Draft Successes and Failures: Diving Into the Numbers Part 3-2016

          With 25th,(412) 29th,(262) and 32nd(129) ranked drafts respectively from 2014 - 2016, that puts Buffalo at the bottom with a 3 year total of 803 points. The Bills are 210 points below the next worse team, Los Angeles Chargers. That gap is equivalent to two solid above average draft picks. That's a lot of ground to make up just to get out of last place.

          Meanwhile, Minnesota and Atlanta keep churning out good draft after good draft. Dallas and Chicago are keeping pace with two great drafts and a middle of the road draft.

          The Buccs however aren't fairing as well as I originally thought. Posting 24th, 4th and 27th place finishes respectively. As mentioned in the previous two installments, these rankings are fluid for eight years. That doesn't bode well for Tampa's chances of bouncing back. As of the time I type this, Jameis Winston and Vernon Hargreaves III are no longer on the team. Therefore will no longer generate points.

*an explanation of the points has been explained in Part I.

New England - 405
Miami - 417
N.Y. Jets - 527
Buffalo - 129

Baltimore - 551
Pittsburgh - 387
Cleveland - 553
Cincinnati - 592

Indianapolis - 506
Jacksonville - 396
Tennessee - 735
Houston - 393

Kansas City - 464
Las Vegas - 335
Los Angeles - 469
Denver - 663

Philadelphia - 541
N.Y. Giants - 337
Dallas - 761
Washington - 218

Green Bay - 557
Minnesota - 506
Chicago - 693
Detroit - 618

New Orleans - 481
Tampa Bay - 319
Carolina - 253
Atlanta - 564

Seattle - 539
San Fransisco - 283
Arizona - 137
Los Angeles - 403

2014 - 2016 Rankings
1. Minnesota - 1934
2. Chicago - 1904
3. Atlanta - 1892
4. Dallas - 1887
5. Jacksonville - 1877
6. Green Bay - 1804
7. L.A. Rams - 1795
8. Las Vegas - 1752
9. Tennessee - 1722
10. Kansas City - 1706
11. Denver - 1690
12. Houston - 1662
13. Baltimore - 1644
14. Cincinnati - 1622
15. Miami - 1519
16. Detroit - 1487
17. Cleveland - 1451
18. San Fransisco - 1428
19. Pittsburgh - 1409
20. Tampa Bay - 1382
21. New England - 1353
22. Washington - 1334
23. Carolina - 1305
24. N.Y. Giants - 1253
25. Seattle - 1212
26. Arizona - 1166
27. Philadelphia - 1159
28. Indianapolis - 1101
29. New Orleans - 1082
29. N.Y. Jets - 1082
31. L.A. Chargers - 1013
32. Buffalo - 803

Draft Successes and Failures: Diving Into the Numbers Part 2-2015

 

   
          The J-E-T-S put together back-to-back bad drafts in 2014 and 2015. After having placed 29th in 2014, they followed that up with a 32nd place finish in 2015, also putting them in 32nd place for 2014/2015 combined rankings. Minnesota and the L.A. Rams put together two good drafts in a row, while New England rebounded from a bad 2014 to 3rd in 2015.

*an explanation of the scoring is laid out in Part 1.

3. New England - 634
17. Miami - 471
32. New York - 242
30. Buffalo - 262

15. Baltimore - 488
16. Pittsburgh - 480
20. Cleveland - 433
14. Cincinnati - 491

26. Indianapolis - 354
11. Jacksonville - 529
29. Tennessee -  294
22. Houston - 396

5. Kansas City - 599
21. Las Vegas - 398
10. Los Angeles - 544
19. Denver - 441

31. Philadelphia - 248
25. New York - 370
18. Dallas - 464
13. Washington - 504

24. Green Bay - 378
1. Minnesota - 813
23. Chicago - 378
27. Detroit - 346

12. New Orleans - 527
4. Tampa Bay - 616
7. Carolina - 557
6. Atlanta - 589

28. Seattle - 303
9. San Fransisco - 548
8. Arizona - 551
2. Los Angeles - 662

2014/2015
1. Jacksonville - 1481
2. Minnesota - 1428
3. Las Vegas - 1417
4. L.A. Rams - 1392
5. Atlanta - 1328
6. Houston - 1269
7. Green Bay - 1247
8. Kansas City - 1242
9. Chicago - 1211
10. San Fransisco - 1145
11. Dallas - 1126
12. Washington - 1116
13. Miami - 1102
14. Baltimore - 1093
15. Tampa Bay - 1063
16. Carolina - 1052
17. Cincinnati - 1030
18. Arizona - 1029
19. Denver - 1027
20. Pittsburgh - 1022
21. Tennessee - 987
22. New England - 948
23. N.Y. Giants - 916
24. Cleveland - 898
25. Detroit - 869
26. L.A. Chargers - 740
27. Buffalo - 674
28. Seattle - 673
29. Philadelphia - 618
30. New Orleans - 601
31. Indianapolis - 595
32. N.Y. Jets - 555

Draft Successes and Failures: Diving Into the Numbers Part 1-2014

           In this entry I will layout the results of an analytical look into each team's past drafts. I started with 2014, because originally my intention was to see how Jason Licht compared with his peers. This undertaking is much bigger than I anticipated, and has somewhat become an obsession. It has taken six days to compile data just for the years 2014 and 2015. I intend to take this up to the current draft, backtrack to 2002, then update future drafts.

          With that said, these results will be fluid for eight seasons. The model I have created assigns points to draft picks for games, games started and longevity with their drafted team. A draft pick is given points based on years of service with the team that drafted them. The amount of points is dependent upon which round they were selected. A high draft pick can be assigned negative points for flaming out early in their career, or for being a total bust. Late round draft picks can be given bonus points for being productive longer than average late rounders historically are. Draft picks also receive a small amount of bonus points for Pro Bowls, All-Pro and a 50 point bonus for League MVP

          I will list each team's yearly scores, and their running totals in future installments. As stated above, these results are fluid for eight seasons. Meaning that after the 2020 NFL season, New England's and Miami's 2014 scores will no longer be 314 and 631.

          Las Vegas and Jacksonville blew away the others with their 2014 draft scores of 1019 and 952 respectively. New Orleans, who has been a good drafting team, just totally screwed the pooch in 2014 with a miserable score of 74. Scrolling down to the bottom will give you the rankings.

2014
New England - 314
Miami - 631
New York Jets - 313
Buffalo - 412

Baltimore - 605
Pittsburgh - 542
Cleveland - 465
Cincinnati - 539

Indianapolis - 241
Jacksonville - 952
Tennessee - 693
Houston - 873

Kansas City - 643
Las Vegas - 1019
Los Angeles - 196
Denver - 586

Philadelphia - 370
New York - 546
Dallas - 662
Washington - 612

Green Bay - 869
Minnesota - 615
Chicago - 833
Detroit - 523

Tampa Bay - 452
New Orleans - 74
Carolina - 495
Atlanta - 739

Seattle - 370
San Fransisco - 597
Arizona - 478
Los Angeles - 730

1. Las Vegas- 1019
2. Jacksonville - 952
3. Houston - 873
4. Green Bay - 869
5. Chicago - 833
6. Atlanta - 739
7. L.A. Rams - 730
8. Tennessee - 693
9. Dallas - 662
10. Kansas City - 643
11. Miami - 631
12. Minnesota - 615
13. Washington - 612
14. Baltimore - 605
15. San Fransisco - 597
16. Denver - 586
17. N.Y. Giants - 546
18. Pittsburgh - 542
19. Cincinnati - 539
20. Detroit - 523
21. Carolina - 495
22. Arizona - 478
23. Cleveland - 465
24. Tampa Bay - 452
25. Buffalo - 412
26. Philadelphia - 370
26. Seattle - 370
28. New England - 314
29. N.Y. Jets - 313
30. Indianapolis - 241
31. L.A. Chargers - 196
32. New Orleans - 74

Do Some Fans give Licht a Bad Rap?

