By Tom Krasniqi

On paper, the Buccaneers against the Patriots appeared to be a mismatch in favor of New England.  But the young Bucs defense made incredible strides, but the on the field team effort came a costly price.  When the smoke cleared, the Bucs were left standing with a 30-28 win over the Pats at Raymond James Stadium on Friday night.

The Bucs jumped out to a quick lead early on.  On the game’s first possession, the Bucs marched it down the field and scored on a Doug Martin 1-yard touchdown plunge.  Josh Freeman was 3 for 3 on the drive with all 3 passes going to Vincent Jackson for 49 yards.  The Bucs harassed Tom Brady in the first quarter.  Brady was sacked by Michael Bennett and fumbled but the Patriots recovered.  On the very next play, Brady’s pass intended for Rob Gronkowski was deflected by Ronde Barber and picked off by safety Mark Barron.  The rookie returned it 22 yards down the sideline for a touchdown to make it 14-0 Bucs. 

The Patriots responded with an 81-yard drive in the 2^nd quarter, capped off by a Stevan Ridley 1-yard TD run to make it 14-7 Tampa Bay.  But aside from that, the Bucs defense did an outstanding job in pressuring Brady.  Michael Bennett and Adam Hayward recorded sacks and LaVonte David pressured Brady into an incomplete pass.

Unfortunately, the big story on Friday night revolved around a rash of injuries suffered by key Bucs players.  Pro Bowl guard Davin Joseph suffered a serious right knee injury in the 2nd quarter and had to be carted off the field.  Head coach Greg Schiano says he’s worried about Joseph and will “be praying for him”.  Doesn’t sound promising at all.  The mood in the locker room was somber regarding Joseph.  The Bucs fear it could be a season-ending injury.  Ted Larsen filled in for Joseph. Defensive tackle Gerald McCoy suffered a knee injury in the 1^st quarter.  He came back to play the next possession but was kept out after that.  Schiano believes McCoy will be fine.  Defensive end Adrian Clayborn hurt his elbow trying to recover a Brady fumble.  Clayborn is expected to fine along with McCoy.  But it certainly looks as if the Bucs lost a key member of their offensive line in Joseph.  And with two weeks to go until the season opener against Carolina, they are scrambling for answers. 

News & Notes:

• Adam Hayward started at MLB ahead of Mason Foster.  The team announced shortly before kickoff that Foster had a mild hamstring strain.  It’s not believed to be serious.  Hayward made the most of his playing time with 7 tackles, 1 sack and one tackle for a loss. 
• Doug Martin was a surprise starter at RB for the Bucs ahead of LeGarrette Blount.  Martin had 13 carries for 53 yards (4.1YPC) and a TD.  Blount totaled just 16 yards on 6 carries on the night.
• Josh Freeman looked terrific on the opening drive but really struggled after that. 

Freeman started the game completing 5 of his first 6 passes.  Freeman was 5 for 13 after that and he really struggled with his accuracy.

• Kai Forbath really helped himself on Friday night.  Forbath nailed field goals of 51 and 55 yards.  With Connor Barth entrenched as the Bucs kicker, Forbath will need to look elsewhere but he will certainly garner attention from other teams.
• Michael Smith continues to impress.  The rookie from Utah State carried the ball 6 times for 38 yards and caught two passes for 16 yards.  He also averaged 26 yards per kickoff return, including a 39-yarder on the opening kickoff of the game. 
• Tom Brady had a rocky night against the first team Bucs defense.  Brady was sacked twice and hit 4 times total.  Brady threw a TD to Rob Gronkowski but that came against the backups.  Brady finished 13 of 20 for just 127 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT.
• Michael Bennett had a strip sack of Brady to go along with 3 tackles.
• The final preseason game for the Bucs is Wednesday when they visit the Redskins.  You can catch all the action on 620 WDAE, your home of the Bucs.