Barrett Ruud = “Football Genius”
July 31st, 2011
There’s more evidence today that just about everyone on the Bucs valued new Titans linebacker Barrett Ruud, except the guy calling the shots in the front office.
Raheem Morris held out hope for Ruud’s return late Friday, and yesterday linebackers coach Joe Baker opened up to Tom Balog, of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, to toss a pile of superlatives on Ruud.
At Buccaneers training camp earlier on Saturday, Baker had expressed hope that Ruud, a six-year veteran who was a second-round draft pick by Tampa Bay in 2005, would somehow return to the Buccaneers, despite general manager Mark Dominik already having slammed the door on that idea four days ago.
”He’s a football genius,” Baker said, referring to Ruud’s ability to make pre-snap reads and call defensive alignments accordingly, to make sure everybody around him was lined up properly before every snap.
”Because Barrett’s a helluva player, in a lot of ways an underappreciated player,” Baker said. “He was unquestionably the leader of our defense. He makes a lot of plays because of his intelligence. There are some things maybe some linebackers do better,but there’s a lot of things that Barrett is the best in the league at.
”Like knowing what’s coming on offense, being the first guy to know what the play is and being in the right spot _ and that’s something that’s very difficult to coach.”
Joe suggests you clink the link above and read the whole piece. Baker has a lot more to say and seems to claim the new middle linebacker for the Bucs will make all the defensive reads and calls, not a player at another position.
Joe expects all thoughts of Ruud will blow over by the end of the week until at least the first major screwup in the middle.
It’s just damn interesting that the men coaching and playing with Ruud think he brings a lot to the table yet the guy couldn’t score more than a one-year contract.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:16 am
Who’s Barrett Ruud? Doesn’t he play for the Titans?
July 31st, 2011 at 10:17 am
New time reader. Love all the updates, Joe.
Anyways, Lofa Tatupu just asked to be released by the Seahawks. Any chance Dom would try to bring him in? Hey may be 28 but he’s had some good years behind him.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:20 am
The one year contract… squeezing 5 months of free agency into a five minute phone call…
July 31st, 2011 at 10:23 am
“Geniuses” get 1yr deals i guess
Good football players are getting huge, long term deals right now
July 31st, 2011 at 10:24 am
I don’t doubt Ruud’s intelligence and leadership, but it’s borderline insane that our coaches and players prioritize that over on-the-field play. Luckily Dominik (and all our NFL GMs apparently) isn’t buying those excuses. Good riddance Barrett!
July 31st, 2011 at 10:25 am
With Huggins and Ruud gone who are we gunna add? Where are we at player number wise? I bet they wait, see what team cuts who and also does the practice squad thing.
I don’t want a rook at mlb.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:28 am
What the coaching staff says about Ruud is meaningless. Do you really think they are going to bash the man to the media? Also, even if true, being a football “genius” doesn’t necessarily make you a remotely good player. Jon Gruden was an offensive “genius”. However, I don’t recall him ever having made it anywhere near an NFL football field as a Quarterback himself. About all this comment from Joe Baker tells me is that Ruud will probably make a pretty decent coach someday. Whoopee. The name of the game is hitting people. Not lining people up.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:32 am
Adam Schefter is reporting the Seahawks will release Lofa Tatupa……..
just throwing it out there
July 31st, 2011 at 10:33 am
So what if he knew what was coming, you still have to stop it or slow the other offense down. Also, between the soft middle linebacker and pathetic d-line, we had to put extra men in the box, , leaving our defense in predictable situations.
besides Will-e-coyote was a genius too. but he never stopped the Road-Runner.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:34 am
Incidentally I just saw that Tulloch, formerly of the Titans, just signed a 1 yr deal himself with the Lions. Apparently from what I gather that some fans were twittering to the guys at pro football focus the Titans thought that Tulloch stunk in pass coverage even though he was a great run defender and thats why they let him walk in favor of Ruud. Congrats Titans. You made the right move. Just so long as you run the Tampa 2 exclusively and teams do nothing but pass the ball against you all day long. Enjoy your new free safety… uhh… I mean middle linebacker.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:37 am
That raises the question of who is Ruud being compared to when praised like this. I mean is there a way to know how much or how little the other MLB around the league know about.
He obviously wasn’t that good for the simple fact that our defense sucked! If he had everyone in the same page most of the time and “knowing what the offense was going to run” we would’ve had a pretty decent defense, even with the talent we had last year.
