Bucs Need Drama (Or A QB)
January 12th, 2015
Local TV ratings for the Bucs this past season proves Bucs fans crave drama.
Joe finds it amusing when Bucs fans rail that the team doesn’t need drama. Oh, how wrong they are.
NFL suits on Park Ave. know full well that drama draws eyeballs, that drama draws fans, and that drama — most important of all — sells.
Need proof of how the Bucs need drama? Take the numbers Sports Business Daily dug up, specifically TV numbers.
Two years ago when the Bucs were awash in the MRSA, the leaky, sleepy Josh Freeman soap opera and the shameful billboards plastered around Tampa calling for the head of then-Bucs commander Greg Schiano, and sporting an 0-8 record, the Bucs averaged a 19.0 rating for local telecasts.
Fast-forward a season. The drama was gone. The MRSA was gone. Leaky, sleepy Josh Freeman was gone with Schiano, replaced by the ultimate Father Dungy clone, a man Bucs fans erupted in glee over being hired, Lovie Smith. He would lead the new era.
How did Bucs fans react? Again, per Sports Business Daily, Bucs games locally drew a TV rating of 17.2, down nearly 10 percent from the drama-filled 2013 season.
The difference? Well, yeah, the Bucs lost, but more important, the team was horribly boring. With Josh McCown, you just got plain boring and bad football. No spice. No juice.
So, yes, Bucs fans, the team needs drama. Fans are demonstrating this themselves.
Or they need a quarterback. And Lord knows they the Bucs need a quarterback in the worst way.
January 12th, 2015 at 12:06 pm
Drama? No. Wins? Yes! We can have a successful tv rating without having MRSA and brothers stabbing each other with steak knives in the leg. What we need is a respectable honest winning quarterback. Not a thug. Mariota is our guy
January 12th, 2015 at 12:06 pm
They lost a lot of fans in 2013 that never came back in 2014.
Fans don’t want drama, they want wins. The 2013 team, bad as it was, won twice as many as this year.
2015 will probably be even lower, despite the #1 pick, if they lose early and often.
January 12th, 2015 at 12:07 pm
I disagree with the “boring” label. The Bucs invented new ways to lose and as a long time football fan, this was mud-see-TV to me. I was literally laughing at the creative ways the Bucs figured out how to f-themselves.
January 12th, 2015 at 12:11 pm
Wins actually sell….. you remember the drama the Bucs have had the last few years? Just Win Baby!!
January 12th, 2015 at 12:15 pm
Bucs do NOT need the thug qb on this team and yes I am a season tkt holder…Mariota is the man !!
January 12th, 2015 at 12:15 pm
Never had a franchise QB. Never.
Had one in Young, but never knew it. Williams was decent but so was the D.
Never had a franchise QB. Never.
I’ve already called and e-mailed One Buc telling them that FSU fans are standing by waiting for them to do the right thing on draft day. Had my wife call from her cell too.
I urge the rest of you Winston supporters to do the same.
January 12th, 2015 at 12:18 pm
its funny how in all drafts if Marcus Mariota doesn’t go number one he always goes number 2 and if Jameis Winston doesn’t go number one he slips to number 6.tampaaaaaa a
January 12th, 2015 at 12:21 pm
NO MORE THUGS!!!!!! SAINT MARIOTA TO THE RESCUE
January 12th, 2015 at 12:21 pm
I’m no fan of Winston, but his detractors need to lose the ‘thug’ label.
It’s a code word – just like ‘inner-city’ or ‘urban’.
Either say what mean and man up to it, or don’t.
January 12th, 2015 at 12:26 pm
If the Bucs draft Jameis and he plays the way he did in college this year, he’s going to break the NFL rookie QB interception record.
So that should bring some drama.
January 12th, 2015 at 12:39 pm
Joe you are so misguided on this notion of the Bucs needing drama, it is truly unbelievable. The Bucs don’t need drama, they need wins. The only people who want the Bucs to have drama is you and the media. Fans don’t want it. The team doesn’t need it.
Tv ratings were higher in 2013 bc expectations were higher after the 2012 season.
