Sloppy Seconds
March 31st, 2015
Caution: This post will discuss the Bucs’ offensive line. Read at your own peril. — Joe.
Since Tampa Bay is not in the greatest bargaining position to fill holes on their porous front line, Bucs fans, as usual, see a name they recognize and immediately think said player is an upgrade.
Be careful what you wish for.
Joe does not swallow the spreadsheets pumped out by the numbers crowd at Pro Football Focus. Oh, some of their stuff is interesting if not enlightening. Joe doesn’t dismiss it all, but reads the info with a wary eye.
It seems two names that could arrive to help the Bucs’ offensive line may not be much of an upgrade, if at all.
Twitter was abuzz last night that guard Dan Connelly is expected to pay a visit to general manager Jason Licht later this week. Joe relayed the Bucs’ interest two weeks ago. Connelly, who played for the Super Bowl-winning Belicheats last season, has been unemployed for a few weeks and it seems the geeks have the answer why, per NFLTradeRumors.com.
In 2014, Connolly appeared in 13 games for the Patriots and played a total of 630 snaps. Pro Football Focus has him rated as the N0. 72 guard out of 78 qualifying players.
Ruh, roh. A guy pushing his mid-30s who grades out that bad, even by a potentially flawed system, does not fill Joe with much confidence.
Then there is studly New Orleans guard Jahri Evans, who will be 32 by the time the NFL regular season begins. The Saints are in serious cap trouble and Evans is due $6.8 million this season, per Rotoworld.com.
Per Chris Trapasso of NFL.com, Evans is grossly overpaid.
Interesting tidbit re: Evans’ -17.7 pass-blocking @PFF grade in 2014. Whopping -6.0 of that came in Week 5 game vs Buccaneers/Gerald McCoy.
— Chris Trapasso (@ChrisTrapasso) March 30, 2015
Well, if the Bucs are looking to get guys to keep Jameis Winston upright, maybe, just maybe, Connelly and Evans are not those guys, despite their experience and name-recognition.
March 31st, 2015 at 8:11 am
rather invest in rookie starters and take our lumps this year…long term planning has to become a priority with this team although I’m worried licht and lovie just want quick fixes to save themselves…
March 31st, 2015 at 8:13 am
Yeah, BUT, as I have stated before…lets get the band back together! The Barbecue Master himself will have his hombre back. Thats right…Bud Light shotguns, charcoal, and BBQ sauce! Mankins with will be ALL-PRO once he gets his BBQ on! They can take EDS under their wing, teach him a thing or two about the art of BBQ. Sign Him!
March 31st, 2015 at 8:14 am
Connolly was even worse than Cousins last year. Seriously.
March 31st, 2015 at 8:18 am
Draft JW’s interior lineman from FSU. They’re rated as 2nd & 3rd rounders.
March 31st, 2015 at 8:29 am
@irish, as a Gator fan I hate to say it but I agree with you. There are good lineman to be had in rounds 2-4.
March 31st, 2015 at 8:41 am
who needs an OL?
just draft JW and he’ll take us to the SB; he said so.
March 31st, 2015 at 8:47 am
Nice picture to go along with the headline. Man – Pamela is looking ROUGH these days.
I imagine Connolly would still be quite the upgrade over Omameh’s play last year. Sounds like he would come pretty cheap – so might as well sign him – at least for depth.
March 31st, 2015 at 8:48 am
If the goal is to emulate the Patriots, taking Belichick’s left-overs is not the way to do it.
March 31st, 2015 at 9:01 am
Will Lovie turn Jameis Winston into Josh McCown…..???
March 31st, 2015 at 9:04 am
Not sure why they are talking to 30 something’s, not sure how Jonathan Martin rated, but he is definitely younger and if nothing else, better than what we have. Also, now he is on the Panthers, a division rival. He will get better just going against the d-line at Panther practice.
March 31st, 2015 at 9:14 am
jonathan martin?????????????????????????
WTF???
March 31st, 2015 at 9:18 am
if you’re a guard who wants to make over 6 million a year, come on down to tampa. i think we’ve had at least one 6 million plus dollar Guard on our payroll every year since davin joseph signed has last buc contract. for all the good it’s done us
March 31st, 2015 at 9:35 am
Needed depth that’s it
March 31st, 2015 at 9:54 am
It’s time to stop ignoring the O-line on draft day(s). The Bucs have an immediate need at LT and RG. They will eventually need a LG, RT and possibly a Center. They need to stock the cupboard.
March 31st, 2015 at 9:57 am
The Bucs have spent so few first to third round picks on lineman in recent memory, it’s pretty ridiculous. Connolly means nothing, he’s at the absolute best a two year, slightly acceptable player who won’t be very good but will still be better than O’Neil Cousins. Stop ignoring the key to winning in the NFL, bad lines get QBs killed and coaches fired
March 31st, 2015 at 10:02 am
@Joe
A simple request. While the Pamela Sue pic was the perfect illustration for your headline could we see more Kate and no Pam. I prefer natural over fake.
Same for football and baseball fields. Natural is always better than fake.
March 31st, 2015 at 10:06 am
Evans is on a steep decline and requires help from the center position now – Tampa should bite the bullet and build through the draft and coach these guys up.
Overpaying aged and declining players what has us in the place we are now.
Be patient Bucs and stop making panic led decisions.
March 31st, 2015 at 10:25 am
AWESOME PIC to go with the headline
March 31st, 2015 at 10:34 am
I take these signings with a grain of salt. If I were lovie, I would bering in scrubs for the minicamps until the draft and then sign a bunch of guys from the Undrafted Rookies. Chances are low of finding good players, but not as low as regular free agency.
I would not…except for the Quarterback or Wide Receiver positions, bring in anyone 29+ years of age. At all.
The chances for injury are far too high, and if these guys have a history of not producing, I doubt it is because they spent their careers without the “right coach”.
March 31st, 2015 at 12:55 pm
Sloppy seconds, that pic looks like Dr. Paul Bearer applied the makeup.
March 31st, 2015 at 1:07 pm
Rather than complaining (I know I’m dreaming – this is JBF), maybe consider what are the better options on the market right now. In the early part of FA, you pay a mediocre player outrageous money (and then complain). If you wait until all the stupid money in FA is over, you pay a serviceable player appropriate money (and then complain). Then you go to the draft, you pick O lineman in the early rounds (and then complain we didn’t draft DE). If you bypass OL in early rounds, you wait until mid-rounds (and then complain)… Notice a pattern? Bucs fans (especially on JBF) LUVVVSS them some complaining.
March 31st, 2015 at 2:11 pm
That picture of Pamela Anderson perfectly illustrates the point of the article. Players reaching the end of their careers are merely a ragged out shell of their former selves. Who wouldn’t have gone gaga over Pamela in the 1990’s? But now, not so much. The same goes for ragged out players.
This means you, Drew Brees, Philip Rivers, Eli Manning, Logan Mankins, Dan Connely, Jahri Evans, etc. You’re the Pamela Andersons of the NFL world. Move over for Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota, etc. They are the Kate Uptons of the NFL world. Until such a time where Kate’s beauty has faded and Joe posts her picture in the same context…
March 31st, 2015 at 2:24 pm
Joe, you owe me a new laptop. that train wreck of a pic made me throw up all over my mac
March 31st, 2015 at 6:33 pm
But if Evans isn’t blocking Mccoy anymore them his numbers would be significantly higher, no?
April 1st, 2015 at 10:32 pm
Ew. Pam looks terrible in that picture but I’d still tap.