          Recently NFL Network aired a piece on the topic of NFL GM draft trends. With that information I've compiled a list of the current GM's success in the draft as it relates to the total number of players they have drafted during their tenure, and how many of those players were pro bowlers.

          I was surprised to see where Jason Licht fell on this list, because of continuous rhetoric and whining by some Buccs fans in forums. There have been calls to fire Licht for a few years now, of which I personally have disagreed with. Has Jason missed on some picks? Yes. Has Jason made some terrible picks? Yes. All GMs do, and at a pretty comparable frequency, outside of a handful at the ends of the spectrum. Unfortunately many fans are crippled with proximity bias when assessing their favorite team, because the closeness of attention they pay to said team. Sure we as fans hear about other teams' great draft successes and their great draft busts, but the difference lies in those teams' under the radar draftees we don't hear about.

          The positively natured fan will over praise their GM's body of work, and the angry, negatively natured fan will call for their GM's head with every move made that doesn't produce a Hall of Famer. The goal of every GM is to achieve 10% pro bowlers of the players they've drafted. Jason Licht falls in the top ⅓ of the GM's in the League, which in my opinion is pretty good.

The list below is comprised of current GM's with more than one draft during their tenure.

      GM                            Team   Plyrs     PB'rs    %
1. Ryan Pace-                Chi         32         5        15.6
2. Mickey Loomis-       N.O.       115       17      14.8
3. Thomas Dimitroff-  Atl          87        12       14.0
4. Rick Spielman-         Min       120       16      13.3
5. Jerry Jones-               Dal        279       36      13.0
6. Kevin Colbert-          Pit         161       19       11.8
7. David Caldwell-        Jax         53        6        11.3
8. Tom Telesco-            LA C       46        5         10.9
9. Marty Hurney- Car(2 stints) 105      11      10.5
10. John Schneider-     Sea         97        10      9.7
11. Jason Licht-            Tam        42        4        9.5
12a. Dave Gettleman- NYG/Car 44       3         9.1
12b. Bill Belichik-         N.E.       176      16       9.1
14. Brett Veach-            K.C.        12        1         8.3
15. Howie Roseman-   Phi         80        6         7.5
16. John Lynch-            S.F.         27       2         7.4
17. Les Snead-              LA R       70       5         7.1
18a. Chris Ballard-       Ind         29       2         6.9
18b. Jon Robinson-      Ten         29       2         6.9
20. Bruce Allen-           Was        88       6         6.8
21. Bill O'Brien-            Tex        45        3         6.7
22a. Mike Brown-        Cle        258      16        6.2
22b. Brandon Bean-    Buf        16        1         6.2
24. Steve Keim-            Ari         53        3         5.7
25. Chris Grier-            Mia        29       1*        3.0*
26. Bob Quinn-             Det        34        1         2.9
27. John Elway-            Den       61       1         1.6
28. Brian Gutekunst-   G.B.       19       0         0.0

*Grier drafted 2 players who earned pro bowls after he traded them away. If you include those, 3 players for 10.3%

The Past Is A Matter of Perspective

          Well folks, it has been a very long time since I've thrown some letters together to make words, and some words together to create sentences here on this blog. Life changes, responsibility changes, workload changes and everyone's most hated change.....less spare time for fun things has unfortunately been the reason for not partaking in this hobby. Thanks to the Corona Virus sweeping the planet and Social Distancing guidelines, most people have a little more spare time on their hands, and that includes me. So let's see give it a shot.

          Buccaneer fans are a fickle bunch, a polarized bunch, a divided bunch. No matter what the topic at hand, Buccaneer fans are usually split down the middle, feverishly arguing with their fellow fans. It doesn't matter what the topic at hand is, you can guarantee the fanbase will be split. I've never been a fan of another team, so I've never had the experience of discussing topics of a shared love with any other fan base. With my having been born and raised in Rhode Island for 31 years, then relocating to Kansas City, MO a little more than 16 years ago, I have the experience of being an outside observer of two different fanbases. I can tell you one thing for sure, I've never noticed division or infighting about almost every single topic about their teams from Patriot and Chiefs fans. Certainly not like Buccaneer fans.

          So that brings me to the point of this blog entry. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers existence has two distinctly separate eras. First was 1976 through 1996 when the team donned creamsicle(Florida orange) and red, with the winking pirate Bucco Bruce on the sides of the helmet. That was followed by 1997 through present time for which the team has been colored in pewter and red, with a pirate attack flag on the sides of the helmet. Argument topics come and go. They usually pertain to a player on the roster, a draft selection, a coach, a general manager and even the ownership. They may stem from offensive or defensive scheme, offensive or defensive play calls, or when and when not to call a time out. However, the longest lasting argument is and will always be creamsicle and red vs. pewter and red.

          Some fans love and respect the old uniforms and logo. Its sentimental value tugs on their heart strings. It brings up powerful feelings of joy when the Tampa Bay area was selected as one of the new homes for an NFL franchise. It reminds them of their childhood and their young innocence watching their new found heroes play the game of football. For some it's respect like the adage and Maya Angelo quote, "You can't really know where you are going until you know where you have been." Respect and understanding for the past are paramount throughout most walks of life.

          Some fans despise the old threads and winking pirate because it brings back feelings of sadness. It brings back memories of losing, of 0-26, brown paper bags, the Yucs and Johnny Carson's almost nightly  insults of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Those colors and logo for this group of fans reminds them of the harrassment they received from other teams' fans. The harrassment and insults Buccs players received from players on other teams' rosters. They want to forget those memories and feelings, but they can't. They hate that they can't forget, therefore they hate what reminds them.

          For me personally when I see the old uniforms it reminds me of how this little boy from Rhode Island fell in love with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. My paren......errrrrrr Santa Claus brought me an NFL dartboard with velcro darts. Around the perimeter of this dart board were the helmets from all the NFL teams. As you can imagine being from the northeast, the Buccs were hardly ever on TV. That one Sunday though,  when my little brother and I were wrestling around in the living room while the TV was on and I looked up. There they were, playing at the J-E-T-S. I yelled out, "the team with the wicked awesome helmets!" I was hooked for life. No pirate pun intended. On an unrelated side note, with brothers sometimes being competitive, obviously my brother was rooting for "the green team," only because big brother was rooting for the other team. To this day, my little brother is still a J-E-T-S fan.

