Adrian Clayborn As Determined As Ever
May 23rd, 2013
Clayborn is sporting a changed look this season
Before the Bucs drafted Adrian Clayborn, Joe was big on the Iowa product. In his rookie year, Clayborn proved to be a monster, just ask Matty Ice, who likely wakes up on cold mornings still feeling Clayborn’s power the way Clayborn planted him into the turf of the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway, forcing a fumble.
After a blown knee in his sophomore year, Clayborn is already working agility drills and said he appreciates his NFL status even more, so documents Woody Cummings of The Tampa Tribune.
“I think the main difference between this year and last year for me is that I’m a little more appreciative of the game of football now and what I have,” Clayborn said after Monday’s first offseason practice session.
“I don’t want to ever take that for granted, because I realize now that all it takes is one play and you could be out. One play and it could all be over for you, so, you know, knock on wood.”
Now Joe noticed Clayborn’s changed physique immediately Monday. Joe asked Clayborn if he dropped weight and Clayborn said he had, but not enough to reach his goal of a playing weight. That sure could have fooled Joe as svelte as Clayborn looked.
Basically, Clayborn has been working out like a madman since his knee injury and his upper body looks totally different, much more build up of the shoulders and arms it appears.
Clayborn is a good dude. A quiet guy, but a good dude and he’s the kind of guy Joe pulls for. If he keeps his body in shape like it is now, Joe will be very interested to see how his shift in body composition will change or enhance his play at right defensive end.
May 23rd, 2013 at 7:20 am
The Guy has a very high motor. having said that, he was not fast even before the injury. If he slows even a little from the injury, most tackles will stonewall him.
May 23rd, 2013 at 8:22 am
@the_bucs_realist
So if he loses a little speed, he won’t be able to get past a tackle? Sure.
Bucs realist?? More like the_bucs_pessimist.
May 23rd, 2013 at 8:24 am
Joe, saw somewhere that D. Penn looked in better shape this year any info?
May 23rd, 2013 at 8:24 am
I think Bowers and Clayborn are going to surprise on how well they play. With McCoy and possibly Spense and these 2 on the end I think the D-Line will be tough to contain. Saying that the depth is a little scary though. IF Gholston plays like he can then that is a huge plus BUT relying on young players is tough.
May 23rd, 2013 at 8:31 am
@walter,
Thank You!!!
May 23rd, 2013 at 8:38 am
Good for AC I wonder has he improved his technique
May 23rd, 2013 at 8:39 am
@big007hed
If you are worried about depth, translation, you are worried about the starters and there is no one behind them
May 23rd, 2013 at 8:59 am
@ the_buc_pessimist
DE depth:
Da’Quan Bowers
Adrian Clayborn
Daniel Te’o-Neshiem
Williams Gholston
Stephen Means
Several othe camp bodies
DT depth:
Gerald McCoy
Gary Gibson
Akeem Spence
Derek Landri
Several other camp bodies
The depth is not an issue. Sorry Dom didn’t sign a broken down Dwight Freeney or a broken down John Abraham. Or even Osi Umeniyora, who hates Bill Sheridan.
You don’t know what you have until you let them play. And it doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to figure out that improved play in the secondary will improve the play along the DL. If the QB holds onto the ball a second or 2 longer because the receivers are actually covered, then …….
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:02 am
@j 2.o
then…..they will go from the second worse pass rush to somewhere in the bottom 20’s???? great, can’t wait
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:15 am
Realist, really consider following some other team. Life is too short to purposely choose to live in such constant negativity. Why live in such unnecessary pain. Suggestion: become a fan of whatever team wins the Super Bowl. That way you can always be on the bandwagon of whatever team is the best. You don’t have to be concerned with the challenges of what it takes to be a true fan of the Bucs.
What you do is what trolls do. I don’t know if you are a troll, but you certainly post like one.
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:16 am
@Bucs_Pessimist worrying about depth has NOTHING to do with the starters, everyone needs breaks. Unless you expect them to play every snap of every game. That is a unrealistic goal.
I am worrying about who will come in and give our starters a breather!
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:17 am
J 2.0,
Not so fast, Buster.
“Broken Down” John Abraham is better at sacking the QB then anyone we have on our roster, fact.
He is old, but dude can still play.
We need to have a 10+ sack guy on our team, before our fans can go casting stones at “broken down” 10+ sack guys.
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:19 am
@the_buc_realist
wait just because we have rookies and some decent people at depth we have almost the same d line as last year?? Because our backup players are not named as starters? You want quality backup players….you know how stupid that sounds, you can have decent depth and if anything we have potential backups. But you obviously know we’re going to be bottoms 20’s?? Tell me how our Pass D will be please.
