Spotlight Shines on Buccaneers QBs Coach Marcus Arroyo in Jeff Tedford's Absence

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers own one of the worst offenses in the NFL, and quarterbacks coach Marcus Arroyo is now tasked with turning it around for the foreseeable future. It's a difficult but not impossible task. 

Arroyo will take full control of the offense after offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford decided to take an indefinite leave of absence from the team, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. 

Tedford's presence was limited prior to the decision after a heart procedure during the preseason. The veteran coach spent game days in the coaches' box as an extra set of eyes for Arroyo as his protege called plays. 

The Buccaneers' offensive performance has been awful. Through three games, the Buccaneers rank 30th overall in total offense and 20th in rushing and own the league's worst passing offense. 

The young coach does have an opportunity to turn everything around this weekend against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

It may not be an ideal matchup for the Buccaneers to find their groove, but it's not as difficult of a challenge as it would have been a couple years ago.

The maestro of "Blitzburgh" may be still calling the plays, but Pittsburgh now lacks the defensive playmakers it grew accustomed to over the past 30 years. 

As a matter of fact, the Steelers recently re-signed retired outside linebacker James Harrison this week after starter Jarvis Jones was placed on injured reserve with the designation to return, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's Ed Bouchette. 

Bouchette also reported the Steelers' top cornerback, Ike Taylor, is "out for awhile" due to a broken forearm, while starting inside linebacker Ryan Shazier is out for Sunday's contest. 

Those are three keys defensive starters who will be missing from the lineup when the Buccaneers invade Pittsburgh. 

Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press

It wasn't exactly a thriving defense prior to the injuries. The Steelers aren't perched on their familiar spot atop the NFL's defensive statistics. Instead, LeBeau's bunch is ranked 18th overall in total defense. The team is particularly underwhelming against the run, where the group is ranked 22nd overall. 

These are areas for Arroyo to try to exploit. 

The coach can protect his new starter at quarterback, Mike Glennon, by running the football to set up the pass. 

Running back Doug Martin returned to practice this week, according to the Tampa Bay Times' Rick Stroud. With Martin back in the rotation alongside Bobby Rainey and Mike James, the Buccaneers should be able to establish the run and utilize play action to take advantage of Pittsburgh's three new starters at linebacker and cornerback. 

It's a simple formula—one that already proved effective against the Steelers. 

The Cleveland Browns trailed by 10 points in the third quarter during their season opener in Pittsburgh. The Browns didn't give up on their run game despite a 24-point deficit at halftime. The ability to effectively run the football created more room in the secondary, as shown in the picture below. 

NFL Game Rewind

Browns quarterback Brian Hoyer found Jim Dray wide open for a 20-yard gain, because Pittsburgh bit on play action and allowed the lumbering tight end to get behind the linebackers.

The Buccaneers could receive a boost on offense with the return of rookie tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins, who missed the previous two games with an ankle injury. 

Arroyo can use the 6'5", 262-pound tight end like the Browns used Dray. If Tampa Bay can establish the run, Seferian-Jenkins should have plenty of room to operate over the middle of the field. 

The play-caller also needs to take advantage of Taylor's absence at cornerback by finally featuring Tampa Bay's underutilized wide receivers, Vincent Jackson and rookie Mike Evans. The towering duo has been targeted 46 times this year, according to ESPN.com, and the two receivers have combined to catch 23 passes. 

A plan needs to be developed to create more space for the Buccaneers' offensive playmakers. A successful running attack and a play-action passing attack should give both Jackson and Evans more wiggle room and take advantage of Glennon's ability to stretch the field vertically. 

While the contest against Pittsburgh is merely the first step on a long journey, short-term gains can lead to long-term improvement. 

The coaching staff hasn't given up on this season, nor should it. Arroyo's play-calling is key, though, as the rest of the staff helps devise weekly game plans.

The goal for the Buccaneers moving forward is twofold. 

First and foremost, Tedford's health remains the No. 1 concern, and hopefully time off will allow him to resume his career once he's ready. 

Second, this weekend's game is the team's first step in trying to stem the tide of what appears to be the early makings of a devastating season. If the Buccaneers offense can't get off the schnide against Pittsburgh, this may be too daunting of a task for Arroyo to overcome.

Brent Sobleski covers the NFC South for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter.