While ‘D’ is hurting, Monken again will call offensive plays
TAMPA — The Buccaneers will go into Sunday’s road game against the New York Giants more hampered by injury than they’ve been at any point this season, especially on the defensive side of the ball.
Three defensive starters — linebacker Lavonte David (knee), safety Justin Evans (toe) and defensive end Vinny Curry (ankle) — are out for Sunday’s game, according to the latest injury report released Friday.
“Other than the obvious injuries that keep guys out for long periods of time, we’re a little nicked up this week,” coach Dirk Koetter said. “That’s the NFL when you get to this part of the season. No one’s feeling sorry for you. The good news is that it’s next man up and we’ve got guys who are excited to get their opportunity.”
David, who suffered an MCL sprain in last week’s 16-3 loss to Washington, has just missed five games over his seven-season NFL career, and has been a longtime leader of the Bucs defense. He was injured in the third quarter last week but returned and finished the game.
David’s absence is the latest hit to a linebacker corps that’s already without starter Kwon Alexander and reserve Jack Cichy to seasonending ACL tears. And linebacker Kendell Beckwith has yet to return from the non-football injury list following an offseason ankle injury.
With David out, linebacker Adarius Taylor will have the green dot in his helmet and have the responsibility of relaying the defense called in from the sideline during the game.
Evans had a season-high nine tackles last week and recorded the team’s only interception this season. Curry has missed three of the last four games with a nagging ankle injury.
Safety Isaiah Johnson will start in place of Evans. Johnson has played an increased role over the last five games and played 33 snaps last week against the Redskins, making four solo tackles.
Running back Ronald Jones (hamstring) and cornerback M.J. Stewart (foot) are also out Sunday.
Bucs defensive end Carl Nassib (elbow), who has taken most of the snaps in Curry’s absence, was a full participant on Friday but was still listed as questionable for Sunday. Wide receiver Chris Godwin (ankle) and center Ryan Jensen are also listed as questionable.
Defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul was a full participant on Friday, practicing without the the bulky club wrap around his right hand he practiced with on Thursday.
Friday’s practice is traditionally a light one with little contact, so it’s not a great indication of whether Pierre-Paul will play on Sunday. The hand is the same one that was damaged during a 2015 fireworks accident.
Pierre-Paul has had to play with the wrap previously, including as recently as last December with the Giants.
The Bucs also promoted safety Godwin Igwebuike to the active roster from the practice squad.
To make room for Igwebuike, the team waived defensive end Demone Harris, who saw action in one game this season, playing six snaps this past week against Washington.
Koetter said Friday during his weekly radio show that offensive coordinator Todd Monken will resume playcalling duties.
Koetter took over playcalling duties against Washington as the Bucs produced their lowest scoring output of the season despite accumulating 501 total offensive yards.
Earlier this week, Koetter explained why he took over the playcalling, saying he wanted to focus on establishing the running game early to maintain a time-of-possession edge to allow the Bucs defense more time off the field.
And the Bucs had a significant time of possession edge over Washington and moved the ball effectively. But they failed to score a touchdown in five trips to the red zone, in part because of four turnovers.
The Bucs still currently rank No. 1 in the league in total offense with 452.8 total yards per game. With Monken calling the plays over the first eight games, the Bucs averaged 446.7 total offensive yards and were scoring 28.6 points per game.