Don’t Expect Jermaine Phillips In The Pro Bowl
May 25th, 2009
One of Joe’s biggest concerns/gripes about the upcoming season is Raheem the Dream’s decision to move Jermaine Phillips from safety to linebacker. In Joe’s eyes, secondary was the strongest unit of the defense (weakened by the purge of linebackers). So why take a strong element of a team and dilute it?
Further, just how many players have learned at the highest level to play a new position? Throw in the fact that Phillips is 30-years old and Joe just cannot imagine this to be a good move.
Sadly, Phillips all but admits it in a story written by eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune.
“I think I’m improving, but I still have a long, long way to go,” Phillips said Thursday. “I won’t be comfortable with it until I know it. In certain areas, I’ve excelled. In others, I’m not where I need to be, but wherever this team needs me, that’s where I’ll be.”
Joe just can’t figure out how this move is good. The Bucs had a strength at secondary. Yet the Bucs decided to let Phillip Buchanon walk, move Phillips to linebakcer and have their hands full with helmet-wielding Aqib Talib who, in any other line of work, would be charged with assault.
Joe just can’t figure out how turning a strength into a potential weakness is a good thing?
May 25th, 2009 at 11:16 am
I’m with you Joe. While Philips may become a good LB he is always going to be better in the secondary. I just can’t fathom why they get rid of Buchannon for really not that much money and then move Philips up to LB (See Salary Cap Surplus). Talib may be good when he settles down but it’s like they are writing off next year completely on D-fense. With our offense having weapons like Graham, Ward, Bryant and Winslow plus a formidable O-line we could be competative with a D-fense as good as last years. Hope the dreams plans get clearer as we get closer to camp otherwise we will suffer this season.
May 25th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
The Bucs want to be able to keep Philips, Jackson and Piscitelli on the field at the same time. Philips has always excelled when playing in the box and is perceived to be the Bucs hardest hitter, so the logical choice was to see if he could excel at the LB position. If the experiment fails, expect Piscitelli to be back riding the pine for a year and Philips back at his old position. If it works, then the Bucs will be able to keep their better defenders on the field at the same time. An example of the Bucs thinking “outside the box” to solve their problems “inside the box”.
May 25th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
If Phillips doesn’t win the starting LB position he WON’T be playing S, at least not starting. The reason he was moved is because Sabby fits the SS in this defense much better than FLip. This is NOT the Cover 2. Flip is being given a chance to start at LB, because he had NO chance to start at S. Remember, this is a NEW defense, Flip would not be able to just jump back to Saftey, without having any practice in the new system. Also, remember NOBODY wanted Flip is FA, NOBODY.
BTW- Nice to see you’re back to your whiny ways.
May 25th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
Makes no sense. Phillips is so versatile he can switch to linebacker but he can’t play safety, his own position, in this new defense? He’s a 30-year-old hard-hitter who nobody classifies as slow. No reason he can’t play safety in this defense as a starter.
May 25th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
the guy has bulked up and a frame that can easily carry the #10…more tackling and less high speed hitting should help prolong his playing days…hope he’s found his home on the field.
I can still see him as a rookie in preseason….he had the hulking body lean and silhouette of the creature in Terminator 1…and that is what I called him
May 25th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
Maybe they should try him out at fullback….
May 26th, 2009 at 2:29 pm
I have a great idea. The Glazers will love this one. Play him both ways. Defense and Offense. Why haven’t they thought of it? I’ll bet they call and offer me a job. Think of the money they would save if every player played both sides of the ball.