New Year’s Day means a change in lifestyle for many people. Not so much for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and their losing ways, however. The Bucs (4-12) laid an absolute egg in the first half in Atlanta and fell 45-24 to the Falcons (10-6) – Tampa Bay’s 10^th loss in a row to close out a miserable season that ironically began with a promising 4-2 start.

“If I was in the business of working out my future, I wouldn’t be coaching,” said Raheem Morris shortly after. “I’m going to go to work tomorrow until they tell me to stop.” Unfortunately, that’s exactly what management told him to do on Monday. Unable to win a game since October 16^th, Morris was fired after 3 years as the Bucs head coach. A 42-0 first half lead for the Falcons pretty much sealed his fate.

Aware that a Lions loss in Green Bay would give them an opportunity to clinch the 5^th playoff seed, Atlanta held nothing back from the get-go. By the time the Packers had defeated the Lions 45-41, the Falcons entered the 2^nd quarter with a commanding 21-0 lead.

Matt Ryan touchdown passes of 17 and 48 yards to rookie receiver Julio Jones on the second and third Falcons’ possessions of the game, respectively, put Atlanta up three scores following a one yard rushing touchdown by rookie Jacquizz Rodgers to open the game. The first of Josh Freeman’s three interceptions set up Ryan’s second and final touchdown pass of the game.

Atlanta put up just as many points in the 2^nd quarter. A Freeman fumble put the Falcons at the Tampa 30, and Michael Turner finished off the drive with a one yard touchdown run on 4^th and goal to make it 28-0. Turner would add an 81 yard sprint to the end zone on Atlanta’s next possession after scoring on a 26 yard Curtis Lofton pick six.

Freeman struggled mightily yet again, turning the ball over a total of 4 times. His counterpart’s day was the exact opposite scenario. With a 35 point lead just before halftime, and a team record of 42 points in one half, Falcons coach Mike Smith had the luxury of sitting Ryan for the rest of the game after just 9 passing attempts.

Ryan also set the Falcons single season franchise record for passing yardage. With just 106 yards he totaled 4,177 on the year, breaking Jeff George’s 1995 mark. ”We had opportunities the week before and just didn’t make the plays,” Ryan said. “Today, we made the plays and I think that’s what we needed moving forward.”

The Falcons were only able to add one more field goal in the 2^nd half with Chris Redman taking snaps. This was of no concern for Atlanta though, as Tampa Bay fell three touchdowns short with just two touchdowns and a field goal for the remainder of the game. The Falcons will now head to New Jersey for a 1 p.m. Wild Card showdown with the Giants. They hope to rebound after a disappointing divisional round loss to Green Bay last year despite being the number one overall seed after a 13-3 record.

“Honestly, I’ve said it all year: I think we’re a better team than we were last year,” Gonzalez said. This is only the first time in Falcons history that they have made the playoffs in back-to-back seasons. Now that the Bucs’ spiraling downfall has finally come to an end, they will search for a new head coach before seeking an impactful franchise player with the 5^th overall pick in the upcoming draft.

Image Courtesy of  https://www.facebook.com/atlantafalcons

The article 10 Game Losing Streak as Bucs Fall 45-24 to Falcons appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

Move over Peyton Manning. The all-time rookie passing record set by the Colts quarterback back in 1998 was broken on Christmas Eve by the electrifying Cam Newton.Newton surpassed Manning’s mark of 3,739 yards with a 171 yard display in the Panthers’ (6-9) 48-16 thrashing of the Bucs (4-11).

“It’s very nice to do something with a record that’s so prestigious in this league,” said Newton. The number one pick in this year’s draft accounted for 4 touchdowns on the day, 3 passing and one rushing – the exact figures he posted against Tampa Bay only 3 weeks ago, ironically.

As for the Bucs, the common theme during their 9 game losing streak plagued them once again – turnovers. Tampa Bay gave it away 4 times on Saturday, giving them an overwhelming total of 28 during their slide. Carolina turned takeaways into early Christmas presents, scoring half of their points off of them.

“The mistakes led to points, and that’s been the difference between this year and last,” said coach Raheem Morris. “When you can’t maintain possession, this is the result. It causes lopsided results. It causes mental mistakes. It causes poor performances on defense, and out-of-character offense. Things begin to spiral out of control.”

