“It Was Always Uptight”
April 18th, 2014
Lavonte David talks about the difference between Greg Schiano and Lovie Smith.
There is a long list of casualties of college coaches who came to the NFL and either wore out their welcomes or just plain flopped. The recent success of Pete Carroll and Jim Harbaugh had, then-Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik and Team Glazer hopeing there was a trend and they were hopping on the bandwagon.
Sure, Carroll was more of an NFL guy. And one could argue the same about Harbaugh. So when the Bucs tapped Greg Schiano to take over in 2012, part of the reason they did so was Schiano’s stint with the Bears as a secondary coach.
A lot of things went wrong for the Bucs last season, but it seemed the team just grew tired of the toes-on-the-line coaching by Schiano.
While appearing on “The Blitz” this morning, co-hosted by Bruce Murray and Solomon Wilcots, heard exclusively on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Bucs stud linebacker Lavonte David admitted many players had grown weary of Schiano and likely were tuning him out.
“It is a cool, laid-back situation right now,” David said of the difference between the professional approach of Bucs coach Lovie Smith and the Gunnery Sergeant Hartman-like Schiano. “Those guys [Lovie, defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier, linebackers coach Hardy Nickerson], they have been through it, they know what it takes. They know we just have to put the time in to get to where we want to be. Coavch Lovie Smith has put together a great staff to do that.
Schiano’s toes-on-the-line style, “coming straight from college [and crazy man Bo Pelini], that’s all I knew. So, I just inherited it. Other guys were not comfortable with it but it was all I knew coming from college. He brought that collegiate atmosphere and I was fresh out of college, so that was my mindset. Talking to other guys and guys that had played a long time, they were saying, ‘You know, it’s not supposed to be like this.’ [The atmosphere at One Buc Palace] was always uptight.”
There were two interesting elements to David’s talk about Schiano and Lovie. The first was how David said his new coaches have been through the rigors of the postseason and know what it takes to win in the playoffs. That tells Joe right away the Bucs didn’t trust Schiano’s football acumen all that much.
The second was what Joe wrote last week, that David only knew what it was like to play for hollering, in-your-face, crazy coaches. Pelini makes Schiano look like a Publix cashier by comparison.
April 18th, 2014 at 6:16 pm
“It is a cool, laid-back situation right now,”
_________________
Yeah, real laid back. Make sure you don’t cuss!
April 18th, 2014 at 6:28 pm
Schiano was simply a fish out of water
April 18th, 2014 at 7:07 pm
I know the defense will be good, but for once let’s get a QB that will get us some wins put the team on his back! Johnny F
April 18th, 2014 at 7:34 pm
I liked Schiano. While true he had no experience as a coordinator or head coach in the nfl, there was a lot that happened that he didn’t control.
MRSA. The embarrassment of the sound system issues in the first game. The fact that Freeman was forced on him. The media lies mixed with a little truth.
I understand firing him because sometimes you have to turn the page. But if he gets some true nfl experience as a possition coach, he could pull a “Bill” move and make the Bucs look like the Browns in a few years.
April 18th, 2014 at 7:49 pm
Yeah all the winning coaches in the NFL are laid back.
April 18th, 2014 at 7:53 pm
Schaino’s mistake was coming in wit a militant attitude. He took the cart before the horse approach w/o a clear understanding that…”rules without relationships leads to rebellion”.
April 18th, 2014 at 8:12 pm
Schiano just wasn’t a good coach in the NFL, or ever really. His record in college wasn’t that impressive. Its pretty obviously he rubbed a lot of ppl the wrong way starting with his own players. He couldn’t make adjustments, on or off the field, to save his job. His in game decision making was beyond baffling and if something did happen to work, on offense or defense, and it went against his set plan then he wouldn’t use it. You could go on and on. And to think some “analysts” were saying (really justifying) how he could keep his job. I’m just glad that era is over. Good riddance.
April 18th, 2014 at 8:21 pm
Greg schiano ain’t becoming the next bellichick dude. If Bill was at Rutgers after his first stint after the browns Rutgers would have been Alabama by now. Schiano just isn’t cut out for the nfl tough guy stuff barely works in the league when you can’t even beat wvu. He’s more of a coach for a second teir college program or high school. Worst nfl hire in years.
April 18th, 2014 at 8:29 pm
schiano’s mistake was trying to be belicheat without the rings aka credibility.
April 18th, 2014 at 8:33 pm
Schiano next Bellichick.
Bwaaaaaaaaahaaaaahaaaa
He’s not even the next Skip Holtz.
April 18th, 2014 at 8:35 pm
Dmatt Says
“Schaino’s mistake was coming in wit a militant attitude.”
