“Aren’t Buying Anything Lovie Says Right Now”
February 20th, 2015People are questioning the credibility of Lovie Smith, but how could that be?
On BSPN television yesterday, NFL insider John Clayton, “The Professor,” called Lovie “the most principled coach in football.”
On Wednesdday, Lovie said that after researching Jameis Winston’s off-field shenanigans, no occurrence has taken Winston off the Bucs’ draft board and the Bucs would be comfortable if Winston were the face of their franchise.
Fellow BSPN cohort Chris Mortensen seemed very sour on that notion, saying the Bucs choice “screams Mariota to me,” and Mortensen said he’s heard Tampa Bay drafting Winston would be bad news because it’s too close to Winston’s trouble sources at home.
Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud claims Lovie is distrusted by many and the bigger question in the great quarterback debate is job security. Stroud spoke on WDAE-AM 620 this morning and said Marcus Mariota’s learning curve might not suit an impatient regime.
“[Mariota] might be the better quarterback. We really don’t know. It’s going to take a while, much longer to find out I think. And that’s the question: Is Lovie Smith and Jason Licht, you know, do they have time?” Stroud asked.
” I mean.You just went 2-14. You wonder if that’s a factor at all in this. So I don’t know. There are some people who aren’t buying anything Lovie Smith says right now because this time last year he said Darrelle Revis would be their corner and they would play a lot of man-to-man. How did that work out?”
Joe’s not calling Lovie a liar or a used car salesman. Not yet. Joe’s not that sensitive. What’s true this morning isn’t necessarily accurate this afternoon, though fans and many media don’t like to acknowledge that life, player evaluation and reality is a fluid situation.
You can hear of all of Stroud’s morning chatter via the 620wdae.com audio player below.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:02 am
Tis the season of smokescreens and fluff.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:03 am
Love Billy Mayes! Great work Joe.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:04 am
Chris Mortensen is the LAST person you want to listen to. I remember the fool saying that he was positive Michael Vick was NOT gonna be indicted on the dog fighting charges!
February 20th, 2015 at 11:04 am
hi, Billy Payne for oxymoron
February 20th, 2015 at 11:08 am
I think the credibility of Lovie Smith was destroyed the minute he acquired Trash McCown for $5mil to intentionally start for my beloved Buccaneers. Instantly struck from the professional credibility roll call.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:20 am
NFL head coaches are always playing the shell game. Lovie is no different, regardless of his honest reputation.
Lovie knows it’s a results business. He won’t have his job much longer if he can’t put a winning product on the field. It’s reasonable to assume he doesn’t want anything to do with a rookie QB right now. Having the #1 pick puts him in a tough position from his standpoint. Ownership probably wants a QB and Lovie will have to like it. Winston should transition faster than Mariota. For this reason alone, Lovie could be willing take the risks that come with Winston.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:23 am
You have to look at words carefully…….would presumes if…..
Would (expressing the conditional mood) indicating the consequence of an imagined event or situation.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:26 am
Almost all of the BSPN commentators go out of their way to carefully point out the positives and negatives of both young QB’s.
All except Mortensen that is. For some reason he has a thing against Winston and will take every opportunity to take shots at the Bucs or Winston directly.
So, take anything he says as biased and BS and move on to Polian, Sheffter, etc. to get honest appraisals.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:27 am
I’m assuming by “trouble sources” Mort was talking about the Kingsman family that has continued to try to ruin him despite overwhelming evidence that the allegations were completly made up
February 20th, 2015 at 11:34 am
There’s not a coach in the NFL that hasn’t said so and so will be our starting (name the position). In the end, that didn’t happen. Sometimes it may be that the guy was cut, traded or ended up being a bench-warmer. Regardless, it indicates nothing as far as Lovie’s credibility. There isn’t a coach on the planet that wouldn’t want Revis in their secondary. I believe Lovie meant what he said. Licht I’m sure had a lot to say about his 16 million dollar contract. There’s a difference between New England and Tampa Bay’s ability to make a playoff push. The Bucs are half a team away while the Pats needed some stability on the back end. For the record, I wanted Revis and his 16 million dollar contract to stay. I’m also in favor of Mankins and V Jax staying even at their current salaries. Cutting Revis did nothing for us. We weren’t in salary cap hell and now we are far away from salary cap hell. Since the move was made with Revis now we need to put the available funds to work in FA. Licht needs to hit on FA though. He and Lovie’s jobs are very much on the line. I’m pulling for them.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:46 am
“I mean.You just went 2-14…. There are some people who aren’t buying anything Lovie Smith says right now”.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:50 am
Mariota is going to be the pick. It’s really to bad you guys can’t see the writing on the wall. The blazers aren’t going to fire lovie anytime soon. This is going to be a rams Jeff Fisher type hire. Mm buys lovie 2 years minimum. Barring not going 2-14 again lovie is here for the long haul they’re comfortable with him.
