Copy Cat League, Running Game Edition

I just wanted to weigh in on something that kept popping into my head while I was watching the game again.

Why don't the Bucs utilize the same kinds of running schemes as the Panthers?

I'm dead serious about this.

People always call the NFL a "copy cat league" because when one team has a success running a certain scheme then before you know it you will see other teams trying to do the same thing. And if there is one thing the Panthers have been good at over the years its running the ball.

Hell its part of the reason why we signed Keydrick Vincent this offseason.

But its not enough to just pick up their former players, why not pick up some of their plays.

Don't get me wrong, we run some of the same plays that they do. But we don't use them with the frequency or precision that they use them. And when you think about it our offensive personnel blocking wise is pretty similar to the Panthers.

A lot of what they do involves getting the defense moving one way and then cutting one guy on the back side so you have a cutback lane. Usually its a fullback or a tight end leading up on a defensive end or outside linebacker and they just cut them and the running back starts hard to the strong side then cuts back for nothing but open road.

And the Panthers themselves don't mind copying other teams. They ran a play yesterday that they definitely copied from the Saints, where they fake a bootleg to get the defensive end up the field then run a split belly inside of them. The Saints used the same play last year and killed us with it.

So why don't we take some of the things our opponents do well and use it against everybody else?

Ill tell you this much, it would help our tight ends a lot because Carolina finds ways to put their tight ends in favorable positions to block defensive ends and linebackers. Rather than always keeping them on the line they will put them just a little outside of the box and then have them come back in and crack on a linebacker. I think Kellen Winslow would be much better served in that set up. One thing is for sure, he isn't doing so hot trying to block a defense end right in front of him.

I would love to see the Bucs run a bunch of split bellys and Ram belly's this week and mirror the Panthers' running game. I think its a perfect scheme for Cadillac too because he likes to make one cut and then get down hill. It seems like it should be a no brainer.

So why not?