The biggest reason why I look at the past uniforms with favor is because it reminds me of how the Tampa Bay Buccaneers accomplished something that has never been or will ever be done. You see, a lot of people don't realize what a horrible position the Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks were put in when they entered the league as expansion teams. The rules are very different now for expansion teams. Current NFL teams protect 5 players on their rosters, and expansion teams can pluck whomever they want from any team that is not protected. Expansion teams also have the luxury of Free Agency which didn't exist in 1976. The Buccs roster at that time was made up of a bunch of players nobody else wanted on their teams, and it showed on the field as evidenced by their 0-26 start. Their truly amazing and miraculous turnaround is what gives me pride in those old uniforms and Bucco Bruce. From the day the Buccs broke their 0-26 streak of ineptness, it only took them just 34 games to go from the laughing stock of the world, to coming within one game of the Holy Grail that is playing in the Super Bowl. The same team just 34 games previously, that couldn't get out of their own way was 9 points from playing the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl, when they held the Los Angeles Rams without a touchdown in the NFC Championship game. The LA Rams could only muster 3 field goals against the team that not too long before that, was mostly made up of men who wouldn't have been NFL players had the NFL not expanded to 28 teams. That is what I think of, and the joy that comes with it when I see the creamsicle uniforms and Bucco Bruce.

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: Browns

Running smooth

The Good - Carnell Williams looked good today. His opportunities were limited with some very suspect blocking by the O-line today. The O-line is supposed to be a strength of this team that is littered with high draft picks. When the holes were there for Caddy to run through, he showed great burst, good speed and was decisive with his running. He ran tough putting his head and shoulders into each approaching tackler and picked up nice chunks of yards. His stat line looks small through no fault of his own.

The Bad - This one isn't necessarily about this game, but it certainly had an effect. Raheem Morris' decision to limit the starters playing time in the pre season was definitely a reason for today's sloppy and somewhat indecisive looking play by the team. This team is following through with it's plan to rebuild through the draft and go young, therefore the experience level on this team is at an all time low. These young players need every snap of experience they can get, and I feel limiting their preparation time this pre season was very detrimental. They looked very rusty and started off the game extremely sluggish.
I really don't know what the strategy could have been to go for it on 4th and 1 from the 2 yard line at the end of the game? Sure a Cleveland Browns TD could still have won the game for them, but it would have forced them to have to go for the TD and drive the length of the field with very little time left on the clock. Phil Dawson is an excellent Kicker who has very good distance, and gave the Browns and easy opprotunity to take that game into OT.

The Ugly - First let me say I am ecstatic about today's win. I couldn't be much happier, but the game today left something to be desired. There was a lot of ugly out there today, hence  they won ugly. The blocking was not very good, passing or rushing. The defensive pass rush was non-existent. I am not expecting miracles from our two young DT's as I know even Sapp took three seasons to break out. However, I thought there would be much more pressure even if it didn't end up in the form of sacks. Some plays it seemed like Delhomme had all day to pass. He was able to step up at will and move around to bide extra time. The tackling by the secondary was ugly, and the angles taken by the Safeties cost them big plays a couple times. Lastly, it's obvious Josh's thumb is not close to 100% healthy. His passes were weak, off their mark and fluttered like ducks. He was effective on some passes and extremely ineffective on others. He missed a wide open Mike Williams for a sure TD late in the game to take the lead, and then came right back and threw a beautiful pass hitting Spurlock in stride for the go ahead score. We didn't know what type of pass was coming until it left Josh's hand. The biggest problem facing the coaching staff is whether to just let the thumb heal or let this drag out? I'd be willing to give Johnson a shot under Center against the Panthers if Freeman comes out in game 2 looking shaky. Lastly, I wasn't thrilled with the play calling. I'm not going to bash Olsen by any means, but I was left scratching my head a few times. Caddy's first couple runs between the tackles netted great results. After getting shut down on a few sweeps and runs outside I thought Greg would go back to calling run plays between the tackles. He kept with it for longer than I thought and we were getting run down for no gains. I think those quick strike passes to the WR behind the line of scrimmage were extremely risky with Freeman's current thumb situation.

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC 

NavyBuc93! Knowledgeable Bucc Fan or Village Idiot?

NavyDunce93

I frequent the PewterReport.com message boards for new and exciting info, breaking news, insight from other Buccaneer fans and occasional humor. Sometimes reading forum blabber by some fans is as good entertainment as going to an Adam Sandler or Jim Carey movie, and best of all it's free. Sure I wouldn't mind having an ice cold Pepsi and some nachos smother with cheese and jalapenos to go along with my comedy show but I'll take what I can get.

One forum poster who goes by the name NavyBuc93 is a barrel of laughs. Everybody, including myself has made the occasional blunder, borked on a bad prediction, wasn't 100%  accurate about a league rule, or propped up a player who later failed. NavyBuc however takes the cake. Every player that is released he wants the Buccs to sign. Every player who's name he has heard uttered by Mel Kiper or Mike Mayock he wants the Buccs to draft. If you go to his PewterReport statistics page you will see his "Most Popular Boards By Activity" is the Fantasy Football Board. So I guess it make a little sense that he thinks the real NFL GM's wheel and deal like him and his pals do for 13 weeks a year.

Navy was beating his drum loud and clear, louder than most, that he thought Mark Dominik needed to trade Derrick Ward and Mike Clayton. Well, any Buccaneer fan with a half of a brain didn't want Ward or Clayton on the roster any longer than they needed to be. However fans with half of a brain knew that no one, not one team in the NFL was going to offer anything to the Buccs for the underachieving Ward or Clayton and their big contracts. Once more knowledgeable fans finally beat that notion into NavyBuc's head post after post after post, he switched his mantra to call for Dominik to "cut these bum's today." It didn't matter that the Buccs had dozens of training camp practices and multiple pre season games left, by GOD NavyBuc93 wanted those guys gone now. I guess the thought never crossed his mind that Williams, Stroughter and Stovall each could have potentially landed on IR or with a long term injury? Did it ever cross Navy's mind that Carnell Williams is one of the most injury prone Halfbacks in the NFL? What precluded Huggins from the ill fate of a pre season game injury? The dumbest thing any GM could do is cut a serviceable player before he absolutely needs to. I can see NacyBuc going out on his dingy without his compass because after all, he's just going for a small boat ride. Then the storm rolls in and takes him out to sea. Next thing you know thousands of Federal dollars are being wasted while Coast Guard Search and Rescue helicopters do a grid search of the ocean. Be prepared Navy, be prepared. Weren't you a Boyscout?

Today though I had to laugh the most. Today was a double feature, he gave us two shows back to back. First he rips off this gem;
"What is the hold up?"
"It kind of bothers me that Dominik and Morris have yet to attack the Waiver wire. I know they cannot be happy with holding 7 WRs and 5 Safetys. That is 2 spots that can be devoted towards the OL or another DE. I personally want to see us go after some OL depth and it just is highly bothering that this team is satisfied with total utter putrid crap that is Hardman and James Lee. I mean you got so much better talent out there and you are rolling with these guys? I was hoping we would hit the waiver wire hard this off-season. By this time I am sure all those guys cleared waivers and will be Practice Squad material. Will someone explain why we cant get 2 starting caliber guys (Seth Olsen and Donald Thomas) on our roster for depth?