January 12th, 2015 at 12:41 pm
We had great drama in 2014! I am sitting there watching the last game with my son and the Buc’s are winning! I am telling him the merits of giving your best effort no matter what you are doing and then Lovie the Loser trots out the second team! What a freakin joke! The Buc’s could not buy a win during the regular season and I spent the majority of my time puking after Lovie’s press conferences where he kept spewing the Buc’s were only 1 game or 2 games out of first place.
You want drama….draft the Rapist Winston. He will end up repeating his crimes and the NFL Commish will hammer him for a 16 game suspension while he is awaiting trial…not to mention all those clammering for his being picked #1 having to explain to some father why their daughter is ruined for life.
Drama…..Playoffs?? Playoffs??? The drama that will wake up Tampa Bay is the immediate firing of the idiot known as Lovie Smith!! Who names a football coach Lovie!! He cannot evaluate talent…can anyone guess how many former Buc’s players who were playing this past weekend on winning teams while the Buc’s and Licht allowed them to leave without compensation or with very little compensation in return!! How many former Buc’s players will be playing next weekend?? You might e surprised!
I don’t care if you could draft the entire Seahawks starting offensive & defensive rosters….Lovie Smith could NOT coach them to a Super Bowl win. He is not a coach, he cannot manage the clock, he has no instinct for making adjustments. Did anyone see how Bill Belichick and Tom Brady innovated to overcome two (2) 14 point deficits Satuday! Lovie is not capable of that kind of coaching! Face the facts…none of it matters until Team Glazer gives Tampa Bay some drama by firing the Lovie the Loser mob!!
Greg Schiano
January 12th, 2015 at 12:45 pm
David,
Winston’s skin color has nothing to do with with his past criminal acts and the great lengths that FSU, Jimbo Fisher, and the Tallahassee PD went to protect him. I am offended that because I believe he DID rape that female student, he did get away with theft, shooting up the dorms, and shouting vulgarities about women that I am somehow a racist. I don’t care what color he is, that is the behavior of an animal. Decent people do not act in that manner and furthermore, decent people do not excuse that kind of behaviour despite his God given ability to throw a ball.!
IS THAT CLEAR ENOUGH FOR YOU!
January 12th, 2015 at 12:48 pm
I wish David watched FSU games this season.
January 12th, 2015 at 12:51 pm
Greg Schiano…I think the girl left the bar and went back to Winston’s apartment, instead of her own apartment to have sex with him.
Why do you think she went back to his apartment?
January 12th, 2015 at 12:58 pm
“I think the girl left the bar and went back to Winston’s apartment, instead of her own apartment to have sex with him. ”
Correct. And, she already had a boyfriend. She sees the video taken by Casher, and wants to get ahead of it. If you read it, she never called the police. Her friend did, and I think it all got away from her then.
It then all went away until the day after Mariota hurts his knee, and Jamies becomes the Heisman favorite, and the $$ grab starts.
January 12th, 2015 at 1:03 pm
Drama is better served for getting attention on reality shows, in tabloids, and generating hits on websites. I’ll take winning and no drama thank you
January 12th, 2015 at 1:15 pm
Toes..I concur.
BD to Joe on the JoeBucsFan Hour in 2013 : “Well your site must be getting lots of hits with all this drama going on between Schiano and Freeman huh?”
Joe to BD : “Not really Steve actually when the Bucs are winning we get more traffic.”
@Joe I could be wrong, but it was something along those lines.
January 12th, 2015 at 1:16 pm
We dont need negative drama…..we dont need winston. We need Mariota. Point blank period the end…..This team will continue to suck anus if they draft jamis
January 12th, 2015 at 1:17 pm
Hey Joe, The Bucs could accomplish your goal with one cheep signing, just sign Tebow. He would bring immediate media attention to the team and who knows . . . he might even be able to fill the QB position. If they want to go one step further, they can then draft Winston and the media will paint it as a QB competition between good and evil, that would beef up the drama.
January 12th, 2015 at 1:20 pm
Jameis isn’t a thug. He’s the best player in the draft and we need him here. He can make a real difference here.
