Poker Playing Lovie Smith
January 8th, 2014
Right now one of the biggest questions for Bucs fans is just who is going to be the quarterback knighted by new Bucs coach Lovie Smith. Many Bucs fans are screaming to draft a quarterback. Others believe in dumpster diving for a veteran castoff.
And then there is the Mike Glennon Mob. This outfit all but went underground after Glennon seemingly played his way out of a starting gig in the final weeks of the season. But the Mike Glennon Mob is still here, though less active, less vocal.
Thus far, Lovie has been rather coy about Glennon’s status. At times, he sounds like Greg Schiano, where Glennon is the man. But then, Lovie will throw out a one-liner to chase you off the scent, just enough to plant doubt in your mind as to which way he is leaning.
This happened again Tuesday when Lovie’s whirlwind media tour continued with an appearance with “The Pope,” Mike Francesa of WFAN-AM fame in New York. The subject of Glennon came up and just when it sounded like Lovie was anointing Glennon as the Bucs franchise quarterback, he did a quick about-face.
Mike Francesa: You have a good young quarterback who played under the radar because the team had such a tough year, but he performed very, very well as a rookie.
Lovie Smith: Very well, from start to finish. It is always interesting to see how a rookie — when you put him in — see how he handles it. … I saw marked improvement from his first start to the end of the year. We are already past, ahead of the learning curve. it is about now, Mike or whoever our quarterback is, to take us to the next level.
See? It’s almost like Lovie is playing poker and is using a bluff. He lauds Glennon and just when it sounds like Glennon is his man, there comes the old “or whoever our quarterback is.”
Lovie also said in the interview that having a season off did nothing but reinforce his beliefs that a stout defense and a strong running game is the avenue to success. Lovie cited the remaining four teams in the NFC playoffs, Seattle, San Francisco, New Orleans and Carolina as evidence.
And Lovie is right. All four of those teams have strong defenses and in some cases, an even better running game.
Do the Bucs have a chance of having a strong defense and a potent running attack? You bet. But there is a major difference between the Bucs potential, and that of the four teams still in the NFC playoffs.
Glennon is no Colin Kaepernick; Glennon is no Cam Newton; Glennon is no Russell Wilson; and Glennon sure as hell isn’t Drew Brees.
Joe just doesn’t know. He would love to sit down with Lovie, or any of his assistants, and have someone enlighten Joe to what he is missing with Glennon. Joe just hasn’t seen it, or at least hasn’t seen enough consistency to be won over.
January 8th, 2014 at 7:28 am
Joe,
I think when you factor in Glennons very good Rookie numbers compared to other Qbs historically+ situation with personnel,Line troubles and injuries,Mike way above average intelligence,work ethic,film junkie stuff and arm strength(kid does spin a nice ball).We as fans have to at least a little intrigued by where this young Buc can lead us.
Does he jump of the page in style points,not really but looking at all things being equal,projecting his numbers into a full season with a full compliment of supporting staff I can see him putting up 28/30 td-12 int for 3800-4000 yds and a 62-65% comp rate.Not a stretch at all.
I ask you,with what our Def will look like this year do you not see that kind of production being more then suitable for a winning formula????
I am not a Glennon mob member,and I personally like a Johny Football Mobil guy(newton,Kapernick)but I am not worried if we get stuck with Glennon.It will be a Flacco,Ryan type of thing IMO.
January 8th, 2014 at 7:32 am
He’s been the coach less than a week. Why would Lovie commit to anyone at any position, outside of McCoy and David and a few others? Oh yeah, makes for good drama.
January 8th, 2014 at 7:33 am
I agree with your assessments joe. Glennon isn’t flashy. The check downs concern me and misses routine throws bc of it. But he was a rookie and that was a very good outing for a guy not taking starter snaps in TC , adjusting to a complex offense no qb could succeed in unless you were Houdini, and he had to adjust to the speed of the game. I thought he handled it well.
I am interested to see where we go from here. Would love Manziel. Bridgewater or two guys in round 2 in Brett smith or Mettenburgh. Well see.
