Five Reasons To Sign Roddy White
March 2nd, 2016
Dirk Koetter expressed major love for Roddy White
Former star Falcons wide receiver Roddy White is a free man, cut by Atlanta today presumably because they didn’t want to pay the $4.25 million due him this year.
At 34 years old, White isn’t what he once was, but consider the following:
- White played 16 games last season, and caught 43 of the 70 balls targeted his way. That catch percentage is better than what Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson each churned out.
- White will not command a lot of money.
- The Bucs’ receiving depth after Evans and Vincent Jackson consists of (for now) Louis Murphy coming off November ACL surgery, undrafted and largely ineffective Donteea Dye, Adam Humphries and special teams ace Russell Shepard.
- Dirk Koetter says White is “the single most competitive football player I’ve ever met in my life.”
- Re-read No. 4
- Aside from 800+ career receptions, White is known for being a ferocious leader with an extreme work ethic. Not only could he another good mentor for Evans, he’s a vocal guy who could help take a little pressure off Jameis in that department.
If White is willing to play for a reasonable salary ($4 million?), then someone please tell Joe why White is a bad idea for the Bucs.
Joe suspects Koetter would love to have Mr. White around.
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:12 pm
Welp #4 immediately eliminates him from consideration. As a real Bucs fan I need to know if he’s a nice guy and does he have a big beautiful smile?
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:17 pm
3. Kenny Bell?
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:19 pm
We need competitive guys. It’s a natural fit for us since he’s familiar with our coaches and offense.
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:23 pm
I get the arguement, but Doug Martin adds way more value to the offense than White ever would. He needs to be the priority.
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:29 pm
Where does it stop? Get this guy..no get this one. They all look good. The Tampa Bay Bucs have 2 special need priorities right now. Getting Doug Martin signed in my opinion is a must for us to keep the continuity going we have. Not resigning him could go down as yet another fatal Buc error in our history. The 2nd priority is righting this mangled defense. Getting some edge rushers and help in the secondary.
What are trying to make the Bucs? Atlanta South? Opps my bad..it already is!!
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:30 pm
I just don’t know if he has anything left in the tank. The 3 or 4 times I saw Atlanta play he was irrelevant as irrelevant could be. Can he still get open? I’m not saying I’m against it, but I have my doubts if he’d be better than what we have now.
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:31 pm
NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!REALLY???!!!!!
This is not a good idea. Absolutley not sorry no thank you. The guy is way past his prime I have heard enough. Bill belicheat wouldnt even kick the tires on old roddy. Cmoooon man!!!
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:32 pm
With the UFA’s is he value added? I know he is good with Coach Koetter, but a 34 yo W/R? We could use a speed guy/slot guy. He was not good at all last year. I know this team could use more winner types/high character guys, but is he worth a roster spot over a younger option?
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:37 pm
I wish for once we were out of the free agent business! GO BUCS
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:40 pm
Kenny Bell is practice squad level and was not on the active roster in 2015. IMO he is too soft for NFL.
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:48 pm
Nah not afrothunder! He took a year to learn the nuances.
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:51 pm
White did play in all 16 games, but only contributed 1 TD and 506 total yds (barely 30 yds/game and less than a 12 yd/catch average). Since his longest catch was only 25 yds, he doesn’t seem like the type of WR who’s going to stretch the field. And catching slightly over 60% of the balls thrown your way from a reasonably accurate QB like Matt Ryan (who threw for 66% last year) doesn’t seem particularly exciting. $4 mil per season might be better spent on a younger WR FA.
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:58 pm
Bad idea. White complained last year about not being involved enough in the offense, when he was the #2 guy. He’ll come in to Tampa, being a #3, maybe #4, and being 4th or 5th option in the passing game. Do you think he’ll be thrilled about that?
Also, WRs at that point in the depth chart are usually Special Teamers as well, do we really think Mr. White will be willing to be a gunner?
If no VJax, sure, but I don’t think the team needs another 33+ yr old WR.
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:04 pm
He is a band aid for next year’s WR depth. It could save us from having to draft a WR. If not White, we need a one year WR band aid.
