Veteran cornerback Charles Tillman isn’t able to help the Bears win games this year, since they put him on injured reserve in September.
But that doesn’t mean he can’t help others.
Buccaneers coach Lovie Smith showed his players highlights of Tillman’s career last week, to emphasize how he wanted them to get the ball out.
“Tillman attacked the football, and that was our emphasis all week,’’ Bucs defensive tackle Akeem Spence said, via Ira Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune. “We wanted to be relentless. The emphasis on takeaways has been there all season, but we really ingrained it in our defense last week. We played fast and furious up front, and this defense goes as our front goes.’’
The Bucs forced three turnovers in Sunday’s win over Washington, so the lessons obviously took hold.
Tillman has forced 42 fumbles and picked off 36 passes in his career, and is known for his ability to punch the ball out of opponents’ hands.
“At the start of the week, Coach showed us a video of the days when he was back in Chicago,’’ linebacker Danny Lansanah said. “We saw Tillman on tape and that set the tone for the whole week. And before we went out on the field, [defensive tackle] Gerald McCoy brought us in as a defense and said we have to make it happen.
“It’s about all 11 guys swarming to the ball. Guys were out there having fun and playing Buc ball. The whole season we’ve been talking about [takeaways], but now we’re starting to buy into it. He showed us that video and guys took it to themselves to make it happen.’’
If Smith could get more players like Tillman in Tampa, they wouldn’t be 2-8. But by laying the foundation down now, perhaps the future will hold more of that kind of play against better opponents in the future.
