); RB Jamal Lewis (Questionable, hip); WR Derrick Mason (Questionable, thigh); CB Chris McAllister (Questionable, thigh).

--Got feedback? Connor J. Byrne responds to readers' comments and questions each day: cbyrne@realfootball365.com.

Get more on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at RealFootball365.com.
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