Mack Omission Part Of Smokescreen Game?
April 29th, 2014Wait a minute.
Don’t miss the exclusive Bucs locker room interview in this post
In a feature about beastly University at Buffalo linebacker Khalil Mack yesterday, fight-instigating, barista-training, pedestrian-bumping, olive oil-lapping, popcorn-munching, coffee-slurping, fried-chicken-eating, oatmeal-loving, circle-jerking, beer-chugging, cricket-watching, scone-loathing, college football-naïve, baseball box score-reading Peter King of SI.com and NBC Sports Fame, omitted the Bucs as a team Mack visited.
Here’s the excerpt from King’s column that included quotes from Mack.
Mack’s best fit is as a 3-4 outside linebacker in the NFL, though he says he can also play 4-3 end or outside ’backer, and, at 251 pounds, it’s not impossible that he could play inside as well. But his edge-rushing ability would be best employed coming off the edge in the 3-4. That’s what the Texans play. And he’s frothing at the prospect of playing on the same front seven with J.J. Watt. “I met him the other day,’’ said Mack. “It’d be perfect for me. He is one great player.” Mack visited six teams: Jacksonville, St. Louis, Houston, Detroit, Atlanta and Minnesota. All are in the top 10. It’s likely he’ll go in the top five on May 8.
He’d like to go in the top one. He’s not handing the crown of best defensive player in the draft to Jadeveon Clowney.
“I’m so competitive,’’ he said, “that I want to be the best, and I mean better than any rusher in the NFL now, or anyone coming in. I want to be better than Aldon Smith, all those guys. I respect Jadeveon, but I really don’t care what he does. I don’t care about the hoopla, the hype or any of that. I just want to go out on the field and compete and win. When I get out on the field, I turn on a switch and believe I can be the best person out there. Coming from Buffalo, I know I had to work hard to get to this point, and I did.”
Now why did King not claim the Bucs as a visit for Mack? Did Mack forget to tell him? Did his agent? Did King have a brain freeze? Or was Mack told by the Bucs to keep the visit confidential?
Joe reported Mack was visiting Tampa Bay because Mack’s college buddy, Bucs defensive end Steven Means told Joe — and Joe confirmed with Means a couple of times.
This is just a good example of the Season of Smoke, aka the weeks leading up to the NFL Draft. Speculation is rampant. Half-truths are everywhere. Fiction is considered fact. Facts don’t often matter. Film does lie.
One thing that is real is the exclusive Bucs locker room interview below of Means, who talks about his closeness with Mack and some of Mack’s attributes.
Thanks to the Buccaneers and the NFL.
April 29th, 2014 at 11:34 am
Personally I don’t care about all the maneuvering and smoke-blowing. I don’t really want to know what the Bucs are going to do in the draft. I enjoy the excitement of the moment watching the draft and the surprises that come along with it. Stop trying to figure it all out and just let it unfold…that’s my approach.
April 29th, 2014 at 11:42 am
Players that have had on-site private visits/workouts with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (30)
QUARTERBACKS (7)
Garrett Gilbert, QB, SMU
Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Louisville
Jimmy Garoppolo, QB, Eastern Illinois
Johnny Manziel, QB, Texas A&M
Blake Bortles, QB, UCF
Tajh Boyd, QB, Clemson
Derek Carr, QB, Fresno State
TIGHT ENDS (2)
Alex Bayer, TE, Bowling Green
C.J. Fiedorowicz, TE, Iowa
RUNNING BACKS (2)
Dri Archer, RB, Kent State
Charles Sims, RB, WVU
OFFENSIVE LINE (5)
Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn
Billy Turner, OT, North Dakota State
Garrett Scott, OT, Marshall
Cyrus Kouandjio, OT, Alabama
Kevin Pamphile, OT, Purdue
WIDE RECEIVERS (5)
Martavis Bryant, WR, Clemson
Solomon Patton, WR, Florida
Donte Moncrief, WR, Ole Miss
Paul Richardson, WR, Colorado
Albert Wilson, WR, Georgia State
DEFENSIVE LINE/LINEBACKERS (6)
Dee Ford, DE, Auburn
Larry Webster, OLB/DE, Bloomsburg
Jonathan Newsome, OLB/DE, Ball State
Khalil Mack, OLB/DE, Buffalo
Marquis Spruill, ILB, Syracuse
Nate Askew, ILB, Texas A&M
CORNERBACKS (3)
Walt Aikens, CB, Liberty
Phillip Gaines, CB, Rice
Kyle Fuller, CB, VA Tech
Players that have been interviewed off-site by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
James Wilder, Jr., RB/FB, FSU (17 other local players, does not count against 30 visit limit)
Justin Anderson, DE, UMass (PRO) Lamin Barrow, ILB, LSU (COM) (SR) Aaron Donald, DT, Pittsburgh (COM)
Brandon Thomas, OG, Clemson (PRO) (ACL tear)
J. C. Copeland, FB, LSU (PRO)
John Halapio, OG, Florida (PRO)
Telvin Smith, ILB, FSU (PRO)
Taylor Lewan, OT, Michigan (PRO)
April 29th, 2014 at 11:49 am
You were not alone Joe! BucsNation and Walterfootball reported the Mack visit as well.