January 8th, 2014 at 7:57 am
When JA thinks of Mike Glennon, one of 32 starting quarterbacks since 1976 to never lead the Buccaneers to an NFC Championship Game, JA thinks all the posts that want to “give Glennon a chance” are ludicrous. Let’s compare him to the best in his age bracket, Andrew Luck. Luck is exactly three months older so football life experience should be relatively the same. In college, Luck was great and Glennon was just ok. We all watched Luck put up 35 points in the second half to rally his team to victory over the Chiefs. We all also watched Glennon put up an average of 5 points a game in the second half in his 13 starts for the Bucs. In JA’s world of remedial math, that means it would have taken Glennon 7 games to put up 35 points in the second half. In JA’s world that is horrible. JA knows that a small sample but a tale telling sign. Is there anybody out there that can even remotely conceptualize Glennon ever doing something like that? My guess is no. Maybe you Gelnnon lovers want potential but JA wants a winner, a winner with the “it” factor, not a quarterback with a “what the hell is going on” factor. We need to draft a quarterback! Also, with all due respect to Joe, JA learned to think in the 3rd person from listening to Reggie Jackson when he was relevant, but respects Joe for carrying on the point of view.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:04 am
Glennon suffered from bad playcalling. He’d get the play with 5 sec left on the playclock and they were just getting lined up. How can you read a defense or blitzers with 5 sec? All of your “elite” qb’s get their playcall with a full 20sec left to scan the defense and identify blitzers. You try it with 5 seconds to match up the play to the defense all while identifying blitzers.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:05 am
Andrew Luck gets the playcall with a full 30sec left, so it’s apples to oranges.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:10 am
I think of it this way, there are only so many great QBs developed in a time period. There are a huge number of colleges that need QBs all the time. Schiano loved Glennon becasue he was the best prospect Rutgers could hope to get at the time.
NFL is different. Great players don’t decide where they play. They are at teh mercy of the draft. Rather than accept mediocrity, why not use our draft opportunity to get a great QB candidate and try to make something of him. . .
January 8th, 2014 at 8:11 am
I’ll form my opinion of glennon after legitimate NFL coaches have had a chance to evaluate him and work with him. I tried to look at the Schiano regime with rose colored glasses but it was pretty evident that he was not an NFL level coach. It makes it pretty easy on a defense to pick apart whatever you’re trying to do on offense when even uneducated people like me know what play is coming every time they line up. That was Schiano’s downfall. He thought that he was playing 1970s football where you could line up and impose your will on the other team. You may be able to do that to a certain extent now if you have a phenomenally talented team but we didn’t have that while he was here. I’m not saying that glennon lit the world on fire but he also was never set up for success.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:13 am
Where o where is it written that any of the QB’s about to be drafted will be successful in their first season in the NFL? I get it that these guys are fresh young talented collage players. Who knows how well their collage game skills will work in the NFL. Who was the best QB to be drafted into the NFL last season? I recall several first round QB’s taken did any take their teams to the playoffs? Win their divisions? Werent these QB’s talked up and proffesed to be world beaters, just like the QB’s in this upcoming draft?
GO BUCS!
January 8th, 2014 at 8:15 am
Talked with a couple of our writers over the last week, consensus from what they were able to glean is, Glennon and a veteran to push/mentor him. Interesting tidbit, I asked who do we draft at #7, without hesitation, Khalil Mack (OLB, Buff), buh-bye Watson/Cassillas, the guy is a beast (6’3″ 245lbs) and can rush the QB.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:20 am
Seriously? you’re comparing Glennon to Luck, Lets just start with Luck’s upbringing, his father is an ex-NFL QB and coach, Luck was conceived, born and raised to be an NFL QB, everything Luck did as a child and teen-ager was targeted at him being an NFL QB, he has been groomed to be an NFL QB since conception. There is no comparison, Glennon is a neophyte at the position as compared to Luck.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:21 am
There’s hope for you Joe. Johnny “Spoiled Rotten” Football makes is “big” announcement today. Your dream may come one step closer to its realization.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:22 am
@FLMIKE – I won’t dispute that because if we’re looking to have the D take us to 8 wins then we need a ton of talent to supplement what we already have there. I’d really like to see some top shelf talent coming to the offensive side of the ball though. That might be what’s done via FA though
January 8th, 2014 at 8:23 am
The great thing for Buc fans is that we have 3 new persons reviewing/deciding on Glennon….The GM/HC/OC will decide our direction. Fans didn’t trust Schiano/Dominick/Sullivan because they made the initial choice and had a vested interest in continuing with him as a starter. They also made other questionable decisions and lost too many games.
I think we should absolutely do what we can to get another QB on the team to compete with Glennon because he didn’t win the job….Freeman lost it. But I don’t think we should reach (trade up) to get one.