AC, GMC, Bowers and also Teo on D line with our rookies sounds pretty good on paper and i believe in our coaching staff to put them to good use.
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:20 am
True Blue,
Cut the “true” fan crap, realist is only speaking his mind. If you don’t like it, then please don’t read the comments.
Tired of “true” fans being butt hurt over TRUE commentary.
The Bucs need to generate some more sacks this year, and they haven’t had a 10+ sack guy since Simeon Rice.
Just because the buc realist is pouring out facts, prior failings, and how our defense leaves something to be desired doesn’t take his fan card away.
If anything, it is refreshing to see fans that still see a 7-9 team, no playoffs, and it is put up or shut up time.
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:30 am
scares me a bit when I hear of major changes in a players body size from one season to the next.
I don’t think I need to be specific on what may help this growth.
Let’s hope he’s just been eating his spinach
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:44 am
@stevek
I’ll be honest to say our d line has not produce as for the draft picks we got on it. HOWEVER from what implies in this comment
“the_buc_realist Says:
May 23rd, 2013 at 8:39 am
@big007hed
If you are worried about depth, translation, you are worried about the starters and there is no one behind them”
Is that we are worried about depth, and i cant speak for everyone but depth on d line is something I’m not worried. It is injury prone again a almost all players on d line have been injured. That’s what I’m worried about.
We just improved our secondary, 2nd worst of all time to on paper a top DBs. We will see how this does work for us throughout the season. Though with the improved secondary, a healthy line coming back(still subjected to injury as they all have history) the sacks should be coming this season. This is not blind optimism, its a fact that they should be with the changes. If it does not work out then it’ll be a fact that we have a crappy coaching or team.
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:47 am
Buc_Realist just being real???? Please…that dude is wrong on nearly everything and negative on all things. He should just change his handle to ‘little danny downer’.
May 23rd, 2013 at 9:48 am
@everyone
i will be more optimistic once this team can at least finish second in the division or higher.
Hopefully they have built a team that can drag Jfro and the D-line to a playoff game.
May 23rd, 2013 at 10:36 am
@ stevek @ buc_pessimist
You aren’t true fans. True fans are the guys in left field in Major League that predict this is the year every year. They know all the players, all the stats, all the factors, and hope for the best. I fall into that category. If I’m wrong then I am wrong. But hoping for the best is being a “fan” and “supporter” of the team and organization. Do I like everything about the Bucs? No. But why sit there being negative all the time?
Then you have people like yourselves that claim “we’re just being reallistic.” Why? You’re not fans you’re haters. You just want the team to do bad so you can say “I told you so.” Does that make you feel better? Does that boost your ego? Maybe I want to say “I told you so” as well, but on the positive note. As in “I told you we would make the playoffs.”
Don’t hide behind the mantra of “we’re just being reallistc” Nope. You’re just “being dicks.”
May 23rd, 2013 at 11:30 am
@stevek, you’r flat wrong. It’s not true commentary. It’s truly one sided commentary. True commentary is balanced. Most everything that comes from the real pessimist is emphasizing only the worst possible outcome. That observation is ‘true’ commentary. If you don’t like it, don’t read my posts.
May 23rd, 2013 at 11:36 am
Blah blah blah, come on now. A “true fan” has nothing to do with being optimistic over everything. A real person has there own mind and feelings and a fan has a right to believe whatever they want. Is the buc realist more down on the team than anything? Yes… but its not like this team has given us much to be proud of lately. Unless you consider subpar teams and finishing last or 2nd to last in your division every year something to be proud of.
You can live in your world where you fart rainbows and crap butterflies but we dont all live there. Fact is the bucs have not been very good and until they start winning most fans are going to find something to bitch about.
May 23rd, 2013 at 11:43 am
Realist says:
“@everyone
i will be more optimistic once this team can at least finish second in the division or higher.”
How simple. But that’s not optimism. That’s jumping on the bandwagon. Any fair-weather fan can do that. Where’s your courage to see the quality changes that are happening? Where is your foresight of genuine possibilities that indicate this team may well be getting better?
You don’t know whether the negative things you opine are going to happen or not. You’re just afraid of having your hopes for a better season dashed. If you are not just a troll, then your just trying to protect your feelings. That’s why you are waiting to see positive results before risking any hopefulness. Have some courage, and don’t take it personal whether this team succeeds or fails. Meanwhile enjoy a little optimism where it’s warranted. If feels a lot better than the constant fear of pessimism.