April 29th, 2014 at 11:55 am
Thank you for the list Macabee… I really like a lot of the names on there. Sims, Richardson, Mack… would love to see em all in our ugly ass uni’s!
April 29th, 2014 at 12:01 pm
I’m tossed.
I want the draft to arrive.
But right after comes the most boring part of the off season.
April 29th, 2014 at 12:02 pm
Then again, I am getting tired of all the guesswork. So bring on the draft!
April 29th, 2014 at 12:06 pm
@Buccaneer Bonzai
your wrong, it is the most exciting part of the season. People on the comment boards usually go crazy, thinking how every draft pick is a “pro-bowler”. how late round picks were a ” steal ” . and they start counting up a 10 win season and claiming how deep the Bucs will go in the playoffs. The insanity season is coming!!!
April 29th, 2014 at 12:10 pm
That sounds like a guy who is determined. I like it alot!
April 29th, 2014 at 12:12 pm
No shot he’s at 7. Wondeful player however, certainly wouldn’t complaints if the LB corps includes him and Lavonte…lethal.
April 29th, 2014 at 12:12 pm
@Realist
I swear to God I saw people, here, predicting Bucs in the Super Bowl, last July.
April 29th, 2014 at 12:40 pm
Mack would be a great addition to the Bucs D…but my guess is he is gone before Tampa gets on the clock…so unless we trade up, it aint gonna happen! However we will still get a really good player at 7…most likely a WR, OT, TE…which are all areas of need for this team!
April 29th, 2014 at 12:54 pm
I remember last year, I would tell anyone who would listen, that the Bucs would win atleast one playoff game with one exception. If we had to play that playoff game in Seattle.
April 29th, 2014 at 12:58 pm
Trade down! Trade down! Just keep repeating this to yourself!
April 29th, 2014 at 1:02 pm
Interesting, Watkins or Evans haven’t visited, but a bunch of other receivers.
And Robinson but not Mathews.
Not that any of that means anything.
April 29th, 2014 at 1:35 pm
Doesn’t matter. The 5 guys below will be gone by pick #7. In no particular order:
Mack
Clowney
Manziel
Matthews
Watkins
April 29th, 2014 at 2:08 pm
the draft is a funny funny thing. months of analysis and predictions that become meaningless within moments of the actual event commencing, followed by grades and evaluations of draft classes that are meaningless before they are penned. nothing speaks to how far ahead of the other leagues the NFL is more than the endless hype around the speculative selection of 250 guys, 85% of whom will be marginal or irrelevant in the NFL.
April 29th, 2014 at 2:17 pm
@Eric
I was thinking the same thing….but you are probably right, there is so much bluff and double bluff at this time of year, you can’t read anything into it!
April 29th, 2014 at 5:06 pm
We hear how players are moving up or down the boards. I wonder how much movement is in the head — or hair — of Kiper & company, vs. how much the teams’ own boards change.
April 30th, 2014 at 11:57 am
I bet L&L’s big white board changes some daily.