The Gravity Of Today’s Game
October 11th, 2015
Career crossroads today?
Should the Bucs keep (3-17, 0-10 at home) Lovie Smith? A lot of folks don’t think so. Joe isn’t there (yet) but has to admit, Lovie is sure making his own bed.
Can Lovie still turn things around? Sure he can.
But he’s got to start winning. Joe would be absolutely floored if Lovie doesn’t finish this season, no matter how bad it gets.
The time for turning things around has just about run out. If the Bucs cannot win again today, Joe isn’t sure how Lovie crawls out of this hole. If the Bucs lose today, that stretches a home winless streak to 12 games.
So that is why Joe has been writing today’s game at the Den of Depression with the Jags is a WTBS, Five-Star, Gold-Ribbon, Red-Carpet, Four-Horsemen, Steel-Cage, Battle-Royale Throwdown. For whoever loses, Lovie or Jags underwhelming coach Gus Bradley, very possibly is not on the same team’s sidelines next fall.
If you look at the remaining Bucs’ schedule, where do you see five wins, which Joe believes would cinch Lovie’s return?
Though Woody Cummings of The Tampa Tribune is of the firm belief Lovie should get a third year, even he confesses a loss today, yet another at home, may be too much for Team Glazer to stomach, so he told Miller and Moulton on WWCN-FM 99.3 in Fort Myers last week.
“There is no question they should win this game,” Cummings said. “If they don’t? Katie bar the door, boys. Because, at that point, again, depending on how it looks, you might be able to justify a decision by the Glazer boys to fire the coach. You just might be able to. I don’t know if you can right now based on what he is working with and where this team has to go to be a consistent winner. But if they can’t beat Jacksonville at home on a Sunday when they are the better team, then you might have some issues.”
The players Lovie has to work with are ones he picked or decided to keep from the previous regime. It wasn’t former Bucs commander Greg Schiano who ran off Darrelle Revis. It wasn’t Raheem Morris who told Donald Penn to hit the pavement. It wasn’t Chucky who decided to throw tens of millions of Team Glazer loot into a furnace by signing Ghost Johnson, Anthony Collins, Josh McClown or Alterraun Verner (who Lovie just benched).
Even with the modest free agents the Bucs signed in this past offseason, only center Joe Hawley has contributed in a meaningful way.
On defense, name a veteran player who has improved under Lovie? Maybe Will Gholston. Maybe, and that is stretching the term “veteran.” Gholston was in his second year when Lovie took over. It wasn’t like he was chained to the practice squad for Schiano as a rookie.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:18 am
If we lose today Lovie should be fired and the offensive coordinator should be the be the head coach. Not since the days of 1976 have we lost this many home games in a row enough is enough.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:18 am
“What he is working with” is a team of mostly his choosing. He also jettisoned multiple players not only starting, but playing better than the guys here who replaced them, but obviously for other teams. This is his team so the “it’s not his guys” excuse is not applicable. A bad loss today and how can anyone justify keeping him? It’s not about whether he can turn this around from what it is now, because 6-10 is that. It’s do you think he’s the guy to make us a consistent winner long term? Giving his extensive track record, I really doubt it. Going 5-11 is not improvement, winning 7 games in two years is abysmal. This should be a 7-9 team at this point.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:25 am
Well, lets just see. Bucss 11 straight home losses, Jags 11 straight road losses. I would say this game will end a tie, but the Jags have the better QB and a good RB, while we have the worst defense in the league as well as a liability at QB and an under performing WR in Evans. V-Jax and Martin can’t do it all. Then factor in the fact that we have a laughing stock of a head coach and it equates to no way we win today. Winston will put us in enough of a hole again that we will be playing from behind as usual. Gotta be honest, I never had issues with Winston as far as the off the field stuff was concerned and I defended him against those who did. I di feel however that Mariota was the better QB as far as skill sets go. That is water under the bridge though. We made our bed and now have to lay in it. I hope this carelessness with the football gets resolved because I really do believe WInston is smart and can at time throw amazing passes but you cant throw crap half the time and gold the other half and be a winning QB. I am a Gator fan, so maybe the best part of drafting WInston is to give us a shot at Grier in a few years…wink wink. Ok, so GO BUCS!! The Bulls and Gators won, so make it a complete great weekend of football and upset the Jags. Yes I think if we win it would be an upset.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:28 am