These turnovers are also making Morris’ seat hotter by the week. The Bucs look nothing like the team that came out of the gate 4-2. Carolina struck first blood on the game’s opening possession when DeAngelo Williams went untouched into the end zone on an 8 yard carry to conclude a 9 play, 80 yard drive. Sixty of the yards came on the ground for the Panthers, while the other 20 broke Manning’s record for Newton.

Williams added his second and final touchdown run in the 3^rd quarter with a 22 yard sprint down the right sideline on a pitch from Newton to give Carolina a 27-10 lead. Carolina players were definitely in the holiday spirit. Every player that scored a touchdown made his way to the stands and handed the ball to a fan. LeGarrette Blount’s fumble on Tampa Bay’s first possession would not be tolerated by Morris. Blount was immediately benched for the remainder of the first half.

After the Panthers turned the fumble recovery into a 21 yard field goal, it appeared that the Bucs responded to Blount’s benching, as they went on their longest touchdown drive of the year. A coach’s challenge overturned the initial ruling of an incompletion to finish off a 15 play, 9 minute and 20 second drive with a touchdown catch by Arrelious Benn.

Carolina went into halftime with a 20-10 lead after the team’s exchanged field goals following Brandon LaFell’s superb 91 yard touchdown reception. The play was the longest touchdown pass in team history for the Panthers. Josh Freeman’s interception on the first drive of the 3^rd quarter by Jonathan Nelson led to another Panthers touchdown. Nelson was signed off the practice squad just one day earlier.

A Kellen Winslow fumble later in the quarter led to an 11 yard touchdown catch by Jonathan Stewart on a 60 yard drive for Carolina. The Panthers would score two more touchdowns during the game – a 49 yard dash right up the middle for Newton and Jeremy Shockey’s 4^th touchdown of the season, thanks to a kickoff return fumble by Tampa’s Sammie Stroughter.

Freeman’s one yard touchdown sneak with about 11 minutes remaining would be the final scoring play for either side. Freeman passed for 274 yards, completing 28 of 38 attempts. Newton would be replaced by backup Derek Anderson after Tampa’s failed 2 point conversion attempt.

The Bucs defense will now look to rebound in Atlanta on New Year’s Day after giving up 48 points in a game for the second time this season. The last thing they want to do is send Morris off, having lost his final 10 games as coach. For the Panthers, it’s all about continuing to move in the right direction. A win at the Saints in Week 17 for first year coach Ron Rivera would mean a 5 game improvement upon the team’s 2-14 2010 campaign.

“I believe there is certainly that kind of talent in the locker room where we can certainly take the next step and become a very competitive football team (next year),” said Rivera. “We have that ability.”

Image Courtesy of   https://www.facebook.com/CarolinaPanthers

The article Newton Breaks Rookie Passing Record in Panthers’ 48-16 Rout of Bucs appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

After back-to-back heartbreaking losses, Tony Romo and the Cowboys weren’t going to leave this one to chance.

Four Romo touchdowns on the team’s first five drives easily propelled Dallas to a 31-15 victory over Tampa Bay on Saturday night. The Dallas quarterback looked as focused as ever during one of his best performances on the year.

“I was just finding guys who were open and the guys do the rest,” said Romo. “I thought the offense played good as a whole.”

At 8-6 the Cowboys now control their own destiny in the NFC East. Wins over the Eagles and Giants over the last two weeks would earn them a postseason berth as division champions.

And while all is good and well for America’s team, things could not be any worse for the Buccaneers (the Bucs). The loss was Tampa Bay’s eighth in a row, dropping their record to 4-10 after an impressive 4-2 start. The losing streak has head coach Raheem Morris on the hot seat just one year removed from a 10-6 season.

The players openly acknowledged a sense of fear for Morris’ future before the kickoff. With playoff aspirations long gone, they admitted that their main motivation to finally win lay in protecting his job.

A 25 yard third down run by Josh Freeman on the game’s opening drive created the immediate positive atmosphere that the players have been searching for so desperately. However, that enthusiasm lasted for literally less than a minute.

With no one open, Freeman ran up the middle once again on the next play. As he went into his slide, Cowboys linebacker Anthony Spencer chased him down from behind and punched the ball loose. Bradie James would recover Tampa Bay’s league-leading 32^nd turnover for Dallas at their 44 line yard.

Romo would then lead a 7 play drive that ended with a scrambling 8 yard touchdown throw to Miles Austin to give the Cowboys an early 7-0 lead. Austin showed great fight as he out-wrestled Tampa safety Sean Jones for the ball all the way to the ground.

