Lovie Greasing Wheels For Peanut Tillman?
January 30th, 2014
One thing Bucs fans should expect from Lovie Smith is a defense that specializes in forcing turnovers. Like former Bucs commander Greg Schiano, Lovie loves turnovers. The Bucs were already great at turnovers, but the problem was the impotent offense could rarely take advantage of turnovers.
There happens to be a turnover machine in Chicago by the name of Peanut Tillman, a stud of a cornerback. And per Michael C. Wright of BSPN Chicago, talking to former Bears great Brian Urlacher, don’t be shocked if Peanut, a free agent, comes to Tampa Bay.
One scenario Urlacher could see playing out is a reunion between Tillman and Smith, now the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who also brought aboard former Bears assistant Gill Byrd to coach the secondary.
“That would not shock me one bit,” Urlacher said. “Imagine that corner tandem [of Tillman and Darrelle Revis] right there. I would not be surprised if that happened. But I just don’t see them letting him get away in Chicago. He’s been too good of a player there for too long to let him get away for nothing.”
Urlacher did say in the same article it sure looks like the Bears are trying to purge Lovie’s guys from the roster, whether they be smart moves or foolish moves, and Urlacher believes the Bears letting Peanut leave would be downright foolish.
Peanut is a helluva player. Joe loves the guy. But please remember and don’t forget, new general manager Jason Licht noted that he would pursue free agents only if he saw value in the move, meaning he isn’t likely to get into any bidding wars for free agents.
Would Peanut be willing to take a little less for a Lovie reunion? That remains to be seen.
And what of Johnthan Banks? If Lovie and Licht believe Banks has the talent — and it sure seems like he does the way he played in the second half of the season — then free agent cash may be smarter spent on another position like offensive line?
January 30th, 2014 at 9:10 am
Bring him in let Jonathan Banks learn and develop from Tillman and Revis.
January 30th, 2014 at 9:14 am
Move JB in the slot. Kick out LJ. We need 3 capable corners on the field most of the snaps
January 30th, 2014 at 9:23 am
Could Tillman play the slot? I feel like JB doesn’t have the quickness to play it and is better on the outside
January 30th, 2014 at 9:30 am
I would love a Tillman signing. Yes, Banks played “serviceable” as a rookie but Banks is no where near the level of talent as Tillman. If the Bucs are trying to win now they make this move. If they pull this off, the Bucs would have the best secondary in the league (on paper) and would provide much needed depth at that position. Now of course this all depends on what kind of money he’s demanding.
I have a feeling Licht and Lovie are going to sign a FA DE, but not for top dollar. Maybe a Jared Allen. Then, draft one early to develop (and go offense the rest of the way). I also think our current DEs will look better with better coaching next year. I think Goldston has a chance to blow up next year under this coaching staff if he has the right coaches.
January 30th, 2014 at 9:30 am
@bucsQcCity
Banks might be too slow to play the slot against the shifty receivers that are out there now..
That said I still wouldn’t be opposed to signing him if the money was right.. Which if last year was any indication then hes looking for a about 5-7 mil since that is what the “TOP” free agent CB got last year (Sean Smith).. But I would prefer we went out and got a young CB that can play the slot and outside…
I’d always rather be a year or two too early on a player than be too late.. Unless its a HOF player(DB WS JL).. NEVER FORGET! Damn you Dom
January 30th, 2014 at 9:30 am
Oline needs immediate help!!
January 30th, 2014 at 9:35 am
You’re right speed might be an issue..
January 30th, 2014 at 9:44 am
Repeat after me Joe: WE START THREE CBs EVERY GAME.
Getting Tillman doesn’t mean less snaps for Banks, it means less snaps for LJ.
And, btw, Banks would probably stay on the outside with Tillman in the slot.
January 30th, 2014 at 9:45 am
even if Banks is good, you bring in Tillman, the philosophy that you only bring in Tillman if you don’t believe in Banks is boneheaded, there is a thing called depth that can help a team.
January 30th, 2014 at 9:51 am
Where’s the outrage? Media/Fans bitched and moaned about JG and GS bringing in their players…… Lovie (if that’s his real name) ??? Queue the crickets.
January 30th, 2014 at 9:52 am
I do agree with coaches bringing in players they’ve coached before. Nothing wrong with it.
January 30th, 2014 at 9:54 am
I like the idea. Keep developing Banks. As far as his speed, most rookie CBs appear a little slow. They are adjusting and learning.
It took until his 5th year for Barber to be any good. Fans had already given up on him, believe it or not.
What I like about this is if Banks develops quicker, next year we can cut or trade Revis and free up a ton of cap money. If not, then we go another year with Peanut and Revis.
Soooner or later Banks will become very good. We just need to compensate until then.
January 30th, 2014 at 9:55 am
I would bring him in for depth.
January 30th, 2014 at 9:57 am
Joe
Sorry to be boring this morning but I pretty much agree with your take. Yeah if they can get Tillman for the right price it would be a good deal. But no bidding wars!