That’s bull. The Glazers were looking for a strong personality because Morris let the team run wild. Fan memory is far too short.
April 18th, 2014 at 8:45 pm
Schiano’s first mistake was charging the Giants in the victory formation!
That set the stage for a whole carnival of errors to follow.
April 18th, 2014 at 9:50 pm
Schiano coached this team the best he could and he did it the way he felt best. As a head coach its his job to lead the team and run it the way he see’s fit which he did so I have nothing against him. I fault the Glaers for hiring a coach with next to no nfl experience of any kind. Yea Schiano ran the locker room slike a college locker room but c’mon thats the only way he knew how to run it. He had been at rutgers for 11 years and the time he spent in a professional locker room was very very scarce(not to mention ages ago). So no I hold nothing against Greg Schiano. I hold it against the Glazers for hiring him.
April 19th, 2014 at 12:24 am
I totally agree, Glaziers hired Shiano because Morris let the place run wild. He was doing chest bumps with his players at mid field, I mean seriously guys, did we all forget that already. I have been a fan since the pumpkin and orange days so I can say I have been there. But, Lovie gives us the experience in the post season we really have never had, since some come argue the Chucky days.
April 19th, 2014 at 7:35 am
This is crazy. We thought he was a dictator. People even compared him to Napoleon and Hitler.
I honestly thought I/we was just being over reacting fans, and the players were cool with it (for the most part) but this is starting to seem like we not only had it right, but underestimated the atmosphere he created for this team.
April 19th, 2014 at 9:01 am
Joe, please do something about all these pop up ads. I know you need to make money, but I can’t read anything for more than 10 seconds without being redirected someplace else. Please Joe, this is killing me. Joe does not make money on the redirects some users experience on mobile phones. It’s an intermittent problem for some mobile-only users. Joe apologizes.–Joe
April 19th, 2014 at 11:55 am
I dont see why people are getting their panties in a bunch about the no cursing thing. Its simply unprofessional to curse all the time. As a leader if you want people to listen to what your saying and retain the information you are giving them it is counterproductive to curse at them.
April 19th, 2014 at 12:50 pm
^^^
Maybe because it’s a bit of a control issue no different than Schiano’s control of temperature settings in a meeting room. The irony is Schiano got roasted by fans for stuff like that and Lovie gets a free pass (for now anyway)
April 19th, 2014 at 1:14 pm
@TBLT – Well said!
Violence and Cursing is a weekness in character. Is like a child having a tantrum. They are both use to feel superior to the other. Both not needed when coaching.
April 19th, 2014 at 6:29 pm
Cursing shows a lack of respect and intelligence by the user. Being a dictator and being a professional are far from similar.
I curse all the time but I wouldn’t go to my place of work and start cursing at people to do their job. I’d talk to them, like a normal human being.
April 19th, 2014 at 8:24 pm
i don’t care what the bucs do in the first three rounds, just as long as they pick up logan thomas/ 6″6 coleman and another linebacker in the later rounds. I don’t think a tight end or qb is necessary in this draft except fore the a fore mentioned logan thomas.
If they could trade down and go cb, O-line, DE (from stanford preferably) in the first three rounds I would be cool with that. As a new fan I can say that I am not sold on your starting runningback and would trade him, glennon, and vincent jackson for future high draft picks along with picks this year. let the team learn the systems and build a solid foundation and next years class will just fall in line with the seasoned group. NO window is closed, ATL will be a joke (bad o-line and no defense/running game), and carolina will have fired their coach cut their runningbacks leaving tampa bay to own the division for 3 to 4 years.
April 20th, 2014 at 10:21 am
Cursing was prohibited under Tony Dungy and we all know what a disaster that era was. If all you’re concerned about is not being able to curse, perhaps you should be an ‘open-mike’ stand up comic. Why would someone degrade themselves by constantly cursing??
Most reputable workplaces do not permit cursing.
April 20th, 2014 at 10:49 am
We’re talking about a football locker room if grown men not an office setting, so yes the lack of cursing seems a little unusual. If the Bucs are winning Super Bowls because of Lovie’s odd no cursing policy then he can make the team do a hundred Hail Mary’s before kickoff and a vow of chastity during football season for all I care.
April 20th, 2014 at 11:29 am
“Why would someone degrade themselves by constantly cursing??”
I don’t curse constantly, hardly ever, but I reserve my 1st Amendment right to express myself fully if necessary.
I don’t run around waving my pistol, but it’s always there (2nd Amendment)loaded and ready to go.
The player’s rights are God given and unalienable. A lien is a rule or law.