I just hope it is soon because guys I would like to see be gone for talent are Reggie Brown, Sabby Pisctielli, John Gilmore, Derek Hardman, and James Lee, and Erik Lorig. 6 people that can open up spots for some real NFL talent."
There is an easy answer for this one NavyBuc93, it's called The Rules.

Later in the day he dazzles us with his dissatisfaction once again as to how a real GM does his job. I mean hell, if Packer Smackers wanted to offer a trade to L'il Benji's Boys, all he'd have to do is go to the trade page on his Fantasy site and offer Derek Anderson and Ronnie Brown for Peyton Manning. That's a fair trade right? Two for one always makes it even when someone wants your franchise players....LMAO. Today Mark Dominik had NavyBuc steaming though, smoke could be seem coming from his ears like an old Tom and Jerry cartoon. Cut Smith? A ProBowl returner, are you serious? This is an OUTRAGE!!
If he was released to make room for this Lumpkin guy I will really be pissed. Smith is a Pro Bowl returner. He should have been traded if it was possible
You do know Trent Dilfer was a ProBowler once right? Being named to a ProBowl doesn't give you an automatic bid for the Hall of Fame my friend. Was a trade possible you want to know? That is a matter of semantics. (Navy, click this link if you need know what semantics means) OK, so I do know that Navy knows that all 32 teams had a deadline yesterday to get their rosters down to 53 players. But today NavyBuc93 demands to know why Smith wasn't traded to make room for Larsen. There goes another one of those damn pesky rules Goodell has in place just to screw the Buccs. Why can't the Buccs just have 54 players for a little while until they can trade Smith? What's wrong with that huh Navy?

I know, Dominik should have sent out a League wide email;

Dear Other 31 GM's,

I want to claim Larsen off waivers from the Patriots. But I have this fan who goes by the moniker NavyBuc93, and he is really going to be mad at me if I don't try and trade Clifton Smith. Can you guys please, please, please not sign Larsen off waivers so I can find a team to trade Clif to? If you guys do me this favor, I'll get you all VIP passes to Mons Venus next time the SuperBowl is in town.

Sincerely,
 Mark Dominik

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

Gruden Left the Cupboard Bare.

Clayton drops one of many

With the release of Mike Clayton yesterday, another blown high draft pick, it got me thinking as to just how bad Gruden was at talent evaluation and decision making. Now we all know Al Davis is the decision man in Oakland. We all remember how pissed off Gruden was when Al picked a Kicker in the 1st round(17 overall) which led to a rift between Al and Jon. Everyone knew Gruden was leaving after his contract was up, as his Agent came right out and stated so even though Jon danced around the question during interviews. Gruden wanted to go some place where he had control over the decisions, and personnel.

Now if you want to believe that the Glazers would give up two 1st rounders, two 2nd rounders and $8 mil and not guarantee Jon that he'd have more control over the decision making and personnel, then you are naive. Jon had so much control that a power struggle behind the scenes, between he and Rich McKay ensued. Rich McKay had his faults, but he did help construct a SuperBowl winning roster that Gruden had the luxury of riding it's coattails to a victory in his first season. After Rich McKay was allowed to leave before his contract expired, Jon Gruden hand picked his own GM Bruce Allen. Hand picked GM by his coach? That is absurd, but just more evidence as to how much decision making power laid in Jon's hands.

So lets take a look back at Gruden's mighty drafting prowess dating back to his first season. Bolded players will represent players still on the Buccaneers roster that were drafted by the Gruden regime. The number in parenthesis represents the number of selections that year.

2002(8)
Marquise Walker
Travis Stephens
Jermaine Phillips
John Stamper
Tim Wansley

Tracey Wistrom
Aaron Lockett
Zack Quaccia
2003(6)
Dewayne White
Chris Simms
Lance Nimmo
Austin King
Sean Mahan
Torrie Cox
2004(8)
Michael Clayton
Marquise Cooper
Will Allen
Jeb Terry
Nate Lawrie
Mark Jones
Casey Cramer
Lenny Williams
2005(12)
Carnell Williams
Barrett Ruud
Alex Smith
Chris Colmer
Dan Buenning
Donte Nicholson
Larry Brackins
Anthony Bryant
Rick Razzano
Paris Warren
Hamza Abdullah
J.R. Russell
2006(10)
Davin Joseph
Jeremy Trueblood
Maurice Stovall
Alan Zemaitis
Julian Jenkins
Bruce Gradkowski
T.J. Williams
Justin Phinisee
Charles Bennett
Tim Massaquoi
2007(9)
Gaines Adams
Arron Sears
Sabby Piscitelli
Quincy Black
Tanard Jackson
Adam Hayward
Chris Henman
Marcus Hamilton
Kenneth Darby
2008(7)
Aqib Talib
Dexter Jackson
Jeremy Zuttah
Dre Moore
Josh Johnson
Geno Hayes
Cory Boyd





Of a total sixty(60) draft selections between 2002 and 2008, thirteen(13) remain and contribute to this team. That is a whopping 21% success rate. Of those thirteen players still remaining, only five were 1st or 2nd round selections. Gruden had eleven 1st or 2nd round selections between 2002 and 2008, so that is less than 50% success on the selections that are supposed to be the foundation of your franchise.

Some fans want to blame Raheem Morris or the Glazers for being cheap as a result for the team's current status as bottom feeder. When in reality, whether the Glazers are cheap or not, whether they are in financial trouble or not, who were they supposed to spend their money on? Had Gruden had any type of success at drafting and talent evaluation, this roster would be littered with players playing under their more lucrative second contracts, thus increasing the payroll. As it stands now, there really was no one to spend their money on. Gruden left the cupboard bare, and Raheem Morris and Mark Dominik were left to restock it.

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

Signing Ward In '09 Was the Right Move

Hindsight is 20/20

Flashback to the 2009 offseason, and the Halfback position was filled with uncertainty. Ernest Graham came off his amazing feel good story of the 2007 season, and followed that up with decent success in '08 but only played in 10 games. Carnell Williams was coming back from his second severe knee injury, and Michael Bennett proved to be a wasted FA signing. After 5 games, Bennett was now a San Deigo Charger.

The Halfback cupboard was bare, and the Free Agent pool was slim pickings. The lone bright spot was Derrick Ward. Ward was a proven runner in the NFL. A successful 1000 yard back in a very crowded backfield, Ward was the "Wind" in the Giants now famous Earth, Wind and Fire backfield. The Giants were only one season removed from the remarkable upset of the 16-0 New England Patriots in the SuperBowl, and Ward had a large hand in the Giants' success the previous 2 seasons.

Ward was signed by Tampa and at the time it was a brilliant move. Unfortunately Ward got his 1st big pay day, and forgot that you actually have to play football in the NFL. He started off '09 by not showing up for offseason voluntary workouts, and followed that up with slow adaption to the new OC and playbook. His 2009 regular season was very disappointing and unproductive. With the re-emergence of Cadillac Williams, and Ward's apparent lack of focus, Williams reclaimed the starting Halfback job and held on to it the entire season. Ward became an after thought by the latter part of the season. He barely touched the ball, and when he did he didn't give the coaching staff any reasons to feed him the ball more. 

