:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/23625181/20131028_ter_af2_474.0.jpg)
Below is a look at what Detroit Lions head coach Jim Schwartz had to say after Wednesday's practice. (Quotes provided by the Lions.)
On RB Reggie Bush being a pivotal player: "You could probably say that for 53 guys. Everybody makes our engine go, so to speak. He's definitely an important player for us. I think that synergy we have talked about a lot of times, that dynamic between him and Calvin (Johnson), he can free Calvin up and Calvin can free him up. When we have played our best offensively, that has been going. Plus, we have gotten contributions out of a lot of other guys. It just hasn't' been those two guys. We have gotten key contributions out of a lot of other guys on offense and that's when we operate our best. He's definitely a key and we need to get him back on track this week."
On what's contributing to TE Joseph Fauria's lack of in-game contributions: "Well, I think you look across opponents' defenses, he's not catching anybody by surprise anymore. I think they realized what a threat he can be and they're going to game plan now too. It's up to us, it's up to him to make that next step and to respond to that extra attention. We always say that when Calvin goes in the field, everybody knows what number he wears. Joe's hard to hide when he goes on the field too. We haven't gotten the same matchups that we have gotten, but he's still a pivotal player. I mentioned before, we need contributions out of all of our guys. He's a guy that can score and also make an explosive play for us."
On the impact that WR Nate Burleson will make when he returns: "We have had to compartmentalize our passing game. A lot of different guys sort of stepped up. Not one person replaced Nate's production. We had a lot of different guys sort of rolling through it. It will be a big lift when we get him back. He's on a good track. He's done more every single time we have gone out to practice. He means an awful lot. We have talked a lot about how much he means to our team and the last time we saw him play in the game, he had the most receiving yards he's ever had for us as a Lion. It might even have been a career high for him. He can still play at a high level and when we get him back, he's going to give us those speeds."
On if reliability or dependability is something that has been missing from Burleson's position: "I don't know if it's that. I think he's a play-maker. He's a guy that can move the chains on third down. I think we have gotten reliability out of a lot of other players. I think that he gives us more than that. There's something about his spirit and his play-making ability that's important for us."
On the similarities between Tampa's team and the Lions 2010 team: "I hope they don't get on any more than a two-game winning streak. I don't know. I think there are similarities in a lot of things. You look at the way they started this year, they got a penalty on I think their last defensive play. The quarterback was going out of bounds and that's a close call and they ended putting the Jets in field goal range and lost by one point. Came back the next week and really gave New Orleans all they could handle. I think that was like 13 to 10 or something like that. I think they got beat after that by New England, but then they came back and they had a 10-3 lead late in the game against Arizona. Then they ended up losing it 13-10. They played a lot of close games. Their defense kept the score down in those games. They were just having a hard time getting over the hump. You look at them over their whole body of work and just don't look at their record and you'll respect what they have done. They've run the ball very well. They've played outstanding defense. They have gotten good play out of their quarterback. I think he's improved everything single week. Particularly that key over the last few weeks is if they run the ball very well and it's a big matchup in the game. Defensively, there are some things that we have done very well. Run defense recently has been one of them. Red zone defense, third-down defense, those have sort of been our strengths defensively. Their ability, they've plugged in a lot of different running backs. They had (Doug) Martin and he got hurt. Plugged in Mike James, he got hurt. Plugged in (Bobby) Rainey and all he had is rushed for 5.5 a carry or so over this time. That's big a matchup in this game. You don't just look at the record. Our guys respect the way the individual players go out. We know that we're going to have to play our best. We are going to have our hands full. They have talent at all levels of their team, not just on defense."
On if the Buccaneers are a straight ahead run block team: "They do just about everything in the book. They attack the outside, they attack the inside. That's been a key for those guys. They want to win the time of possession. They want to win the turnover battle. Those are things that they have done well over these couple of weeks. They went and had a nice week at Seattle. That's a tough place to play in and that's a tough team. They weren't able to hang on, but they went and got the lead in that game and then came back and won their last two in a pretty convincing fashion against Atlanta last week. It's got our players attention. Our team has a pretty good personality that way. I think there are some similarities to maybe the way Tampa is right now and maybe as we went in to Cleveland. Cleveland, a lot of people had sort of written them off in the beginning of the year. They came off and had a nice little winning streak and we were able to end that. I think some people wrote off Tampa early in the season. They have had a little winning streak and we need to do the same thing. We need to get that ended."
On if he's surprised at how tough Buccaneers QB Mike Glennon has been: "We faced him in the Senior Bowl. He had a good career in NC State. He's got great size, he's got an arm and he can make every throw. He's gotten more comfortable each week. Like I said, he threw those two interceptions against Arizona and I think that was his first start. Since then, altogether he's had 11 touchdowns and four interceptions. He's taken care of the football. He's good in their play-action game. He doesn't look like a rookie back there."
On Buccaneers CB Darrelle Revis: "I don't know that you consider him still coming off the injury now. It's been, I believe, over a calendar year now. When you watch him on film, he doesn't look like he's dragging his leg or hampered in anyway. He's a good player. He's got great eyes for the football. He can play zone, he can play man, he can play press, and he can play off. He's a good tackler. He's one of the best corners in the NFL and Calvin is one of the best wide receivers, if not the best wide receiver. That's going to be a key matchup in this game."
On if he can appreciate the skill level of Johnson and Revis going against each other: "Certainly appreciate the skill level, but you're looking at too many other things. I know that will be a big matchup in this game. When it's all said and done, that will be a key component in this game. I think we have been pretty creative in still getting Calvin the ball. Calvin has changed a lot since the first couple of years when I was here. He plays out of all three positions now. He runs a lot more inside routes. Where early on, particularly the first couple of years in his career, he was strictly a down-the-field threat. He's become an underneath threat, run after the catch. There are a lot of different ways that he can do that. He's become a complete player and (Darrelle) Revis is already a complete player."
On how disruptive DT Gerald McCoy can be: "A lot. He flips, he's their three technique. He's a very good penetrator. He's got some sacks these last couple of weeks. He's a key to them. (Adrian) Clayborn is another key upfront. Their rookie (Akeem) Spence is playing, he plays their nose, he's been playing well. (Da'Quan) Bowers has been hurt, but (Daniel Te'o-Nesheim) Te'o has come in and he's done a nice job too. They have a good front. I think they play good defense pretty much the whole year. I think particularly early in the year and these last couple of weeks with what they need to do to win. Getting our quarterback protected and getting that run game started is key every single week. When we've got Reggie and Calvin going, well a lot of that has to do with how our whole line is doing. We need to neutralize him. He's a guy that can wreck a game. He can sack and tackle for loss and get you off schedule on offense."
On S Glover Quin: "We said this from the very beginning, he was a key addition for us. He's battled through some ankle injuries over the last month or so, but he's been out there. Unfortunately wasn't able to finish the Steelers game for us. Just exactly what we're looking for in the position. There is a calming veteran presence to him. All those different things, we can use him to matchup. He's good at all three levels. He can blitz, he can play man, he can play zone. Hopefully he's getting a little bit better each week too. It's a tough situation when you're a defensive back and your mobility was hampered a little bit. He's bounced back. He's a key cog in our defensive machine."