But what I think & what you think is just that and it really doesn’t matter. At least going forward we will have more confidence in the decision whatever it is.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:24 am
Bleacher report has us taking Sammy Watkins, for what it’s worth. I’ll take that. I’d love to have a stout receiving core that will put some points on the board
January 8th, 2014 at 8:29 am
I’m not sure why they are asking Lovie when it’s Tedford who will make the call. Regardless, another QB is on his way here.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:35 am
We should move up to the Rams pick at #2 and get Johnny Football. If we are stuck with Glennon this year will be like last year. It will suck.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:35 am
Joe, with 19 TD’s comp % right at 60% and under 10 picks without mike Williams, Doug Martin or mike James and a struggling offensive line you must understand that more than the MOB others believe he can be a better brad Johnson. Id be proud to have that as a QB.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:44 am
Jordan Rodgers…. will be in this mix at sometime and at some level after Tedford gets his hands on him Glennon and Rodgers dynamic duo!
January 8th, 2014 at 8:51 am
Patrick in VA Says:
January 8th, 2014 at 8:11 am
“I’ll form my opinion of glennon after legitimate NFL coaches have had a chance to evaluate him and work with him.”
That is a perfect sentence. People who want to doubt Glennon should just read that simple sentence. That to me, this is the trump card. With Schiano’s philosophy, it’s impossible to accurately assess that young man.
I just don’t know how you could put the blame on him for the second half, 3rd down conversion rate and wins, when we all know the coaching/playcalling did him no favors.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:52 am
Glennon did a nice job considering the inconsistent line play and the lack of depth at receiver and tight end. His lack of mobility doesn’t concern me that much. If everyone else does their job, the QB won’t have to run around.
January 8th, 2014 at 8:58 am
Glennon could become an average NFL QB or even a good one.
But you need more than average or good at that position.
Brees Manning Brady Kaepernick Newton Rivers Wilson Luck
The QB’s on the teams in the playoffs, not an average one in the bunch. Three first ballot Hall of Famers and luck has the tools to join them. BTW two of them are in our Division.
Get Johnny Football!
We need great, not average or good, at that position. I’m thinking Lovie agrees.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:03 am
I will reserve judgement until the draft starts, I will half way listen to all the press conference and “unnamed source” reports. Once free agency and the drafts comes, then we will know what the new regime thinks of the players.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:03 am
I have not heard that excuse before. That is hilarious… Only 5 seconds left…
Anyway, with that first pick, we desperately need a QB. BUT we will draft Watkins. Lovie wants to fix his rep that he can’t coach “O”, and having Watkins as your burner with VJ in the slot and Williams outside will fix a lot of problems.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:05 am
@ Chef Paul
Exactly….a new set of eyes on him GM/HC/OC….and they could get the Glazers to do anything they want…..trade up….bring in a high-priced FA (if available)….
My guess is they will pick up another QB without reaching or stick with Glennon for one year. But that’s just a guess….
Whether we like it or not…this is probably another rebuilding year.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:07 am
No one is fool enough to think that Glennon is the ultimate QB but looking at how much other positions we have needs, it doesn’t make any sense for us to pick a QB in the early round UNLESS Bridgewater or Manziel is there at #7, I say pick Watkins.. Looking at 2014 FA WR list, there isn’t much special players for us to fix the #3 WR spot..
Buyout 2 DE + 1 CB in FA, Fix the Oline trhough FA and draft and pick Watkins in 1st round.. Glennon should improve on playcalling alone.. Imagine if he can have multiple above-average targets instead of camp meat..
January 8th, 2014 at 9:14 am
@Joe
Glennon will either play himself into or out of a job.
Its old news rehashed.
lets get some conversation going on the offensive line. Its where our main focus should be…
neither Glennon, Nor the next great castoff or Johnny Football (what a stupid name) is safe behind that line.
We keep hearing from your faithful to draft a QB when the main objective shouild be the O line.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:15 am
Glennon Supporters are mostly folks who have been a fan of the team since the 70’s and never saw a QB put up decent numbers in his Rookie season …Folks were excited about Freeman after a terrible rookie season minus the Packer game and they gave him 5 years …what so bad about giving Glennon another training camp to earn the job ..Brady Manning Rodgers aint walking through the door …draft Bridgewater ,Manziel how many years to you want to wait on them ? Bring in a Schaub ,Vick and let em duke it out in camp .
January 8th, 2014 at 9:16 am
@QcCity – I’ve got no problems with that scenario. Although, I’d like to see some of the Oline being addressed through the draft. We’ve gone long enough overpaying for oline players. If Sparano has any oline development talent then we need to get a project for him to build up on the cheap
January 8th, 2014 at 9:19 am
Glennon did better than Freemans rookie year and we gave him 5 years … why not give Glennon another training camp against avet .
