Derrick Brooks, Bucs Reunite To Say Farewell
August 12th, 2010
While Joe was watching the mini-Bucs reunion last night on Pros vs. Joes, it saddened this Joe to watch Derrick Brooks lower himself to this level.
Suiting up for a fake football exhibition where a couple of clowns who couldn’t even play football in a BCS conference school much less stick on an NFL practice squad heaped tons of verbal abuse on guys like Brooks and Warrick Dunn. It was a stunt more fitting for someone like Lawrence Taylor.
Not Derrick Brooks.
At least today, a guy like Brooks will be on a much more dignified stage: at One Buc Palace where he and the Bucs, bad blood set aside, will celebrate the career of one of the greatest linebackers to play in the NFL and perhaps the best player to wear the Bucs uniform (no worse than second-best).
Some 18 months after he was thrown to the curb like a used cheeseburger wrapper, Brooks and the Bucs have patched things up. Raw nerves have healed. Brooks is back in the Bucs family writes Joe Henderson of the Tampa Tribune.
“The thing I’m impressed with is that Derrick has been able to let go faster than I was,” Lynch said. “I had wounds that stuck with me a little longer. I had a chip on my shoulder in Denver, and that bothers me to this day. I wasn’t motivated to just play good football there; I wanted to show certain people I still had something left.
“When the Bucs released Derrick I’m sure it burned him inside, but he was able to let it go and understand it was a business decision. He is at peace.”
That is the image, aside from the player, Joe will always have of Brooks: not some guy lowering himself so a couple of wannabe punks act hip and talk trash for a cheap payday to a dignified man of Brooks’ stature.
No, Joe will remember a man who is big enough to forgive others’ sins on a very public stage.
August 12th, 2010 at 9:31 am
Joe:
The article also said that the Bucs left the door open for Brooks to retire and stay part of the organization, but that Brooks did not bight because he wanted to play another year. Could it be that the Bucs did not really do anything so terrible, but that Brooks was not willing to retire? It always hurts loosing your job, and I would think being cut from a team you love would be that much harder. Do you think they will have a DB day like they did for Lynch, it would be a crime if they do not. I think DB could have finished his contract out here, but that did n ot happen. I am just happy to see that he seems to have gotten past it, now it is time for the rest of us to as well.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:00 am
McBuc:
For all the things Brooks did for this team — and money he made for this team — and what he meant for this community, why not let him finish out the final months of his contract? It wouldn’t have been like Brooks was so terrible that the Bucs would have finished 3-13.
Oh, wait…
You don’t think Geno Hayes and Quincy Black could have used his influence last year in a dimished role, sort of like an unpaid assistant coach? Joe totally gets the youth movement (odd, Ronde Barber isn’t so young) and that a team shouldn’t let the fans dictate your decisions, but this was one that the Bucs terribly misjudged which to Joe shows a significant disconnect between a firm and its paying customers.
All the “fan friendly” things the Bucs have done in the past few months (football carnival, night practices at the CITS) are indirectly to try to soothe the wounds left by throwing Brooks out with the trash. As Henderson noted in his column, the Bucs are still reeling from that decision.
After the eruption from the community the Bucs offered Brooks an olive branch (front office job) which he turned down.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:14 am
Brooks is a class act, and I am sure he will forgive the Bucs.
My question is, will the bucs admit what they did was wrong and a mistake?
If DOM/RAH/Glazer Boys had any character they would apologize to the man and his legion of fans. (I doubt Rah wanted to do it at all – he aint THAt stupid)).
Until they do they will have many pissed off bucs fans to deal with, for which I am one. All the cute carnivals in the world won’t fix what they did to 55 in my book. Neither will after the fact press conferences.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:18 am
I didn’t see Brooks’ Joes vs Pros appearance as a bad thing. I guess you can view it that way because of the way the Bucs threw him to the curb, but I refuse to see it that way. I enjoyed watching our guys crushing those big-mouthed Joes.
There’s NO WAY the Bucs should have cut Brooks loose like they did. I’m with you Joe, it’s not like Brooks would have made them look any worse than they did last year. In fact, they might have won more games if he had been around. Hell, he would probably have been willing to retire on his own after that 3-13 abortion of a season.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:25 am
I also expect all the sniveling losers on here who support everything Glazer (you know who you are) to the point of trashing 55 with “see he was washed up cause nobody else picked him up” will suddenly come forward with all their so called praise for him.
Sorry, it came down to Glazers vs. Brooks and you chose Glazers.
Disgusting.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:33 am
Joe:
Very good point, and it also the way I feel. The article made it sound like they opffered him the job when they cut him. When they cut Brooks it was a sad day in Tampa bay for sure, and I think the entire defense would have been better off with him on the field or on the sidelines. I do not want to give the wrong impression, Eric may lash me with a post for being pro Galzer. Brooks is my all time fav Buc, and I was a huge fan of Leroy, Wylder, Lynch, Sapp, I even put good aold reliable Dave Moore on my list. there are too many to name, but Brooks tops them all. I just know there is usually three sides to every story. I agree though, it was a mistake to cut him. I would put money on it that Morris was forced into this, he seems to have a pretty good connection with the defensive players, and that is probably true with 55 as well.
Great articles this morning BTW. the Sirius interview was great.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:34 am
They need him, Sapp, and Lynch working with their respective units. Not as coaches, just coming in now and then, giving info, working with some players (like Sapp did with McCoy).
August 12th, 2010 at 10:52 am
Well I didn’t see the Pro’s vs Hoe’s, but glad to hear he was with other ex-Bucs. I also hated the fact and the way they released him. It’s still a sad day in TamapBay. Thanks again, Mr Brooks! You are missed!!