Now we reach the present and Ward shows his team and fans just how dedicated he is to right the wrongs of '09 by showing up to camp overweight and out of shape. His performances in the preseason games are horrible, unproductive and show no signs of fire. So the Buccs front office does the right thing and cuts him. Of course the front office and coaching detractors will use this as ammunition to bash them and cry aloud from the roof tops, "THAT WAS A HORRIBLE FREE AGENT SIGNING!" When in reality, given the team's severe need at HB, the shallow pool of free agent HB's and the production and success Ward had with the Giants at the time it was a brilliant signing. Who knew Ward would fall prey to Fat Cat Syndrome and throw his career away? You can't fault the Buccs front office for trying to make the team better.

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: Jaguars

One of Black's seven tackles Sat. night

The Good - Quincy Black was a man possessed Saturday night. He was all over the field, from QB hits and hurries to dropping running backs for losses. He was seen from sideline to sideline wreaking havoc, and it was a beautiful sight. Some fans were starting to give up hope in Quincy before Raheem took over the DC duties last season and showed some real star power at the Sam Backer spot. Fans were high on Black coming out of New Mexico, as we were told he played the same position as Brian Urlacher and was quite successful at it. Many had Black already appointed to future Mike Backer. Some even dabbled in the thought that he could be Brooks' heir apparent. Unfortunately Quincy never set the world on fire. Well that was until the latter part of last season and he's carrying that over into this season. Saturday night Q tied Ronde for the team lead in tackles with 7, and had a coming out party of sorts. Continued play like that into the season will surely help the defense get back into top 10 status.

The Bad - Reggie Brown is on the bubble to make this roster, and while so many Buccaneer fans want to close the chapter that is Mike Clayton, Reggie isn't grasping the brass ring. Brown's recorded 0 Catches for 0 Yards, had a sure TD pass bounce off his hands, and another pass hit off his hands and fall incomplete. I was excited when I first learned that Mark D had pulled off a trade for Brown for a low 6th round pick. Brown took the League by storm, got injured and then pretty much disappeared. He does however have talent, but he's not using it. Saturday night may just have sealed his fate although he made the first round of cuts today. Thursday night will have to be his highlight reel game if he wants to keep his spot. As much as I am done with Mike Clayton, if Brown doesn't show some legit flash Thursday, I'd rather keep Mike.


The Ugly - The Offensive line was horrible Saturday night. Some players performed better than others, but as a whole unit it was most ineffective. Oddly, the one HB who had been under performing(Ward) got the benefit of the few holes that were opened that night. The O-Line which is mostly made up of 1st and 2nd round picks has had some success the past few years. However Aaron Sears(2nd round), Dan Buenning(4th round) and Chris Colmer(3rd round) turned out to be busts, and largely responsible for the lack of depth on the O-line at this time. Davin Joseph was inactive for the game due to injury and his replacement Jeremy Zuttah has not lived up to the hype of a 2nd round pick. We need the 1st string O-Line to remain healthy the entire season, or the offense could be stymied on occasion this season.

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

What Exactly Is It About Kareem Huggins?

Plain and simple, Huggins gets yards!

Kareem Huggins has caught the eye of many Buccaneer fans. Some fans are ecstatic about his potential, while others are watching him with guarded optimism and fingers crossed, and of course he has his detractors. What is it about Huggins that had so many fans excited? What is he doing out there on the field that Derrick Ward isn't doing? Some would call me crazy if I tried to convince them undrafted second year pro Huggie is a better halfback than the seasoned veteran Ward. After all, Ward put up very good numbers for the SuperBowl winning Giants, so he must not suck. The big difference I am seeing is the quality of the O-line Ward had to run behind in NY during his time there. The holes Ward had to run through were huge. It didn't take much skill other than being able to run fairly quickly in a straight line. Unfortunately for Ward those holes aren't here in Tampa, and he has shown so far in his Buccaneer career that he is unable to create his own opportunities or create his own yards.

That's what separates Kareem Huggins from Derrick Ward whom I believes is a better Halfback than Ward and deserves to back-up Carnell Williams. Many fans are wondering why Kareem hasn't been listed as #2 behind Caddy yet? I think Raheem is giving Derrick every opportunity to succeed, and I don't think he can or will take advantage of those opportunities. He hasn't so far.

So what is it about Kareem? Kareem is the type of player who finds yards that aren't there. He creates opportunities even if the offense doesn't provide them and the defense doesn't give them to him. Let's take a look at what Kareem has done so far this preseason. In this first part I have broken down each of his carries against the Dolphins, and will try to point out what I saw through my own eyes and convey that to you. Later I will do the same for the Chiefs game.

Versus Dolphins Quarter 3
14:05 2nd & 19 - Kareem takes the hand off on a shotgun draw play. He runs right following the lead block of pulling lineman Marc Dile. The DE beats Dile and forces Huggins to stop dead in his tracks for what looks like a 1 yard loss. Kareem immediately cuts right out of the grasp of the DE and bounces outside. Three Dolphin defenders pursue nicely and take away the outside. Huggins cuts back inside and makes all three defenders over pursue and miss the tackle opportunity. He is then tackled by a 4th Dolphin defender, but not before picking up 5 yards on a run that should have been stuffed for a loss.
12:31 2nd & 10 - Kareem takes the hand off left inside Tackle. He cuts inside just a hair and hits a nice hole. He shows a great burst of speed. The Safety takes a nice angle to Huggins, but his speed is too much for the Safety and beats the angle. This forces the Safety to make a diving tackle at Huggins feet which allows him to pick up and extra 8 yards after initial contact at the Miami 36 yard line, eventually being dropped at the Miami 28.
11:48 1st & 10 - Kareem takes the hand off left and heads off Tackle. The Buccs O-line takes the D-line left by down blocking. The RDE seals off the edge not allowing Huggins outside, and the D-line does a nice job of going with the pressure and seals up the hole on the left side. Kareem sees a cut back lane off the right hip of the Center and between the right Guard. Huggins make a nice cut right and takes it for a 4 yard gain.
8:23 1st & 10 - Kareem takes the hand off left and follows his lead blocking Fullback. There is a small hole the FB leads him through, but just as Kareem hits the hole the RDE blows up the left Tackle pushing the Tackle backwards into Huggins' left shoulder twisting him sideways and knocking him off balance as he enters the hole and is met by a Dolphin defender. Kareem keeps pumping his legs pushing the defender backwards and eventually picks up 4 yards before being brought down.
7:43 2nd & 6 - Marc Dile totally whiffs on his block and Kareem is met 5 yards in the backfield as he receives the hand off from Rudy Carpenter.
7:04 3rd & 11 - Halfback screen left. Huggins catches the ball, turns up field, surveys his lead blockers then seems to turn on another gear and displays an amazing burst of speed to pick up the 1st down for 14 yards.
6:18 1st & 10 - Kareem takes the hand off left inside Tackle. He stutter steps to give the hole time to open up. He hits the hole hard and is forced to cut back inside. He breaks a tackle attempted by a LB at the 43 yard line. Forced to bounce outside due to Safety pursuit, he is met by the CB coming off a block. He breaks the attempted tackle by the CB as he feels the pressure and ducks under the tackle, once again cutting back inside where he is eventually dropped for a 17 yard gain.
5:32 1st & 10 - Huggins takes the hand off left and is dropped for a 1 yard loss as he is met by the DE, DT and LB who all got line of scrimmage penetration.
4:49 2nd & 11 - Karrem takes the hand off up the middle. The offensive line gets blown up and drive off the lie of scrimmage and Huggins is dropped in the backfield for a 2 yard loss.