The reason why he didn’t get a big or multi-year deal is because he is not special at all. The only thing I give him credit is for knowing our defense well that’s it, the rest is non-sense.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:49 am
Raheem said that the middle linebacker this year wouldn’t call the plays and that it would go to a veteran, Black or Hayes. I’m gonna take Raheem’s word over the linebackers coach.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:54 am
All that talk sounds like he was the leader of a top 5 defense. His play calling genius and adjustments lead the team to last in run defense and last in sacks. Only the secondary kept the Bucs in games with timely interceptions. Ruud and the front 7 didn’t do much last year! That’s why there will be at least 3 new starters this year. Barber will help lead this team.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:56 am
Joe here,
@the_buc_realist — THanks for acknowledging the deeper meaning of the Wile E. photo. You’ve warmed Joe’s heart.
@Colin — Welcome. Bucs might bring in a lot of guys for looks. But as for years of good play behind him, Bucs are more concerned wiith what’s in the other direction.
FYI, Joe’s at camp both sessions today, so keep coming back.
July 31st, 2011 at 10:56 am
Also some sure tackling by Cody Grimm as well
July 31st, 2011 at 11:02 am
By losing Ruud, we don’t necessarily get worse, but we don’t get better (this year) either. Bottom line with Ruud is that we’ve seen the very best he can do – and it’s just about average for an NFL starting middle linebacker. That being said, why not roll the dice on the younger guy.
July 31st, 2011 at 11:03 am
You know who else is a football genius? Lou Holtz. Doesn’t mean I want him as my starting middle linebacker.
July 31st, 2011 at 11:16 am
Well, the “genius” is gone and it’s time to move on. Although it seems to me to be somewhat of a risky move it’s also another young player’s opportunity to make the position his for years to come. Another reason to actually care about the pre-season and the “games” we pay for.
July 31st, 2011 at 11:19 am
bottom line, football players are expected at some point to make big plays. ruud has about 3 of those in 5 years of work. football genius or not, it didnt translate into a franchise building player in tampa.
July 31st, 2011 at 11:22 am
@ Ian LOL I’d love Granny Clampett in the middle!
July 31st, 2011 at 11:27 am
After the Titans release Ruud in the next month or so, he should think about coaching. If he is truly a genius, then maybe he’ll be able to teach young LB’s all the ins and outs of avoiding direct contact, calling plays after the Coach barks it into your headset, and field-skiing or holding on for dear life.
July 31st, 2011 at 11:40 am
He gone guys no need to throw the bus in reverse and back up for one more squash.
July 31st, 2011 at 11:49 am
Field skiing?? LOL That’s hilarious…
July 31st, 2011 at 12:00 pm
I disagree with the idea that what the coaching staff and others say about Ruud is meaningless. When a coach or former players don’t have anything nice to say about another player or his skills they simply say, “Best of luck or no comment.” It seems like guys are going out of their way to say how important Barrett Ruud was to the Bucs.
July 31st, 2011 at 12:24 pm
Ruud may be a genius at Madden 2010 but when it comes to actually TACKLING he’s more like Pee Wee Herman.
July 31st, 2011 at 12:25 pm
I read at the end of last season that Barber said Mackenzie was like a coach on the field observing and calling plays,Ruud really helped him even when he knew he wasnt coming back,that really shows the family like relationship that they have in that locker room.All the jokes and comments are cool but he was really a nice guy and a all time character guy .
July 31st, 2011 at 12:40 pm
There is no perfect defense a player can call when the defense is only lining up with 10 capable defenders. If Ruud was such a genius, and had our defenders in the right place all the time, why have we been so horrific on D (especially against the run) the past 2 1/4 seasons?
The compliments about Ruud comes from him being a pretty good guy. He wasn’t a butthole, so what do you want the coaches and players to do when reporters ask questions about him? Rip him for no reason? Should they say, “We’re glad he’s gone, he was terrible against the run, wasn’t physical enough, and wouldn’t take on blockers. A french poodle would have been an upgrade.”? The NFL is a tight brotherhood, usually players and coaches are very complimentary of each other. This is no different.
July 31st, 2011 at 12:42 pm
I remember the Bucs FO not being particularly complimentary of Thomas Jones when they decided to go after old man Charlie Garner and allowed Jones to go to Chicago for a contract that paid $1 mil a year less and one less year than the one they gave Garner. Bruce Allen said, “We’ll see how he likes the weather in Chicago in December.” The joke was on Allen as Jones became the heart and soul of tha team and was pretty much THE offense for 3 years. It would have been nice if we had retained him.
July 31st, 2011 at 12:44 pm
Well said M. Wessley.
July 31st, 2011 at 1:00 pm
For those worried that the Bucs can’t possibly replace Ruud’s D quarterbacking skills any time soon. I took the liberty of looking up some old scouting reports on Tyrone Mckenzie and this little nugget from cbssports.com stood out.