January 8th, 2014 at 9:20 am
You guys are funny. The more time that passes from the end of the Bucs terrible season, the more the MGM forgets how bad Glennon ended the season. All these excuses as to why its not Glennons fault. It’s the coaching… It’s the O-line… It’s the injuries… The play does not get called in until 5 seconds (new and funny one).
What NFL QB does not have to deal with problems like these? Maybe we could ask the other team not to rush the QB for 5 seconds or so?
I get that Glennon had to deal with a lot of problems. But there was rarely any flash from him. Even as bad a year as Eli Manning had (many of the same problems as Glennon had), you can clearly see his talent (until he throws the INT). Not even anyone from the MGM can say that about Glennon
January 8th, 2014 at 9:27 am
And for those of you who say give him another year, what will happen is Lovie will improve the Bucs record so we will not be drafting so high in the future and it will therefor put us at a disadvantage to draft a franchise QB.
Then you will all be screaming about “why didn’t we draft a QB when we had the chance?”
January 8th, 2014 at 9:29 am
@Harry How could having 20 sec to look at the defensive set and having 5 sec not matter? That’s why he was having problems with blitz packages. Do you even watch football. PFF seem to think he did well to end the season. https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2013/12/30/refo-buccaneers-saints-week-17/ The one int was from Jackson stopping on a quick slant for no reason.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:30 am
@Harry – Eli has been in the league for a decade and has won 2 super bowls. Comparing the two is completely unfair. Everyone knows that there is an adjustment for every player from college to the pros. Why not look at Eli’s tape from his rookie year and compare that. Or we could knock glennon for not being at Brees’ level this year. The demands that you’re putting on a rookie QB are ridiculous and drafting the next collegiate phenom isn’t going to put us in a better spot. Take a look at who earned the number 2 spot in the draft this year. Even though they won’t be drafting there, it was the Redskins who gave up that pick and much more to get the next collegiate phenom and look at them now. They had the second worst record in football and their coach was fired. But RGIII sure looks nice when he breaks a run. That’s really what this is all about. People don’t like Glennon because he’s not going to be on sportscenter with a highlight of him scampering down the field. Ask Vick how many super bowls that brought him. Or RGIII. Or Pat White. Or Tebow. Or any number of quarterbacks that have produced a ton of highlight reels but 0 rings.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:32 am
@RustyRhino
There was 1 QB taken in the 1st round(EJ Manuel) and 1 in the second(Geno Smith).. Glennon was the third or 4th QB taken off the board.. Seriously dude if you are gonna make an argument atleast try and know the facts?
@Paul
Thats got to be the most ludicrous excuse I have ever heard before.. Really pulling for any kind of excuse for Captain Checkdown there.
@EVERYONE
Whoever thinks it was the coaching or play calling needs to wake up. Gur Samuel over on BUCSNATION (The people there follow Sander like a cult where if you don’t agree with him then you are an idiot) does a weekly breakdown from the all 22 coaches tape and its obvious to anyone NOT a Glennon lover that he is scared to screw up and crumbles when you put pressure on him.
I was one of the many wanting an Offensive HC (Whisenhunt) because atleast he will be a constant voice and work directly with the QB also thought he would go out and draft his QB. I’m afraid with all this Buc Ball talk again we will stick with mediocrity. Lovie fails to mention of the remaining playoff teams they all have a FRANCHISE QB (Peyton, Brady, Brees, Cam, Colin, Russel, Rivers, Luck hell even the teams that lost Smith, Rodgers, Foles.. I think Dalton sucks)
January 8th, 2014 at 9:33 am
“Maybe we could ask the other team not to rush the QB for 5 seconds or so?”
That doesn’t make any sense, even sarcastically. I think you aren’t understanding what is going on. Glennon gets the play call when the play clock is about to expire. In the NFL, since you aren’t privy to the rules, you get a penalty if you don’t snap the ball with-in 40 sec of previous play. Its sad that you have to be educated barney style just to have a normal conversation.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:35 am
Joe he’s been doing this since he started interviewing, the line is this:
Reporter: Are you ready to Annoint Mike Glennon your Starting QB,
Lovie: We think Mike did a really good job, really developed from the beginning of the year until the end, Has shown a strong arm and the ability to be a good strong leader, Jeff Tedford is excited to work with him…
Now that’s how you dance around a question.
I think the Old Raheem saying works best, “He’s the best we got until we can replace him.” #ProveIt
January 8th, 2014 at 9:36 am
I agree with what you’re saying Joe. Lovie is keeping his cards close to his chest, but that’s normal at this time. I’m not sold on Glennon yet, but in my opinion, considering the position we are in the draft (and not really in a position to trade up thanks to our 3rd and sixth pick already gone), we have too many other urgent positions to resolve first – OL, TE, DE but we do need a QB whether its a back up or starter.