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:07 pm
Listen mike evans is a first round pick and vincent jackson is is more than enougj as far as aging recievers past theyre prime on our roster. I would not mohamad sanu at all to play across grom evans with jackson and humphries dominating the slot. If asj doesnt step up brate will fill in nicley. I could come up with a list of guys if take over white. Hell Id take louis murphy coming off knee surgery over white honestly
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:09 pm
No. Absolute waste of a roster spot. He’s done. He’s gotten worse each of the last three years, with Julio Jones taking bracket coverage on his side leaving White in one-on-one situations, and he still couldn’t produce.
We…..need…..speed, plain and simple. No more big body recievers. We need guys who can create after the catch, not washed up 30+year old guys who can’t seperate.
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:14 pm
You guys are funny.
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:19 pm
I agree with the post above. We need a speed guy! Unfortunately the receivers in this draft aren’t that great
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:23 pm
Bring him for depth but please don’t stop there. We need NFL caliber receivers. I’d like a legitimate burner who can actually catch.
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:33 pm
Marvin Jones or Travis Benjamin.
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:36 pm
I am totally with you Waterboy over White but let’s have some faith in our Coaches and see what we have in Bell since they made him a Scout when he was injured and he has basically studied like a WR coach during this period. One thing for sure is that we don’t need to over pay for a player that Already has A Bunch of film on him. JMO tho
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:37 pm
Hey DB….:)
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:44 pm
I have hope for bell benjamin aint leaving marvin jones would be good. I think humphries vomes back strong with bell. Honestly its funny not many people seem worried about our o line at all. Last year we expected it to be bad and it improved. Id like to see them add some better talent on the o line or at least depth as well. Recievers dont mean squat if they dont have enough time to run theyre route
March 2nd, 2016 at 9:56 pm
We should sign him just in case we play Denver. Roddy has proven over and over and over and over again that he can get in Talib’s head and make him his bitch. A little taunting by Roddy and Talib looses his head, wants to fight, cant cover, gets penalties and Roddy just scores multiple touchdowns.
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:01 pm
He will play in less than 8 games. Waste of money….. I like the thinking but he is totally done. I would be shocked if we went through a full camp and could play week 1.
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:03 pm
let him be a receivers coach. He can show are young guys what they need to do in the NFL to be great. If someone gets hurt and we need him then he can go from a coach to the field.
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:07 pm
And that DB55 is why you don’t have douche bags like Talib on your team. Not only are they an embarrassement to your team, douce bags like Talib, and the bengals defensive players 9 time out of 10 times cost you in the end. We need bad asses that compete, dominate, intimidate, but at the end of the day, those behaviors are part of the craftsmanship of their skillset and they have situational awareness to be smart when needed and real it in. Players with a mean streak are A+. Players with a nasty streak that have no control should be avoided.
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:08 pm
yes, but would white be happy with another 40 or fewer catch season while we do our best to feature jackson, evans, our RBs, and possibly kenny bell, ASJ, and Brate in the passing game before him?
if we are hit by injuries again he will be worlds better than dontea dye, but how much weight will he carry as a new guy who barely plays when everyone is healthy?
roddy probably feels like he can go to a city like NE or KC and comfortably sit in the top 2 of their depth chart while having a better title shot
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:15 pm
there goes joe trying to imitate the stats wonks again.the catch percentage includes interceptions,drops
under and over throws.so looking at your data one can conclude that Matt Ryan and roddy white are on the same pagemore often than jameis,Evans,and VJAX.
no conclusion can be reached about the connection between White and Jameis.
Koetter has gone on record as saying that our pass completion over 20 yards needs to improve.The first thing is for Jameis to be on target and the second is for the receivers to catch it.
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:17 pm
cant believe people think this is a bad idea. we got the money, got needs at depth for receiver, need more leaders. bring him in. its not like were signing him to be our no 1 wideout. so what if he’s past his prime, he is still useful and has experience
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:25 pm
If we were the 2002 bucs I’d say yes
But we are Sooo many players away from being a 500 club
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:47 pm
Costa Rica John Says:
March 2nd, 2016 at 10:03 pm
let him be a receivers coach. He can show are young guys what they need to do in the NFL to be great. If someone gets hurt and we need him then he can go from a coach to the field.