But here is a question for you Joe. I understand that the O line was a huge disappointment last year. And so I get that folks want to draft somebody high to fix it. But my question is….do we even know what we have in our O line.
Their performance last year was abysmal but there were justifiable reasons for that letdown. Meanwhile how did they cobble together a line the year before that made Doug Martin such a star? 40% of that starting line now represent our backups.
And so posters…I see our O line as an enigma!! Here are the possibilities.
Best case playoff driving scenario. Demar Dotson is not very experienced but he’s getting there after all the PT last year. Let’s assume Dotson, a great physical specimen and good teammate continues his growth and becomes an adequate right tackle. Let’s say Zuttah has an inspired off season and becomes a good center. He’s the smartest guy on the line and can call the blocking.
Ok so we have the potential for two players to be at least above average.
Then we plug in Davin Joseph. Again in a “best case” scenario Davin’s knee is now another year stronger and he returns to Pro Bowl Form.
The same for Carl Nicks. Two All pro guards will help inspire Donald Penn to elevate his game once again. That gives us the potential to have 3 All pro caliber players, and two young up and coming better than average players, backed up by several players who helped contribute to Martin’s great season.
OK that’s the best case scenario. For the nay sayers….Joseph is old and over the hill…Nicks will never play again…Penn comes to camp unmotivated and fat…Dotson regresses and Zuttah never finds a permanent spot.
Just saying we really don’t know what we have yet on the O line. I’m wondering if Buc management even knows yet.
January 30th, 2014 at 10:27 am
I think the biggest issue with the oline is injuries. Penn is getting up there in years. He always meets his target weight before season start, but gains a little throughout. His heart is all in it. The problem with Penn is the older he gets, the more his strength is fading.
Joseph is fine in my book, although he is getting up in years and reaching the “injury years”.
Zuttah has his spot…at center. He should stay there, especially since he sucks everywhere else. The exception to this might be cap reasons. I don’t know what his numbers are.
Carl Nicks is here for the year at least. unless he retires or reaches a settlement (both are unlikely). It is possible he could get back in playing shape. He’s worth having on the roster because of the numbers, and that entire oline is MUCH better with him playing. The problem is his injury.
At RT it’s a question mark, but we can get someone that is acceptable there.
January 30th, 2014 at 10:32 am
Do you really not know the difference between Rutgers the Chicago Bears? And BTW nobody cared if Gruden brought in players that were worth a dam it was all the washed up retired guys he tried to cobble together to fill gaps because he couldn’t develop young talent that the fans grew tired of watching come here and fail.
January 30th, 2014 at 10:33 am
You know even though I thought we gave up too much draft pick value in the Revis trade, it is very team friendly that we gave him no guaranteed money. I just don’t see him being even worth 10 mil if we play him in a lot of cover two but we’ll see how much of a ball hawk he can be in our new scheme.
January 30th, 2014 at 10:38 am
Tillmann >>>>>>>>>>>>>> LJ <<<<<<<<<<<<< Banks so there's the person to target.
Also if we can get him to a 1 year deal or 2 year deal for 5 mill that be sweet. Something the Seahawks did with Avril and Bennett.
HOWEVER
The O line needs the biggest attention at least to guards. Then the DL then the rest.
January 30th, 2014 at 10:44 am
Signing Tillman would most likely give us the most expensive secondary in the NFL if we dont already have it. Am I the only one who thinks money would be better spent elsewhere?
While the tandem of Revis-Tillman gets me pumped, the depth can be found elsewhere. The talent in this rook class is very deep and with Frazier and Byrd the Bucs have the ability to do some serious coaching up.
January 30th, 2014 at 10:57 am
For the love of god guys! Slot is a WR position the defensive equivalent is the nickel. The nickel position has now become a starting position for the most part. With that said a team need three starting caliber CBs. If we someway land Tillman he and Banks would be outside corners, with Revis working inside. In the two corner sets Revis and Tillman will be in and Banks would be out.
January 30th, 2014 at 11:01 am
I would like to see what some good coaching can do….I will be interested in Melvin & Gorrer…..I think we need another solid CB….with Tillman, all depends on price & who we draft.
January 30th, 2014 at 12:00 pm
IMHO
Find a trade partner, then restructure Revis deal. Pick-up a late 1st or early 2nd+player or additional pick.
Sign Free Agents
• CB Antoine Cason 6-1′ (195 ) *4.40
• CB Nolan Carroll 6-1 (205) * 4.43
Draft (3rd round)
• CB Keith McGill 6-3 (214) *4.49
Draft (4th round)
• Nickel Corner E.J. Gaines Missouri 5-10 (195) * 4.44
January 30th, 2014 at 12:06 pm
You sign Tillman there’s no need to pay a nickel/slot corner $16 Million a year. Or any corner for that matter.
January 30th, 2014 at 12:07 pm
Bring In Tillman after restructuring Revis’s contract. A 16 million dollar contract per year is ridiculous for one player that is not an elite QB. The Bucs need depth in case somebody goes out for the year which seems to be prevalent with the Bucs.