Versus Chiefs Quarter 2
7:52 2nd & 10 - Hand off right inside Tackle. There is no hole and Linebacker comes off the edge and looks like Kareem will be stopped in the backfield. Kareem beats the Linebacker to the line of scrimmage and backer makes first contact with Huggins at the 22 1/2 yard line, then begins to be dragged by Huggins. Kareem makes a quick cut right to avoid players laying on the ground and now has the LB and a Defensive End trying to drag him down. Kareem is eventually dragged down at the 28 for a 6 yard gain.
6:57 1st & 10 - Hand off right behind Joseph and Kareem takes the ball up the 4 hole. Cornerback comes crashing down and attempts a diving tackle. Kareem senses the pressure and skips laterally to his left at the 50 yard line almost avoiding the tackle. CB manages to keep a hold of Kareem's left foot, but Huggins manages to drag the defender as he hops forward picking up an additional 6 yards after contact for a 13 yard gain.
5:45 2nd & 5 - Halfback draw up the middle. Hayward lead blocks, but gets blown up at the point of attack. Adam gets pushed backwards and turned sideways giving the LB a lane. Linebacker's momentum carries him forward and stumbling, he dives at Huggin's legs who is coming right at him. Huggins executes a quick hurdle as he squeezes through a small hole, just over the reaching arms of the LB at the line of scrimmage and is eventually brought down for a 3 yard gain.

Quarter 3
15:00 1st & 10 - Hand off up the middle. Defensive End peels off FB's block and gets an arm around Huggins in the backfield. He drags Kareem down from behind but not before he is able to grind out 4 yards.
14:25 2nd & 6 - Halfback draw, Linebacker comes off the edge untouched within arms reach of Huggins 5 yards deep in the backfield. Kareem quickly side steps left just out of the LB's reach. The Defensive End beats the Tight End inside and has a clean shot on Kareem 3 yards deep in the backfield. Huggins quickly sidesteps back to the right giving the TE time to re-engage the DE. DE gets just an arm on Kareem as he drags the DE 7 yards until he gets help bringing Huggins down after a 5 yard gain.
8:53 1st & 10 - Hand off left off Tackle. Nothing spectacular on this run. Kareem bounces it outside twice for  4 yard gain. His lateral movement just looks so effortless.
0:36 1st & 10 - Hand off up the middle. Kareem stutter steps, finds a hole to the right of the Center/ Linebacker meets Huggins at the hole but Kareem shakes him off. He just has an uncanny way of just shifting his legs out of the way of would be tacklers without losing his rhythm or balance. Huggins weaves left and right for a 9 yard gain to end the 3rd Quarter.

Quarter 4
15:00 2nd & 10 - Hand off up the middle. No where for him to go, as he tries to bounce it outside he is swallowed up for no gain.
14:20 3rd & 1 - Hand off right. Kareem gets into a small seam and hits the hole hard, shows his burst of speed and races down field for a 20 yard gain..............but all for naught as Derrick Hardiman gets called for holding.

These are just my observations. Your eyes may have seen something different. I'm beginning to believe there could be something special about Huggins. Only time and opportunity will tell.

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: Chiefs

Ward with another bad showing.

The Good - Mike Williams continues to shine and prove to excited Buccaneer fans that he may have been the steal of the draft. Williams was characterized in pre-draft analysis  as having 1st round talent, but character concerns and commitment issues had him falling down the draft boards league wide. Williams claimed to have expressed himself and his situation to teams during interviews, and felt comfortable that any questions they had about him were answered. We don't know how other teams felt about Williams after said interviews, but we do know that the Tampa Bay Buccaneer front office felt Mike Williams was too good to pass up when he was sitting there at the top of round 4. Tampa had just drafted WR Arrelious Benn with their second pick of the 2nd round, but that did not stop them from investing another draft pick at the same position. Williams Came up big early catching a wide receiver screen for 16 yards and a 13 yard slant over the middle. Both catches came on third down and converted first downs for Tampa. Williams made a great 15 yard catch near the sidelines on cornerback Brandon Carr while keeping his feet in bounds to make it count. Williams finished the night with three catches for 44 yards.

The Bad - I have seen enough of Derrick Ward. At this point, unless he has a phenomenal 3rd and 4th preseason game performance, I can't see how a roster spot can be wasted on him. One can only use the same words so many times. Slow, tentative, no burst, lacking vision, unsure, those are the words to describe Ward this offseason and during the first two preseason games. Last week after the Dolphins game, Ward whined to the media about having to run in that mud and made excuses for his horrible performance even though Cadillac Williams and Kareem Huggins performed admirably in the same conditions. He followed up those excuses with a guarantee to perform better against the Chiefs at Raymond James Stadium Saturday night. Following his terrible game against the Dolphins, Ward put up a dismal 5 carries for 12 yards(2.2 avg) in the box score.


The Ugly - Ugly? Yes ugly. Why? Well, besides Doug Williams for a short window in the late 70's and early 80's Tampa has never been able to stake claim to having a franchise QB. Some teams have had multiple franchise QB's. Hell, San Fransisco had two back to back Hall of Famers at the QB position. Of course that makes it even more painful to know that Steve Young was a Buccaneer and we let him get away. For a fan base that has been starving for a franchise QB for so long, it goes without saying the amount of excitement and hope surrounding Josh Freeman. With expectations at an all time high coupled with a great first preseason game, it was a crushing blow to learn that Josh had exited the game early Saturday night early not because Raheem Morris wanted to spare his QB a chance to become injured, but that he in fact was injured. When I first heard that he had fractured his thumb, it felt like I had gotten kicked in the gut. Still it is unsettling to know that he will be unable to throw for the next 2 plus weeks, but optimism is abound at the prognosis. Josh should be back for Week 1. Let's hope he's not too rusty after 2 weeks off.

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

Freeman Breaks Thumb vs. Chiefs

Thumbs down for Freeman!

Josh Freeman's second season as the uncontested started for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers started out perfect. With one of the knocks on Josh's game coming out of college being his accuracy, his 2010 campaign started out 6/6. Len Dawson, Chiefs' Hall of Fame QB and current radio commentator joked after Freeman completing his second pass that, "Josh Freeman's next incomplete pass will be his first of 2010." However, that ill fated 7th pass on 2nd and 5 from Kansas City's 13 yard line, Josh dropped back to pass and attempted to deliver the ball to tight end John Gilmore. Josh's thumb banged into Tamba Hali's helmet during the follow through of his throwing motion, and sustained a small fracture to the tip of his thumb. Freeman showed no signs of being hurt that were able to be noticed on the television broadcast, but on the following play Josh attempted another pass to wide receiver Sammie Stroughter that was way off it's mark and fell incomplete. "It was the next play, I couldn't really grab the ball," Freeman said, when asked about the loss of  strength in his thumb.