January 12th, 2015 at 1:48 pm
OR….we could just draft the QB that is the most exciting prospect and has 0 baggage. Our TV ratings will go up with either QB at the helm. So why not get the one that is a man and actually has values and morals.
I do have to say this. As much as I do not like Winston. It is ignorant to call him a thug. Immature and dumba$$ are labels that fit him. To call someone a thug is the same as calling him a _____ from the streets. Very inaccurate
And JOE…you want drama so you can have more things to talk about on your website. Having drama in your locker room usually doesn’t work out too well. Look at the best teams in the league. New England, Seattle, Green Bay, Indy….they all have teams that are built on unity and a one for all mentality. Bringing in a distraction like Winston is no different than what Manziel is doing in Cleveland. Drama may sell in the short run, but to be successful in this league for many years. You want as little of it as possible.
January 12th, 2015 at 1:52 pm
Bring back mike williams!
January 12th, 2015 at 1:54 pm
Because of mattress Mike no Shameis! Pattern of behavior just as bad!
January 12th, 2015 at 1:59 pm
And for the haters. New England had drama with Hernandez for about a hour. He was still getting processed at the jail when the organization released him. Seattle has drama with Lynch. He will not be there next season because they are tired of dealing with his ish. Green Bay has zero issues. They just play their a$$es off. And the only issue in Indy is a drug addict owner. The players have no issues as a unit. Great teams get great ratings by winning. Point blank period.
Drama only benefits people like you Joe. In England journalists are considered the scum of the earth. I wouldn’t go that far by any means. But drama puts more money in your pocket. I don’t blame you. But come on, I think you had too many beers last night when you wrote this article.
January 12th, 2015 at 2:04 pm
You obviously do not understand that 1 out of every four (25% for you people from Tallahassee) female college students suffer a sexual assualt while in college in America (per an article in Sports Illustrated…they have pictures for your folks from FSU)!
The only one who can say yes or no is the female student. I don’t care if she is buck naked standing in the middle of Winston’s living room…if she says no than it is NO!
I don’t think anyone has ever told Jameis NO! Although, I did that Jimbo Whiner was going to bi#@t$ch slap the boy in the game against Oregon on the sidelines!!!
Why take the risk with the one and only #1 pick the Bucs will have this decade…wait..I forgot…Lovie is the HC and he puts in second string players to lose. I really paid a lot of money to go to that Saints game. I think Lovie the Loser owes me some dough cuz the boys was winning until he pulled that stupid stunt!
January 12th, 2015 at 2:05 pm
You Mariota supporters are just absolutely clueless. If L&L decide they don’t trust Winston I am certain they won’t take Mariota either. You truly have to be watching something other than the Oregon games if you think he is the answer. He may be worth a 2nd or 3rd rounder in the hopes that he could be developed into something resembling an NFL QB. The fact that he currently does nothing resembling what he will be asked to do as a pro cannot be overstated. If you have it recorded watch the Green Bay and Indy games again and pay close attn to what Luck and Rodgers do. Then sit down with a beer tonight and watch what Mariota is asked to do. The difference in play calling is astounding. Nobody, and I mean nobody, has any idea if this kid can play QB in the NFL. That is why he will not be taken with the 1st pick. If someone does they are gambling pure and simple.
January 12th, 2015 at 2:38 pm
“Greg Schiano Says:
January 12th, 2015 at 2:04 pm
You obviously do not understand that 1 out of every four (25% for you people from Tallahassee) female college students suffer a sexual assualt while in college in America (per an ar”
Greg, she wanted the anaconda. Sorry that you can’t accept that.
Why don’t you give your statistics to the Duke Lacrosse team or to Brian Banks? They both understand what it’s like to be falsely accused.
I’m sure as Brian Banks rotted in prison for 5+ years after bring wrongly convicted, that he would have liked to show you how much he cares abut your statistics.
January 12th, 2015 at 2:58 pm
Wins does not equal drama, Joe.
It wasn’t the MRSA and Freeman and all that to thank for the ratings. What it was is even though the media was coming down hard on Shiano, the fans (many of them) knew the defense was improving and we were close to winning more games.
Has nothing to do with “drama”.
