Bruce Arians Calls Out Bucs Receivers After Loss vs. Washington

Bruce Arians Buccaneers

Getty Bruce Arians isn't too happy with his wide receivers.

Head coach Bruce Arians wants a little more from his secondary options on offense.

Following the Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ 29-19 loss to the Washington Football Team, Arians is demanding more out of the players serving the No. 3 wide receiver role in the absence of Antonio Brown.

Via Bucs Total Access:

“The No. 3 receiver, whoever it might be, needs to step up,” Arians said. “Whether it’s Tyler (Johnson), BP (Breshad Perriman), whoever it is right now. Jaelon (Darden). Antonio is a No. 1 [receiver], but he’s a third option sometimes. When he gets singled, he’s gonna win. When those guys are getting singled, they gotta win.”

It’s clear that Brown’s absence — along with starting tight end Rob Gronkowski’s absence — played a role in the team’s loss in Week 10.

Jaelon Dardon and Tyler Johnson combined for just four receptions on 46 yards during the Week 10 loss.

For perspective, Brown was averaging 5.8 receptions for 83.6 receiving yards per game this season. That’s not even mentioning Brown’s four touchdown receptions in five games.

While Dardon and Johnson clearly don’t possess the type of skill set that Brown has, more production is going to be needed from the duo during the absence of both Brown (foot) and Scotty Miller (turf toe).

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When Will Brown and Miller Return?

It’s unclear when Brown will return, but he did ditch his walking boot last week. Furthermore, he hinted at a return on Instagram on Tuesday, November 16 (via Greg Auman of The Athletic).

Arians provided an update on Brown’s status on Wednesday, November 10.

“He’s got a bone spur that aggravated it. He was out of the boot (Wednesday). He was doing some walking exercises. We’ll see how that goes,” Arians said.

As far as Miller is concerned, the 24-year-old receiver is currently in the midst of a 21-day window to return after having been on injured reserve since Week 3. He was designated to return on Nov. 3.


Arians Refers to Bucs as a ‘Dumb’ Football Team

Needless to say, it’s rather clear that Arians was not happy about the team’s loss to a 3-6 Washington Football Team.

During postgame media availability on Sunday, November 14, Arians ripped into his squad, calling them a “dumb” football team.

Via ESPN’s Jenna Laine.

“It has nothing to do with ability. It’s about execution and being a smart football team. We’re a very dumb football team. And that’s a reflection on the coaches,” Arians said.

Arians continued to stress the importance of how the team’s penchant for penalties is holding this team back:

“Energy and passion are very fixable,” Arians said. “The penalties — they’ve gotta get corrected sooner or later. The first play of the game — they’re shifting, and we jump offsides. They don’t even run a play, and we jump offsides. The stupidity has to go away if we’re gonna go anywhere.”

The Buccaneers have committed at least six penalties in all but one of their games this season.

It’s clear that the silly penalties — combined with the team’s rising number of injuries — is playing a major role in the team’s two-game losing streak.

While the Buccaneers were able to overcome those penalties earlier in the season, they also had a healthier roster.

Considering the team’s injury situation is still rough for another week, Tampa Bay will have to focus on cutting down their mistakes before the snap.

 

 

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