Don’t Be Stunned If Raheem Wants Ruud Back
January 1st, 2011
As Barrett Ruud enters what could be his final hours in a Bucs uniform, Joe knows many fans’ Christmas wish was for a new, punishing middle linebacker.
While Joe would bet a few nickels that the Bucs wouldn’t mind one either, Joe would not be stunned if Raheem Morris wants Ruud, the “quarterback” of his defense, to return.
Joe thinks much of the Ruud decision will come down to Mark Dominik and Team Glazer’s approach to next season. If there’s an open checkbook and a real drive to go for a winner, then maybe Raheem wants the comfort level of Ruud in the middle and would rather invest in the positions around him.
Considering the possibility of a lost offseason program due to a lockout, Joe imagines that bringing in a rookie or outsider into the center of the defense would present a challenging task to get the guy up to speed in limited time.
If the Bucs are still working patiently on the whole “lasting contender” philosophy, then Joe would imagine Raheem would welcome the chance to ditch Ruud and work in a fast, hopefully violent young player.
Joe’s tossing this out here now because he’s heard several times from Dominik and Raheem in the past week or so about how much all the young players develop via the offseason workouts. On WDAE-AM 620 this week, Raheem all but said E.J. Biggers became a stud because of his work last offseason. There are other examples.
If there’s a likelihood of a completely dark offseason, then how can the Bucs realistically bring a young guy in at middle linebacker and expect him not to suffer on opening day?
Joe’s just got growing nausea because Raheem might stick with the devil he knows and the 100+ tackles he can count on at middle linebacker, even if he has to pay for him.
January 1st, 2011 at 3:30 pm
If Ruud stays, we better go out and get Lamar Woodley and a DE, as well as drafting a DE.
I think Ruud can be effective if he’s the weakest link. You just can’t expect him to be the superstar.
January 1st, 2011 at 4:24 pm
Did u say biggers and stud in the same sentence? You must be joking. Biggers is horrible, ask Calvin Johnson among other?
January 1st, 2011 at 5:42 pm
no one can cover calvin johnson
January 1st, 2011 at 6:14 pm
Biggers will never be mistaken for a dominate corner covering the teams best receiver, but he certainly has the ability and skillset to be a good #2 behind Talib. Myron has more ball skills similar to Talib, but is a little slow reacting and flat footed, he needs to be more confident and learn from Aqib, he can he a stud.
January 1st, 2011 at 6:31 pm
Yeah Thomas, Biggers is horrible because he can’t cover one of the 2 best receivers in the game. His nickname is Megatron, doesn’t that tell you something? If anyone is horrible, it’s you as a evaluator of football. You take being a moron to a whole new level, congratulations. Have you ever made a post that wasn’t negative? You must be a barrel full of joy to hang out with. You probably have people knocking at your door trying to be your friend. Biggers is essentially a rookie since he missed last year due to injury, and he filled in admirably for Talib. Exactly who else had his way with Biggers? Bueller? Bueller?
January 1st, 2011 at 6:35 pm
I’ll throw my computer through a wall if we re-sign Ruud.
January 1st, 2011 at 6:58 pm
I won’t be that mad if we keep ruud I will be mad if we don’t improve our DE’s.
January 1st, 2011 at 7:13 pm
They could easily sign Ruud. Labor uncertainty cuts both ways and they are not just going to release Ruud without some obvious replacement. NFL teams live in the real world, even if their fans do not.
January 1st, 2011 at 7:25 pm
I’d be alright with them bringing back Ruud as long as they use a first or second rounder on a MLB
January 1st, 2011 at 7:37 pm
@Hawaiian: you eternally optimistic child. i envy your positivity enough to think that ej biggers is a solid pro corner. he has very average hips, his transitions andd break are below average, his feet are heavy, his instincts and ball skills all below aveage. he has decent size, is a willing tackler and understands the defense – that equals below average pro.
to answer your question: mohammed massoquoi i can continue.
January 1st, 2011 at 8:02 pm
“Dont be stunned if Rah wants Ruud back.”
