Raheem The Dream Looked “Overwhelmed”
March 31st, 2010
With the exception of Trent Dilfer and perhaps blocking icon Michael Clayton, Joe cannot remember a local sports figure as reviled than Raheem the Dream.
Just the mere mention of the Bucs’ coach’s name results in Bucs fans frothing at the mouth. To many Bucs fans, Raheem the Dream — rightly or wrongly — is the face of a once proud franchise that has returned to its sordid roots.
Vacation Man, writing for Vyacheslav Molotov’s favorite media outlet, BSPN.com, writes that Raheem the Dream could not have “looked more overwelmed” last year. But after a few missteps, Vacation Man likes what he sees with Raheem the Dream as the Bucs leader.
But if you look closely at the chaos that was Tampa Bay’s season last year, you can spot some progress, particularly from the head coach. The guy showed an ability to admit his mistakes and move on from them. That’s a unique quality and that’s why there’s a chance Morris might have grown quite a bit last season.
We’ll have to wait to see how this season plays out, but Morris is in a much better spot than he was a year ago. Morris realized Jim Bates’ defensive scheme wasn’t working out and fired the veteran coordinator. Morris took the reins of the defense, went back to the Tampa 2 and the Bucs actually played decent defense at the end of the season.
They now will spend an entire offseason working on the defense they’ll actually play all season. Same for the offense, where coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski was fired just prior to the start of last season. There were a lot of issues (more than we’ll ever know) going on with Jagodzinski, but the bottom line was the offense wasn’t getting any real coaching. Quarterbacks coach Greg Olson suddenly had the offense dumped on him at the same time he was trying to get rookie quarterback Josh Freeman ready to step on the field and the early results weren’t pretty.
Just the fact Raheem the Dream will be the defensive coordinator and that the Bucs have a full-time quarterbacks coach should be a big plus. Unless Raheem the Dream falls flat on his face, per recent comments from Bucs co-chairman Joel Glazer, Raheem the Dream will be around for a while.
March 31st, 2010 at 8:25 am
I believe he has the ability and the work ethic to be great, yes, I said great! As long as he gets the tools he needs (Mark Dominic), and the financial back up to gain these tools (Glaziers).
March 31st, 2010 at 8:30 am
his contract ends after this year if we win less then 5 games next year with our easy schedule i dont see how they will re sign him to another contract if they win 3-4 games next year then re-sign raheem to another deal i bet 20 thousand more season ticket holder will leave
March 31st, 2010 at 8:42 am
Unfortunately for the dream, he is an errand boy, sent by grocery clerks, to collect a bill.
March 31st, 2010 at 8:54 am
The vacation man points to Raheem as the Savior of the Defense last year.
But in reality, it was Raheem that Screwed the defense up to begin with. He knew what Bates defense was based upon when he hired him. Which was “big” defensive players playing a one gap, not small fast players that Monte liked for the Tampa 2 defense. Then, the 3 Scrooges would not let Bates get any Players that conformed to his system, yet Raheem allowed Bates to run his system for 10 games anyway. Bates made the comment once that Albert Haynesworth made more money than the whole Bucs defense! And Raheem sat in on all defensive meetings for 10 weeks without saying a word or offering any suggestions.
In short, It wasn’t Raheem that made the defense better, it was the fact that the players were better suited to play the Tampa 2 and had been trained to play the Tampa 2 their whole careers with the Bucs under Kiffin.
How could they not play better? How does Raheem get credit for the defense playing a system that they are trained to play? And why did Raheem allow Bates to use his system for 10 weeks without pulling the plug. Raheem is no Coach! He is an amatuer the Media is trying to Prop up!
March 31st, 2010 at 8:57 am
I beleive the Glazers have been making questionable decsions since they fired dungy wrongfully down to them firing Gruden to hiring Morris. Speaking of when they hired Morris did they interview any other canadiates is that not a rule (Rooney Rule) Dont get me wrong I am black I am just Curious about that rule cause I know the Glazers did not interview anyone else. But to my point above the Glazers are the most disloyal owners in the NFL, remeber the year before they fired Gruden and Allen they gave them a extension the year before. The Glazers inconsistnet decsion making line ups completly with what Morris and Domminick are doing cause there actions are inconsistent and completly stupid
March 31st, 2010 at 9:04 am
@ Tampa 2 I can remeber alot of players one in particualr Ronde Barber saying tampa 2 was old and teams were getting use to the Tampa 2. ronde did not have a bad year but it was not good either
March 31st, 2010 at 9:06 am
Very good point Tampa2. To illustrate your point further, the defense under Bates was so brutal — franchise record five-straight games coughing up 25 or more points — that they could only go up.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:06 am
TJ, that is a good question. Maybe Joe knows the answer. To my knowledge the 3 Scrooges didn’t interview anyone else. I think that they had a deal in place with Morris & Dumynik before Gruden was fired. They wanted a GM & HC that would do thier bidding and take the heat. And Morris & Dumy agreed to the deal. Would the Rooney rule apply when you actually hire a minority? That is a question, isn’t it? That Rooney rule is stupid anyway. All a team has to do is invite a minority for an interview then hire who the teams wants anyway.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:08 am
TJ:
Ronde has a point. Teams are going away from the Tampa-2. Bates’ problem was he was trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. Even a mediocre high school coach knows better than to do that.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:11 am
Rooney Rule is that teams must interview (wink, wink) a minority canidate with the implied desire to diversify the coaching ranks. Clearly since the Bucs hired Raheem, a man of color, the goal of the Rooney Rule was met, so interviewing him was a mute point concerning the Rooney Rule.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:11 am
Teams have figured out the Tampa 2, but what Raheem is doing he calls Hybrid. Case in point, the Saints game, they got so many different looks Brees didn’t know what to check to and by the time he figured it out post snap, we were on him or chasing him – OUR DL. So imagine what we can do with better players up front.