Following your theory, a constant rotation of coaches is drama, right? So why are ratings down? It goes both ways.
The real reason the ratings are down is the lack of stability. Players come one year, go the next, after we’ve bought tons of merchandise. Coaches come. They go even quicker.
The Buccaneers have to accomplish three things:
1. make us believe they are building something good
2. establish stability with the team, consistency
3. draft the quarterback and offensive line we need
No drama, just improvement.
January 12th, 2015 at 4:16 pm
Drama: no
QB: yes
Winning: yes
January 12th, 2015 at 4:41 pm
Oh yeah, Cleveland drew eyeballs with Johnny Foosball, how’s that drama going for them? I’m thinking it’s got more to do with the reporting than the football with your allegiance to Jameis, just think how incredible it would be if we pass on Mariota and he shows a quick ability to the pro set offense, yet another swing and miss by the franchise that sets the bar when it comes to missing on draft picks.
January 12th, 2015 at 5:11 pm
The Buc Beat writers have that covered good and well. Lol
January 12th, 2015 at 5:37 pm
there’s also the matter of endurance. more fans will tap out over time, drama or no. 32 games of awfulness, regardless of drama, will drive people to tune out
January 12th, 2015 at 5:54 pm
“You Mariota supporters are just absolutely clueless.”
Whoop there it is. What was your line Loveandwarrick about people who post absolutes about opinion? I should have saved it.
I agree with Zam, Great post. And Gatrbuc does have a point. I do not prefer Jameis but we should lose the “thug” word because of the code it represents.
As for this thread, there is drama and there is drama. Fans like the kind of drama they saw in New England and Green Bay. I was on the edge of my seat for both of those games and I definitely enjoyed that drama.
I hardly think fans of the Ravens enjoyed the Ray Rice “drama” nor did the Stinking Panthers enjoy the Hardy “drama”.
If we wanted that kind of “drama” why didn’t we simply keep Talib and Blount?
January 12th, 2015 at 6:19 pm
Joe, didn’t the NFL lift the local blackout also this year? If so, that makes viewership numbers even worse. I think the team has lost local support almost to the point prior our mid 90’s turn around, hard to believe but here are 20 years later dejavu.
January 12th, 2015 at 6:33 pm
BTW as for the drop in viewership, 10% while significant is not overwhelming.
I would also need to see the figures since the RAH era to see if this is simply a trend or an aberration.
The boring playcalling doesn’t help either. Run-run-pass-punt. So predictable and ineffective. Who wants to watch that crap?
January 12th, 2015 at 8:23 pm
Ratings were down as everyone knew the Bucs were circling the drain when Tedford got ill and put the OC duties in the hands of Arroyo and the Bucs simply started to lose winnable games to start the season at RJS first vs Carolina and then losing a very winnable game vs the Rams where the Bucs had to combine poor qb play, turnovers, blocked kicks, poor clock management and general ineptitude across the board to lose that one. People got tuned out and rightfully so. But the simple fact is that people will watch the games and a few may actually go to RJS (to see the Bucs not the opponent) if they feel the Bucs have a decent chance of winning. People will watch a winner, its that simple. Look at the Rays; despite the poor attendance at the Trop they do draw high TV numbers on Sunshine, ESPN and Fox but the same could not be said when Naomoli (MLB’s version of Hugh Culverhouse sans the business law background and the polyester tangerine sport coat) owned the club and fans were forced to watch a disillusioned and zombie-like HAL McRae lead the Rays to 57-105 like seasons with the owner promising good things to come from low level prospects that are years away from making an MLB impact…. Right now the Bucs are much akin to a circa 2000 Devil Rays club as they lose a lot, the ownership is a joke, the experience at the stadium is below average when compared to other venues (you can spend a whole quarter waiting in line at some of the Buc concessions if they have not sold out already), the team has made promises of turning the franchise around but seemingly seem to get worse each season and the head coach acts like he is taking lots of mind altering agents…. Hopefully things can get better and they can if the front office actually makes some good decisions.
January 13th, 2015 at 2:01 am
Can we start the “Trading Down Watch”?
January 13th, 2015 at 2:40 am
The Bucs did, not the NFL.