The Bucs offense was unable to rebound for the remainder of the first half. Not only were they shut out, but they also couldn’t attain a single first down following Freeman’s opening drive run.

While Tampa was completely inefficient offensively over the first 30 minutes, Dallas was the exact opposite. The Cowboys went into halftime with a 28-0 lead behind three Romo touchdown passes and one rushing score.

Romo’s second touchdown was an 8 yard throw to Dez Bryant that capped off a 10 play, 69 yard drive. He would then lead a 64 yard drive in the second quarter that ended with a 9 yard touchdown throw to Laurent Robinson. And with 20 seconds remaining in the half, Romo called his own number to finish off a 62 yard drive with a one yard touchdown run.

Romo looked nearly perfect during the first half. He completely cut up the Bucs defense, going 18-22 for 189 yards. With the luxury of a big lead, he took it rather easily in the second half. He was not responsible for any more touchdowns and his final line read 23-30 for 249 yards.

“I thought he just had a good feel for what we were doing against what they were doing,” said coach Jason Garrett. “I thought he got back quickly and got the ball out of his hands, and when he had to move and make plays, he was able to do that too. He made a lot of big plays and not many bad plays.”

Freeman’s night was a completely different story. He passed for only 14 yards in the first half and had a total of just 148 yards through the air going 17-27 with one touchdown toss.

Tampa Bay tried to get back into the game after opening the second half with a strip-sack of Romo that was recovered by linebacker Dekoda Watson and run back 4 yards for a touchdown. Following a Dallas field goal, the Bucs were able to make it a two possession game thanks to a touchdown catch by Dezmon Briscoe and a successful two point conversion to cut the lead to 31-15 with 23 seconds remaining in the third, but the Cowboys held the Bucs scoreless in the fourth and held on to win by the same score.

Tampa Bay will now look to end the losing streak in Carolina next week, while the Cowboys will continue their playoff push hosting Philadelphia.

The article Romo’s Four Touchdowns Put Bucs on Losing Side for Eighth Straight Time appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The Chicago Bears (4-3) posted a hard-fought 24-18 victory over elected home side Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-3) in the 5^th NFL International Series at Wembley, London.

The Bucs (who played at Wembley as recently as 2009, when they took on the New England Patriots) were welcomed to the field with rapturous applause as tight end Kellen Winslow Jr ran out onto the ‘hallowed turf’ bearing the Union Jack. The Bears, who played at Wembley 25 years ago in the inaugural American Bowl, were enjoying a large amount of support, with a significant contingent of the near 77,000 crowd seemingly Chicago fans.

The game started with a 3 and out from the Bears offence, and they looked as if the occasion, likened to a Superbowl in atmosphere by Hall of Famers Marshall Faulk and Richard Dent, may have unnerved them somewhat. If they were slightly overawed, they soon overcame it, and the league leading Matt Forte, who has 908 yards rushing already this season, ran in a 32-yard TD to give the Bears the lead.

Forte went on to enjoy a monster performance in London, rushing for 145 yards on just 25 carries. An injury to running back Earnest Graham sent things from bad to worse for the Bucs, leaving only the inexperienced Kregg Lumpkin active. Veteran cornerback Ronde Barber did pull back two points for the Bucs when he tackled Forte in the endzone for a safety.

The much maligned Chicago offensive line, who had given up 19 sacks on Jay Cutler so far this season, put in a strong performance, allowing Cutler to find Roy Williams on the 25-yard TD pass in the second quarter. Although Cutler was being given better protection than he has had all season, the story of the game was the Bears work running the football.

Marion Barber collected the 50^th rushing TD of his career as he powered into the endzone from 12 yards out. The Bears were then close to adding to their lead when Lance Briggs intercepted on Freeman’s first pass after the Barber TD and, despite the linebacker taking the ball all the way to the endzone, a Chicago player was called for a push in the back, and Briggs’s celebrations were cut short.

The game was brought back to life early in the fourth quarter as Winsow collected a TD pass, and although Freeman, who coincidentally made his first ever NFL appearance at Wembley two years previously, failed to find Mike Williams for the extra two, and the Bucs were looking a threat in the deep for the first time in the game.

A fourth quarter comeback continued to look on the cards as Freeman, who was showing a composure in the fourth that he had lacked throughout the game, found Dezmon Briscoe for the 24-yard TD and the Bucs kicked the extra point to cut the Bears lead to three points.