I’m just sayin’…
March 31st, 2010 at 9:14 am
Thanks Joe, But how is it that the HC that let that “brutal” defense go on for 10 games doesn’t get chastised for that. Instead, he gets that credit “making the defense better”, by simply allowing the defense to play the Tampa 2 that they were trained to play in the 1st place. That is simple common sense, isn’t it? Yet the Media give Morris all the Props. Amazing!
March 31st, 2010 at 9:20 am
Thanks Joe When Gruden got fired I was for sure we were going to hire Shanonhan then they hired Morris who they compared to Tomlin. I live in Ohio and we get alot of Steelers covarge Tomlin is very eduacted in what he says. Morris is the complete oppioste his introductry press confrenacne I tell you someone had to be tickling him. So Morris ran a hybrid tampa 2 what is that exactly it worked the games he took over minus the Jets game
March 31st, 2010 at 9:24 am
Well, from a PR standpoint, when you fire the Coach with the best record in team history, followed by hiring a Defensive backs coach with no experince and no other interviews, and follow it by hacking perhaps the best player in team history, I don’t see how anyone over there could have thought it was going to be well received in Buccaneer Land.
I know many thought it was time for Jon to go, but even accepting that premise, the way things were done was just awful and they put a big target on this kids back. That was even before the coordinator fiasco’s.
Id really like to know who made the decision on the Defensive coordinator Bates, whther Rah blew that on his own, or whether the powers that be forced it, like when they fired Shula during the Pro Bowl.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:39 am
TJ:
Joe has written this several times: The comparisons of Raheem the Dream to Mike Tomlin are so unfair on so many levels to Raheem the Dream, Joe doesn’t know where to begin.
First, Joe doesn’t know why on earth the comparisons are made, because both Tomlin and Raheem the Dream are African-American? So is Romeo Cornell.
Second, are the comparisions made because both are African-American and both were Bucs secondary coaches? So is Herm Edwards.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:41 am
Tampa2:
Perhaps Bates conned Raheem the Dream? Perhaps Raheem the Dream was intimidated with a guy who is nearly twice his age with decades of experience? Dunno.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:45 am
@ joe I agree 100% with you. I think they compare them cause they are friends dont know how Morris acts as if he needs to be on medication for to much energy. Tomlin is steady calm and intense
March 31st, 2010 at 9:53 am
Overwhelmed, what an understatement.
If Raheem was merely overwhelmed then I guess it would be acceptable to say that the titanic was overwhelmed by water.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:57 am
LOL, well, by the literal definition of the word, the Titanic was overwelmed by water.
March 31st, 2010 at 9:58 am
The root of our problem lies smack Dab with the Owners. Coaches, players, GM’s, or tickets. It starts with Ownership. The only “real” Glazer is Apparently gone. And that we have left are the carrion 3 Scrooges.
I thought the happiest day of my life as a Bucs fan was when Culverhouse keeled over and Malcomb Glazer purchased the team and said he meant to win. Now that it seems ol’ Malcomb is done and the 3 Scrooges are Culverhouse, only 3 fold. So my 2nd happiest day will be when the 3 Scrooges either drain the Bucs dry and sell, when they get “thrown out of the NFL”, or when they move to England, and Allow Eddie DeBartolo to move in. Then we will have a true Dynasty. And I will be the 1st in line to purchase tickets.
March 31st, 2010 at 10:05 am
I for one really like Raheem. Sure there was some terrible games last year, the Miami one comes to mind, But this team was going nowhere with Gruden. Though I thought he was a great coach, he should have left the general managing to the guy that got paid for it. A couple good drafts, and then a few needed free agents and were back to the playoffs!! Have a little patience. Go Bucs!!!!!
March 31st, 2010 at 10:12 am
The Steelers have one of the best personnel departments in football and a Hall of Fame DC, and had a very good team already in place for Mr. Tomlin, and a legendary ownership group who knows football, not to mention a QB who had already won a Super Bowl.
Super unfair to compare that situation to the Dream’s.
But, I do think that the Glazers got caught up in the “hire the Young coach” trend in the copycat NFL, and I still don’t think, despite the revisions they have tried to make recently, that they thought in their minds they were entering into this long onerous rebuilding process when they made these moves. I also think Rah was totally shocked by the results, thus the appearance of being overwhemled.
How can people who own multi billion dollar franchises be so clueless as to public reaction?