Donald Penn Wants Free Agents
December 29th, 2011
While Donald Penn was Eeyore-like during The Donald Penn Show on WDAE-AM 620 Tuesday, one thing that drew some passion out of him late in the show was when a caller asked him to play Bucs general manager.
Penn stepped to the plate with an analytical call for free agents.
“I think we need to be you know, get a little active in free agency,” Penn said. “Our defense, you know we’re real hurt right now. You know we gotta bring in some guys that can come in and really play well in the two-deep, so in case we do go through injuries like this again we got some guys that can step in and play like our starters. I think, you know we need to be a little more active in free agents and bring in a couple of guys, like maybe a guy that can spread the field a little more with speed.
“I think [the front office] is going to do a good job. They’ve done a great job in the last couple of years in their preparation and things that we’ve done in the draft. I don’t think they’re going to stress the draft as much as they have the last two years because we have made some good draft picks, if you look at what [Adrian] Clayborn is doing at what [Da’Quan] Bowers is doing lately. You know Gerald McCoy, when Gerald McCoy is playing, we just gotta keep Gerald McCoy healthy. When Gerald McCoy is out there playing he’s a beast. We gotta make sure [Brian Price] is 100 percent. When BP is out there, he’s kill.
“Injuries are hurting us. So you know we gotta come in, I think we gotta get a couple of guys that can, you know, be a two-deep, so in case this happens again we won’t have a big let-off. I think we just gotta get free agency and get some other guys in here to come in and compete. … We need to have a big competition this offseason because I think competition brings out the best of you and brings out the best in people. … Maybe bring in some vets that’s going to push these young guys and have a lot of competition at every position. Every position we need to have competition next year because competition makes you work harder. … You need to have a little fear in the back of your head that you might not have your job.”
There might be a solid half-dozen ways to read between the lines of Penn’s comments. Joe wouldn’t know where to start (but Joe suspects some readers will have a field day in the comments below this post).
It is clear Penn sees a need for depth and competition, and a burner on the flanks. Who could disagree with that?
December 29th, 2011 at 2:09 pm
Now that Raheem is about to get his pink slip, these excuses for him are coming at us fast and furious. Expect it to climax over the next several days and into next week. We as fans need to be smart & not buy into the excuse making and threats of retirement when looking at the subject of Raheem. Anything short of an overhaul in the coaching department of this team will be considered a complete and total failure to grasp the enormity of the situation.
December 29th, 2011 at 2:10 pm
BTW…that doesn’t mean I don’t agree with Penn on the need for free agents. But let’s get the horse before the cart, please. New coach(es), perhaps new GM, then and only then free agents.
December 29th, 2011 at 2:13 pm
DeSean Jackson anyone ……
December 29th, 2011 at 2:18 pm
He sounds like one of the goofballs on this site, hey, if we can see it on our couches, you know he can see it from his vantage point. Hope someone within the hallowed halls of one buc is listening, but i doubt it….
December 29th, 2011 at 2:19 pm
I hear Donald Penn but then I hear all Shawn King talk about is lack of competition. Ok so by that standard why is Tom Brady, Aaron Rogers and pretty much any quarterback who performed well this year performing at that level because the majority of them have little competition behind them. So I guess they should just pack it in because they have no competition are you kidding me? I know I take pride in my job and give the best every day I can’t imagine being paid ten times what I earn and saying “well there is nobody ready to step in and take my job so I am just going to kick back and ride the gravy train.” I mean whatever happened to character. If you want my take the biggest disappointment has been Josh Freeman and although I still like him that was Raheems guy not Mark Dominick although he pulled the trigger. So if you want to look at the move that effected the Bucs the most this year it was having Josh have a terrible year. Raheems idea, FIRE RAHEEM.
December 29th, 2011 at 2:21 pm
@FLBoyInDallas….I believe FA ‘IS’ putting the horse before the cart. Morris is hardly the main reason this team is failing.
December 29th, 2011 at 2:23 pm
@NickinMelb…good analogy using Brady and Rogers when comparing Freeman! (rolleyes)
December 29th, 2011 at 2:47 pm
Heres hoping a new coach does exactly that
With the help of a new GM that knows what the heck he is doing.
December 29th, 2011 at 3:08 pm
eric x’s 2
December 29th, 2011 at 3:15 pm
I still can’t believe Dominik is getting flak for this season.
December 29th, 2011 at 3:20 pm
Well Penn is stating the obvious. We’ve been saying this all along. Hey Glazerhouse boys, stop sending your money to England and keep it right here and get us some players damn it!!!!!!!
