“Owners Are Dying For A Quarterback”
December 31st, 2014
Joe has a hunch the gnawing feeling in the pit of Joe’s gut won’t go away until April. But there is a chance that pit could grow to full-blown depression.
It is the feeling that, after acquiring this rare, rare, rare opportunity to fill the biggest hole on their roster with a quarterback, the Bucs will screw the pooch and draft a nondescript offensive lineman.
As Joe has stated many times, winning trench warfare of the NFL is important, but Joe has never seen a left tackle lead a team 80 yards for a game-winning score.
A quarterback, if the Bucs pull the right lever — could lead the team to 12-15 years of winning football.
Well, it seems Team Glazer may be like-minded.
The “Custodian of Canton,” eye-RAH! Kaufman of The Tampa Tribune, dropped the nugget that Team Glazer wants a signal-caller in the worst way. Kaufman explained during his weekly appearance with the one and only Chris “Mad Dog” Russo on the station that bears his name, “Mad Dog Radio,” part of the family of sports channels heard exclusively on SiriusXM Radio,
Chris “Mad Dog” Russo: Now listen, I read the quotes from Lovie after the game where he was saying, ‘We need help everywhere.’ What do I take that to mean?
eye-RAH! Kaufman: You know what Chris, I’m changing my mind on this. I know I told you a month ago don’t bet the house that they are going to take a quarterback. After watching Josh McCown all year — by the way, the final tally is in: He finished next to last among all ranked passers ahead of Blake Bortles, my man. Blake Bortles.
Russo: Wow (chuckles). And he played great last year for [Bears coach Marc] Trestman, maybe that should help Trestman get an offensive coordinator’s job down the road?
Kaufman: I think it could. I think it could. And of course, they have to hire an offensive coordinator here. There are a lot of things in play. You have the first pick in the draft, you have an offensive coordinator and the owners are dying for a quarterback. Of course, there’s no Andrew Luck here, but you know what? I don’t see an Orlando Pace or I don’t see a Bruce Smith in this draft, either. And to me, if you are going to take a chance, you take a shot at a Winston or a Mariota and maybe you get lucky and maybe all is good.
It’s reassuring to learn Team Glazer wants a quarterback. Look, Team Glazer had better be heavily involved with this pick because, if the right guy is selected (or the wrong guy), it will have far-reaching effects long after Lovie Smith is gone. This pick will not just influence Lovie’s job security (or lack thereof) but the wealth of the team for decades.
Look, rarely does a head coach last 10 years with a club. The few who do (Bill Belicheat, Tom Coughlin, Andy Reid with the Eagles) all have one thing in common: A stud franchise quarterback that led them deep into the playoffs many times.
Teams that have slop for a quarterback, like the Bucs have trotted out in recent years, don’t win more than they lose. Sorry.
Bucs general manager Jason Licht does not impress Joe as a guy who is going to leverage his career on an accident (that a sixth-round pick of a quarterback can blossom into a Hall of Famer).
At least, Joe sure as hell hopes not.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:06 am
I can’t wait until either Marcus Marriota or Jameis Winston state that they will not play for the Bucs if drafted.
Why would any QB want to play for Lovie Smith?
Look at past top draft picks who went to loser organization and a QB Killer of a Coach. They have had short careers.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:17 am
The glazers better get a qb or there tickets sales are going down!
December 31st, 2014 at 9:21 am
There are several changes in the NFL landscape, the past few years:
1. Restructuring the rookie pay scale, means it doesn’t cost you $50 million, like Sam Bradford did.
2. This is totally a QB-passing league. Without a very-good to great quarterback, you will go nowhere.
3. And this is the most important change: If you try and fail, you can always try again in 2 years. No longer is the first incorrect pick crippling your organization for 5-7 years.
But to really start turning this organization around, the Bucs need an innovative, hard-working and adaptive Offensive Coordinator and then go get your guy to pull the trigger for years to come.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:29 am
There are many reasons for either QB to want to play for Tampa.
Vincent Jackson, Mike Evans, Doug Martin
New OC?
No State Income Tax
Coming from last ranked offense (time to be a hero)
1st overall pick
Tampa (great weather)
Likely FA or Draft of Oline to help protect
The key is our OC….and the key to the OC is to give him the keys to the draft….
