Amobi Okoye Has Harsh Words For Greg Schiano
September 3rd, 2012
Former Bucs defensive tackle Amobi Okoye — he was with the Bucs just about long enough to wolf down a chicken and yellow rice dinner at La Teresita — doesn’t seem to be too happy with Bucs coach Greg Schiano.
Okoye was quickly re-signed by the team from whence he came from, the Bears, and he quickly took Schiano to task for being less than accountable.
Okoye spoke with Sean Jensen of the Chicago Sun-Times and not only believes he was rushed back too quick from his knee surgery, which kept him off the practice field, but believed Shiano doesn’t practice what he preaches.
“It’s too bad to hear the unfortunate things he’s saying about my knee,” Okoye said. “It’s kind of unfair of him to say what he said to the media, painting a bad picture like my knee was always bad.
“It really makes me question the character of he himself, because, while I was there, he was trying to mold us to be kind of like him. It made me question all the things he was teaching me, as far as TBA — Trust, Belief and Accountability — his way of doing things,” Okoye said. “It’s like, ‘Wow, what type of guy is this?’ That really hurt.”
It was a puzzling decision to let Okoye go, in many ways. One was the Bucs are so thin at defensive tackle, why not put Okoye on the PUP list? How exactly would that hurt the Bucs?
The Bucs gave Arrelious Benn plenty of time to rehab despite not being able to participate for almost the entire preseason. Odd that Okoye wasn’t afforded the same length of rope.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:10 pm
Joe, U acting like U know something about La Teresita chicken and yellow rice with fries lol
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:17 pm
I don’t think Shinao ment the way it came across. He stated the Bucs took a chance on Okoye knee not that he is a bad player. Ultimately Okoye didn’t perform to standards. I will be watching the Bears this year to see how well he plays.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:17 pm
Mbaby:
Never had fries with the chicken and yellow rice.
Fries with rice is a bit too startchy.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:17 pm
Coach must have word of something else that is out there on Okoye. Everyone let go by Schiano has not been signed or signed then released. Lets see if Okoye actually makes on the field or finshes the season. I trust coach.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:22 pm
Maybe, just maybe, Mr.Okoye wasn’t buying in to being one of the “Buccaneer Men”. If coach Schiano has been anything, it’s consistent and unwavering. Maybe he referenced the lingering knee to prevent calling him out regarding his work ethic or otherwise degrading him.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:26 pm
Obviously Schiano felt either that Okoye wasn’t upfront with how his knee felt when the team originally signed him, or that he should’ve been able to work through the discomfort he was feeling. Sounds like Okoye’s being a little over-sensitive imo. As far as the PUP list goes, if Schiano and the team felt that Okoye was milking the injury just to avoid training camp, then I highly doubt he would give him the luxury of sitting around another 6 weeks while his teammates busted the butts. Not saying that was the case, but it does stand to reason.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:28 pm
And what abiout Gaty Gibson!?
Anyone see him on the field this preseason!? I didnt!
Schiano is starting to look a little like a dictator these days. I was a big fan before this move.
Okoye is right. Schiano stabbed him in the back by talking about his knee to the media. Coaches shouldnt do that.
Gibson vs. Okoye
I see some serious hypocrisy there!
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:29 pm
Okoye will join a long list of ex-Schiano badditudes….he showed what he was made of with this report….never burn your bridges…I’m sure there was something else wrong along with the knee.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:29 pm
Amobi is just pissed because he has a bum knee and Schiano was honest to the media about it… The knee has been bad for years and Amobi knows his carreer is over…. what a cry baby… Look at the other guys Schiano got rid of… All a bunch of Nancy boys…
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:30 pm
I’d like to know how Okoye was able to get a medical settlement from the Bucs then turn right around and pass a physical with the Bears. I think there is more to this story than we’re hearing.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:30 pm
1)? So Oyoke wants it known that he was being a baby, or didn’t want to play, instead of his knee was hurt?