Geno Hayes will be stunned whether or not Rah wants Ruud back.
January 1st, 2011 at 8:04 pm
@Thomas:
Massaquoi! 2 Receptions for 46 yards. Boy, he sure did dominate Biggers. Not to mention it was his first game as a pro, and he had an INT in that game (in the fourth quarter when it matters). What a lame example. So yes, please continue. But next time, check the stats before you spit BS, because I will call you on it.
I love your breakdown of a rookie’s corner skills. Because we all know there can be no improvement from a rookie season. You should be a NFL scout with all your knowledge. There is no way you can judge those skills without watching the coaches film. So I’m thinking you either read it somewhere, or you just completely made it up. You’ve been known to make things up before, so I’ll go with the latter.
January 1st, 2011 at 8:25 pm
A) you could not be more wrong than to say that you cannot have the ability to judge corner or player skills without a coaches film.
B) Why do you think that teams send scouts to actual games you idiot? Maybe because there is a benefit to evaluating players live over tape, including coaches tape. You evaluate evaluate players on the same team against the same opposing players and see how they do in backpedal, hip drop, transition, turn and run, ball-skill. Players who are poorer at those things will allow more spade to be created in and around breaks cuts, accelerations etc. For example. Talib has great size and ball skills, pretty good feet, not bad high end speed, but excellent instincts. Talib is very good, Ronde is poor at most measurables but his football IQ is so high he makes up for it.
C) How did players get evaluated before coaches tapes were around? Maybe by live scouting?
Obviously, you are clueless, and thanks for exposing that.
That was my analysis, some will agree with most of that, others may take issue in certain areas. One may be athleticism, on a few certain plays I have seen Biggers look more talented than I first thought, so he may have better feet than appears.
As for Massaquoi, you of course (conveniently) omitted the TD that I recall Massaquoi embarrassing Biggers on during week 1. How about another from memory? M. Colston and M. Wallace. More?
January 1st, 2011 at 8:28 pm
BTW: please pick on someone in your own weight-class, feather-weight. I in the future will save my comments for bloggers who actually understand the game. Gosh, I sure miss old Jimbuc Glazer
January 1st, 2011 at 8:35 pm
@Thomas,
I said YOU cannot judge it without coaches film. Big difference. Then again, you cannot judge it with coaches film, so it is irrelevant. You are no scout, you don’t even go to the games (because you don’t like the coach), so who’s the idiot again? Did I mention that you are not a scout, so don’t pretend like you are one. You are a wannabe, and you are just embarrassing yourself.
I didn’t forget that one TD, but that doesn’t mean he is horrible. So by that same reasoning, I guess Talib is horrible too? It was his first game, he misjudged the ball and made a bad play. One bad play does not a horrible player make. Mike Wallace was covered by Talib. Marques Colsten had 53 yards receiving and no touchdowns. So yes, more please.
January 1st, 2011 at 8:56 pm
To clarify even more, when a scout goes to a game, they are looking at specific things. They are not following the ball like how a fan does. You don’t watch Biggers from the snap. You only notice him when the ball is thrown his direction. TV cameras wouldn’t give you that angle anyway. So yes, you would need the coaches film. Scouts also attend practices, which you do not. You are too busy complaining.
January 1st, 2011 at 9:21 pm
LDE
RDE
LG
RT
S
Those are the positions we should target BEFORE a new MLB.
January 1st, 2011 at 9:21 pm
if you show up for work on time, but you are a liability, most of the time you will be gone.
January 1st, 2011 at 11:35 pm
Nobody should be “stunned’ that Rah wants Ruud back … he’s a damn fine LB who is not exclusively assigned as a run stuffer. To quote Steve White from Bull Rush recently:
“By the way, the people who continue to make asses out of themselves complaining about Barrett Ruud will look particularly silly when they try to pin the terrible run defense on him this time. I don’t think he was out of position the whole game. But hey, for some folks in this area it doesn’t matter whose play it actually was, its still Ruud’s fault, smdh.”
January 2nd, 2011 at 4:53 am
It pretty much takes 11 guys playing well together to make any one of them great.