Football Sense: McKenzie is like a coach on the field. He is generally the first player around the ball due to his keen field vision and instincts. He makes sure everyone is lined up properly and knows all of the position assignments. He has outstanding eyes reading keys and reacts with no hesitation. He shows a good feel for pre-snap movement and frustrates the opposing quarterback, as they can’t figure ways to fool him. He gets into position quickly and is very good flowing to the ball. GRADE: 7.5
Apparently it shouldn’t take Mckenzie all that long to not embarass himself at making the pre-snap audibles as Ronde Barber isn’t the only one who considers Mckenzie “like a coach on the field”.
July 31st, 2011 at 1:05 pm
But the irony to it all is in most draft magazines Mackenzie Nfj comparison was to Ruud.
July 31st, 2011 at 1:18 pm
nfl comparison
July 31st, 2011 at 1:19 pm
He is compared to Ruud because of his smart play, I think he will have the MLB job come opening day. Leave Foster to his natural position.
July 31st, 2011 at 1:23 pm
Yes, I agree about the Bus in reverse thing. That will be my last Ruud bash. He was a good guy and his teammates apparently felt strong about him. But as hard as it was to see Brooks go, this one is a little easier, and I feel a necessary evil for long term growth.
Best Wishes Barrett and Go Bucs !!!
July 31st, 2011 at 1:30 pm
i second what bigmac posted. this move had to be made for this defense to be able to evolve.
July 31st, 2011 at 1:34 pm
Everybody with a one year contract sucks?
The Titans jettisoned their starter and are inserting Ruud.
Talk about grasping at straws to defend the regime. Geez.
July 31st, 2011 at 1:44 pm
The Titans are such a fantastic organization that they had a crap record, fired their head coach, jettisoned their franchise QB, can’t make their star RB happy or report. And if that isn’t enough their owner will give fans the finger.
Good Comparison Eric. You are so savvy. Why can’t we all be more like the all knowing all seeing Eric.
July 31st, 2011 at 3:15 pm
Ok Ruud’s gone Finally……please dont talk about him everyday on JBF,im sick of his play and articles about him.
July 31st, 2011 at 3:24 pm
If Ruud was such a genius calling plays, how come the Bucs got ran over so much?
July 31st, 2011 at 3:57 pm
Joe here,
@Eric — Who’s defending the regime in this pot? If anything it’s bizarre that the GM and coaches were on different pages. Haven’t heard that around here in a long time. Bru-Gru (since we’re blending words now), at least publicly, were pretty much in lockstep outside of the Gaines Adams.
July 31st, 2011 at 4:14 pm
which determines the policy going forward, tie goes to the GM, (worked out well for us (as much as it is a sad situation) that time)
July 31st, 2011 at 4:56 pm
Obviuosly, brains isnt an important quality for this org. See most recent hirings and firings. Fyi- mason foster ran a 4.75 40 at the combine, very poor. Barrett Ruud by comparison ran 4.65. Ruud also had a very high 35 wonderlic score.
July 31st, 2011 at 5:20 pm
Fosters fastest 40 time is 4.68 not 4.75. He does lack elite speed just like Ruud. Thats why he is going to play the middle and not weakside linebacker where you need that elite speed. The difference is that Mason Foster has actually shed an offensive lineman’s block once or twice in his life to make a big stop in the running game. Oh yeah and he’s not mortally terrified of attacking the line of scrimmage head first either.
July 31st, 2011 at 5:23 pm
And lets not even get started on how much Ruud’s wonderlic score matters. Steven Hawking would probably get a perfect score in the wonderlic. Let’s let him patrol the middle in his wheelchair!
July 31st, 2011 at 5:30 pm
Not to mention Marino had an exremely low Wunderlick score.
July 31st, 2011 at 7:14 pm
Foster was run over in College by the USC Back we drafted!
July 31st, 2011 at 8:01 pm
Yes, if making all your tackles 10 yards down the field is genius, then B. Ruud is a genius…
August 1st, 2011 at 4:44 am
No Eric, anyone who signs a 1 year contract does not necessarily suck. But please, oh wise one, tell me one great player (with no off the field problems) that has signed a 1 year contract with a new team. Did Nnamdi sign a 1 year deal? How about Santonio Holmes? We gave our damn punter more than a one year deal! I would be willing to bet my left nut that you had absolutely no idea who Tennessee’s MLB was before Thursday (I still don’t know), so it’s not like they got rid of Ray Lewis to get “the genius”. And exactly what the hell are you talking about when you say “defending the regime”? Nobody is defending the regime for this, so who exactly is the one grasping at straws? Get a clue!
August 1st, 2011 at 8:39 am
“”Like knowing what’s coming on offense, being the first guy to know what the play is and being in the right spot _ and that’s something that’s very difficult to coach.””
I keep hearing this yet he was never there to plug a hole and always chasing plays