August 12th, 2010 at 10:53 am
Mcbuc,
Not lashing out at you sir.
Just calling out all those fine bucs fans who trashed Mr. Brooks, and now want to be his very best bud.
I agree Rah was likely not part of the decision process.
August 12th, 2010 at 10:55 am
I love how people here assume what happened behind closed doors. How do we know Rah/Dom didn’t offer Brooks a diminished role? Joe mentioned how DB couldve stayed here as a mentor of sorts. What if DB didn’t want that? A prideful guy like Derrick probably wouldn’t be happy just being a part-time player, in my opinion.
I love how some people here think they’re so much smarter than anyone who works for the Bucs. If you’re so much smarter, then why aren’t you working in the NFL somewhere?
August 12th, 2010 at 11:03 am
Bunch of whiners on here…
All that bad stuff is in the past. We’ll see what 55 says today at his presser. If he can move on from this, we all should, too.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:04 am
Oh, I know Eric, and I know who you are refering too. I just do not want people to think I am in the group that was ok with the move, just because no one else picked him up. Even those people are just trying to justify it, so they can move on from it as well though. I was just razzing you a bit. I need more lines like that singing frog thing to get me chuckling over here.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:05 am
Eric, I also like Joe’s repsonce. It was almost like an additional article to feed my JBF addiction.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:06 am
Dondo-dondo:
And you have spoken to how many people exactly who are close to Brooks or have spoken to Brooks about this issue?
Since you obviously have better sources than Joe, might that mean you are working for the NFL in some capacity?
Feel to brag about your NFL employer.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:13 am
Joe: I don’t have any better knowledge of what went down in that room than you do. That’s my point.
Speculate all you want, but no one knows for sure besides Brooks. How do you know they didn’t offer him a “diminished role” as you put it?
August 12th, 2010 at 11:22 am
Again, Joe asks how many people you talked to in order to cobble together your premise.
You are suggesting Joe’s just throwing crap on the wall.
If you didn’t talk to anyone — which is Joe’s guess — than you really need to shut the F up.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:36 am
Still missing the point there, Mr F-Bomb. No need to get frazzled.
You said the Bucs “terribly misjudged” not using Brooks in a mentor role. So you know for sure they didn’t ask him to do that?
If not, then you are just throwing crap on the wall.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:37 am
Joe talked to several of Brooks’ business associates both in Tampa and Tallahassee.
Your sources? (Drunks in the bar don’t count).
Which handle should Joe refer to you as, “Whiner Police” or “Dondo-dondo?”
August 12th, 2010 at 11:42 am
Are those un-named sources? Are you now doing your best Pewter Report impression?
August 12th, 2010 at 11:45 am
One last time Dondo:
Please feel free to list your sources — that is, if you really did talk to someone.
Joe doesn’t tolerate clowns trying to start flamewars or ripping Joe’s credibility.
Given the fact just this morning alone you posted comments using two different handles doesn’t really say much for you other than the fact you’re trying to con someone.
August 12th, 2010 at 11:53 am
My sources are un-named. Sounds like yours are, too.
August 12th, 2010 at 12:09 pm
You have no sources and you are just trying to stir up shit and shoot down Joe’s credibility. As a result, you are gone Dondo… eeerrr Whiner Police.
Odd that you would use two different handles with the same email address and IP address, a foreign IP address no less.
Gee, what on earth could you be hiding from?
Dondo-dondo
Houses97@gmail.com
64.255.164.122
Whiner Police
Houses97@gmail.com
64.255.164.122
August 12th, 2010 at 12:15 pm
Brooks was under contract for 2009. Being the class act that he is, he would have quietly accepted a reduced role. If not, he could have 1) requested his release or 2) retired. Either option would have been MUCH better for the Bucs from a public relations standpoint.
The Bucs just cut him unceremoneously. I believe Brooks said he was blind-sided by it and was not given any options.
August 12th, 2010 at 12:31 pm
@Louie: “The Bucs just cut him unceremoneously. I believe Brooks said he was blind-sided by it and was not given any options.”
And that is exactly the point many question.
Why?
If DB 55 couldn’t get a respectful retirement, then who could ever retire a Buc again? Or be able to come back? Brooks is hands down the greatest Buccaneer to ever play for Tampa. Period. And he was a fan favorite.
The message the Glazer brats sent was so poor that it obviously wasn’t thought through.
Kind of like many of their other recent moves.
And John Lynch said: ““The thing I’m impressed with is that Derrick has been able to let go faster than I was,” … that means he was just cut. John and Derrick talk. So John just reinforced the notion that Derrick was just cut.
Cut by 2 little snot nosed kids (Raheem and Dommy) that weren’t even IN the organization or NFL while Derrick was making pro bowls.
They most likely didn’t want to live in Derrick’s shadow.
August 12th, 2010 at 12:38 pm
Notice how post Brooks cutting, the Bucs decided to start having a ring of honor.
They must have realized they were f—-g up the Buccaneers history. a period where you would think people would adore the Glazers since they sort of helped bringing winning to the franchise, but yet were burning bridges on the back end, by cutting and firing personel with no fanfare.
August 12th, 2010 at 12:51 pm
If DB 55 couldn’t get a respectful retirement, then who could ever retire a Buc again? Or be able to come back? Brooks is hands down the greatest Buccaneer to ever play for Tampa. Period. And he was a fan favorite..
“If DB 55 couldn’t get a respectful retirement, then who could ever retire a Buc again? Or be able to come back? Brooks is hands down the greatest Buccaneer to ever play for Tampa. Period. And he was a fan favorite”
Hey man, wer agree on something!!!
I think Morris had his hands tied on this one though.
August 12th, 2010 at 6:08 pm
Brooks is asking fans to forgive the franchise.
Let’s do what the man asks…