Donald Penn Talks Bucs, Josh Freeman
May 23rd, 2012
Cool cat Donald Penn took a moment after OTA practice yesterday to talk to a gaggle of local pen and mic club members to discuss the Bucs, what he learned from the grotesque 10-game losing streak last season, and how Josh Freeman is handling a new offense with a new coaching staff.
On the collateral damage of the 10-game losing streak that resulted in Raheem Morris being jettisoned by the Bucs.
You have to move on, man. It’s your job. If there is one thing about Raheem Morris is that he taught me is that you have to understand there is a business side to everything. You have to look at it like that. It’s a business side. You have to move on. We are out here. We have great attendance. Guys are buying in. It’s looking up. I’m looking forward to the season.
Can he sense a change in the air among local Bucs fans with the New Schiano Order?
I think so. When I see people out it’s not like last year when they saw you and they looked down. Now they are chatting with me. So I think [excitement] is coming.
What are some differences with Schiano?
You will see when we converse on the field. I don’t want to give up any inside stuff about what he is doing. He is holding everybody accountable and himself accountable as much as he is holding the person next to himself accountable. That is one thing we are trying to do across the board: Everybody is accountable. No sugarcoating anything, no hiding anything. He wants everything up front. That’s the way I try to live. I try to treat people the way they want to be treated and that is what he is giving back to these young guys. Don’t half-ass something if you don’t want the other guy doing it half-assed. You have to be on top of your game and the other guy you have to make sure is on top of his game too. With a young team, that is something you need.
How is Josh Freeman adapting to the coaches?
I was in his ear today telling him, “You know you are still my favorite quarterback?” He is getting better. You have to understand, Josh has so much on his plate right now. He is learning so much; he is getting so much thrown at him. Out there on the offensive line, we are making the calls and trying to make his job easier. He has so much upon him right now — he is grasping it, he is doing a good job. Sometimes we have to tell him to calm down because he is getting overwhelmed because he wants everything to be perfect. But right now we are learning things, we are fixing things. Not everything is going to be perfect but he wants it to be perfect. We tell him, “Josh, slow down, we’ve got time, but we like the way you are working.”
Schiano has pulled him aside a couple of times, “Keep working hard, keep doing what you are doing but don’t get frustrated.” They are throwing a lot at him; they are throwing a lot at us.
We have to learn from last year. I don’t want that feeling again and none of the other guys want that. Josh handled it well. That’s what he needs to do. That makes him mature and makes him a better player and a better leader.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:22 am
The Bucs will be the team to go on a late season season run and end up 1 slot out of the playoffs.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:29 am
Free is frustrated…………..uh oh.
“Lot on his plate”……uh oh.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:34 am
Sory coach . It’s not Freeman doing anything wrong. It’s everyone else. Looks like he’s picking up where he left off .
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:45 am
Free did A LOT wrong last year. But the main thing was coaching and play calling. He is still very young and learning. He needs someone to help his vision by studying game tape. Not just his but super stars of past and present. He should be studying Montana and watching him progress through his reads. You can NOT walk up to the line in the NFL and alreay know where you are going with a pass. You might have an idea but what if that idea is covered. You gotta make the right reads and he had no one helping him last year. That is why he STILL has too much on his plate. He hasn’t progressed like he wanted.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:46 am
With every regime change the QB always has the most to learn, this is why these things are not done in haste, Josh will be fine, remember he’s learning a whole new scheme, all new verbage, new protections, it’s like learning a whole new language.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:51 am
And I know Free doesn’t have the release of a Marino, not many do, but if you watch Marino he progressed through his reads just as fast as he would release a pass. You can watch his helmet move/eyes checking Wr’s. As soon as Marino’s mind was made up, BANG!, out comes the ball. This happens when an offense is on the same page and the players are doing their jobs by making plays.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:53 am
Man give the kid a chance! Half the people on here were probably still living at home at the ripe age of 23. He’ll get it and when he does I believe he’ll be elite.
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:29 am
Free is in his fourth season!! Because of the success of Dalton, Flacco, Ryan etc. in their first year, teams can only be so patient.
This looks to be a rebuilding year, hopefully Turner and Sullivan can get Free to give us an 8-8 record at least.
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:40 am
I thought the QB leads the team, not the team leads the QB.
Troubling remarks.
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:50 am
It’s Blount. It’s coaches. It was Winslow. It’ his age. Just the entire offense. Every excuse in the world. Penn says they have to calm him down. That’s what they had to do last season when he was pointing the finger at everyone else when plays went wrong. But it was always Blount or the receiver. Now he’s at it again.
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:58 am
@Eric All remarks are troubling to you
That said, I don’t like this whole deal with the line making calls again. Free should have matured to that level at least by now….
May 23rd, 2012 at 12:50 pm
Eric=Debbie downer
May 23rd, 2012 at 12:56 pm
It’s May 23rd.
The sky is clearly falling.
May 23rd, 2012 at 2:14 pm
I have to agree with Eric, the QB should lead the team.
What does this say about Freeman, if he don’t know where every player on the field should be ?
Josh better learn, and learn fast.
Schiano did not draft Freeman, and he came here to put a winning team on the field. Schiano also demonstrated he has no misplaced loyalty to any player by cutting TJax and trading Winslow. Hell, he even brought in Martin when he has Blount!
Schiano is here to WIN.
May 23rd, 2012 at 3:36 pm
Error-ick=turd in every punchbowl
May 23rd, 2012 at 3:40 pm
“If there is one thing about Raheem Morris is that he taught me is that you have to understand there is a business side to everything. You have to look at it like that. It’s a business side.”
Notice…in three seasons….nothing about football. Raheem Morris was the worst coach in the history of the Buccaneers.
May 23rd, 2012 at 4:13 pm
BucFan20 Says:
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:50 am
It’s Blount. It’s coaches. It was Winslow. It’ his age. Just the entire offense. Every excuse in the world. Penn says they have to calm him down. That’s what they had to do last season when he was pointing the finger at everyone else when plays went wrong. But it was always Blount or the receiver. Now he’s at it again.
.
That is the dumbest thing I’ve read (today). Penn said Freeman is trying to learn fast than everyone else…in other words, he’s working his butt off.
Penn said they have plenty of time. He’s wrong. Penn has fewer things to learn. Freeman has to know EVERYTHING. And not by preseason…he’s expected to know the playbook in OTAs as well.
May 23rd, 2012 at 4:29 pm
“Eric Says:
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:29 am
Free is frustrated…………..uh oh.
“Lot on his plate”……uh oh.”
@Eric:
EVERYTHING that you post is of the “uh-oh” variety.
It’s impossible for me to prove that you’re a child, but your posts are invariably childish. Being able to assimilate new information and deal with the changes that life presents without freaking out is a characteristic of an adult mind. You obviously have a long way to go in that department. Good luck.
“Eric Says:
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:40 am
I thought…”
@Eric:
There you go (hardly) thinking again. Leave the critical thinking to the adults.
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:48 pm
@Pete
Some day you may be able to read. Last season when things went wrong Mr. Perfect was pointing the finger and yelling. Even when playing reckless, throwing ints, fumbling etc. himself. Now things are not going the way he wants and he is in their face again. So the coach pulls him aside tells him to keep doing what he is doing but don’t get frustrated. In other words shut up. He is just being Freeman. When things get tough he goes nuts. Just what do you think he is going to say about Freeman. He said it as nicely as he could.