February 20th, 2015 at 11:55 am
after yesterday i started to think Mariotta will be the pick even though I’ve wanted Winston from the beginning most of the questions lovie is getting so this is why all the talk is about Winston, that’s more or less the media’s fault. lovie answers the questions he’s asked and the other thing about the bucs for me and this is the big one. very few times have we as buc fans been surprised by the bucs first pick in the draft. McCoy was one and Mike Evans was another. beyond that no other pick stands out that I can say aaah I knew they would draft said player…..I am for Winston but im preparing myself so im not shocked if they pick Mariotta
February 20th, 2015 at 12:00 pm
knucknbutt- how do you know all of these things?…who we are going to draft and what the Glazers think?
It is quite possible and I would say probable that the instant Lovie brought Trash McCan’t in to be our starting QB they felt the heavy, sober wave of buyers remorse. Then the rest of the season played out en route to 2-14 after a 50% roster turnover and that buyers remorse turned into a harsh reality with clear expectations going forward. You don’t screw the pooch and expect mommy and daddy to buy you another dog.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:02 pm
Lovie & Licht aren’t going to say anything negative about a player…..particularly before the draft…..
They will just stay positive……as they should. When asked direct questions…like “Would you be comfortable with Winston as the face of the franchise”….the absolute and only answer is Yes….but it is always going to mean…..”if”…..
If he keeps his nose clean….If the interviews are positive….If the background check comes out good…..and the very biggest if…
If the owners are OK with it….
February 20th, 2015 at 12:05 pm
I think any kind of improvement buys Lovie another year…and let’s face it, when you go 2-14, it’s hard not to show SOME kind of improvement! Take Mariota or trade down. Start Glennon and rebuild the O-line and I see a 6-10 or 7-9 season. Just getting rid of McCown should be good for 2 more wins alone.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:06 pm
DallasBuc
I think lovie really thought Mccown would come in here and have a great year I honestly do. what killed everything for lovie was not mccowns horrible quarterback play it was Jeff Tedford, had tedford called all 16 games, we wouldn’t have a 2-14 record, or first pick in the draft and I think glennon would have been the quarterback because the support system for him would have been there if a real coordinator was calling plays
February 20th, 2015 at 12:11 pm
rape allegations aside after thinking about it…..Winston doesn’t bring as many new fans as drafting Mariotta would. Mariotta is bringing the Northwest crowd with him and Hawaii. Winston even if he didn’t have the off field issues outside of the south he isn’t really a big deal
February 20th, 2015 at 12:19 pm
DallasBuc – McCown was about as good an option as was available last year. The majority of “experts” felt that McCown was last year’s best free agent QB – especially after 13TDs vs 1 Int miracle that he somehow managed in Chicago subbing for Jay Cutler in 2013.
The Bucs did not see a QB worthy of a high pick in last year’s draft and the free agent QB pickings were very slim. Nothing has changed about that fact for the other 10+ NFL teams that don’t have a good QB and will not be fortunate enough to get a shot at one of the 2 legit franchise prospects coming out this year. McCown will be choosing from more than 1 offer which team to go to this year and has a reasonable chance of being a starter again this year for another team.
So other than just taking every opportunity to slam Lovie which is your standard MO – what’s your point?
