Bucs secondary is battered and bloodied, yet somehow still standing He had little to say on his way out of the locker room Sunday afternoon. Antoine Winfield Jr. just smiled politely and limped gently toward the coming playoffs. And perhaps that's how it should be. After all, what more is there to say about this Buccaneers secondary? They've taken bend-but-don't-break to unhealthy extremes. They don't just bend, but they also bruise, swell, bleed and probably concuss. Their bandwagon is an ambulance, and their battle cry sounds like a cough. And darned if this battered and maligned group hasn't helped the Bucs climb back atop the standings in the NFC South. You saw it again on Sunday in a 28-13 win against the Raiders. Christian Izien started for the guy with the torn pectoral muscle. Kaevon Merriweather was in for the guy with the hamstring pull who was spelling the guy with the knee injury. And then Winfield left the field with a bum knee of his own. The only way Izien knew what position he was playing was a silent roll call in the huddle. "If I saw Kaevon Merriweather, I knew I was at nickel," he said. "If I saw Tykee (Smith), then I was at safety. Just got to balance it all." Safe to say, it hasn't always been pretty. The Bucs are giving up an average of 254 passing yards per game, which is 30th in the NFL. And if that isn't ugly enough, they're on pace for eight interceptions, which would be the lowest in franchise history. And this is an outfit that once went 0-14 in 1976. "It's been tough," Izien. "I'm not going to lie." The four defensive backs who began the season - cornerbacks Jamel Dean and Zyon McCollum and safeties Jordan Whitehead and Winfield - have been together for only three of Tampa Bay's 13 games. Along the way, there's been a rotation of four different corners and six safeties in the starting lineup. In the past three weeks, the Bucs have claimed Mike Edwards off waivers, signed Merriweather off Detroit's practice squad and found Ryan Neal on a random couch. Yet, the Bucs have managed to keep the trains running. They've won three consecutive games while giving up an average of 14.3 points a game. Granted, they've beaten three last-place teams with a combined record of 7-32, but you don't worry about the details in December. "When (Winfield) went down, it got kind of tough," Todd Bowles said. "But between Izzy, Tykee, Merriweather and even Tavierre (Thomas) at the end, those guys stepped up and made some very good open-field tackles." Merriweather, in fact, was tied for the team lead in tackles with seven and got his first NFL sack. Smith got a huge interception in the end zone to stop a 10-minute, 16-play Vegas drive that could have cost the Bucs a third-quarter lead. "We do a good job of preparing for all of these situations," Merriweather said. "Izzy is incredible. He's been asked to play free safety, strong safety and nickel. Tykee can play all three positions. Just having those guys who are interchangeable and prepared to play anywhere is big. No matter what the situation, we've got an answer." There was no official word on the extent of Winfield's knee injury, but it seemed to be a good sign that he left the locker room without assistance. Either that or the Bucs have run out of crutches. It hasn't helped that the Bucs are also hurting at linebacker. While Lavonte David has been steady as ever at one inside spot, he's been paired with K.J. Britt, SirVocea Dennis, J.J. Russell and Vi Jones at the spot next to him. Outside linebacker Joe Tryon-Shoyinka was also sidelined Sunday. The challenge will only get worse next week when the Bucs face Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert, whose career interception rate of 1.6% is third best in NFL history. "Once your number is called, you've got to be able to live up to the moment and be held to that standard," Smith said. "We've already faced it early in the season, we're facing it again now. If it comes later in the playoffs, we're going to know how to handle it." So can the secondary continue at this pace? Can a winning streak continue with rookies and backups and recent signees playing significant roles? It seems like a lot to ask, particularly if Winfield ends up missing time. On the other hand, the Bucs have survived long enough to fight their way back into first place. They just need to keep supporting one another. And maybe find some more gauze. Tampa Bay Times, published 9 December 2024