Freeman is expected to miss the rest of the preseason practices and exhibition games. He is supposed to be ready and able to practice the week of Tampa's first scheduled regular season game against the Cleveland Browns. How much this injury will set Josh back in his preparation for the 2010 season is unknown. What is known however is that his unquestionable work ethic and study habits displayed this offseason have him ahead of the anticipated progress curve. After a promising rookie seasons where Josh showed flashes of brilliance mixed among his expected rookie mistakes, the buzz was at an all time high throughout Buccaneer Nation. Freeman has been showing vast improvement during offseason workouts and training camp, and it showed on the field for his first six passes of 2010. Now we play the waiting and hoping game. Waiting until he heals, and hoping he has no set backs. Get well soon Josh.

Go Buccs!!!

ABuccsFan/JJC

Gout Sidelines Clifton Smith

"The Devil himself gnawing on your foot."

Clifton Smith has been absent of late, and for the Dolphins game he was listed as having a hamstring injury. For the Chiefs game, no explanation was given other than "inactive." TBO.com reported Saturday evening after the Chiefs game that Clifton Smith has had a Gout flare up. Gout is a condition caused by the body not ridding itself of Uric Acid properly. The levels of Uric Acid increase in the blood stream, and tiny sharp crystals form that settle in the lower joints and stab or irritate the nerve endings and tissue around joints. It most commonly affects the joint of the big toe, but has been known to attack the entire foot, the ankle and the knees. It is rare, but has been known to affect the upper extremities as well.

As a long sufferer of Gout, I can attest to it's grueling pain. At times it is so unbearable you wish someone would cut your foot off. It's constant and there are no positions of comfort like a bad ankle sprain. The weight of a simple bed sheet on top of your foot can feel like a 20 ton truck crushing it beneath it's wheels. I have had rotator cuff surgery, throat and naso septal surgery and stomach surgery. They were extremely painful but couldn't compare to the pain of a severe Gout attack. I would gladly trade having each of those surgeries again in return to never have a Gout flare up again.

In addition to severe pain, the affected area gets red and hot to the touch and extremely swollen. Some patients have experienced tearing of the skin due to swelling beyond the skins capacity to stretch. A British Caricaturist by the name of James Gillray attempted to describe to those who have never suffered from Gout, by painting a picture depicting what Gout felt like to him, which I have displayed above. He described it as the "Devil himself gnawing on your foot." In the picture you can see the depiction of the Devil sinking his teeth and claws into the red swollen skin of the big toe joint, and the flames breathing out his nose showing the constant burning sensation.

Get well soon Clifton.


Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

Kareem Huggins To Get 1st String Reps

Huggins rips off 35 yards

According to the St. Pete Times, Kareem Huggins will see action on the field early in the game Saturday night against the Chiefs, running behind the 1st string offensive line. Kareem has opened some eyes during OTA's and early in Buccaneers Training Camp down at 1 Buc Place in Tampa. Huggins has displayed good speed and quickness. He has shown off his burst through the holes running with authority and has ripped of a few long runs during camp at times. He has caught the eye of fellow players, fans and media outlets attending camp, but the most important eye he has caught is that of his head coach, Raheem Morris.

"You want to go out there and see your two backs play,'' coach Raheem Morris said. "You want to see (Derrick) Ward, you want to see Cadillac. You want to see how good is Kareem Huggins? How good would he be behind the first line? What would he look like if he as an opportunity. And you know me, I'm always big into giving guys opportunity...you just want to get a look at some people under the fire, under the radar, under the gun. And he's one of those guys you want to try to get out there a little bit earlier to see if he can do it.''

Huggins impressed me last season on a few occasions and I was really looking forward to seeing his progression this offseason. Huggins, a 2009 undrafted free agent out of Hofstra University was signed by the Buccs and spent his time waiting for an opportunity on the practice squad. Apparently that opportunity has come knocking and I fully expect Kareem to answer the door. This also comes as a welcome surprise if he can pick up the slack left behind by a struggling Derrick Ward. This is Ward's second season with Tampa after signing as a free agent in 2009, and he has yet to live up to his billing. We'll have to keep a close eye on Huggins the Saturday night.

Go Buccs!!!

ABuccsFan/JJC

New Banner

Just wanted to recognize and give a little shout out to MissingNo. aka Matt from GoalLineBlitz.com for making my new banner. Thanks Matt

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

What Game Was Pat Yasinskas Watching?

Ward going nowhere?

Below are quotes from Pat Yasinskas

• I know the playbook is a lot more sophisticated with offensive coordinator Greg Olson. But there was one moment when I had to laugh out loud as the Bucs ran a play that reminded me of the mid-1990s. Derrick Ward took a handoff and ran straight into fullback Chris Pressley’s back. It was just a one-time thing. But there was a time back in the dreary old days when Errict Rhett taking a handoff, running into Mike Alstott’s back and plowing for a yard or two was Tampa Bay’s signature play.
• Speaking of Ward, who’s fighting to earn more carries, he looked good at times. He even was having a nice run on a third-down draw play, until he fumbled. Turning the ball over probably will wipe out the rest of the good stuff he did Saturday. The Bucs aren’t going to be a team with a big margin for error, so they’re not going to give a lot of carries to a guy who puts the ball on the ground.

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcsouth/post/_/id/11903/observations-on-the-buccaneers-2

I'm not going to sit here and bash Pat Yasinskas, because he is the Professional. He is the one who gets paid to write and give his sports opinion, and in the grand scheme of things I am nobody. However I have to ask, what game were you watching Pat? Derrick Ward looked terrible. Terrible the entire time, not "good at times" as you stated. The field conditions sucked but that can not and should not be used as an excuse. Caddy and Kareem Huggins both ran on the same surface and performed leaps and bounds better than Ward. Sure you could also argue that Huggins was playing against lesser competition later in the game. I will counter that it didn't matter what Huggins was up against, as Kareem looked fluid with a nice burst of speed. He hit the holes with authority and was able to cut nicely on a ghastly playing surface. Ward looked slow, tentative to hit the hole and almost confused as to where he should be running.

So I now ask, how does Ward's horrible running Saturday night become Olson's fault? It's not like the Buccs had a different Offensive Coordinator calling the plays when Caddy and Huggins were on the field. How is it Olson's fault that Ward flat out ran badly? With every article about the Buccaneers that you write, there can always be found at least 1 pot-shot taken at the team. I too remember Rhett running into the backs of O-linemen and fullbacks. I also remember Mike Pittman doing the same thing under the direction of Jon Gruden. That was weak Pat, very weak.

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

The Good, The Bad & The Ugly: Dolphins

In horrible conditions Freeman was perfect.

The Good - It's too early to get head over heals excited about our franchise QB Josh Freeman, but he sure as heck gave us a glimpse of what we could be see week in and week out when the games start to matter this September. 4/4 for 53 yards and 1TD isn't spectacular to look at on paper, but when you consider that this was Josh's first live game action this season, and it came during a torrential downpour, it is impressive. Football players are supposed to be able to perform in bad weather right? Well, if you consider the fact that Sun Life Stadium in Miami is also home to the Florida Marlins during this time of year, then you know that the field was not entirely covered by grass. The majority of Saturday night's game was unfortunately played on the infield section of the baseball diamond. Especially when the first team offenses and defenses were in the game. The field reminded me of dark brown oatmeal. The players' cleats had mud caked on them an inch think and players looked like they were enjoying a Sunday family outing at the local skating rink the way they were slipping and sliding. However Josh let that distraction escape from his mind during the game and had great pocket awareness as he was able to feel the pressure and escape when he needed too. His passes were crisp, strong and accurate. Freeman put beautiful touch on a 30 yard pass to rookie Mike Williams and dropped the ball right into his arms as he raced down the sidelines well covered by Miami CB Vontae Davis. Mike had the concentration to get both feet in bounds and hold onto the ball. That play set up Freeman's 13 yard TD pass to 2nd year WR Sammie Stroughter to give the Buccs a 7-0 early lead while both team's 1st string players graced the field. I also have to give a shout out to Carnell Williams, Kareem Huggins and EJ Biggers who performed exceptionally well.

