By Mark Malone
Special to ESPN.com
Donovan McNabb's success Sunday will be dependant on his ability to get out of the pocket and break down the Bucs defense. Tampa Bay's disciplined defense does a tremendous job of keeping the play in front of them, driving to the football, creating plays, separating the receiver from the ball -- you name it.
Their patience is key, so for McNabb to make big plays, he needs to get outside the pocket and break them down which is no small task. Against Tampa's front four -- Mike Vick and Jeff Garcia couldn't do it. But for McNabb to have any sort of success throwing the ball, McNabb will have to find some way to get outside the pocket.
McNabb is capable of getting the job done with his speed and strength. He's elusive and can break tackles. To be successful, he's going to need to do both. I don't expect him to have a big day in terms of passing yards and touchdowns, but if he can utilize his strengths and come up with one or two big plays, it will help the Eagles chances in this game.
|
|
By Merril Hoge
Special to ESPN.com
In terms of speed and discipline, the Bucs have the NFL's best defensive personnel to break down a quarterback. Pass defense is a combination of pressure and coverage, and the Bucs have the combination any team would love to have. They are well fortified to slow down Donovan McNabb.
The Bucs' defense rarely plays out of position and forces quarterbacks to be extremely accurate and decisive with their throws. When McNabb breaks the pocket, the Bucs can rely on their speed to neutralize his ability to make plays on the move. They don't worry about a controlled rush or playing any differently than they are used to playing. The Bucs want to play at full speed, and they can negate his ability to run with enough people swarming to the football.
Even though McNabb came back last week and played well overall, he wasn't as sharp in the latter stages of the game. While the Bucs aren't known as a blitzing team, they only blitzed McNabb 25 percent of the time in their last meeting and were able to get hits on him. At the same time, Tampa Bay's defensive ends, led by Simeon Rice, can collapse the pocket and force McNabb to step up and make unbalanced throws.
I expect them to challenge McNabb and force him once again to execute under pressure and faster than he would like to. The Bucs have more ways to make him feel uncomfortable than any team in the league, and they will try to use them all Sunday.
|
Buddy Bandwagon