I agree with the Joes on this one. If the Bucs get a solid win today, they are on the road to respectability and they could win 6 or 7 games. If not, we may not see another win all season.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:35 am
We need more Road Warriors and less Adrien Adonis.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:35 am
I’m not sure why everybody is saying 11 straight home losses? I know its a mute point and it is still unacceptable to lose 10 straight home games. Its simple math 8 home games last year plus 2 home games this year equals 10 home straight losses.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:36 am
As I get ready to leave for RJ, wearing my McCoy jersey, with my season ticket looped around my neck, I wonder which Buc team shows up for the game today. Will it be a team that understands they MUST win this game, or will it be the team that has developed the expertise in losing games. Losing becomes somewhat automatic. Have our players lost so many games that they somehow know the game will get out of control, and they expect to make mistakes, and so those mistakes become a self-fulfiling prophecy? We can blame Winston, the defense, coaching, and all of the above but my sense if that there is no veteran leadership to guide the team, no Brooks, no Sapp, no Lynch in the locker room. This game is a turning point in the season. A loss means another 2-14 season (or worse). A win means knowing we can win a game. This game is the Buc Super Bowl of 2015.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:37 am
I agree with you Joe about Lovie sticking around for the whole season regardless of today’s game or the balance of this seasons outcome. I just can’t see the Glazers firing him. A win today will go a long way to quiet the growing discontent.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:38 am
And I was basing that off Lovie’s tenure, he shouldn’t get credit for a loss if he wasn’t here for it.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:43 am
The only kind of win that will truly quiet the growing discomfort is a dominating win, which in game 21 of the Lovie era against a very bad team should be a given. A 16-14 win isn’t going to inspire much confidence. A 37-13 win will however.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:43 am
Lovie better lead the team to a victory today. The natives are restless, they are about to break out the war drums and sharpen their poison pens in anger.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:46 am
Welcome to the Lovie Smith Farewell tour. Next stop is against Jacksonville. See you all there.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:48 am
@rayjay
You lost me at worst defense in the league comment. C’mon
October 11th, 2015 at 10:50 am
I’m a limousine riding”, rolex wearing, jet flyin, diamond ring wearin, son of a gun!!!! Whoo!!!!
October 11th, 2015 at 10:50 am
The Jag’s defense is taylormade for Jameis and the Buc’s offense. They don’t rush the passer well and don’t intercept the football. They only have 7 picks in their last 21 games.
Jameis will have his best day yet as a pro and the Bucs will win 27-13
October 11th, 2015 at 10:55 am
A blowout loss to the Jags at home and Lovie doesn’t coach another game. A loss and he is gone at the end of the season.
October 11th, 2015 at 10:56 am
Lovie should already be gone! Here we are discussing if we can finally get a home win and can we maybe just maybe beat the sorry a$$ Jags. We are a pathetic team under Lovie……pathetic!
October 11th, 2015 at 10:58 am
Soooo much excitement and anticipation over a football game featuring the 2 worst teams in the NFL playing each other, lol
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IT’S A BUCS LIFE
October 11th, 2015 at 11:05 am
I have been a hopeful supporter…..but enough is enough….if he can’t win today…he needs to be gone!!!
October 11th, 2015 at 11:17 am
jameis is in trouble today. Jags have a good run D and he makes too many passing Mistakes. Jags 24 to 10.
October 11th, 2015 at 12:45 pm
Rayjay- THE WORST DEFENSE IN THE LEAGUE!?! Back that up with stats I double dare you. Joe where the filter at
October 11th, 2015 at 12:59 pm
Worst defense in the league is an opinion. I guess yours is that they are the best in the league? Good grief….take some Xanax or smoke some weed and keep from stroking out!
October 11th, 2015 at 3:10 pm
@patrick and broy
This game is the only stats needed. This defense sucks!!!