The Tampa Bay Buccaneers won their home opener against the Washington Commanders 37-20; now, they will travel to Detroit to play the Lions. The last time these two teams met was in the NFC Divisional Playoffs when the Lions were victorious 31-23 to advance to the NFC championship game. Lions won their home opener against the Los Angeles Rams in overtime 26-20.
As the Tampa Bay Buccaneers prepare for their matchup against the Lions, they must deal with some matters. The Buccaneers have been dealing with injuries since training camp and last week’s game against the Commanders added to the problem by the end of the game. Before the Bucs can legitimately get a plan together to battle a powerful Lions team, they must figure out who will be available to them to hit the field.
Defensive Backs
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are stretched thin on defense at a few positions: the defensive line, cornerback, and safety spots. Cornerback for the Bucs, Bryce Hall severed a season-ending ankle injury during the game against the Commanders. Zyon McCollum suffered a concussion during the first half of the season’s home opener and is marked as questionable for the game against the Lions. Josh Hayes, cornerback for the Bucs, is questionable also for the Lions game.
One opinion for the Bucs is that position is rookie Trek Funderburk, who impressed the staff during training camp but suffered an injury that sidelined him from playing in the preseason games. Head Coach Todd Bowles for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had this to say about him playing against the Detroit Lions; according to Scott Smith,
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers also brought up from the practice squad last year’s sixth-round pick, Keenan Isaac. Christian Izien has been prepping to play the nickelback and safety positions during the offseason. During the game against the Commanders, he played cornerback because of the need for corners. The Bucs may have to rely on him to play safety if Bucs safety Antoine Winfield Jr is unavailable; he suffered a foot injury toward the end of the game on Sunday.
Defensive Front
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are unsure who will play on the defensive line. Bucs defensive linemen Logan Hall and Calijah Kancey are questionable for Sunday’s upcoming game. Logan Hall didn’t play in the season home opener due to the foot injury he got during practice. Calijah Kancey, suffering from a calf issue sustained during practice during training camp, reaggravated the same calf before the game against the Commanders.
Greg Gaines, back up behind defensive nose tackle Vita Vea, played the majority of the snaps during the Commanders game and is a good opinion in the placement of Hall and Kancey. Defensive linemen C.J. Brewer and Mike Greene played some snaps in last Sunday’s game and may get some more playing time during the Lions game.
Final Thought
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have a significant opportunity to set a mark on the NFC Conference with a win over the Detroit Lions. Filling these spots with the best players is a high priority for the Buccaneers. They will face a high-powered running offense with David Montgomery leading the way. Also, the Bucs being hit in the defensive back position may allow the Lions’ quarterback, Jared Goff, to curve up a young defense with his weapons.
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