It’s not hard to see the struggles for the Buccaneers.

[liny195]

For a team that started off 2-0 and were the new hotness around the NFL , this team has displayed being nothing more than average. At the end of the day, you have an offense that can score at will with all the weapons and mismatches they provide along side a defense that can’t stop, well, anything.For starters, the defensive scheme has to change. There’s no if’s and’s or but’s about it. Mike Smith consistently puts this team in a position to fail with his lack of blitzing, his zone coverages that rely far too heavily on in-play communication, his propensity to have corners line up 7-10 yards off receivers, and a sheer lack of creativity. It’s been the same story for 36 games and there is no end in sight.Yes, Koetter is going to come the defense of his friend and give the same canned answer when asked about it. About how it’s not Smitty that’s missing tackles, or missing assignments, or blowing coverages. It is, however, on Smith to fix these problems. It’s on Smith to have the self awareness that his defense has given up more than 400 yards in 19 games under his tutelage and the Bucs are 4-15 when it happens. He has to have the self awareness that his defense has given up 30 or more points in 13 games under his tutelage and the Bucs are 1-12 when it happens.It flat out can’t continue.The sad thing is, it will. The players will be the ones to blame , some of which will be shipped out of town or not re-signed because they are square pegs that Smith keeps trying to cram into round holes. A good coordinator schemes to the strength of his players. Lovie Smith did the same thing and when players wouldn’t - or couldn’t - adapt, they were shipped out of town slightly before Lovie himself was sent packing. Mike Smith is costing this team games to the detriment of Koetter, his entire staff, the players, and quite possibly Jason Licht.Offensively, the Bucs have little to complain about. Until a disaster in Chicago, they were the NFL’s top offense. Will that change with Jameis Winston under center? We’ll see, but smart money says no. It’s hard to see O.J. Howard miss time with the sprained MCL as he was emerging as one of the top tight ends in the NFL, but now the re-emergence of Cam Brate will begin.We saw some timing issues with Winston against the Bears, but that is to be expected after he missed nearly a month of practices and games with the suspension. The big thing to keep an eye on is the run game.The run game just hasn’t gotten going this season. There have been flashes, but no consistency. Again, you can point to the aerial attack and the Bucs’ ability to score from long distance, but when they’ve needed the run game in red zone situations it just hasn’t been there.Ronald Jones’ progression last Sunday looked encouraging. He finished with only 29 yards on ten carries, but there were flashes there. Moments when he was a fraction of a second away from making a big splash play. Again , when you’ve missed nearly a month of game experience your rookie year, there will be growing pains and timing issues. Another thing to look at is the poor play from the right side of the line, mainly Caleb Benenoch. Benenoch has been a turnstile this season and rotating him with Evan Smith hasn’t helped matters any. It was the same nonsense we saw last season. Pick the guy who is playing better and stick with him. Offensive lines don’t need to be rotated the way defensive lines do.This isn’t a knock on Barber, Jones, or Jacquizz Rodgers. All are capable backs that can make plays when called upon. We just haven’t seen that come to fruition yet this season.Overall, the Buccaneers’ offense can overcome the defense’s ineptitude to a certain degree. They will have their opportunities to win games and will capitalize - just like they did against New Orleans. The focus for the foreseeable future is the defense and whether or not they can keep the Buccaneers in games or if it will be a shoot out week after week. As I said many times over throughout the off-season, if the Buccaneers can’t succeed this season it won’t be because they don’t have the talent. It will be because of coaching. So far, the offensive side of the ball has been coached well and seen success. The defensive side of ball is the worst in the NFL.You tell me who the blame should fall on...Donovan Smith: Buccaneers Iron Man, Free Agent to be... Negative news has surrounded the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the Jameis Winston controversy of late but it’s time to switch gears and focus on Jameis’ blind side protector, Donovan Smith. Before we get into his current contract (rookie deal) and on-field play I’d like to touch on his best ability of all - availability. Since being drafted, Donovan Smith has played and started more games than any other Buccaneer (48 games). Moving forward with this, let’s take a look at Smith’s consistency.The best ability is availability, we’ve all heard this and when it comes to Buccaneers’ left tackle Donovan Smith, he lives it. Smith has started every game of his pro career along with 31 while in college. Smith currently sits fourth (3-way tie) in consecutive starts for left tackles in the NFL. There hasn’t been a whole lot going on that’s positive for this Buccaneers offensive line in recent years to say the least , but it is nice to know that the franchise quarterback can count on his left tackle week in and week out putting in work alongside him. As far as his play is concerned, Smith has shown steady improvement each season. While there are many fans that would like a quicker adjustment, Smith has outplayed what many analysts predicted early on. As NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein said about Smith prior to being drafted, “...he has a good shot of getting drafted and fighting for a backup spot.” A backup spot, that’s right. Three years later and Smith has been the mainstay at left tackle for the Buccaneers. From a statistical grading standpoint, Smith has shown improvements when looking at Pro Football Focus’ grading scale as he’s improved nearly five grading points each season going from a 42.8 rating as a rookie to 2017’s 51.5 overall. Just from watching Smith’s play year over year, the improvements are visible but the consistency overall now has to come with it. Getting the opportunity to play next to Ali Marpet may be what the doctored ordered for Smith to take that final big leap and become a top 20 player at his position. Smith’s contract will be an interesting one as he is set to become an unrestricted free agent after the 2018 season. Our own Evan Winter wrote about Marpet’s deal in relation to what Zach Martin got here, this is what makes the Smith contract that much more interesting. The Buccaneers just signed Ryan Jensen this off-season and are on the hook for nearly $5 million a year thru 2019 with Demar Dotson who could become a cap casualty with no dead money left on his current deal. Donovan Smith will get paid handsomely one would presume should he stay healthy and continue to grow as a player in a positive light. Just how much Smith improves is something to watch for as the team prepares to extend Donovan. As the teams Iron Man, a great community man and the left tackle, Donovan Smith should be applauded for where he is today both as a player and as a person. Smith is one of the good guys and should his on-field play match his off-field good doings, his wallet should feel mighty nice this next off-season. For those looking at a ballpark range, expect to see Donovan Smith bring in $6-$10 million a year in his next deal.Worth the price tag? 48 consecutive starts and a continual uptick and growth each year says yes. Pay the Iron Man.