December 31st, 2014 at 9:33 am
What it all boils down to is if Smith and Licht are comfortable putting their careers in the hands of Mariota or Winston. If they choose either one of these two QB’s they won’t have the luxury to sit the bench and learn. Not in todays NFL. Coaches don’t have time to develop players like in the past. When their careers are in jeopardy every single season now, they are not going to sit their #1 draft pick just to be fired at the end of the season, so now it comes down to a matter of trust.
Will they trust their jobs with a green rookie signal caller. If they don’t feel they can trust them, then expect their first pick to be anything other than a QB. They would probably feel more comfortable and put their faith in a proven veteran signal caller. In fact its not out of the realm of possibility that Glennon could still be there guy.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:33 am
@jomama…thats not a possibility. They have until Jan 15 to declare for the draft. After that, its out of their hands. And Im sure the $$$ that they see in declaring will overwhelm any other feeling.
But theres no ‘maybe’ in drafting Leonard Williams….or even trading down a few spots to get some O line beef.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:34 am
Look we all know we need a QB but what if the team feels there is not a franchise QB in this draft? You don’t just pick a QB cause everyone thinks it’s the right thing. I personally hope one of the guys are the QB we have all been hoping for but we also know that nothing is a sure thing. It’s not as easy a slam dunk as everyone thinks. Why can’t this be the draft that a Luck type was avaiable. I don’t envy the staff as much as everyone else does. They have to get it right or there jobs are over.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:36 am
From the only football site that matters, Football Outsiders…
In McCown’s case, he was clearly so much worse than Mike Glennon (a -41.9% DVOA for McCown, compared to -2.9% for Glennon) that there is no logical explanation for why McCown should have been starting by the end of the year — unless the Buccaneers were deliberately tanking for the top pick in the draft, in which case, hey, mission accomplished. Glennon should make a decent enough backup for Marcus Mariota; McCown has somehow accumulated 12 NFL seasons under his belt and should be ready to enjoy a long retirement. (No, seriously, Josh, please retire.)
McCown’s DVOA, seasons with at least 100 pass plays:
Year Team Plays DVOA Rk
2003 ARI 193 -39.5% 44
2004 ARI 442 -17.8% 29
2005 ARI 291 -6.6% 25
2007 OAK 207 -32.9% 48
2013 CHI 236 32.1% 4
2014 TB 360 -41.9% 44
Can you spot the fluke year? Lovie Smith, apparently, can’t. For the detail-oriented, I will note that McCown’s DVOA dropped by 74.0% from 2013 to 2014.
http://www.footballoutsiders.com/quick-reads/2014/quick-reads-2014-review
December 31st, 2014 at 9:41 am
Trestman and Mariota/Winston. It just makes toooooooo much sense for Lovie to get that right, don’t ya think?
December 31st, 2014 at 9:46 am
There isn’t even an offensive tackle worth taking with the number 1 pick. If the Bucs screw the pooch and draft anything but a QB it would be for a defensive end. The scary thing is that fits right into Lovie’s M-O.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:47 am
Many reasons to play in Tampa
Tampa (good weather)
Vincent Jackson
Mike Evans
Doug Martin
No State Income Tax
No 1 overall pick
New OC ?
The key is the new OC and the key to the new OC is to give him the keys to the draft pick!!!
December 31st, 2014 at 9:49 am
The only example I would need to illustrate the benefits of drafting Offensive Lineman is the Dallas Cowboys. They did it a few years in a row and now are set for the foreseeable future. Their QB is mediocre, but he looks better when he gets to stand up in the pocket for 4,5,6 seconds at a time. O-Lineman don’t appear “sexy” but that’s fine, people who understand football know the game is won and lost in the trenches. Don’t fall to the siren’s song of a QB just because we are in a position to grab one now…
Joe, you’ve been riding the QB train year in and year out, just to take one. Do you think Johnny Football would have had a better year than Mike Evans? Doubtful, and all you wrote about last year was how he would resurrect the franchise. A wrong choice at QB can set a franchise back a few seasons. There are no Andrew Luck’s this year, so the fact of the matter is if someone is willing to jump up and make a trade for the 1st pick while giving us a trade similar to the Rams/Redskins (multiple 1st rd picks), I say it’s worth a shot to trade down and draft Scherff.