February 20th, 2015 at 12:22 pm
bucs4life- he clearly thought McTrash could get the job done without any track record of having done it before in his dozen years at the end of the bench. Stop making excuses for this man. I doubt the Glazers are.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:27 pm
http://tam.scout.com/story/1519000-dominik-bucs-preparing-fans-for-winston
The buzz within Lucas Oil Stadium at the combine is that the Bucs are starting to send a message to their fans, as Mark Dominik suggested, that they will be selecting Jameis Winston.
“They’re going out there to back Jameis Winston, hold onto him, and then be in position to draft him, but certainly the tea leaves here say that Winston’s going number one to the Bucs,” Dominik concluded.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:28 pm
Pickgrin- my point is McSht is an awful QB and Lovie is responsible. This is not even debatable anymore. Lovie has made this bad football team the worst in the NFL behind his awful decisions with McCan’t at the top of the list. I refuse to act like this shameful period didn’t happen or happened differently.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:34 pm
I just don’t see any owner in their right mind trusting people coming off a 2-14 season to make critical long term decisions. But maybe the Glazers don’t have a right mind.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:38 pm
I think Rick makes a fair point, and Chris mortenson has been told by his producers that he is the token mariota bell ringer for the next week at least. His points make absolutely no sense. Mariota may be the better QB long term, but the ties mort makes between the Bucs and mariota are tenuous at best.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:38 pm
Dallas – and yet if/when Lovie gets the team turned around and playing winning football again (which I think is a very good possibilty as long as he gets at least a couple more years to achieve that) – you will still be dogging him.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:43 pm
IIRC, Lovie said (when he was first hired) that ‘defense’ can win ten games. If that quote is accurate, prepare for Lovie to go defense in the draft. Possibly with that first pick. A ten-win season (IF he is correct) buys him more years. The big question might not be, “Has he ever had a franchise QB?”, the question might ought to be, “Has he ever TRIED to have a franchise QB?”. (Granted, it could be that Lovie never before felt he had the coaches to groom a franchise QB)
Smoke and mirrors, folks, smoke and mirrors.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:44 pm
Everyone needs to calm down. Coach Smith is a honorable man. Period. This is a business and things change. For example, Revis decided what he wanted to do and that didn’t include being traded to teams the BUCS were negotiating with or staying with the BUCS.
Coach Smith and the GM must have plan A, plan B, etc. to deal with all of the possible things that can happen in FA and the draft. They have to be open to all possibilities.
February 20th, 2015 at 12:56 pm
@reamsicleBananaHammock
IS THIS HOW LOW OUR FRANCHISE HAS BECOME? WE START QUOTING A TRASHY GM LIKE MARK DOMINICK? PEOPLE TALK ABOUT LOVIE AND LICHT’S PROFESSIONAL CAREER, IM SORRY DUDE IF YOUR GONNA QUOTE ANYONE ATLEAST MAKE SURE IT’S SOMEONE CREDIBLE AND SUCCESSFUL. THIS FRANCHISE WENT RIGHT INTO THE TOILET WHEN DOMINICK TOOK OVER SO DONT QUOTE HIM TO ME
February 20th, 2015 at 1:05 pm
The ONLY thing clear in all this is that people will be watching the draft and holding their breath until Goodell reads the name.
The Bucs and the media will monetize the anticipation of that moment with everything they’ve got. *Actual information* is the enemy of that effort, so I’ll expect none of it.
February 20th, 2015 at 1:05 pm
Hawk Says:
February 20th, 2015 at 12:43 pm
IIRC, Lovie said (when he was first hired) that ‘defense’ can win ten games. If that quote is accurate, prepare for Lovie to go defense in the draft. Possibly with that first pick. A ten-win season (IF he is correct) buys him more years. The big question might not be, “Has he ever had a franchise QB?”, the question might ought to be, “Has he ever TRIED to have a franchise QB?”. (Granted, it could be that Lovie never before felt he had the coaches to groom a franchise QB)
Smoke and mirrors, folks, smoke and mirrors.
