Most disappointing players in week 14

For those who follow me, you know I was a Bucs fan before I treated them professionally. One of the things I found out today is that if you’re reporting professionally, you shouldn’t look away or turn off the television on days like this. , Here are their most disappointing Bucs players 35-7 blowout loss to a rookie-led 49ers team in Week 14:

Lieutenant Donovan Smith

Smith has easily had the worst season of his career this year. And he recently admitted that it may be due in part to things he’s experienced off the field. Whether it’s that or just the beginning of a decline, Smith has played poorly all year. He committed his 10th penalty kick of the season in the first quarter on Sunday, negating a 68-yard touchdown pass from Tom Brady to Mike Evans that would have tied the game at 7–7. Smith later made a false start in the third quarter to extend that lead stat to 11. Smith was also routinely beaten by San Francisco’s edge rushers that day.

S. Logan Ryan

Ryan is nearing the end of his career and has lost some of the athleticism he had in New England and Tennessee. It showed as he attempted to chase down some of the 49ers’ elite playmakers. Ryan struggled to keep up with Deebo Samuel and Christian McCaffery. He also blew a covering order on McCaffery that turned into the third touchdown of the game for the 49ers.

QB Tom Brady

The Bucs quarterback had a very poor game compared to his extremely high standards. This was most evident on a 4th & 2 pass he made to Evans, who had beaten his man in the end zone for what should have been an easy touchdown. At the time, it could have cut the deficit to 21-7. Brady threw the ball low and behind Evans in a spot where his receiver had no chance to play it. As much as Brady saved this offense this year, he wasn’t a savior on Sunday.

On the first possession of the second half, Brady made two consecutive fouls on second and third down. On the first, he tried to pass a tight pitch to Cam Brate, who was just inches from linebacker Fred Warner. On the next play, Brady tried to dodge the pressure to make a throw to Evans, but couldn’t recover his pitching base and threw up a duck that picked up 49ers safety Tashaun Gipson and returned deep into Buc’s territory.

After the Bucs completely caught up in the third quarter, Brady missed an easy touchdown by miserably undermining Scotty Miller, who easily ran past his man. Two plays later was Brady picked up by linebacker Dre Greenlaw to an incredible game that further shattered the 45-year-old’s stats.

L. B. Devin White

White struggled to bring good lines to ball carriers, leading to big wins for the 49ers’ run game. White also took a hit from rookie quarterback Brock Purdy on a scramble that resulted in San Francisco’s second touchdown of the game. The linebacker later found himself out of position on McCaffery’s 38-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.

Bucs conducts defense

The 49ers were able to rush for 211 yards, largely taking advantage of their outside zone schedule. That plan was extremely successful as the Bucs’ edge players were constantly beaten off and on by San Francisco’s tackles, tight ends, and pullers. The Bucs’ linebackers and safeties failed to fill in the gaps and prevent Christian McCaffery and wide receiver Deebo Samuel from running back to take the lead before cutting the field for excellent win after excellent win. Bucs defensive tackles Akiem Hicks, Logan Hall and Rakeem Nunez-Roches failed to disrupt the flow of the hasty plan. Add to that the missed tackles during the game and it wasn’t pretty.

Buc’s Pass Rush

After losing nose tackle Vita Vea, the Bucs’ pass rush folded like a lawn chair at a minor league game. They couldn’t put pressure on Purdy in the middle, leaving ‘Mr. Irrelevant” to look like Patrick Mahomes in his first career start. Outside linebackers Anthony Nelson, Joe Tryon-Shoyinka and Carl Nassib couldn’t make the 49ers signaller feel uncomfortable either, leading to him completing 16 of his 21 passes for 185 yards and two touchdowns.

Bucs Pass Coverage

To complete the defensive trifecta of battle, the Bucs’ cover-3 defense—featuring spot-dropping among defenders—allowed the 49ers to open up almost at will in the middle of the field. Tight end George Kittle and receivers Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel routinely got enough separation from the Bucs defensive backs and linebackers, giving the offense 35 points on the day.

Jamel Dean, who had an excellent season until the calendar turned December, was beaten late in the second quarter to allow Aiyuk to score, leading the Bucs to go into halftime 28–0. Dean would then leave the game with a toe injury.