“It Shows Up In The Offensive Line Play” – JoeBucsFan.com – Tampa Bay Bucs Blog, Buccaneers News

Joe is no fan of former slimy Saints head coach Sean Payton, but he is an excellent listen when he talks football, and he was tied to Tom Brady when the duo schemed to work together in Miami while Brady was a Buccaneer.

Brady made a lot of headlines in early October when the Bucs were 2-2 along with a lot of NFL teams. Brady noted “there’s a lot of bad football from what I watch. I watch a lot of bad football, poor quality of football.”

The Goat never really said what was so bad, but his good friend Payton referenced that Brady line last week during a visit to The Pat McAfee Show.

“It shows up in the offensive line play,” Payton said. He added that O-linemen need the chemistry built in practice (the NFL has cut practice time through the years) and Payton said preseason is very important of that O-line and team chemistry and his new team in Denver will play starters in preseason.

Payton added there is no data that says skipping preseason keeps a roster healthier.

The chatter from Payton about an offensive line desperately needing practice and time together really got Joe thinking back. The Bucs lost Ryan Jensen for the season in camp, followed by Super Bowl right guard Aaron Stinnie in a preseason game, and Tristan Wirfs had a significant oblique injury during the team’s joint practices at Tennessee. The O-line coordinator in chief Tom Brady, of course, missed several summer practices for personal reasons.

Right guard Shaq Mason spent August learning a new offense and Luke Goedeke and Robert Hainsey were first-time starters. And after all that fun, Donovan Smith suffered a significant elbow injury in Week 1.

This all adds up to a lot of excuses, but it also could have had a major impact on Brady’s confidence along with the mindset of the running backs. And a quarterback feeling less confident rarely makes for good football.