..If they DO decide to go the QB route, I would like to see Mariota in there more simply because our O line will be sh*t again, and whoever is in the backfield will have to scramble out of the pocket a LOT, which is something I don’t think Winston does necessarily well. Winston would fit the mold if we already HAD a strong O line because he can just sit in the pocket and wait for plays to develop, well we don’t have that luxury right now.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:49 am
Just don’t draft a QB that throws jump balls all the time. He’ll look great for a year, then go all Freeman on you. Draft one that’s accurate.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:54 am
I can’t see the Glazer boys allowing Lovie to draft anyone other than one of those two quarterbacks.
I also seriously doubt that Lovie or Licht will want to do anything other than draft one of the two quarterbacks.
Lovie took over a total disaster, run into the ground for five years by the likes of Dominik, Morris, and Schiano.
All will be well. They were right in just about every game, just a couple of mistakes here or there cost them. Defense improved a lot as season progressed. We got a great young receiver and good prospects at RB and tight end out of the draft. It is not all gloom and doom. I agree with Lovie that this team has a lot of upside.
Remember also that Lovie went against the conventional wisdom and drafted all offense last year.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:55 am
Joe, I have a question for you. I think you know I want Mariota. That being said, is Winston good enough at baseball that he may be a high MLB draft choice also and keep NFL suitors awake at night? I know that he plays baseball, but is he that good?
December 31st, 2014 at 10:04 am
That is just Kaufman’s opinion. He doesn’t know that for sure. I hope we go QB in the 1st because it would be silly to draft an O-Lineman with the #1 pick.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:06 am
Why weren’t the Glazers dying for a QB this past season?
Bortles, J.Football and Carr were all out there.
They did sanction the hiring of McCown after all. Thoughts Joe?
December 31st, 2014 at 10:08 am
Ronnie Stanley, OT, Notre Dame
Ereck Flowers, OT, Miami
Brandon Scherff, OT/G, Iowa
Those names above are the only 3 going in the Top 10 in most mock drafts. Ronnie at 5, Ereck at 9, and Brandon at 10.
I don’t see a #1 pick there.
What worries me is the Leonard Williams and Randy Gregory could be very tempting for Lovie to take at #1.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:16 am
Joe,
Assuming the Bucs draft Mariota (I think this is almost a lock because I believe Winston will now stay in school for another year and I don’t think Lovie would take him regardless), do you have a short list of possible OC candidates that could best utilize his skill sets? If they draft him and don’t run some sort of spread then you might as well draft the best available OL with the 1st pick.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:18 am
Either we pick a QB or we trade down…..there is no way we use #1 for a position player……just isn’t necessary….the pick is too valuable not to use for QB….Jets will want to trade up badly…..probably Rams…there is an outside chance that even Tenn will want to trade to get their choice if they ha
December 31st, 2014 at 10:18 am
Who’s the stud QB Coughlin has had? Eli has done NOTHING without a great defense. Eli has NEVER shown the ability to carry a team.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:19 am
If Tenn has no idea who we will pick…..they may even trade with us…..but we pick QB or we trade…..guaranteed.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:29 am
@Eric How can you say the team was ran into the ground by dominik and schiano, when our worst players on the team are players that Lovie & Licht brought in.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:43 am
buccanAy Says:
Who’s the stud QB Coughlin has had? Eli has done NOTHING without a great defense. Eli has NEVER shown the ability to carry a team.
Coughlin was quoted as saying that Eli put the team on his back in the second half of the season to win their second Super Bowl.
Not sure why trashing Eli is relevant. He’s got two rings.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:50 am
@Eric
We are a 2-14 horrible team in the absolute most horrible division in the NFL (and should be 1-15 but got lucky at the last minute against Pitt, with Glennon).
We are still a total disaster and will be next year too under L&L. Throwing a rookie QB into this mess will hurt him bad. I say build on where the strength is (Defense) right now with the first pick (Leonard Williams) and then work on the O line. If Petty or Hundley is there in the 3rd, maybe go for it.
Unless they’re going to sit the rookie QB his first year, and Lovie is PROMISED 2 more years (which would get us more high draft picks), thats about the only way I see a “WIN” with going QB 1st in this draft.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:56 am
these clowns screw this up and do not take either or, than I am done with the bucs until the glazers fire these morons.
December 31st, 2014 at 10:58 am
@Eric says:
“…Lovie took over a total disaster, run into the ground for five years by the likes of Dominik, Morris, and Schiano.”