2)Benn got hurt recently, while Oyoke already had surgery on an old injury, so the situations ARE different—in terms of molding a mentality. To do nothing in the league for 6 years, to play gingerly on your old injury as if you already have a job, & then to smack talk your former coach with zero logic…good riddance…
3)Speaking of “Buccaneer Men”…did it give anyone else pause when Gerald McCoy said he saw Belichick in the hallway the other day, & his first instinct was to scamper the other way head down? I heard that & thought it was beyond pathetic. A Warren Sapp would’ve walked up to Belichick, shook his hand like a man, & after gleaning some knowledge would’ve playfully trash talked with him. Different breeds. I just wonder…
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:31 pm
Just a knee-jerk reaction
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:36 pm
Joe, I had it like 6 times before I ever realize they were n there. On the menu it say with fries, but I thought it will b on the side. justin the commish is talking about weight loss and u talking about too startchy, what happen 2 those FGU days?
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:44 pm
Winslow had “harsh words for Greg Schiano” as well. See a pattern there? I do. There have been many players cut or released who were not happy about it in the past. MANY by New England and Bill Belichick for example.
We’ll see where Okoye is in a year. I’m guessing out of the NFL.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:45 pm
“I’d like to know how Okoye was able to get a medical settlement from the Bucs then turn right around and pass a physical with the Bears. I think there is more to this story than we’re hearing.”
Thank you. Why after signing a guaranteed contract with the Bucs would he agree to an injury settlement?
Maybe he agreed, because if he agreed to the semantics, he would be paid the $1.3 million in one lump sum, instead of receiving individual paychecks.
Seems to be quite a few ethical lapses in the front office this year. Wasn’t that Gruden’s downfall, where he lost the locker room? He would say one thing to a player’s face and then stab him in the back.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:48 pm
@MBaby, one of the Joes could use a little weight gain, and one could use a little weight loss, like most of us.
It was good to hear Joe respond to the excess starch allegations. Truth be known, Chicken and Yellow Rice all by itself is a big No No for weight loss, even w/o the greasy starchy fries!
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:53 pm
C’mon Joe, you write about the NFL and the Bucs several times a day. I know you’ve seen this a ton of times. A player that passes his physical at the beginning of training camp and practices with the team is INELIGIBLE for the PUP list. Putting Okoye on the PUP list was NOT an option.
That being said, I had hoped Okoye could get ready, contribute some quality snaps, and help the team… especially with how thin we are at DT.
September 3rd, 2012 at 4:53 pm
Let’s just watch and see what he does in Chicago. My bet, nothing spectacular. No more than any $750.000 player would do as a back-up. At this point, he is over-priced for a p/t back-up.
September 3rd, 2012 at 5:28 pm
Brandon,
You’re right about PUP, but the NFL amended the IR rules that will let one designated player go on IR and return after the 8th game. Check me on the details, but it works something like that.
September 3rd, 2012 at 5:32 pm
Big difference between Okoye and Benn. Much more invested in Benn. Okoye was supposed to be back two weeks ago and he was not. Okoye had been a disappointment since his first season as a high draft pick. If Schiano thought he could help the team, he’d be here.
September 3rd, 2012 at 5:40 pm
Wasn’t Okoye eligible for that “if you are on the Game One Roster, your paycheck is guaranteed for the year”?
September 3rd, 2012 at 5:51 pm
@buddah,
Believe Schiano and the team thought he could help the team, that’s why he was signed. Just got to the point that they couldn’t figure out WHEN that might be, so seems it was decided they couldn’t wait.
September 3rd, 2012 at 6:52 pm
FlBoy84, you may have a little too much football sense for this forum, or for some in it.
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:03 pm
Sounds like another part of his anatomy is hurting other than his knee.
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:06 pm
I’ve got some boots on the ground Intel on this one. Lets just say this is the best move for the “team”.
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:10 pm
Hey, Price apparently passed a physical too with the Bears but he’s not with them any longer. As for Okoye..like Schiano said, ultimately you have to EARN a spot on the team.