If it was up to me and in an ideal situation, the Bucs would draft Jake Matthews – that would only happen if the Rams decide to trade back with a team like the Vikings. Failing that we need to go for the next best OT in the draft then take a TE in the 2nd round. The only way I could accept not taking an OL in the first is if we can convince Alex Mack to come to Tampa. Nicks potentially not returning only strengthens that need now. There are plenty of options to resolve our DE in FA.
Lovie is probably keeping quiet for now because he doesn’t want to commit to Glennon then find that Bridgewater/Bortles/Manziel miraculously falls into his lap at 7th pick and the temptation would be far too great to avoid (I wouldn’t pick Carr with our first). I like the idea of our back up being Tampa born Aaron Murray.
Manziel is exciting to think about, but the fact that he is such a douche makes me think we’re not the right team to handle a guy like him. I’d be happier waiting til next year and trading up (wishful thinking) for Mariota.
Lovie won’t confirm a thing (outside of Martin, Revis, David and McCoy) until after the draft.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:36 am
Joe,
I am not a member of the Mike Glennon mob. But I think if you put Drew Brees behind last years o-line, throwing to last years receivers and collection if back-up running backs, and get direction from Mike Sullivan, we’d be sending Brees to shady acres claiming he lost step.
Lovie HAS to win 10 games. Can he do that with THIS team, no. Can he do that with another Rookie, probably not. But if he got some d help (CB, DE, and LB) in free agency and a hot WR or DE with the 7 pick, and get some decent o-line help picking leftovers( late toud picks and last minute Free Agents) he could get his 10 wins.
Drafting a QB ( which is 50/50 success rate at BEST) loses a guaranteed DE or WR. It is a bad mistake. Lovie will get his QB, but I think it is best to get him a top 3 defense this year (with a mid grade offense).
January 8th, 2014 at 9:41 am
@ED – I’ll cosign on all of that
January 8th, 2014 at 9:42 am
Oh and to everyone who compares his ROOKIE numbers to that of Brees Brady Freemans or WHOEVER needs to wake up and smell the tea leaves..
THIS IS A DIFFERENT NFL NOW…I CANNOT STRESS THAT ENOUGH
4,000 yards passing used to be GREAT/ELITE for a QB… 25-30 TD’s used to make you the FRANCHISE… This game is sooooooooooooo much faster and such better athletes and the rules have turned this game into a video game and fun for fantasy football players. I have seen the kid play and he eats sacks for fun it looks like. The kid will pass up a chance at a big pass play when we are down 17 to go for a 5 yard checkdown on a 3rd and 9..
Oh we haven’t seen him play enough yet.. Um did you REALLY need to see another season from Gabbert to know hes not a good QB? How about another season from Pryor to know hes not a good QB? Or McGloin? Or Flynn? Sanchez? EJ Manuel? Geno(Freeman JR)?
January 8th, 2014 at 9:48 am
God almighty, can we give this crap a rest already?
Joe, we all know you have a “man
crush” on BMOC Johnny Football. Just because Glennon is a nerd doesn’t mean he can’t play ball.
Glennon was on an atrocious offense last year. He will need some competition but I’m not going to say the kid can’t cut it just yet. Give him some freaking weapons and adequate coaching and lets see what he can do.
Give him a chance.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:48 am
It’s a tough call on Glennon because it’s not like receiver’s were running open all over the field. Teams were rolling the D to Jackson’s side and basically did not even considered the rest of the team a threat. With the loss of Martin & Williams the O was limited making it tough on a rookie who was just thrown into the fire.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:54 am
@Paul
Tell me, why is it you feel the need to defend your point by being insulting? Is it bc you can’t make your point with intelligence?
I have watched just about every game the Bucs have played for over 20 years. I have never seen plays come into the huddle like you suggest as a regular thing. That is such a glaring coaching error that every media person on earth would have been killing Schiano and Sullivan. It is ridiculous.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:54 am
Fact is Glennon hasn’t proved himself to Lovie. The film is there but why would Lovie roll with this guy. Just draft yourself a good QB this year. There are some very talented ones available and you will give tampa it’s first true franchise QB. That is honestly the only thing left to acquire. Go get Teddy, or Johnny and let’s get to work.
January 8th, 2014 at 10:04 am
@Patrick
Fair point. So, using your suggestion, I did watch Eli in his rookie year and saw the same thing: lots of flash with rookie mistakes. The potential he had as a rookie was clear IMO. Even Freeman, in his first two years, you could see lots of flash.
