The final week of preseason is in the books and both the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Washington Redskins took the opportunity to give players battling for final roster and practice squad spots the chance to shine last night.
Only three players from last week’s starting lineups (Danny Lansanah, Patrick Omameh and Robert Herron) featured for either team as the backups and third stringers made their final case not only to their own team but to any of the other teams in the league who might be tempted to collect them on the waiver wire over the weekend.
From veterans looking to keep their spot in the league to young players looking to break on to a practice squad and get their chance here are some noteworthy performances from last night’s game.
Washington Redskins – Performances of Note
Clifton Geathers, DE: +6.4
Breakdown: Preparing for his fifth NFL season Geathers saw his most extended action of the preseason and came up with the sort of performance sure to catch the eye of his current coaching staff and any 3-4 teams around the league in need of depth at defensive end. His five defensive stops included two sacks and a forced fumble from Bucs’ running back Jeff Demps on a third down early in the fourth quarter.
Signature Play: Geathers closed out Washington’s preseason in style, swimming between two blockers to capitalize on neither left guard nor center taking command of the block to sack Mike Kafka on the Buccaneers’ final offensive play (Q4, 01:15).
Silas Redd, RB: +3.2
Breakdown: Leading the team in carries, Redd displayed a blend of power and agility to take advantage of whatever blocking he got to pick up consistent gains. Grading positively as both a runner and a receiver Redd was most productive on inside carries gaining 72 of his 79 yards on carries between the tackles.
Signature Stat: Including his work as a receiver Redd forced eight missed tackles on his 15 plays with the ball in hand.
Lache Seastrunk, RB: +0.9
Breakdown: If Redd was the relentless consistency and power in the Washington backfield, then fellow rookie Seastrunk provided the spark. His 80-yard receiving touchdown was one of the more memorable plays of the night but he also provided a couple of moments in the running game with two carries over 10 yards.
Signature Play: Speed kills and Seastrunk’s 80 yard touchdown catch on a screen midway through the third quarter (Q3, 07:45) proved that. First in a short area beating Quinton Pointer and then with long speed outrunning Anthony Gaitor to breakaway for the score, Seastrunk all but turned this play into a track meet.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers – Performances of Note
Akeem Spence, DT: +0.4
Breakdown: Relegated to the second string by the signing of Clinton McDonald earlier in the offseason, Akeem Spence put in his best showing of the preseason especially in run defense (+1.3). Spence notched six tackles but also put in strong work standing up the Washington offensive line to divert and disrupt running lanes, though some sketchy tackling from the rest of the defense (18 in total) meant that this good work wasn’t always capitalized on.
Signature Play: At 13:36 in the third quarter Spence drove Washington center Tevita Stevens directly to where the hand off would have occurred if Colt McCoy hadn’t bobbled the snap. Undeterred, Spence shed the block and tracked down McCoy for a 1-yard gain.
Solomon Patton, WR: -1.0
Breakdown: In this last preseason game one thing you want to do as a young player is put something down on tape to make the coaching staff believe in your potential. Solomon Patton certainly did that with his touchdown reception but left some marks on the opposite side of the ledger with a pair of sloppy drops on hitch routes in the fourth quarter.
Signature Play: Choosing to dwell on the positive, his touchdown catch at 4:02 in the third was a very good play. Catching a pass lobbed over Richard Crawford, who had jumped the route, Patton first cut inside Trenton Robinson before turning on the after burners, launching to the end zone away from Adam Hayward for the score.
Matthew Masifilo, DT: +4.5
Breakdown: Allowing only 3.6 yards per carry (backfield carries) is a solid effort but the Bucs’ defensive line set a stage for even better than that. One of the many defensive linemen to lay that platform was Masifilo who rounded out a strong preseason with his fourth consecutive positive overall grade. All of his production came in the second half including a pair of hurries in the third quarter.
Signature Stat: His three defensive stops were bested by only Ka’Lial Glaud and Danny Lansanah who had four apiece.
PFF Game Ball
You can only beat what is put in front of you as a player in preseason and Clifton Geathers did that repeatedly and emphatically last night. He now has to wait and see whether he gets an opportunity to repeat that performance during the regular season.
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