January 30th, 2014 at 12:10 pm
Keep RayJ peanut free. Tillman has been great. Key words “has been”. This situation never fails. Coaches bringing in their former player’s. A little long in the tooth. Then they fail and we are stuck with them. Davin is a joke (PFF) and will not be back. We can get out of the Hicks contract, so we will. We need to fill 3 O-line spot s. But th cash we save letting Hicks and Davin go, would be plenty. Besides Goldson, Free agent’s were cheap last year. Dom did overpay for player’s. But he did a good job with contract’s as far as bonuses. So we can let guy’s go without dead money
January 30th, 2014 at 12:16 pm
The Elephant in the room is Darrell Revis. A press corner. that’s not a good zone or nickel corner. Getting paid $16 million a year. We can talk about everything and everyone else. But how can you build a depth on you roster when you’ve got $16million tied up in a defensive back?
* Especially now, with QB’s spreading the Love around.
January 30th, 2014 at 12:19 pm
You can easily get value out of an affective, young corner for around $4-$7 million in this league.
January 30th, 2014 at 2:55 pm
Joseph Mamma Says
“I just don’t see him (Revis) being even worth 10 mil if we play him in a lot of cover two…”
Lovie said with a player like Revis, you build the team around him. I assume he meant the secondary mostly, as GMC is our main guy up front.
January 30th, 2014 at 3:30 pm
@LUVMYBUCS
Just because those players have the height weight speed doesn’t mean its gonna translate to the NFL…
@BuccaneerBonzai
He appeared slow because he is slow.. He’s not ever gonna run a 4.4 or even a 4.5
@EVERYONE
Just because its easy to say push so and so inside doesn’t mean they can actually play the nickel position at a high level.. Joe Haden for example sticks to one side of the field and hes atleast a top 10 CB more likely top 5.
I’m sorry but I don’t see the point in signing Tillman when we aren’t going to win a Superbowl next year(SORRY BUT WE ALL KNOW ITS TRUE) and its not like this dude isn’t getting up there in age and had some injury issues last season.. I’d rather put that money towards a younger player we could develop at ANY of the following positions WR S DL TE OL and CB and you would build better depth spending that 5-7 million on multiple players as oppose to one player.
January 30th, 2014 at 5:33 pm
@Phillip
*As for as the two free Agents (They’ve both done well so far)
Sign Free Agents
• CB Antoine Cason 6-1′ (195 ) *4.40
• CB Nolan Carroll 6-1 (205) * 4.43
*As for as The draft Pick Draft (3rd round)
• CB Keith McGill 6-3 (214) *4.49
* The kid is a beast, great tackler. Can play off man, zone, and press man.
Keith McGill vs Arizona State
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VQWSfdCooM
*Same thing to be said for Draft (4th round)
• Nickel Corner E.J. Gaines Missouri 5-10 (195) * 4.44
EJ Gaines (CB Missouri) vs Oklahoma State, 2014 Cotton Bowl
January 30th, 2014 at 5:34 pm
EJ Gaines (CB Missouri) vs Oklahoma State, 2014 Cotton Bowl
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3VzxKn2uAk
January 30th, 2014 at 5:40 pm
Listen to Mayock
*As for as The draft Pick Draft (3rd round)
• CB Keith McGill 6-3 (214) *4.49
*Day 3 2014 Reese’s Senior Bowl South Practice Defensive Back*
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BOON4o7FWAM
January 30th, 2014 at 5:41 pm
Spend the money up front.
We may be able to restructure Revis’ contract by using Tillman leverage.
BTW, it will be interesting to see how Gorer and Melvin might fit in with Frasier’s defense.
January 30th, 2014 at 5:42 pm
Jermiah said it Best-“The game has become specialized”
January 30th, 2014 at 6:34 pm
Bidding wars on over priced free agents have not worked well for us lately. Revis I believe loves the game enough to give it his all until he retires. But Nicks, Goldston haven’t been worth the money and Vjax better only have 1/4 of the drops he had in 2013. I think it would be wise to go get Brent Grimes from Miami and play him at slot with Revis and Banks on the outsides. Then Gorrer and some fillers. I’d rather them get Hester before Tillman given we can use a return guy for special teams and he will hold up at that position for some time to come. I think I would let Tedford develop Glennon and a third or fourth round QB along with Josh McCown for some competion and draft a DE with our first rounder. Big 6″3 – 6″5 receiver with second pick. I’d like to see a big TE too but Wright came on nice last season and Crabtree is a good tight end, he just never got the shot to show it last year.
January 30th, 2014 at 6:34 pm
Our CB depth aren’t that good. So addressing ol with cb isn’t a bad idea.
January 30th, 2014 at 6:47 pm
I live in Chicago. Tillman is a very classy guy. My favorite Bear. I would love it if he becomes a Buc!
January 31st, 2014 at 1:23 pm
Tillman and Revis would be sick!! Makes sense on many levels.
February 1st, 2014 at 5:26 am
Did someone seriously compare “Lovie’s guys” to “Greg Schiano’s guys”? Holy crap. Wow. Wow.