And even better, just as Glennon did not get to have reps with the first team in TC and the first several weeks, if you remember, neither did Free; he was behind Leftwich. So the comparison with Free is in very equal ground. AND, Free had far inferior weapons (except for Michael “Stone Hands” Clayton, lol) even considering the injuries on offense this past year
January 8th, 2014 at 10:08 am
@Phillip
“Oh we haven’t seen him play enough yet.. Um did you REALLY need to see another season from Gabbert to know hes not a good QB? How about another season from Pryor to know hes not a good QB? Or McGloin? Or Flynn? Sanchez? EJ Manuel? Geno(Freeman JR)?”
Thank you! Lol It seems so obvious to me. I just don’t get all of this “give him another year” crap. I feel like I am in the Twilight Zone
January 8th, 2014 at 10:13 am
@Harry – I’m not sure that we didn’t see promise from Glennon this year as well. He was voted rookie of the month or player of the month or something for November because he was playing really well. Again, there were no flashy highlights but he was protecting the ball and making plays. When the injuries pile up and the other team knows the play and where the ball is going there is too much talent on the defenses of the other teams in the NFL to make anything happen. I understand that we are going to have to agree to disagree on this because, at the end of the day, there’s no more Buc football this year to sway anyone in any direction other than where they already are and we’re a long way from any roster moves. I just don’t think that he should be sent to pasture when we really don’t know if he has it or not.
January 8th, 2014 at 10:14 am
Phil ,if ur “5yard check down” is to a beast like watkins,im in on that
January 8th, 2014 at 10:16 am
In addition to a good defense and good running game, there is one more thing shared by the 4 NFC teams Lovie mentioned…. a franchise QB!
January 8th, 2014 at 10:16 am
Flash. Fire. Wow moment. Scared to take chances. Does anyone really believe Schiano would even allow his QB to do any of those things? Especially a rook.
I hate to sound like I’m defending Glennon, because I’m dead center on the fence about him, but with Schiano (Captain Conservative) at the helm it’s impossible to say anything definitive about Glennon, good or bad.
January 8th, 2014 at 10:17 am
@Ed Says:
(1) I think if you put Drew Brees behind last years o-line, throwing to last years receivers and collection if back-up running backs, and get direction from Mike Sullivan, we’d be sending Brees to shady acres claiming he lost step.
(2) Drafting a QB ( which is 50/50 success rate at BEST) loses a guaranteed DE or WR.”
First, if you put Bree’s in as the Bucs QB, are you saying we would not be light years better? Would Bree’s be as good as he was with the Saints this year? Probably not. But he would show lots of flash and we would have probably won those first three games, and more.
Second. How is a DE or WR guaranteed to be a success? Gaines Adams? Michael “Stone Hands” Clayton? I’ll take my chances on a 50/50 with Johnny Football or Teddy any day
January 8th, 2014 at 10:19 am
The QBs still in the playoffs:
Manning Brees Brady Kaepernick Wilson Rivers Newton Luck
Three first ballot Hall of Famers, Two number one pick in the draft guys. Luck has been brilliant since he stepped on the field as has Wilson. Kaepernick went to SB as a rookie. BTW two of these guys are in our Division.
This is the level you need to compete in the league. To even be in the mix at all. Kaepernick is a terrific example because Harbaugh had Smith (who himself is at least good), but went out and got Kaepernick. Because Harbaugh knows what you have to have to win it all in this league.
Glennon isn’t in these guys league, and at best will be average or just good.
That wont cut it. Its spinning our wheels.
January 8th, 2014 at 10:26 am
@Patrick
I should clarify. I don’t want to dump Glennon. Personally, if it were my call, I would trade whatever I have to to Houston so I could draft Teddy. Then have the two of them compete in TC. Of course I believe Teddy would win out. But then you have a great backup QB in Glennon, OR you can trade Glennon for at least a 3rd rd (or higher) pick. To me that improves our chances of FINALLY getting a franchise QB.
January 8th, 2014 at 10:26 am
I do think part or it’s coaching. I can’t see many qbs having success in sullys system. Iso/option routes. It’s like you needed Houdini at qb.
January 8th, 2014 at 10:30 am
Glennon absolutely deserves the benefit of the doubt. For example, Doug Martin was having a terrible year before his injury. Does that mean we should just throw him away, because James and Rainey did better? Oh that’s right. We can’t throw out Dougie because he has every excuse in the world why he did poorly. But Glennon gets no benefit of the doubt when he played behind the same O-line and had the same idiot coach? Posh!