December 29th, 2011 at 3:22 pm
Players to be cut:
Q Black
S Jones
J trueblood
K Lumpkin
J Faine
Then… Move foster to OLB and get a veteran MLB to call the shots. TJAX is fine..needs some time to get back to his true football abilities. Remember he didnt play 1 snap of football in over a year before week 4. Give him the offseason..he is a playmaker. Our D-line is scary when healthy..bowers, bennet, mccoy, price, haynesworth AND clayborne. TALENT!
We need a new D and O coordinator. This should be priority number 1. We have so much talent on this team but the play calling is horrific. Every 3rd and 2 we have had this season…we go to shotgun. GIVE BLOUNT THE BALL. Moses Madu has incredible speed and blows lumpkin away…why did we just now put him on the field?
And keep Raheem. But get ur damn arms from under ur armpits and show some fire on the sidelines. Last year, you could find raheem up and down the sidelines. This year? he looks like a nervous teenager.
Come on Bucs!!
December 29th, 2011 at 3:33 pm
“Our D-line is scary when healthy..bowers, bennet, mccoy, price, haynesworth AND clayborne. TALENT!”
Yeah Scuba……IF. And what makes you confident that McCoy and Price will somehow stay healthy through an entire season. 2 years they’ve been here……McCoy has landed on IR twice and I’m sick of seeing Price on the “inactive” or “questionable” list.
We need to bring in two good backup DT’s this offseason because we need insurance in case they go down AGAIN.
Clayborn and Bowers I’m pretty confident in. Clayborn earned his $ this year.
December 29th, 2011 at 3:35 pm
you know what this team needs is a swift kick in the “you know”
December 29th, 2011 at 3:38 pm
Been watching the national sports channel. Are the Giants playing the Cowboys?
December 29th, 2011 at 4:15 pm
Where do you begin?? Freeman forcing throws to Winslow & MWill ! Wide receivers NEVER being open! Linebackers are AWFUL! Mccoy & Price being hurt! And I give BPrice ALOTof credit to play with one leg out there,hope he gets healthy next yr! Need a CB to take Barber’s place!
And better play from the safeties! Another RB with speed! And a deep
threat WR with speed is a MUST!!
December 29th, 2011 at 4:28 pm
“I think we have all the pieces in place for a 3-4 defense,” the player said. “McCoy and Clayborn can play end, Price at nose, Bowers and Bennett outside, with Foster and Dekoda inside.”
The top defenses in the NFL like the 49ers, Ravens, Steelers, and Jets all run the 3-4 defense to perfection.
For those who think a transition to a 3-4 defense is too difficult to endure, the Texans would beg to differ. The Texans went from the 30th ranked defense and one of the worst pass defenses in NFL history a year ago to one of the top and most feared defenses in the NFL this year.
December 29th, 2011 at 4:30 pm
Credit to Justin Palowski for my previous post. I did edit one part where I put in Dekoda where he had Black.
December 29th, 2011 at 4:37 pm
Adam:
What linebackers do the Bucs have to play a 34 defense? Not one player on this team could start at linebacker for the 49ers, Raves, Steelers and probably not the Jets.
You think this defense is a Cluster-F now, wait till someone tries to run a 34 defense with this roster, that is unless Team Glazer goes all Danny Snyder in the offseason.
What are the odds of that happening?
December 29th, 2011 at 4:52 pm
@Joe
Just quoting what Justin wrote on his page that supposedly a player he was talking to said. I actually think it could work.
December 29th, 2011 at 5:15 pm
The Tampa 2 is a good defense if you have fast, physical LB’s and a D-line that gets pressure on the QB. It’s a ‘bend but don’t break’ approach that usually gives up a lot more field goals than TD’s. The problem with running the Tampa 2 with this LB corp is we are fast but not physical and our D-line has been decimated. When healthy, we have a lot better chance of being successful with the Tampa 2 than with a 3-4 defense.
December 29th, 2011 at 8:08 pm
What Donald Penn took 3 paragraphs to say, I can sum up in 2 words: I Quit.
December 29th, 2011 at 9:25 pm
3-4 may be a welcome change. Our D has been bad since Monty Kiffen announced he was leaving.
I just want to see change, tired of watching this crock of BS these Glazers call an NFL Franchise.
December 31st, 2011 at 2:18 pm
How about a good FA LT or draft a LT to fill in or replace the current one. Maybe one that gets in the face of other slackers in the O line like our oft injured and over paid center.