Buccaneers-Jaguars Matchup is So Very Important and Here's Why

Saturday night in Jacksonville will be a crucial evening for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

There is a lot on the line for the new face of this team: coach Raheem Morris.

There is a lot on the line for many of these younger and older players.

Here's why.

First and foremost, the starting quarterback of this football team will emerge from this game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Starting will be the former Jag himself, Bryon Leftwich.

Morris has been emphatic that he will name the starting quarterback next week and he won't waiver once the season starts.

It is an opportunity for other positions as well. This Jaguar team, like the Buccaneers, has been stepped on and talked down nationally and deposited into the lower realm of NFL expectations.

Neither team is a Pittsburgh, nor an Indianapolis, nor any other perceived powerhouse for that matter.

It is important for the Bucs to show they can dominate a "lesser" opponent in the NFL pecking order.

Second, the first unit needs to show some sort of running capacity—that wasn't the case last week.

Michael Clayton returns to the starting lineup and he, along with other wide receivers, need to step up and be counted as dependable.

Third, the first unit defense needs to show it can mount a pass rush.

Other facets of the game need to emerge.

With punter Josh Bidwell gone for the season, that facet of the game needs to look better than the first game.

The safety situation is very iffy, at best.

Tanard Jackson will play because his replacement for the regular season, Will Allen, has a sore shoulder and it would be a huge risk to play him this week.

There are a host of other Bucs in question. Gaines Adams may not play, center Jeff Faine's groin is still bothering him, Kellen Winslow has been limited in practice and in the first game last week.

It seems that the more this team plays, the more questions linger.

Answers need to appear and Saturday night will be very live as a result.

The third game, next week is basically the dress rehearsal for the season opener against Dallas.

 Starters need to emerge, players need to step up and Morris needs to find out who will be in that rehearsal.