………………………….
I have been to CR three times to surf. Playa Langosta and Isla de Tortugas area. Great Idea John in theory. If he is cheap he is a Great gadget player in the slot tho.
March 2nd, 2016 at 11:00 pm
No thanks.
White doesn’t want to be the #3 or #4 guy on the depth chart. He wants to play.
I just don’t see a 34 yr old WR coming off 2 very average seasons being able to contribute much. I mean if he’s really cheap, it wouldn’t hurt, but I’d rather invest in younger talent that can contribute for years.
March 2nd, 2016 at 11:48 pm
I think the big question how do they see Bell and Humphries progressing?
Murphy is a luxury. I think they do sign a FA and I think they should draft another young WR in Rd 2-3 to progress along with JW and Evans while learning from VJax one more year.
I’d have no problem with Roddy signing but he has to know he’s option 3 and a rookie at 4 might pass him to 3 at some point too.
March 3rd, 2016 at 2:18 am
DB55 Says:
March 2nd, 2016 at 8:12 pm
Welp #4 immediately eliminates him from consideration. As a real Bucs fan I need to know if he’s a nice guy and does he have a big beautiful smile?
***********************************************************
I also need to know if he likes ice cream. Can’t be a complete team without an ice cream lover on it.
March 3rd, 2016 at 2:50 am
Considering Vincent Jacksons knee will not hold up an entire season and who knows what Louis Murphys status is, it can’t hurt. If it keeps Donteea Dial (33.3%)(yes, the soap..slippery..get it?) from playing I am all for it and Roddy White (61%) is better than Russell Shepard (36.7%). Since we are letting Doug Martin, Sterling Moore, Henry Melton and Danny Lansanah walk, we need any player we can get. What no one talks about is what a great run blocker White is. Marques Colston is also available?
March 3rd, 2016 at 3:03 am
34 years old. there’s your reason Joe.
March 3rd, 2016 at 4:38 am
I say go for it for a reasonable price. VJax’s knee injury at the end of the season might hinder him this season. I’d love another vet like him to come in and still perform while also teaching and setting an example….just no drama please if not the #1 or #2 unless he’s proving to be that guy.
March 3rd, 2016 at 4:42 am
Godzilla
I’m with you. Seems a lot of people wana roll with dye and humphries. We need competitors. We see what impact jameis had. I’m all for it. Still need a fast, really fast wide out too. Depth too. And leadership, blocking and knowledge. Come on over roddy
March 3rd, 2016 at 5:23 am
harry douglas seemed to do better against us than White if memory serves.
March 3rd, 2016 at 5:24 am
recently that is
March 3rd, 2016 at 7:49 am
I seeRoddy becoming a Patriot, only a few years left, they have no receivers, just cut Brandon Lafell. Wouldn’t mind, but where does he fit in our youth movement, he would either take away snaps or become disgruntled with not playing
March 3rd, 2016 at 7:59 am
No difference between him and the two other receivers we currently have, big and relatively slow. If they do sign him then that tells me there is not a lot of confidence with our 3rd. 4th and 5th receivers and frankly, I know I don’t. Bell hasn’t shown anything Humphries is ok not great and who knows what Murphy will be like coming back but he was no real great threat either.
March 3rd, 2016 at 8:19 am
lol at #5
I want Roddy, not only do we seriously lack depth in our receiving corps, but Roddy is awesome within 10 yards – he’s quick and we need someTHING to help Jameis
March 3rd, 2016 at 9:06 am
Travis Says
“I get the arguement, but Doug Martin adds way more value to the offense than White ever would. He needs to be the priority.”
I really wish people would develop common sense. If Jason Licht is only capable of focusing on one player at a time, then he’s a horrible GM and should be fired NOW.
As to Roddy, I dislike the idea of bringing in aged players…but let’s think about this.