——————————————————————————————
you do realize that lovie’s first year in tampa and Chicago were awful years. 2-14, 5-11 then since 2004 he had two 7-9 seasons but outside of 4 bad season including with us he had a winning record so my question is BESIDES brady, aaron Rodgers and tony romo you do know that all the successful franchise quarterbacks have come at the top of the nfl draft right? ryan tannehill was even an 8th round pick, Roethlisberger 11th and so on and so on….
it sounds kind of dumb to say what your saying because a defensive coach has NEVER been able to take credit for developing a quarterback? I mean really your giving pete carroll credit for doing anything other than drafting Russell Wilson? dirk koetter will get all the credit for the success of whatever qb we draft and if it is a successful pick will more than likely get him a head coaching job by making our qb successful as a rookie
February 20th, 2015 at 1:07 pm
I don’t care if Lovie is honorable or a part time priest during his down time. With the exception of the no brainer pick of #13, ever move Lovie has tried has blown up in his face.
February 20th, 2015 at 1:11 pm
Pickgrin- if Lovie redeems himself by making good decisions that actually prove themselves on the field then he will get his due praise from this Buc fan. I said repeatedly last offseason that I hope I am wrong as I went about loudly criticizing the litany of bad personel decisions. I might add that most of you shouted me down every day for those lonely correct assessments back then which conveniently most everyone accepts now as if they saw it all along.
I am first a Bucs fan. If Raheem was successful then I would be a Raheem fan but I am driven by results on the field not by nice guys and best intentions. This is football not a bingo social which is why we should be drafting the best QB propect not the guy that gee whiz swell. Again, if Lovie brings winning football to Tampa he will have my support. Kinda simple as that!
February 20th, 2015 at 1:18 pm
stop giving head coaches credit for draft pick failures and success……a team is as good as it parts, gm scouts coaches and management. do you really think lovie is out there in the offseason breaking down potential free agents like a gm? think he is scouring the waiver wires during the season. think he is the one who sets the draft board? he’s a figurehead more or less but ASJ the tiny receiver, the offensive lineman we drafted last year they are busts because they didn’t turn out to be allstar quality starters in their first year? A first round pick more often than not performs like a first round pick until he gets coached up. and furthermore you can’t grade anyone even Anthony Collins with all the chaos going on on the offensive side of the ball no one would succeed without an offensive coordinator that knows how to call plays and run an offense. year two is when the gloves come off people
February 20th, 2015 at 1:21 pm
bucs4life- you are afraid to hold the leadership responsible for 2-14. Glad I don’t live in your world but to each their own.
February 20th, 2015 at 1:22 pm
Billy Mays here for cocaine!
February 20th, 2015 at 1:39 pm
You guys are hysterical. How anyone could decipher that the Bucs are leaning towards Mariota is both irresponsible and ridiculous. First of all, Winston is the pick. He’s the better QB and it matters not who is favored across the country. It matters who the organization thinks will lead this team into respectability. Mariota simply doesn’t have the skillset that Winston has which includes leadership. Anybody that actually knows Winston and/or has played with him raves about his leadership and his ability to fire up the troops. That’s what is needed. That’s what makes a QB great. The ability to make the players around you better. Winston has that. I am not at all worried about his INT’s. Anyone following FSU the last 2 years knows this year’s FSU team was a far cry from 2013’s. Yet, Winston unbelievably was able to lead comeback after comeback. I won’t shed a tear if MM is the pick but in no way, shape or form do I see it. In addition, 2 months+ before the draft is impossible to predict the Bucs pick. The Bucs haven’t even had the chance to legally talk to these guys. The smoke is thick and the mirrors are all over the place.
February 20th, 2015 at 1:48 pm
what on earth are you talking about….did I say anything about the overall record? do you walk into a job 1 one and make your company the best in the business every job you’ve had? nope chances are just like normal people you have to learn the people you work with and their celings and their floor? reason I can accept a 2-14 season is because we had no offensive coordinator. yea we sucked yes it was lovie’s fault but like Michael johson for instance the top free agent at his position a player everyone in need was wanting but choose tampa, you’ve seen him perform at a high level so you have expectations of what you think he can do but you blame lovie if the guy doesn’t do what you’ve seen him do prior to this season?
I didn’t praise lovie for anything but damn if you cant see why we sucked then your xbox has you living in a different world
you read to much sports news…..the record was bad but you can look at the turmoil within the offense plus look at the players on defense learning a new defense and see why we had a 2-14 record, if you expect 2-14 this season then your simple if you think we have a 2-14 team or coach that’s just stupid and we’ll be back this year.