Do you really think the horrendous job Lovie did this season was due to Dominic, etc? That Dom’s leftovers were the cause for the team to be even worse than the year before? The D that played halfway reasonable was 80% Doms players. The embarrassingly bad offense was 80% Lovie’s guys, especially when you factor in the badly mishandled OC debacle.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:12 am
I understand that 2-14 is very disappointing, but to lay it all at the feet of Lovie Smith is ridiculous IMO.
That team played hard for Lovie all year (except that first Atlanta game), and many of the games came down to one or two plays.
You guys act like he took over some kind of great team or something. We haven’t done anything since the same group of idiots ran Chucky out of town.
Go Lovie. He has a plan. Let him implement it. Have a little patience.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:17 am
The idea that the Bucs pass on a QB with the 1st pick to rebuild the offensive only works if there is a veteran franchise quarterback available through free agency. I hate to break it to Bucs fans but Peyton Manning isn’t walking into One Buc Place or anything close to Manning for that matter. That’s why the Bucs have to address the QB position first.
If Lovie rebuilds the entire team through the draft with great players they will still have an average to below average QB that will keep the team at 500 and not sniff the playoffs.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:17 am
Still can’t convince me we didn’t tank for the #1 pick.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:17 am
Justin, great post. I’ve been advocating your approach for weeks. I don’t like either of these QB’s as the number 1 overall pick. I think Mariota is the next RGIII and Winston the next Johnny football. Winston has talent no question, but he’s a head case and I’m concerned he will self implode. Desperate teams always reach for QB’s and I believe we can get a king’s ransome for our pick, play Glennon next year and see what happens.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:20 am
it’s never a good thing when the owner is telling you who you need to draft…yes Winston and mariotta are GOOD players and definitely better than anything we’ve had in the last like 9 years but that doesn’t make them franchise quarterbacks and because they are the best two coming out doesn’t make them franchise qb’s or anything like an Andrew luck. but I bet fans would settle for matthew Stafford even though he cant be a team with a winning record on the road and they never do anything in the playoffs lol we’d probably be happy trading for the bengals quarterback we want someone so bad. if we draft one they better act as they did back in the day by saying it’s all about freeman but actually show it by making sure they know how to play on the pro level and work with mechanics
December 31st, 2014 at 11:30 am
Eric, I would have more patience with Lovie if I had faith in his abilty to evaluate talent. We let 3 O-lineman go that had very good years with their new teams. The free agent talent we brought in was questionable at best IMO. Verner and McDonald were solid but Johnson, Collins, EDS, McCown, Gilkey and Fletcher were all terrible. So in my mind, 7 of the 9 FA’s Lovie signed were train wrecks. Think about that for a momnet. These are estabilsh NFL players that Lovie had pelnty of tape on and he whiffed on almost 80% of the players he singed. Add in letting 3 qualtiy starters go and Lovie correctly evaluated NFL talent 16% of the time! No offense, but how can you justify that? Respectfully
December 31st, 2014 at 11:37 am
It’s tough for a QB to drive 80 yards down the field for a score if the O-line can’t block. But the fact of the matter is the Bucs have the most coveted pick in the draft and an opportunity to acquire a possible franchise changing player. I tend to agree with Ira’s statement that there isn’t a standout, can’t miss O-lineman or D-lineman at the top of the draft. Taking a QB will likely be the play. Addressing the O-line with a 2nd and/or 3rd round pick is a must though.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:39 am
Andy Reid went from 2-14 to 11-5 first year with Alex Smith as QB
Bill O’Brien went from 2-14 to 9-7 with Fitzmagic as his primary QB
Chip Kelly went from 4-12 to 10-6 with Foles, Vick and Matt Barkley
Bruce Arians went from 5-11 to 10-6 with Carson Palmer
(you’ll also notice those are all offensive coaches….)
It might not all be on Lovie, but he did an absolutely dreadful job this year. People who want to give him a full pass are crazy, this isn’t a rookie coach’s first year, it’s Lovies 10th year as a coach. The people giving him a full pass need substantially higher standards in life. He did the worst coaching job in the league this year.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:44 am
I’d rather work out a trade with Bills (EJ) or Jets(Geno). Mariota/Winston just not worth 1 overall. Winston character shouts – Stay the F away.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:45 am
I was on vacation for a while but did I miss something? Joe or anyone know? Have the Glazers come out with any end of the year type “state of the union” for the media. These clowns should be taken lots of heat by the media and rarely seem to do so. This is an organizational issue we have had for the last 10 years basically. We need outside help from an experienced leader upstairs from here until the draft at least. Make the wrong mistakes here and we could be terrible for a number of years to come.
