Buccaneers’ Shaquil Barrett Issues Warning to Lions.
Shaquil Barrett, a linebacker with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, displayed a little more confidence following Monday’s 32-9 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles.
Barrett anticipates treating the Detroit Lions in the NFC Divisional Round on Saturday in the same manner. The Lions defeated the Buccaneers early in the regular season, just like the Eagles did. Tampa Bay’s losses were in Week 3 from the Eagles, 25-11, and Week 6 from the Lions, 20-6.
Barrett told the media on Monday, “I know playoff football hasn’t been there [Detroit] for a long time, and it’s finally back.” “I’m excited about it as it’s another leg of our revenge tour, as they defeated us early in the year.
“It’s going to be a good game, and once we prepare and start figuring out what we got to do, and we do that stuff, we should be able to come out on top,” Barrett continued.
Detroit will host a Divisional Round game for the first time since 1992 when the Lions beat the Dallas Cowboys at home, 38-6. That marked the Lions’ last playoff win until Sunday’s 24-23 Wild Card victory over the Los Angeles Rams.
Shaq Barrett: ‘We Don’t See Ourselves as the Underdog’
National media didn’t have high expectations for the Buccaneers in 2023 after Tom Brady’s retirement, and a hot 3-1 start soon turned into a four-game slide. The Buccaneers recovered in time to make the playoffs with a four-game winning streak in December, and Barrett considers Monday’s win only the beginning.
Barrett told reporters, “We know our capabilities in the locker room regardless of what’s projected or what people think is going to happen in the game.”We therefore always enter the game believing we have a good chance of winning. Many consider us to be the underdog. Though we don’t consider ourselves the underdog, the scenario will remain the same in Detroit.
Detroit won three of the final four regular season games, contributing to another impressive finish. The NFL North champions hold their opponents to 23.2 points on defense while scoring 27.1 points on offense per game.
Despite allowing 247.4 yards passing and 88.8 yards rushing per game, the Lions defense holds opponents in check while the Buccaneers blasted dubious defenders late in the game. This season, Detroit has also recorded 41 sacks and 16 interceptions.
Buccaneers Defense Looked Dominant Against the Eagles
It will behoove the Buccaneers to take the latest defensive performance to the Motor City on Saturday.
Tampa Bay didn’t allow a third or fourth down conversion against the Eagles. The Buccaneers held the Eagles potent ground game to 42 yards, sacked quarterback Jalen Hurts three times, forced and recovered two fumbles, and forced the Eagles to punt four times.
“As you are aware, during our previous encounter, they amassed over 200 yards of rushing,” Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles said the media following the game. “We made sure to make some calls to attempt to set up some things and get them out of it a little bit because we were obligated to make sure that would not happen again.
On Saturday, the Buccaneers will have to contain yet another strong running attack. James Harrison Gibbs and David Montgomery, two of Detroit’s running backs, combine for an average of 135.9 yards per game.
Leave a Reply