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:13 pm
@ FlBoy84
Exactly. Wasn’t gonna be able to contribute or help the team now or who knows when, so he was released. May have been the same with Shipley. You don’t want to start a new season with liabilities on your roster. And it figures that he would go back to the Bears who are scraping the bottom of every barrell to try to find players. Example: they cut Brian Price to make room for Okoye. Sounds like he just didnt have the dicipline or desire to be a “Buccaneer Man” so he took his sour grapes elsewhere.
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:13 pm
@Mike J,
Thanks. lol Lots of sharp posters here, not Grande, but lots of others.
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:24 pm
The Bucs know knees. Joe has said this before and it’s true. Their doctor has a good track record when predicting the future of knee repairs. He really hasn’t missed one yet, starting with Bryant. I think this is what it boiled down to, the Doc said Okoye has a serious problem and the Bears don’t know it yet. They will very soon when Okoye is cut or put on IR. Coach Schiano is not an idiot and he would cut a player needlessly.
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:30 pm
Grande is just not a member of the Amen Chorus therefore he must be wrong.
Oooh, that’s fun to write in the 3rd person. Grande likes!
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:35 pm
I thought everyone in this town always took the word of every player that criticizes a coach.
Like Michael Clayton or Meshawn…
Players are supposed to love their coach, like Rah…..
September 3rd, 2012 at 7:40 pm
Winslow complained about coach after being let go, now this guy.
I agree, lets see where Okoye is in 8 weeks or so.
September 3rd, 2012 at 8:55 pm
Some of these players have a lot of pride ….. it’s not uncommon for them to complain about being released, or insinuate somehow that it’s not their fault. I can think of many truly great former bucs players that had difficulty dealing with it. You put it all out there, It gotta be hard, man.
Especially if you just lost out on like 1.3 million er sumthin’, yikes!
September 3rd, 2012 at 9:06 pm
At first I found his release puzzling/disappointing….but let’s take a closer look, shall we? After much fanfare and being chosen 10th in the 2007 draft( I believe)…the Texans didn’t want him back. Chicago didn’t make a push to keep him this offseason…until he came back hat/helmet in hand at minimum wage. He’s played with some studs..Mario Williams,Julius Peppers and never really lit it up. Like many previous posters, we can check back in a few weeks and see if he’s anything more than a player on his way out of the NFL.
September 3rd, 2012 at 9:09 pm
I was hoping he’d be a good fit real thin on the d,line need a better rotation
September 4th, 2012 at 2:26 am
Can we just trade for a real D-lineman!
September 4th, 2012 at 3:54 am
Often times there is more to a story than what is released to the public. This seems like this may be one of those times. There’s no point in me trying to speculate as to what may have happened, but I highly doubt he was cut ONLY because he needed more time to get his knee ready, especially when he plays a position we are desperately thin at. Like Joe said, Benn (and Biggers) were allowed to rehab their injuries, so it is odd that Okoye wouldn’t be allowed to do the same. Regardless, he’s gone, it’s over, and unless he lights the league on fire this season, I’m over it.
September 4th, 2012 at 7:29 am
And GIBSON!!?
No one is addressing my point!
There is a clear double standard here!
Forget Benn. This issue is about Gibson vs. Okoye
Gibson didnt earn anything! He never stepped on the field.
He better play solid this year.
September 4th, 2012 at 8:00 am
There is no double standard when it comes to having a crappy attitude! I’ll bet this was the problem and the coach used the other as an excuse to not embarrass the player more. Class move!
September 4th, 2012 at 9:22 am
Why get all butt-hurt. You didn’t make the team, if you’d prefer he could just say that you weren’t as good as george johnson..
September 4th, 2012 at 10:52 am
wine and cheese
September 4th, 2012 at 11:27 am
teacherman said: “He better play solid this year.”
lol, or what? what can you do?
September 4th, 2012 at 3:03 pm
He said Butt-hurt. Is that better than butt-wet.
Is that Beavis and Butthead’s teacher???
“Fly high lesbian seagull…