At best he has only 1 – 2 years left, and he knows it. The Bucs could probably get him for $3m/Yr if he doesn’t retire.
I realize EVERYONE wants speed…but what we need first is guys that can actually catch the balls. Besides, it is not like we can’t still get someone with speed. We keep 6 WRs per year, and only two are locks at this point.
His competitive nature would be great to help change the culture of the team. Imagine both him and Vincent Jackson leading the group. They’d have Evans straightened out in that year.
Harken back to Ike Hilliard. He was never a 1K yard guy for us…but he was Mr. Reliable. On 3rd downs, there was no one better. We could use that again.
Meanwhile, we would still have 3 spots to have open competition and find younger, better WRs for the future.
My instinct was to say “no way” but I’d actually be on board with this one for a year or two.
March 3rd, 2016 at 9:07 am
Wide Receiver (along with RB) is not like the other positions. Because we keep so many, we can add in a couple older guys AND still have room for developmental guys.
March 3rd, 2016 at 9:12 am
No one knows what Bell has, so people need to stop judging him. He will get his shot this off season. I think people will be surprised.
And this?
DoNUTS Says
“Kenny Bell is practice squad level and was not on the active roster in 2015. IMO he is too soft for NFL.”
You have nothing…NOTHING to base that on. Just because a player starts out on the practice squad, that doesn’t mean he is soft…or that he can’t ball. Over the years, the Buccaneers have had some great players start out that way.
Bell is best suited as a kick returner. It might just be that would be his primary job in the NFL…and given how quickly our WRs go down, the team had to make sure all the WRs could play in offense as well. Hence…practice squad.
March 3rd, 2016 at 9:16 am
THE BACK-STABBER (LITCH) AND THE CO-CONSPIRATOR (KOETTER) have their work cut out for them, PLAY-OFF’S OR FOLLOW LOVIE DOWN THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD!!
March 3rd, 2016 at 10:15 am
He is old and can’t separate. He had only 500 yards and 1 TD. Louis Murphy can do that when healthy. Get Travis Benjamin an element we do not have. Come on Joe. You are better than that.
Louis Murphy is not healthy. No reason to expect he will be in 2016. –Joe
March 3rd, 2016 at 10:32 am
I hear Tim Brown is also available…
March 3rd, 2016 at 10:54 am
My main man Ray Ray, where you been shun?!
March 3rd, 2016 at 11:14 am
Sorry, Joe…..disagree. At his age and with hi sunshine declining production, it just doesn’t make sense. There are much younger guys out there we can get. Or we could snag Sterling Shepard or Braxton Miller in the draft in round 2.
March 3rd, 2016 at 11:58 am
Reason #7 He’s familiar with Koetter’s offense
March 3rd, 2016 at 12:13 pm
Rishard Matthews, Travis Benjamin, Mohammed Sanu, Jermaine Kearse, Marvin Jones, etc.
WTF is wrong with you Joe? Have you been drinking way too much because the Bucs didnt Franchise Tag Doug Martin.
March 3rd, 2016 at 12:44 pm
Joe: 1) He played indoors with a qb he’s familiar with (a non-rookie) as the third wide receiver often going against the nickel or weakest CB. You’d also have to look at the depth of the routes to determine how high percentage the catches really were. There’s a lot that goes into a target rating.
2) White won’t command a lot of money because no logical team wants him….well except, us. ;(
3) Kenny Bell….Free Agency Bell…and Draft Bell
4) Where was Roddy White’s competitiveness in the playoffs for Atlanta? It’s a competitive league….if you’re not competitive you shouldn’t be playing regardless…
5) Are people going to listen to you (Roddy) if you’re not getting it done on the field?
March 3rd, 2016 at 3:07 pm
Roddy White is done. You can stick a fork in him!! But wait a minute…The Bucs nursing home is gonna pick him up cause..its where retread Atlanta Falcons players and coaches have found that fountain of youth..or should I say cash?
March 3rd, 2016 at 5:22 pm
Save the money and sign Travis Benjamin !!!