February 20th, 2015 at 1:49 pm
We need to keep one thing in mind…only about 8-10 people in the entire world know what the Bucs are leaning towards…none of them work at ESPN or any other media outlet….Lovie and Licht, the Glazers, and perhaps a couple other in the organization….that is it….it has become pointless to even talk about it anymore
February 20th, 2015 at 2:01 pm
well said cmurda
February 20th, 2015 at 2:12 pm
DallasBuc Says:
February 20th, 2015 at 1:11 pm
Pickgrin- if Lovie redeems himself by making good decisions that actually prove themselves on the field then he will get his due praise from this Buc fan.
I am first a Bucs fan…but I am driven by results on the field not by nice guys and best intentions.
That’s fair enough – if you actually DO change your tone if/when you start to see some positive results from Lovie’s team.
How about this – if the Bucs draft Winston (which would obviously have to be approved by Lovie to happen) – will you back off on the Lovie criticism some until we can get into next year and see what we are really working with now that we actually have an OC?
That’s fair enough too isn’t it?
Dallas – I’m curious to know if you like the OC and QB coach hires BTW.
February 20th, 2015 at 2:24 pm
@Pickgrin
How about this – if the Bucs draft Winston (which would obviously have to be approved by Lovie to happen) – will you back off on the Lovie criticism some until we can get into next year and see what we are really working with now that we actually have an OC?
correction….it would obviously have to be approved by the glazers, you cant trumph the men who pay your salary who are the ones who gave you whatever contract you signed and can terminate it at will. having said that a 4 year contract is a big difference from the 3 year contract schiano got. raheem got a 10 wins without very much talent, schiano got all the pieces he wanted and did nothing with them. you don’t give a 5 year contract to someone if your going to terminate it in year 2. lovie is here to stay so don’t listen to media….
February 20th, 2015 at 2:33 pm
bucs4lyfe said:
“you do know that all the successful franchise quarterbacks have come at the top of the nfl draft right? ”
Since the top of the draft has also seen the biggest QB ‘busts’, I am not sure of your point.
” I mean really your giving pete carroll credit for doing anything other than drafting Russell Wilson? ”
Looking back, I do not see where I mentioned Pete Carroll, but Carroll drafted Wilson and hired the coaches who could used Wilson’s talents to benefit the team. We all hope that Lovie has done the same.
Your response is difficult to decipher, so I am not totally sure if you are agreeing with my post or not, but remember to READ each word and use you cognitive skills. I said “if”, “might”, “possibly”, and “question”. Unlike others, in here, I will make NO guarantees on what the Bucs will do. I WILL, on occasion, throw out possible outcomes(notice the word ‘possible’?).
February 20th, 2015 at 2:52 pm
bucs4lyfe – its a given the Glazers would have to approve whoever the Bucs are going to draft with the #1 overall pick.
I believe Licht when he said that if both he and Lovie are not sold on a player – then they will not draft him. So in the case of this #1 pick – coach, GM and owners are all going to have to agree together which player to take. The owners could theoretically demand that a certain player be taken – but I seriously doubt they would do that.
I believe in the end that Winston will be the pick. I don’t believe they are going to find anything else that will keep him from being considered – and Lovie already said they are OK with what they know about him to this point.
Once they bring Jameis in for extended interviews and workouts – they are going to like him as a person I believe – and they are going to LOVE what they see on the field and probably be very impressed with his pre-existing football knowledge once they start digging into his head
February 20th, 2015 at 3:52 pm
Pickgrin- I will not back off the criticism of Lovie that he deserves for making us the worst team by far in the NFL. What difference does it make whether I like the OC or QB coach hires? I liked the Lovie hire and all the coaches he hired for his staff but the results made me feel differently. I like having an NFL caliber OC that knows how to move the football but he had a star QB and receivers/tight ends too. I am more concerned with the decisions Lovie and his lapdog (Lovie hire) make than the coaching staff hires. OC doesn’t acquire the football players. Normally the GM would do that but we all know the HC/GM relationship is unholy and effed up so it all falls on LovieDovie, good or bad.