The Bears then kicked a field goal to establish a six point lead, and with less than two minutes left in the game, the Bucs began a drive on their own 28 yard line. Although they looked dangerous, recording consecutive first downs, D.J. Moore grabbed an interception with around a minute to play to effectively end the game.

The Bears will fly home hoping that their offensive line has turned a corner, with good performances against both the Vikings and now the Bucs, and that Forte can carry on running the ball with the same effectiveness that has seen him lead the NFL in rushing yards so far this season.

Head Coach Raheem Morris and the Bucs will be disappointed that they could not complete their fourth quarter comeback, but cannot be too aggrieved, as Tampa Bay did not turn up in their first three quarters.

They leave London in better spirits than two years ago, when they were on the end of a 35-7 demolition by the Patriots, and Morris will see a lot of potential on his side as they head into their bye-week.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.facebook.com/ChicagoBears

The article Chicago Bears Bulldoze Resurgent Bucs; 24-18 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-2) welcomed the New Orleans Saints (4-1) to the Raymond James Stadium, hoping to improve their record before they jet off to London to entertain the NFL’s UK-based fans next week.

Having collected impressive victories over the likes of the Atlanta Falcons so far this season, the Bucs were keen to keep their win percentage over the 500 mark, despite having fallen to a franchise record defeat to the San Francisco 49’ers last week. Standing in their way however, was an in-form Drew Brees and his Saints were not going to be pushovers, as their impressive record so far shows.

With LeGarrette Blount sidelined through injury, the Buccaneers turned to Earnest Graham, but the running back failed to make much of an impression with his early rushes. The Bucs did however grab the lead when the Saints turned over possession, and the home side kicked a field-goal after failing to convert a 3^rd down.

The lead was to be short-lived however, with Brees finding tight end Jimmy Graham for a 16-yard gain, giving the Saints great field position, and also furthering Graham’s lead at the top of the tight end reception table in the NFL. From here, wide receiver Marques Colston collected a 38-yard TD pass from Brees, putting the visitors into the lead for the first time.

The lead changed hands again early in the 2^nd quarter however, when Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman found Arrelious Benn, who had escaped the man coverage, for a 65–yard TD pass, the longest for the Bucs since 2008.

The Bucs continued to press home their advantage, with Graham rushing for big gains consistently on a drive which culminated in a field goal, extending their lead to six points. Meanwhile, the Saints continued to struggle to get their offense going, and when the Bucs regained possession, they worked their way down the field before Freeman found Preston Parker on the slant route for a 19-yard TD pass.

The Saints came close to striking back just before the interval, having started on their own 2-yard line, but Brees passed successfully to Graham for 43 yards, and then to Colston for 37 yards, but had to settle for three points with a field goal as time ran out.

The 3^rd quarter went by fairly uneventfully for both sides, with neither side truly threatening the opposition end-zone, until the Saints moved to within 10 yards of the Bucs end-zone with just three minutes left in the quarter. Unfortunately for Sean Peyton’s side though, the Tampa Bay defense were more than a match for the New Orleans offense, and limited them to the field goal.

This did however make it a one-possession game heading into the 4^th,, until the Buccaneers struck back quickly, kicking a field goal themselves, and re-establishing the 10-point lead. The Saints soon closed the gap on the Bucs once the 4^th quarter started, driving to Tampa Bay’s 12 yard line, which then allowed explosive rookie Mark Ingram to power into the end-zone, reducing the lead to just three points.

With time running down in the 4^th, and the Bucs having added three more points to their lead, Brees was moving them Saints offense down the pitch, taking them to the Bucs 4 yard line. The usually infallible Brees then threw an interception in the Bucs end-zone, with Quincy Black picking the ball, and allowing Tampa Bay to run the ball away, with the game finishing at 26-20 to the Bucs.

Raheem Morris will be thrilled with his team’s effort and performance last night, especially that of his defense, who made life extremely difficult for Brees.

The Saints will not be entirely disheartened however, with tight end Graham collecting over 100 receiving yards for the fourth game in the row, and really establishing himself as a danger-man for the Saints, as they hope to bounce back this week, and continue their march towards the playoffs.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.facebook.com/tampabaybuccaneers

The article NFL Week 6: Saints 20 – Buccaneers 26 appeared first on The Toonari Post - News, Powered by the People!.