Speaking of Doug and the running game, remember when Joe had an article a couple months ago about Crabtree coming back at the running game took off. Did you notice what happened when he got hurt again? The running game died again. Too bad he seems to have the injury bug. He seems like a valuable asset to the running game.
January 8th, 2014 at 10:40 am
Paul Says:
January 8th, 2014 at 8:04 am
Glennon suffered from bad playcalling. He’d get the play with 5 sec left on the playclock and they were just getting lined up. How can you read a defense or blitzers with 5 sec? All of your “elite” qb’s get their playcall with a full 20sec left to scan the defense and identify blitzers. You try it with 5 seconds to match up the play to the defense all while identifying blitzers.
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You do know that the mic in the helmet goes off at 15 sec, right? nice bit of exaggeration you did there
January 8th, 2014 at 10:42 am
If teddy is there take him.
January 8th, 2014 at 10:45 am
At the very least, the Bucs need competition at the QB position. Glennon might be the guy, but he hasn’t played enough to hand him the job outright. Granted, Lovie went to the Super Bowl with Grossman at QB. I believe Glennon is better than Grossman, but I don’t want to see anything close to a sub-par QB in the huddle for the Bucs. They need a QB who can make plays and be a difference maker.
January 8th, 2014 at 11:00 am
Chef Paul Says:
January 8th, 2014 at 8:51 am
Patrick in VA Says:
January 8th, 2014 at 8:11 am
“I’ll form my opinion of glennon after legitimate NFL coaches have had a chance to evaluate him and work with him.”
That is a perfect sentence. People who want to doubt Glennon should just read that simple sentence. That to me, this is the trump card. With Schiano’s philosophy, it’s impossible to accurately assess that young man.
I just don’t know how you could put the blame on him for the second half, 3rd down conversion rate and wins, when we all know the coaching/playcalling did him no favors.
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Its funny how people pick and choose the points that they use when they want to make an argument, even though they use those same points to argue against someone previously.
Case in point:
All the Freemanites (me included) stated that his biggest issue was that he did not have legitimate coaching, had no receivers (excluding last year when he put up record setting frachise numbers), had no coaching stability (4 OCs in 5 years?), the lack of production in the first half and the play calling was horrible (short route? what short route?). The whole anti-Freeman crowd stated that if he’s a great QB, he should be able to overcome all of that and play better anyway.
Looks to me like Glennon is doing exactly what Free was doing. The only difference is Free was getting his yards in chunks with a lower completion percentage instead of check downs with a high completion percentage.
Do I think we can win with Glennon? Sure. Do I think we should upgrade the QB position at some point this year? Absolutely.
Personally, I would grab Aaron Murray on day 3. There’s nothing wrong with taking a QB and letting him sit for a year. It seems like that is so taboo these days.
January 8th, 2014 at 11:06 am
@Celly
“You do know that the mic in the helmet goes off at 15 sec, right? nice bit of exaggeration you did there”
ROFLMAO and he called me stupid, lol
January 8th, 2014 at 11:53 am
I don’t think the Glazers are too high on Mike Glennon. They see what we see and based on their actions feel much like the fans.
I can see Lovie sticking with Glennon in 2014′ and shoring up the D line and much needed O Line in this draft FA acquisition period.
I think maybe the new regime has their eye on Brett Hundley in 2015′.
Mike Glennon can be serviceable but is far from impressive.
And remember not to believe anything football coaches say about players between now and April/May. Smoke screens abound.
January 8th, 2014 at 12:14 pm
Lovie isn’t commiting because he wants his own guy. He just can’t say so becaus would alienate Glennon and show our plans going into the draft.
Glennon will have his opportunities, but he isn’t good enough yet.
Also, with a college OC you can bet a mobile QB is on the wishlist.
I sat keep Glennon and develop him next to a drafted guy. Let the best QB win. Oline will be addressed in FA and later in the draft.
I want a GM so certain guys like Rainey, Page and our long snapper can get resigned beforethey hit the market.
January 8th, 2014 at 1:08 pm
We need offensive linemen bad. You can have the three best wr’s in the NFL, but if the QB doesn’t get time its all mute.
January 8th, 2014 at 1:40 pm
@ Celly
“Its funny how people pick and choose the points that they use when they want to make an argument, even though they use those same points to argue against someone previously.”
Why did you quote me, then say something that has nothing to do with me? I was a Freemanite all summer. Using the same arguments as I am with Glennon. The only difference I thought Freeman was THE guy, and now I’m saying Glennon deserves the benefit of the doubt. I don’t necessarily think he’s the guy but I do think he has shown enough to get a shot with other coaches.