Thomas, how can you see/scout anything with your head so far up your ass? Your rants do not resemble common sense in any way, shape or form and we are all dumber for having read them. http://www.walgreens.com/ ritalin
January 2nd, 2011 at 7:30 am
Bigmacattack: Exactly!!!!….Couldn’have put it better!
January 2nd, 2011 at 8:18 am
Well, today ends the 2010 the season for the Bucs. Yes, we won some games. But we did have the “perfect storm” of bad teams in which we could beat. Did we ever see that “Run stuffing, violent Defense” that Raheem the Dream said that he had this year? No, we did not. And that is because an amateur was running, not only the defense, but the team itself. Brees will have a very good game against Morris’s defense today. Just as every team with a winning record has had against our D. We did learn that Olsen turned out to be a pretty good Offensive coordinator and the Freeman will be a star for years to come. But we also learned that our team will never go anywhere unless the Glazers hire a “professional HC” to come in here and develop & train our talented but troubled young players. The Glazers also learned the lesson that we fans aren’t buying that “cheap” kool-aid they were selling at the beginning of the year either. so maybe the Glazers will re-think their Head Coaching decision and Hire a Pro to lead our Bucs back into the play-offs. And then maybe we fans will purchase tickets again and there will be no more black-outs. I certainly hope so!
January 2nd, 2011 at 9:45 am
Tampa2 — you are a true fan! 🙂
January 2nd, 2011 at 11:57 am
Tampon 2, you are dumber than Thomas. You guys take stupid to a whole new level and less than 1% of Buc Nation agrees with you. Last year your argument had some merit, but it’s time to wake up and get with the times. This team is a couple bad officiating calls from being 12 – 3 right now. Raheem has milked this young team for all it’s worth, every last drop of sweat and blood, all left out on the field.
January 2nd, 2011 at 12:21 pm
Not to mention that “perfect storm” of bad teams included Tampa Bay for eceryone they played. We beat a bunch of teams that we were not “suppose” to beat. Tampa 2 is a non fan, and gives the great Tampa 2 defense a bad name. Kiffin and Dungy should give him an old fasion beat down for soiling their defense name.
January 2nd, 2011 at 12:32 pm
tampa 2 your some racist idiot. Raheem is an awesome head coach,I guarantee is bill cowher came in this year and got just as many wins as raheem idiots like you would be going crazy. Raheem is a players coach and they all go out there and give him all they got. The Glazers need to give him and mr dominik some spending money to go get a top notch DE or Corner. I cant believe idiots like you are still around. I understand after last year, But when you got from 3-13 to possibly 10-6? with the youngest team in the NFL that is clearly saying something.
January 2nd, 2011 at 1:00 pm
Rudd is not the whole problem on defense by far. But if you watch his film. He’s does not add a lot of value either. I believe Ruud has been trying not to get hurt. Because he has no new contract. He is out of position way to many times. You can’t guess wrong that many times on run plays. But hey I didn’t play pro football. So my opinion doesn’t matter. Only ex players can decipher the defense break downs accurately.
January 2nd, 2011 at 1:10 pm
MTM…Steve White says he is always in position. I am not really defending Rudd as much as pointing out an expro says he is almost always in position, amd is making up for other players missing tackles at times. He has just become the guy for fans to bash.
I guess I am defending Ruud a bit.
January 2nd, 2011 at 1:24 pm
From the shots of Ruud on defense he is constantly running up to the d line and in the pile. While the running back is bouncing around him. He seems to be trying to make tackles where the running backs are not at. Then chasing them from behind to make a tackle. Ruud did make some plays against the Seahawks. But Ruuds body of work this year, from a veteran player doesn’t look very good. When someone tells me. Ruud is in the right position on film. But is still failing to make tackles. Go figure.
January 2nd, 2011 at 2:05 pm
MTM-
Just think about your theory for more than half a second before you post it. Really. Seriously. How exactly do you think that intentionally playing half assed to avoid injury would help earn a guy a fat new contract? Just for your future reference its well known that NFL players almost universally give MORE effort in a contract year, not less.