May 23rd, 2013 at 12:01 pm
@Trueblue
You dont see quality changes in the off season. Sure, adding star players is great but that doesnt mean the team is now great. They still have to put it together on the field. Until they do there is no reason to think this team will be much better than last years. I can understand how one person can be optimistic about that, I can also understand, with the history of this franchise, how one would be unwilling to be optimistic until they see proof on the field as well. My point is being optimistic or pessimistic doesnt define a “true fan”. Everybody is different.
May 23rd, 2013 at 1:10 pm
“You dont see quality changes in the off season. Sure, adding star players is great but that doesnt mean the team is now great.”
Not saying the team is now great, but conditions are at least promising. What you do see is quality players returning to the lineup that weren’t there most or all of last season. Nicks, Joseph, Bowers, Clayborn. You see a revamped secondary with the addition of 2 all pros in their primes. You see a team returning with the advantage that doesn’t have to learn yet another new system.
These are real positives. Most all the negatives cited are backward looking or imaginary. This is not Morris’s team. This is the New Bucs. Give em the benefit of the doubt until proven wrong.
“Until they do there is no reason to think this team will be much better than last years.”
If there is nothing to see, why bother to follow the team in the off season? The truth is that there are lots of reasons to think this team will be better. I listed several of them above. Sure, only time will tell, but who knows what unforeseen events will arise to derail a promising season. Maybe lots, maybe none. Do we really want to focus on such unknown possibilities?
“My point is being optimistic or pessimistic doesnt define a “true fan”.”
Maybe, but fan is short for fanatic. It is a reference to a fanatical love for your team, not a fanatical disdain. A sports fan loves sports. If one hates everything there is about sports, the term fan just doesn’t fit. I suppose one could be a fan of winning, but that’s not on the table now. It’s the off season. It’s a time for seeing what’s being brought to bear by coaches, players, and admin. Criticism and concern is valid where warranted. Pessimism for pessimism’s sake, not so much.
May 23rd, 2013 at 1:48 pm
If there is nothing to see, why bother to follow the team in the off season? The truth is that there are lots of reasons to think this team will be better. I listed several of them above. Sure, only time will tell, but who knows what unforeseen events will arise to derail a promising season. Maybe lots, maybe none. Do we really want to focus on such unknown possibilities?
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No but this is the Bucs were talking about. Usually what can go wrong, WILL go wrong. Thats just about the way its always been here. Under Dom we have been a very bad team for the majority of his tenure. Even the 10-6 season we weren’t very good. Having blind faith is fine, I’m not knocking you for it, but not everybody is like that. Now having said that I agree that the Realist has been overboard with his negativity but I can’t really say I blame him. I, to am extremely frustrated with the constant finishing last in our division and no playoffs. I’m not gonna go all negative but I let it be known I am unhappy right now and even though the looks of the off season seem like we are on the up and up.. I’m not gonna be all giddy until I see the proof on the field.
“My point is being optimistic or pessimistic doesnt define a “true fan”.”
Maybe, but fan is short for fanatic. It is a reference to a fanatical love for your team, not a fanatical disdain. A sports fan loves sports. If one hates everything there is about sports, the term fan just doesn’t fit. I suppose one could be a fan of winning, but that’s not on the table now. It’s the off season. It’s a time for seeing what’s being brought to bear by coaches, players, and admin. Criticism and concern is valid where warranted. Pessimism for pessimism’s sake, not so much.
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Fanatical doesnt imply having blind faith. You say criticism and concern is valid where warranted… well I would say 24-40 and last in your division is criticism worthy (even though hes still a very young GM). The fans should be disgusted. The team should be disgusted and that disgust should last all of us well into September where we can hopefully get some meaningful wins. There are no meaningful wins to be had in the off season. Only hope. But hope only takes you so far.
May 23rd, 2013 at 2:23 pm
REDDMAN:
Didn’t see him but then again, wasn’t looking for him. If true, not a surprise though. Penn always sheds weight in the offseason. It’s the latter part of the season is when Penn always seems to pack on the pounds.
May 23rd, 2013 at 3:54 pm
“There are no meaningful wins to be had in the off season. Only hope. But hope only takes you so far.”
So however far hope may take you, enjoy the ride. What’s it going to cost you? It’s far better than living in incessant fault finding about every aspect of the team.
I’m having a lot of fun this off season on the movements and happenings of the team. It’s not blind faith at all. I have no way of knowing how the season will unfold, and I’ll be fine with it however it goes. That’s later however. What is happening now is mostly good stuff. I’d much rather enjoy it than whine about what might go wrong. Life is good, make the most of it.