“Wow”
August 8th, 2017
Presence felt.
Winning Bucs coach Dirk Koetter, after watching first-round pick tight end O.J. Howard practice nine times in training camp with his new team, seemed to have the perfect word for the Alabama product.
“Wow.”
Koetter noted Howard makes plays that makes witnesses say that to themselves.
“O.J. continues to make ‘wow’ plays every day and he also is doing a really good job blocking,” Koetter said. “That’s the second time he’s got stripped on the sideline in the two-minute drill. He’s just got to learn that the guys in this league are really good at it.
“It’s a learning process. We’ve seen him make so many great plays, when there’s a play that maybe doesn’t look like a great one, that he doesn’t make, we expect him to make it. That’s a good thing. That’s a good problem to have.”
Joe has heard from many notable NFL people, including some with the Bucs, that tight ends rarely flash much as rookies because the position is so difficult on the NFL level. But the fact that Howard can block means he should be on the field often.
If Howard can just sometimes pull off the “wow” plays he’s made in training camp, then he and Cam Brate are going to be a dangerous force.
August 8th, 2017 at 8:09 am
Cam played pretty good as a rookie. Can’t wait for some WOWs! GO BUCS!!
August 8th, 2017 at 8:23 am
Hope he can show us in the regular season all of his “WOW” skills.
Hope he’s not some training camp star like “Kenny Bell”……..and never show up in the regular season…….he’s outta the NFL now.
August 8th, 2017 at 8:28 am
I just saw yesterday that Kenny Bell is in Baltimore, the Afrothunder lives on!
August 8th, 2017 at 8:29 am
May be something, May be nothing……but hearing players are getting stripped by the defense is not sitting well with me.
Its exciting knowing our defense is really attacking the football, they seem comfortable and seem to be playing fast and attacking the football. That’s great. Our offense will be better for it.
But damn, we need someone to put a “Schiano” like emphasis on protecting the football; Bite the ball Bucs…high and tight fellahs. WTF????
August 8th, 2017 at 8:30 am
I cannot wait to see what OJ can do on the field!!! First, he opens Head Coach Koetter’s playbook wide open!!!! Its hard to believe that some thought the Bucs were set at TE after last year!!!!!! The Bucs have many players that should be able to take over with the mismatches this year!!!!! Just stay healthy and O-line gel quick and we should be a team to contend with!!!!!!!!!
GO Bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
August 8th, 2017 at 8:32 am
This is one of those situations where you praise one side of the ball but disappointed in the other.
This team is really turning the corner. Iron sharpening Iron!! This is awesome.
August 8th, 2017 at 8:40 am
Marine:
I think the main guy that is getting stripped is a former CFL receiver and will most likely not make the team:
August 8th, 2017 at 8:41 am
Just got back from a few days beaching in my fave spot. A lifelong Dolphins fan was raving over the Hump. He said the Bucs should be a serious contender this season. If Howard can stay healthy and ward off Buc Luck, he and Brate will be simply outrageous!! The fin fan also mentioned Brate. 🙂 It will be a fun season for us Bucs fans (X’d fingers). 🙂
August 8th, 2017 at 8:47 am
Xs n Os baby!!!
……………..this is the most talented bucs offense ever assembled….
……I just hope all the hype gets translated to the field.
August 8th, 2017 at 8:49 am
…..But what I’m really concerned about is the running backs situation….
I’m not sold on any of them yet…….and don’t give me that lame BS about Dougie Fresh either!!!!! He sucked before he got suspended and it doesn’t mean he’s all of a sudden way better now that he’s turned over his “golden leaf”.
August 8th, 2017 at 8:53 am
Jimmy Graham and Gronk didn’t do anything special until their second year so I am keeping my expectations somewhat low for him. I will be happy if he catches 45-50 balls this year and that might be plenty with the other talented receivers on the field.
August 8th, 2017 at 9:07 am
You might notice that most of the stripes come after the play is over. Even above is says “stripped on the sidelines.”
August 8th, 2017 at 9:07 am
it says
August 8th, 2017 at 10:39 am
We were all saying “wow” a few years ago with ASJ. Nowadays he’s clogging up a roster spot and a toilet somewhere in New York.
August 8th, 2017 at 11:03 am
This is Cam’s 4 season in the NFL. His rookie year with the Bucs wasn’t too notable. We should and will expect much more from a 1st round pick, top 5 talent.
August 8th, 2017 at 11:21 am
Still saying that 2 TE set in New England absoltuely destroyed opposing defenses.
Not that we have a Gronk level TE, but Brate appears to be having an exceptional camp, OJ appears to be a stud….so amped about the 2 TE set here…both in the passing and running game…could be pretty special.
August 8th, 2017 at 11:36 am
Howard is going to be an absolute stud TE. Maybe not this year but he will be a big contributor even as a rookie.
I wonder how much $ Brate will command after this year when he becomes an unrestricted Free Agent? If he gets 7 or 8 TDs again the price will be high.
August 8th, 2017 at 12:17 pm
Can you imagine a 3 TE formation with Brate and Howard in-line, and Stocker in the backfield? That would leave whomever at RB, and either Evans or D-Jax split out wide. You could run or pass out of that formation easily, or even motion one of the in-line TEs out wide to open things up a bit, and still run the ball effectively.
Man I cannot wait for this year, it’s gonna be fun to see how our offense dictates the style of play to the opposing defenses.