We cannot win without a QB. If the fans and owners goal is to be a 4-8 win team go ahead and draft a DE. This a 2 QB draft class and I’m still waiting to see who the stud(s) maybe next year that we will pass on.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:46 am
We had all those great lineman before and accomplished nothing.
How about the draft? That Mike Evans sure looks like a good pick.
No credit for that evaluation?
Give a man a total loser of a team, with no quarterback in place, with five draft choices to work with.
And what if we had done better and won say five more games. Where would that put us?
We got a golden opportunity to turn this around. And I don’t think were as far away as people think
I saw some good signs this year.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:51 am
With all that is riding on this QB pick (as Joe stated above), would anyone in their right mind feel more comfortable relying on Winston than Mariota? It’s an obvious no for me and therefore Mariota is the obvious selection. Noone can argue with the fact that Winston is the overall riskier choice… Mariota is too solid to pass on.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:58 am
@Erik
Hold that thought until after tomorrow’s game.
And maybe after the combine where the arm strengths are compared. I think Jameis can make more throws than Marcus, but we shall see.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:08 pm
“As Joe has stated many times, winning trench warfare of the NFL is important, but Joe has never seen a left tackle lead a team 80 yards for a game-winning score.”
Ehhh. Maybe not, but what you did see was Kansas City and Dallas immediately turn their team around after drafting a lineman high
December 31st, 2014 at 12:08 pm
WHEN DO YOU THINK LOVIE’S PLAN WILL KICK IN THERE ERIC,THIS IS ONE OF THE WORSE YEARS OF BUC’S HISTORY ON RECORD, HOW MANY NEW PLAYERS ARE ON THIS TEAM SENCE LOVIE TOOK OVER, ALOT/ MAYBE ALMOST HALF….THE TEAM GOT WORSE…….
December 31st, 2014 at 12:10 pm
@Eric,
I am definitely not putting it all on Lovie. If you notice in my previous post, I only give him responsibility for decisions and changes HE MADE. Surely that is more than reasonable
– Lovie swapped 4 of 5 Oline players – disaster!
– Traded away Zuttah for a bag of peanuts – disaster!
– Gave up a 4th rd & promising TE for a 1 & done Mankins- disaster!
– Didn’t get OC help at beginning of season – disaster, maybe biggest one!
– Drafted an RB when we desperately needed Oline help – terrible
These, and more, are all on Lovie. As Bucrightoff correctly points out, a lot of good coaches did remarkably well in there 1st year. That is who I thought we were getting in Lovie. I did not expect to make the playoffs. But I also did not expect the Bucs to go backwards? That is all on Lovie due to the points I made above
December 31st, 2014 at 12:21 pm
Eric, just for the record, I agree that if we get a potential superstar QB, a couple O linemen, and a high-quality OC, we can pretty much instantly be contenders next year…. Also, I am indeed eagerly anticipating tmrw’s game, although I predict that Oregon wins by 20+ to put a final exclamation point on the Winston/Mariota debate (since wins & losses are one of the key factors in the debate)…. Either way, it should be loads of fun to watch! I want Mariota regardless of the outcome though. He’s just so solid all-around; on & off the field.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:23 pm
Eric Says:
December 31st, 2014 at 11:46 am
And what if we had done better and won say five more games. Where would that put us?
We got a golden opportunity to turn this around. And I don’t think were as far away as people think
I saw some good signs this year.
________
I appreciate your optimism Eric but what about all the FA’s Lovie brought in?
Tell us what good signs you saw in Collins, EDS, Michael Johnson, McCown etc,
BTW, @ 7th overall, Evans should be a slam dunk. ASJ and Sims?
We were 2-14 and heard waaay to many excuses.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:26 pm
I don’t disagree that O-line should be a priority but you don’t get the #1 overall pick every season (at least if you have competent team management). Let’s pretend for a minute that the Bucs are less like the Raiders and more like the Patriots or the Packers. You have to take that elite QB talent and then try to build a line around him.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:28 pm
@Barry…
You are smoking crack!!!!!
Geno or EJ…… do you not watch football?