January 8th, 2014 at 2:16 pm
I’m kinda leaning towards Aaron Murray. Take the best available in the 1st and maybe even 2nd rounds, and then grab a guy that put up the best numbers in the history of the SEC, who needs a year to rehab his knee. Plus, bonus for the fan base, he is a local guy. Just my opinion, but I would like to see Glennon with a year under his belt compete with a veteran and win the job. The guy can play, and I know he is smart. Also, Tedford’s system is kinda hard to pick up, and a rookie will stuggle with all the information and responsibilities that go with running a pro offense.
January 8th, 2014 at 3:23 pm
ed,
you have no idea who will do well and who won’t. a qb will fail 50% but a receiver or d-end is “guaranteed”. lmao seriously, can you pull more numbers out of the air?
we need a qb now. we will hopefully not be picking this high for the forseeable future. a new qb can learn and grow with the team. receiver and defensive line can be added next year or even free agency. there are no free agent qb coming out this year or next worth a darn.
January 8th, 2014 at 3:25 pm
celly on point as usual.
January 8th, 2014 at 4:02 pm
Bring Josh McCown to Tampa. The guy flourished in an offense that was complicated and put a lot on the QB. He’s a seasoned Vet and made Jay Cutler look like Byron Leftwich. Then draft a QB that fits the system. Let those two and McCown compete in the offseason. Best man wins. It’s bound to bring out the best in all three of them and bound to leave us with a QB that can get us down the field. I would take the best QB available, best DE available, best slot receiver available. One DE the whole draft then all offense. McCown would be a great addition to this offense he is SURE to leave Chicago
January 8th, 2014 at 4:05 pm
Bridgewater or Bust!!!
January 8th, 2014 at 4:08 pm
Oh and the major difference in your argument Celly is that Freeman was on year 4 and than year 5
Glennon was a rook
While I absolutely agree Glennon deserves a shot under center with the best of the best we have around him. I also want us to draft a QB to make him earn the starting job.
January 8th, 2014 at 5:48 pm
I’d like to draft Jake Matthews or Johnny Football. Don’t know if they will be on the board at 7. I think the NFL strength tiebreaker is stupid and should be the opposite of how they do it. The harder the schedule the more likely you are to lose and deserve that higher pick. The Falcons won the South in 2012, so how did the sucky Bucs draw a harder schedule? It is supposed to be set up so that doesn’t happen.
January 8th, 2014 at 5:58 pm
@Chef Paul,
its only because reading your comment is what got me to that realization. not necessarily going “at” you.
apologies.
January 8th, 2014 at 6:11 pm
@PR…
I can’t fully rebut your statement without you elaborating. So please do.
thanks.
January 8th, 2014 at 6:13 pm
That’s all I had to say lol
January 8th, 2014 at 7:41 pm
Those enthusiastic about Glennon’s chances at starting QB are called the mob. None of the other fan’s favorites are referred to as a mob. A mob means enourmous support for Glennon. A mob could also be anti Glennon. None of the prospective available QB’s can be called a franchise QB. Face it, the Bucs have never had a QB that could be called a franchise QB. I’m not holding my breath one will appear anytime soon. The Bucs will become relevant just like the best of the old Bucs did.
January 8th, 2014 at 9:50 pm
@Phillip
“Oh we haven’t seen him play enough yet.. Um did you REALLY need to see another season from Gabbert to know hes not a good QB? How about another season from Pryor to know hes not a good QB? Or McGloin? Or Flynn? Sanchez? EJ Manuel? Geno(Freeman JR)?”
Gabbert, 2011 / Round: 1 / Pick: 10
Pryer, 2011 / Round: 3
McGloin, 2013 / Undrafted Free Agent
Flynn, 2008/ Round: 7
Sanchez, / Round: 1 / Pick: 5
EJ Manuel, 2013 / Round: 1 / Pick: 16
Geno, 2013 / Round: 2 / Pick: 39
While looking up some facts, I did noticed that there are some high draft picks on this list you say we do not need to see play again. How worse or better off are/were these teams after drafting these QB’s? Is it not difficult to over come a bad choice on a QB in the higher rounds? Financially, team structurally, Coaching and General Manager continuity?
Seriously Dude Just looking to learn some of these Facts.
January 9th, 2014 at 12:48 am
Get Watkins at No.7; if you can’t trade up for Bridgewater. Sign Vick and then draft Franklin out of Missouri. Go OL for your other picks. Sniff out Jared Allen, Hardy……and get your starters healthy that were on IR.