Bucs owner Joel Glazer refers to free agency as a dangerous 'dark path' of evil. Joe is confused. Is this not the same guy who gave the green light to sign Albert Haynesworth?

The Glazer Boys emerged for their annual state-of-the-Bucs sitdown with the local MSM at the NFL owners’ meetings in California today.

It seems Joel Glazer wants a return to the Bucs’ glory days, back when they were allegedly building the team through the draft.

Though Glazer seems to forget the Bucs won a Super Bowl, in part by trading two No. 1 picks for Keyshawn Johnson and two No. 1 picks for Jon Gruden, and kicking aside the quarterbacks they drafted in favor of Brad Johnson. 

Joe is offering up these quotes and you can read Rick Stroud’s long version at TampaBay.com.

“Our core belief is you’ve got to be patient. You’ve got to draft well,” Glazer said. “It all starts there. If you don’t draft well, you’re just going to be piecing it together every year. If you look at the teams that have had success the last several years, Super Bowl teams, they aren’t huge, splash free agency teams. They draft, develop and exercise patience.    

“That is definitely a focus of ours. When we take a step back and we look at our franchise, that’s something we had for many years. I think a little of that was lost. But the only way you get that is to be patient, draft, identify young players, watch them grow and people will go on the path with the player together. It’s just a natural process and I know it’s also our core belief in winning. I think they go hand in hand.”

Joe is scratching his head. Then why trade for Sgt. Kellen Winslow?

Surely it would have been more of a “natural process” to let Alex Smith play a bigger role.

Glazer continues:

We have a plan. We’re going to be disciplined and we’re going to be patient. We’re going to stick to it and do what we think is in the best interest of long-term, sustainable success. I come back to the draft. You’ve got to succeed in the draft. Free agency is not going to solve all our problems. You have to always be in the position that once we’ve identified good players, that we’re in a position not to lose those good players and that’s the key. Winning in March in free agency, very rarely do you see those teams in the headlines in January. You have to be disciplined to resist what can lead you down a dark path.

How about that for phony drama. Free agency is a “dark path.”

This is the same guy who clearly gave the go-ahead just weeks ago for the Bucs to make a run at Albert Hayenesworth.

Or was that just a show for the fans, with no intent to sign Haynesworth?

Joe despises all this spin and non-football blabbering. It’s downright painful to know that training camp is four long months away.