The Bad - Barrett Ruud has led the team in tackles for a while now. But his tackle stats are misleading. Many of his tackles are drag down tackles, and Ruud seems to lack the thumping power needed by a MLB. Many times when meeting the ball carrier, said ball carrier will get an extra 1-3 yards after contact which can be the difference between a punt or first down. Barrett is in the middle of a contract squabble with the front office as he is looking for a long term commitment from the Buccs. No one knows for sure why the team hasn't offered him the deal, he is seeking but it can only be assumed the team doesn't feel he is the MLB they desire to anchor their defense. At 12:19 of the 1st quarter Saturday, Barrett put himself in position to make a great play and drop Ronnie Brown for a 1 yard loss on 3rd and 2. Instead Ruud completely whiffed on the tackle allowing Brown to run free for extra yards and pick up the 1st down. It is these types of plays that leave this fan wondering if Ruud can be our long term answer at MLB.

The Ugly - The only thing uglier than the playing surface Saturday night was watching Derrick Ward run the ball. It was pathetic and saddening. I would not be hurt if he were cut tomorrow. However, because of Carnell's injury history we might be forced to hold onto the bum. Derrick had a few good runs last seasons, but failed to live up to the hype of being the team's biggest Free Agent acquisition last season. There were a lot of excuses as to why Ward underperformed last season, as I'm sure Ward would love to have us believe the field conditions were to blame for his paltry performance Saturday of 20 yards on 12 carries(1.7 avg). Unfortunately he has no defense in that argument as Cadillac and 2nd year Practice Squad player Kareem Huggins ran for 21 yards on 4 carries(5.3 avg) and 55 yards on 8 carries(6.3 avg) respectively, while running on the same surface as Ward did. If Huggins continues to outperform Ward like he did the other night, Ward could find himself spending lots of time on the sidelines this fall or maybe even find himself donning a different colored uniform?

Go Buccs!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

Starting Fresh For a New Era

First thing I would like to do is apologize to my faithful readers and friends for my long absence. I am ashamed to say that I let my emotions get the better of me, and therefore lost interest in my hobby of writing about my beloved favorite team....the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I had grown so frustrated and angry watching the Jon Gruden led Buccaneers underachieve that I let my frustration and disappointment turn into a unhealthy hatred for Jon Gruden. Instead of trying to find good things to talk about and write about, all I could focus on was trying to prove the the Gruden Groupies wrong by pointing out all Jon's faults and why I thought he was overrated. Thankfully this blog is not littered with a bunch of anti-Gruden rhetoric like some of the message boards I have left in my wake.

Well friends and fellow fans, there is so much to be excited about now in this new era of Bucc Ball that it's time to start fresh. Time to turn over a new leaf, forget about the former coach and focus our attention on our new and exciting young players. It's time to get back to enjoying everything that is Red and Pewter.

Go Buccs!!!!
ABuccsFan/JJC

Where's the Killer Instinct?

The Dallas Cowboys were a bruised, battered and bewildered team. A team standing at the edge of being swallowed into the abyss of a wasted season. Injuries, egos, wasted opportunity and turmoil had the once NFC favorite at 3 losses into a season that hadn't even reached it's halfway point. They were a wounded animal waiting, wishing to be put out of it's misery.

In comes the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a perfect position to put them out of their misery. The Dallas Cowboys are a team loaded with talent. A team that will still be the favorite to win the NFC and represent in the Superbowl if they make it to the playoff tournament with a healthy Tony Romo. Do the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a team many consider to be over achieving this season want to see the Dallas Cowboys again? Do they want to square off against them again in January?

With a win in Dallas Sunday, the Buccaneers could have dropped the Cowboys to 4-4 and maintained a tie breaking advantage over them. With such opponents as the New York Giants, home and away, at Washington, at Pittsburgh and at Philadelphia it's not out of the realm of possibility that the Cowboys could have toppled to a 9-7 or worse 8-8 record while their star QB's pinkie was healing and returning to 100%.

It's just one game, but the Buccs had the chance to step on their throats, put the nail in their coffin, drive a stake in their hearts....whatever stupid analogy you want to use here. Where's the killer instinct? Where's the testicular fortitude? Where's the drive for greatness? The Pewter Pirates had the chance to stand up in the crowd and say look at me, I am for real. Buccs fans are always crying about never getting National recognition, but every time they have a chance to break the door down, they come up short. Another absolute stinker on National television.

The Buccaneer offense under the guidance and tutelage of the "great young offensive mind," Jon Gruden, the "offensive genius," struggled once again to score TD's when inside the red zone. Tampa's Gruden led offense has been absolutely pathetic trying to score inside the red zone since he has been the Head Coach. The always vaunted Buccaneer defense held 2 of the best offenses in the NFL, Denver Broncos and Dallas Cowboys to 16 and 13 points respectively. What did former Buccaneer and future Hall of Famer Warren Sapp used to say? "Get me 17 points, and I'll get you a win." The Buccs defense held the Boys to 172 total yards. 172 yards! Marion Barber some weeks accumulates 172 yards by himself. Terrell Owens on occasion has exceeded 172 yards in a game by himself. The Buccs defense has surrendered an average of 10.5 points per game in the last 4 contests and have come away 2-2 in those games. The defense did their job again Sunday, and came away empty handed.

If one of those FG's is a TD, it's at least a tie Ball game. If you take a shot at the endzone on 3rd and short, maybe you score. Maybe you get pass interference. Maybe you come up empty handed and attempt the FG anyway. How many times are we going to watch drives stall between the 35 and 15 yard lines? I swear sometimes if the field was 500 yards long, our offense could put together a dazzling 482 yard drive that ends in a 34 yard Field Goal attempt. Why are you attempting a 51 yard Field Goal with a Kicker who was questionable all week long due to a hamstring injury? Since 2002, the quarterbacks have changed. The running backs have changed. The wide receivers, O-linemen and tight ends have changed. Even assistant coaches have changed, yet the offense looks exactly the same as it did in 2003, 2004, 2006 or even 1998 and 1999.

Instead now, the Buccaneers sit at second place in the NFC South standings looking up at a team they beat the hell out of. Instead of being a game ahead and holding the tie breaking advantage over the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC standings, the Buccs are looking up at them too. The Buccs were staring at the brass ring, it was in reach. But instead of pulling the plug and putting the Boys out of their misery, the Jon Gruden led offense wussed out. Where's the killer instinct? Where's the offense we paid 2 first round picks and 2 second round picks for?
...JJC/ABuccsFan