Tampa Bay’s Todd Bowles on Michael Penix Jr.: ‘He can play. We know he can play.’
Here’s what Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles had to say about the Falcons to Tampa media members Wednesday. The Falcons and the Bucs will meet at 1 p.m. Sunday at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in the season-opener for each team.
On his primary concerns facing the Falcons in Week 1: “None at this time. (I am) just making sure we’re ready first. You know, we’ve got to make sure we’re prepared to play and not worry about so much what they do as opposed to what we do. You know, if we can execute and we can prepare the way we can prepare and they execute the same way, we’ll be OK, you know. But they’ve got a lot of talent and that’s going to be every week. We understand that. We feel like we’ve got a lot of talent as well. So, you know, we’ve got to prepare the right way and we’ve got to go in with the right mindset. We’ve just got to play a solid game and not make mental mistakes.”
On if losing both games to the Falcons last season helps motivate the team: “I mean, I’m motivated whether I lose in street ball. So, a team beating me is also motivation, but we try to win at everything we do. You know, that’s what competitiveness is. We try to win at everything we do and be the best at what we can do. Last year doesn’t factor into this year — wins or losses. We’re not going to take the wins that we won last year and bring them this year. We’re not going to take the losses either.”
On what he can learn from last year’s two games against the Falcons: “You don’t learn much. You lost. You know, we lost both of them. So, we’re not going to go recap the season from last year and say, ‘This is what we did do, this is what we didn’t do.’ We’ve got a different team. It’s a different mindset. It’s the start of the season. It’s one ballgame. It’s going to give us a leg up in the division. It’s not going to win the Super Bowl, which is what we want to get to. It’ll be great to get off to a good start. That’s all it brings to us.”
On game-planning for a quarterback with limited tape like Michael Penix Jr.: “No more different than them preparing for a new (offensive coordinator) calling it. You know, it’s about the same. You prepare for the scheme as opposed to the quarterback. He has certain things he likes, I’m sure, and they have certain things they like to run for him. We’ve just got to play fundamentally sound football. The first three weeks are going to be like that. And everybody’s going to have new wrinkles. Nobody is going to be settled in yet. So, for us to play fast and play sound, we’ve just got to execute.”
About the Author
Honored by the Pro Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his "long and distinguished reporting in the field of pro football," D. Orlando Ledbetter, Esq. has covered the NFL 28 seasons. A graduate of Howard University, he's a winner of Georgia Sportswriter of the Year and three Associated Press Sports Editor awards.
