In last Sunday’s loss to the Giants, the Buccaneers saw wide receiver Mike Evans drop six passes from Jameis Winston that could have helped Tampa earn a more favorable outcome at the final whistle.
Evans wasn’t the only prominent player whose performance was deemed lacking. Defensive tackle Gerald McCoy and linebacker Lavonte David also failed to have the kind of impact that the team expects from them. Coach Lovie Smith doesn’t have the answer for why they were off, but agreed that they were.
“Lavonte is a great player. Same thing with Gerald,” Smith said, via the Tampa Bay Times. “I think you have to be careful when you just look at the stat sheet. But forgetting about the stat sheet, our play from both of those guys we would say it’s not good enough.”
David said he wasn’t frustrated by his performance and that he’s “just doing what I’m supposed to do.” McCoy, however, said that he knows he needs to do more as a “franchise player” on defense and that “the best players have to produce” for a team to be successful.
The Bucs are 3-5, but the Giants loss was the second loss in a row that felt like it could have gone Tampa’s way if they’d made a couple more plays over the course of the game. Evans, David and McCoy are players they need to make those plays the next time the opportunities present themselves.