It’s been about a month since we last discussed some of the

Last we met www.buccaneerscheapshops.com , we reviewed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ first half of the season.Since then, we’ve seen the Bucs win back-to-back games and we’ve also seen them drop back-to-back games.We’re entering the final stretch of the season, so let’s see what’s been going on and drop some biased opinions!OFFSIDES: MAKING BUSINESS, PERSONALAaron Doster-USA TODAY SportsNow, I say this without knowing the inner-workings of how the Cleveland Browns operate or exist in the locker room and meetings. Meaning, take this with a grain of salt. From where I stand, Hue Jackson was fired from the organization after failing to show cause for the franchise to have any long-term confidence in whatever process he was involved in towards turning the franchise from zero-to-hero.It was deserved. Jackson’s tenure as an NFL head coach just wasn’t good or effective in any way, shape or form.His inner squabble and inability to snuff-out the petty back-and-forth between he and offensive coordinator Todd Haley was flat-out embarrassing.So, yes, he deserved to be fired. However, he also deserved a chance at working in the league again. When the Cincinnati Bengals gave him the chance to do so, he took it, and there’s nothing wrong with that.Quarterback, Baker Mayfield, apparently didn’t see it that way and all but called Jackson a traitor following their Week 12 win over the Bengals by saying,There’s a lot wrong with Mayfield’s assessment of Jackson. First being, Jackson didn’t leave, he was forced out.The next being, there are 32 possible organizations to offer positions working in the NFL. Being fired from one means the number is now down to 31. This isn’t Wal-Mart. It’s the National Football League.What did Mayfield expect? Jackson should turn down another opportunity to continue his life’s work in the NFL because....they play in the same division? I expect we’ll revisit this someday should Mayfield leave Cleveland - willingly or not - and play for the Pittsburgh Steeler, Baltimore Ravens or - gasp - Cincinnati Bengals.Mayfield is young Tampa Bay Buccaneers T-Shirt , and this undoubtedly plays a part in it. The likelihood Mayfield will ever need Jackson during his career is slim-to-none, so I don’t see any long-term issue from how he approached the situation.But the lack of appreciation towards a coach who had a hand in making him the first overall pick this very offseason - a pick many criticized and referred to as ‘Browns Browning’- is unprofessional and immature.Mayfield hasn’t shied away from his reputation as being unapologetically him, which is fine. But there comes a point where people don’t like you because you’re unlikeable rather than you’re being underestimated. Underdog’s are admirable for their fight and determination, a—holes are disliked because they think their unwillingness to show appreciation for success is the same thing.Actions like this one have ticked him one notch in the wrong direction for me.FALSE START: WHAT A DIFFERENCE TWO WEEKS MAKESKim Klement-USA TODAY SportsLast week, I listened to the Locked on NFL Draft podcast with Jon Ledyard and Trevor Sikkema. They have a feature in their programming where they ‘bury’ NFL teams with bad records, basically saying their post-season hopes are dead.Sikkema balked at the idea of burying the Buccaneers despite the fact their win in Week 12 over the San Francisco 49ers still left them with about a 1% chance of reaching the playoffs.Now, following a Week 13 win over the Carolina Panthers, there’s even talk around media and fan outlets everywhere that maybe Dirk Koetter shouldn’t be fired after the conclusion of the season.Prior to Week 12, there was at least one ‘dead man walking’ themed podcast or publication coming from most sites, including this one.I’m not knocking the turning tide of opinion surrounding coach Koetter. We are a fickle bunch and winning streaks involving divisional rivals will turn tides faster than anything.This is one reason I’ve adopted the resistance to calling for any coach’s job publicly. There just simply isn’t enough known about what’s going on behind closed doors for me to feel smart enough to call for firings.I’d be lying though if I didn’t admit that just two weeks ago I was about 98.5% certain coach Koetter would be employed elsewhere in 2019.Now, I’m about 70% certain. Still not good odds, but much better.A win against the Saints will help those numbers. A win against the Saints and then on the road against the Baltimore Ravens and we may see public outcries from the fans to the Glazers to keep Koetter on another year.We’ll know in two weeks. And what we’ve learned this last two weeks is, we know nothing about how we’ll feel when Week 16 rolls around.FREE PLAY: MOST VALUABLE RECEIVER UNDER 6’Kim Klement-USA TODAY SportsWe started with business, let’s end with business.The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have three wide receivers under six-feet tall. DeSean Jackson, Adam Humphries and Bobo Wilson.Jackson and Humphries have a combined 93 catches this season for 1,356 yards and nine touchdowns. They are earning a combined $13.914M against the cap this year.The percentage split is 57/43 in catches for Humphries and 55/45 in favor of Jackson in yards while Humphries has one more touchdown catch (5) than Jackson (4) in 2018.While the two are each producing around half of their combined output, Jackson is earning 79% ($11M) of the money the two are splitting.In 2019, the pair is set to make $10M combined. With Jackson holding 100% of the purse as it stands. (Humphries is a free-agent entering 2019 as of now)Some of us don’t really like to think of football as a business, but it is. And if the Tampa Bay Buccaneers allow half of this production tandem walk while paying Jackson about five times what they could likely pay Humphries for similar production, it’s bad business.Many fans and media outlets commented on how the Bucs offense didn’t seem to miss Jackson much against the Carolina Panthers.If the team is moving forward with Jameis Winston then there’s just no justification for bringing back Jackson at his current salary. And I doubt asking him to take a pay cut is going to make his Instagram traffic any more pleasant than it has been.Any argument for keeping Jackson would rely solely on liking his swagger Tampa Bay Buccaneers Hats , speed and persona - which are all things I’m a fan of, by the way. Because his production with Winston just doesn’t carry water as a viable argument. Whether scheme or player fit is the problem, it’s not working.Meanwhile, clearing his due money in 2019, shifting some of it to Humphries and bringing in - or re-signing - a contributor with the remaining funds could make sure the money spent in 2019 would work much better for the franchise.Now that sounds like good business all around. During the bye week, the Buccaneers announced that Jameis Winston will start at quarterback when the team returns to action in week six. Tampa Bay will be in Atlanta on Sunday looking to get back in the win column against the struggling Falcons. Ryan Fitzpatrick took the league by storm in the first two or three weeks of this season before the Bucs as a whole collapsed against the Bears in week four. At halftime, Winston made his return from suspension and completed 16 of his 20 passes for 145 yards and a touchdown to two interceptions. A few days later, head coach Dirk Koetter confirmed what everyone was already thinking: Winston was in and Fitzpatrick was out at the quarterback position. There is no shortage of familiarity between Winston and Atlanta. Let’s go game-by-game to see how the No. 1 overall pick from 2015 has fared against the Falcons.Nov. 1, 2015: Bucs 23, Falcons 20 (Overtime)Winston’s first meeting with the Falcons went his way. His numbers weren’t all that special: 16-of-29 for 177 yards and a touchdown through the air and three rushes for 24 yards and a score on the ground. The important thing was that the rookie didn’t turn the ball over and remained composed after Tampa Bay blew a 20-3 lead. Atlanta forced overtime, but Winston led a field goal drive that lasted 7:08 to start the extra period. From there, the defense held up and Tampa Bay picked up a road victory. Dec. 6, 2015: Bucs 23, Falcons 19About one month after his first victory over the Falcons, “Famous Jameis” got a second one. With Atlanta visiting Raymond James Stadium, the rookie came through with some late heroics to lead Tampa Bay to a season sweep over its division rival. With the Falcons leading 19-16 late in the fourth quarter, the young rookie took his offense 80 yards in 12 plays, finishing the drive by throwing a go-ahead six-yard touchdown pass to Mike Evans with 1:39 to go. Winston finished the day with 227 yards and one touchdown (to one interception) on 18-of-27 passing while also putting up an early touchdown run.Sept. 11, 2016: Bucs 31, Falcons 24Winston extended his (and the Bucs’) winning streak over the Falcons to three in the 2016 season opener. It was one of his biggest performances to date Tampa Bay Buccaneers Hoodie , silencing the Atlanta crowd with 281 yards and four touchdowns on 23-of-32 passing. He connected with Brandon Myers, Charles Sims, Austin Seferian-Jenkins and Mike Evans for his four scores. Tampa Bay held a 31-13 lead by the 5:12 mark in the third quarter. Atlanta fought back into it by the end, but the Bucs held on. Nov. 3, 2016: Falcons 43, Bucs 28The Bucs were let down on Thursday Night Football in 2016, falling at home to the Falcons. Aside from a lost fumble, Winston put up some nice numbers. He completed 23 of his 37 attempts for 261 yards and three touchdowns. The Tampa Bay defense just couldn’t hold up. It was Winston’s first loss against Atlanta.Dec. 18, 2017: Falcons 24, Bucs 21The Falcons got Jameis and the Bucs again last December, beating them at Raymond James Stadium on Monday Night Football. Winston missed the earlier meeting between the two teams with an injury, but came back looking fully healthy in a close loss. Winston hit on 27 of his 35 passes for 299 yards and three scores. He connected with Adam Humphries with 4:07 left in the game to bring the Bucs within 24-21, then completed three passes on a late drive to set up a 54-yard field goal attempt. Patrick Murray missed it, leading to another Buccaneer loss instead of forcing overtime. It was the second straight loss to the Falcons for Winston, despite his strong night.Career against the FalconsOverall Record: 3-2Home Record: 1-2Road Record: 2-0Completion Percentage: 66.9 (107-of-160)Passing Yards: 1,245Passing Touchdowns: 12Interceptions: 2Rushing Attempts: 18Rushing Yards: 71Rushing TD: 2Fumbles (Fumbles Lost): 2 (1)