December 31st, 2014 at 12:29 pm
@Biff,
Exactly. It wasn’t simply the Bucs play, it was Lovie’s decisions that helped result in the terrible play. Really, some of his decisions were true head scratchers.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:30 pm
I wish the Glazers would hire a football guy.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:30 pm
Andy Reid went from 2-14 to 11-5 first year with Alex Smith as QB
Bill O’Brien went from 2-14 to 9-7 with Fitzmagic as his primary QB
Chip Kelly went from 4-12 to 10-6 with Foles, Vick and Matt Barkley
Bruce Arians went from 5-11 to 10-6 with Carson Palmer
(you’ll also notice those are all offensive coaches….)
It might not all be on Lovie, but he did an absolutely dreadful job this year. People who want to give him a full pass are crazy, this isn’t a rookie coach’s first year, it’s Lovies 10th year as a coach. The people giving him a full pass need substantially higher standards in life. He did the worst coaching job in the league this year.
—————————————————————————————–
All those you teams you mentioned had defenses to go along with their offense, the Bucs defense kept them in every game except for 3. If the offense did half of what those other offense’s did the Bucs would be playing on Saturday! So Lovie is a defense 1st minded coach and it did improve along with special teams. It was not all on him because Tedford was not there but if you choose to act like the Bucs have the worst coach in the league then go right ahead.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:35 pm
@Biff,
Btw, you and I left out the crazy decision to promote Arroyo to OC, with NO NFL experience and little coaching experience. I complained about having him as a QB coach. And he is made OC?? When an experienced HC makes a choice like that he better know it’s going to work or he looks like an idiot.
Simple as that. Guess I am not a true Bucs fan, bc I do NOT see the progress
December 31st, 2014 at 12:37 pm
Calm down everybody. Marcus Mariota is our next QB.. He’s NOT going to avoid the draft. He’s NOT going to refuse to play for the Bucs. That is simply NOT the kind of young man this dude is. We’ve become so freaking jaded that we can’t seem to wrap our minds around a guy who does things for all the right reasons.
Mariota is a symbol to his Polynesian people. This is HUGE in Hawaii and Samoa.
The islands were hysterical to get their first Heisman trophy winner. It means even more to the football crazed folks there because it’s a QB. The Polynesians have been sending us linemen and great defensive players for a long time but no QB’s or skill position guys seem to have broken through.
Let’s hope we have better luck than we did with the “Throwin Samoan”.
Mariota is the real deal. He feels the pressure of an entire people on his shoulders. If the Bucs offer to make him the #1 draft pick he’ll jump all over that opportunity as a statement for all those kids playing football in Hawaii and Samoa.
For that same reason he’ll work his butt off trying to be a success in the NFL. Both Mariota and Winston are great prospects. But neither is a sure thing. I’d rather go down fighting with a guy who is TOTALLY motivated for reasons larger even than the Buc franchise and it’s fans.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:41 pm
I think ASJ and Sims have shown a lot of promise.
And as far as a slam dunk in the top ten at the draft, perhaps you haven’t been following Buccaneer football very long.
As far as those other teams turning it around quickly, none of them took over a rock star team.
Lovie knows what he is doing.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:41 pm
I’ll take a coach that can hold a team to 20 or less most of the time with an offense that doesn’t have to do to much to win over a potent offense with no defense or special teams any day.
Only one team was able to win like that and it had Peyton Manning as it’s QB but they got destroyed in the superbowl. A rookie QB with a good OC and QB coach will develop nicely with a Lovie coached team. Don’t turn the ball over, lean on your running game, and support the defense with time of possession. Will make the oc look like HC material, turn Lovie into a great coach, and be a stud for the Bucs for a decade.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:48 pm
The bucs lost nine games by six points or less.
Five games by three points or less.
Get a good OC in here from the start and take advantage of the high draft position and we are that not far away.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:48 pm
I can tell you guys right now, the Seminoles will suffer their first loss against Oregon tomorrow. Its going to be Oregon vs. Bama.
Id still draft Winston over Mariota though just because I think he’s more NFL ready. I’d also babysit him after drafting him….sad but true.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:53 pm
If Bucs don’t go QB this year, then when, both Winston & Mariotta have been good for two years, (like Bridgewater), who are the qb’s on the radar for next year. It’s all about 5, but I will not be sour if they go with MM.
December 31st, 2014 at 12:55 pm
Newbucsfan!!! Says:
All those you teams you mentioned had defenses to go along with their offense, the Bucs defense kept them in every game except for 3. If the offense did half of what those other offense’s did the Bucs would be playing on Saturday! So Lovie is a defense 1st minded coach and it did improve along with special teams. It was not all on him because Tedford was not there but if you choose to act like the Bucs have the worst coach in the league then go right ahead.
