By the Numbers: Eagles vs. Buccaneers

For some insight into the Buccaneers, Fran Duffy chatted with SB Nation’s Jon Ledyard, who has covered Tampa Bay in-depth for several years. The conversation is part of Fran’s latest Eagle Eye in the Sky episode, which can be found below.

What are your thoughts on Baker Mayfield at this stage?

“I think he’s been above expectation because I think, I mean, if you think about realistically, there was a time last year after the Panthers stint where it was like, ‘Is Baker Mayfield gonna have a career in the NFL?’

“He went to the Rams and he was decent, and there was always some interest, but he signed for very little money from Tampa Bay for the season, so there was not a lot of interest in him. He didn’t have a lot of offers, so he came in, competed for the starting quarterback job, got the job, but there was definitely a sense that this could be one of the worst starting quarterbacks in the league and he’s been a top-half quarterback in the league I think this year, so definitely a pleasant surprise.

“All the things that you struggle with him are still there. One thing that’s come up this season, he’s not been a great deep ball thrower. When he has, this is a pretty aggressive offense, so he’ll push the ball down the field. Baker, this season, is 22-of-74 on 20-plus air-yard throws down the field. You’re talking about an adjusted completion percentage of 31 percent. That is one of the lower marks in the league, even when you account for drops and things like that amongst quarterbacks at his position that have played as much as he has. So when he’s had games where he’s hit the deep ball, there’s not an arm strength (problem); it’s really just an accuracy, timing issue. When he’s had games that he’s done that, this offense has put up their best performances in the season – the Texans game, the Packers game, like all of those games, like they’ve been really good. But this offense is really predicated on that happening. And that’s been the struggle this season is when he doesn’t do that, then they have to live manageable situations.”

What gives Bucs Offensive Coordinator Dave Canales the most confidence going into this matchup?

“It’s a good question because the Bucs haven’t really been consistent at all this season. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly if there’s anything this team is great at. They’ve been pretty good at throwing the football this season, especially late downs. They don’t throw it enough on early downs is…