_____________________________________________________________
Kansas City and Philly finished worse defensively last year than we did so that kind of wrecks that argument. Arizona and Houston won with the same or worse QB play than we have, so what you’re in effect saying is Arians and O’Brien are better defensive coaches than Lovie.
Also, we finished ranked worse defensively this year than we did last year (25th this year, 17th last year). So I’m not sure what world of employment you work in, but when your results are worse year over year, that does not quantify as improvement.
I get it, you wanna believe the Bucs are infallible and that Lovie is taking us to dynasty status. I just hope you’re not serious because you are in for crushing disappointment otherwise. You’ll say you’re optismistic and I’m not. Which is to say I’m evidence based and you’re hope and faith based. Evidence usually wins though.
December 31st, 2014 at 1:26 pm
@ StPeteBucsFan, best comment of the day. Kudos to u for providing some profound logic and knowledge to this comment page. I agree, wholeheartedly. Mariota is the real deal.
December 31st, 2014 at 1:29 pm
Justin:
Everything you wrote Joe totally agrees with you. However, you forgot to mention the elephant in the room.
The Cowboys already had their franchise quarterback when they started loading up on offensive line picks. So if the Bucs follow the Cowboys model, they will get their franchise quarterback to start the draft and load up on linemen the next two drafts.
December 31st, 2014 at 2:37 pm
Too many of the Bloggers here think that Lovie will go conservatively here and get his D lineman as to not ruin his career. What most fail to realize is that Lovie’s career is over if he doesn’t have this team showing Marked Improvement next season. If he bowls out only 6 or 7 wins or less I’m not so sure he will be retained and this will ultimately be his last gig as HC. Who is going to take another chance on this guy at the NFL or Collegiate level? No one! He MUST bet the nut, this season coming up Lovie is either shown to be a competent HC or he will not coach at this level ever again beyond Defensive Coordinator or less.
December 31st, 2014 at 2:54 pm
Eric, “We had all those great lineman before and accomplished nothing.” ??? While I agree our Olinemen have not been world beaters just who are these great lineman we had. Imho the last “great” lineman we had was named Gruber. Please tell me who you believe where our “great” Olinemen where.
December 31st, 2014 at 3:39 pm
SSG Mike
You are correct. If Lovie drafts anybody but one of the two QB’s he has to win at least ten next year or he’s gone. He’d be gone this year if it wasn’t customary to give a guy at least two years.
If however he drafts one of the QB’s things change dramatically. If he adds a name OC and one of the Heismans all the attention switches from Lovie to the new offensive duo. If the defense plays decently again Lovie gets year three because any offensive failure would be appropriately blamed on the new OC and the learning curve of a rookie QB.
If it’s career longevity Lovie wants to insure he’ll take a QB. However IF he takes Jameis and Jameis does ANYTHING stupid off the field to cause a distraction then again the only thing that could save Lovie’s job would be a deep run into the playoffs to prove Jameis’ nonsense is worth it.
Draft Mariota and he has no problems with a 3rd year guaranteed.
December 31st, 2014 at 4:16 pm
Anybody who is pounding the table for any position other than QB must not have watched a football game in the last……well, ever, and doesn’t understand what every GM probably dreams about doing with that #1 pick.
No GM in his right mind has aspirations of finding the next great 3-4 outside linebacker or defensive end. They want to find franchise QB’s because those are what win ball games. In this day and age, offensive production means just as much towards forcing turnovers on defense as the actual defensive personnel. This is especially true when you’re trying to run a Cover 2 and hoping opposing QB’s try to press the issue.
It’s QB or bust.
December 31st, 2014 at 9:00 pm
DailyRich, who cares if they tanked for it?? Nearly everyone here was begging them to lose! They do what’s needed and STILL get ripped on?
@Eric
I agree with you on Lovie.
December 31st, 2014 at 11:55 pm
@gotbucs
2010, granted Bradford went 1st (and hows that worked out).
Suh 2nd and McCoy 3rd. Pass rush is right up there with the QB position because they directly affect the QB.
Im good with either direction…Winston, Mariota, Williams, or trade down for more picks and grab OT Scherff. But look at the history of Heisman winning QB’s. Knowing that, I’d go Williams and never look back. Theres more than 2 QB’s in this draft.