Dethroned As Captain?
June 26th, 2017
A prominent prediction that Lavonte David and Gerald McCoy won’t get the votes.
Bucs players say team captains are a big deal.
Traditionally, the Tampa Bay head coach and his general manager take the team vote for captain very seriously, too.
In most years there are two captains on defense, two on offense and one on special teams. Back in 2015, Lovie Smith made an exception and Clinton McDonald was the third defensive captain with Gerald McCoy and Lavonte David. Last year, McCoy and David were back with the honors to open the Dirk Koetter regime.
For 2017, change is coming the captaincy, predicts the Custodian of Canton, JoeBucsFan.com columnist eye-RAH! Kaufman.
Look for Robert Ayers and Kwon Alexander to be voted as defensive captains, Ira declared during the June 13 edition of the Ira Kaufman Podcast.
During a discussion of Ayers and his extreme locker room impact, Joe pinned down Ira to predict who the Bucs would vote as their defensive leaders this season. His answer was Kwon Alexander and Ayers. The logic shared was Ayers was so impactful last year in turning the season around and Kwon is a no-brainer.
“With all due respect to a five-time, Pro Bowl defensive tackle, you know, that might hurt [Gerald] McCoy a little bit. But I think Alexander is the face of the defense, I really do,” Kaufman said. “And Ayers, based on the guy was the agent of change last year, and I don’t think players forget that.”
Joe isn’t arguing Kaufman’s reasoning, but Joe disagrees. There’s widespread respect for McCoy in the locker room, so much so that he’ll win at the ballot box over Ayers. However, Joe agrees that Kwon will supplant Lavonte David as a captain.
The captain label is nice, but it certainly has nothing to do with winning games, and the captaincy definitely doesn’t mean job security. Just ask Russell Shepard.
June 26th, 2017 at 10:05 am
Our Captain is Winston regardless.
June 26th, 2017 at 10:07 am
Hawaiian will blame the Russians if cancer93 does not get the c…. Neither gmc or lvd are leaders so they should not get the c
June 26th, 2017 at 10:11 am
FWIW, Josh Freeman had the “C” too.
(However, his was a little “c”.)
June 26th, 2017 at 10:28 am
Why does it have to be a “C” or nothing, can’t they make him the “CIC” Captain Ice Cream!!!!!!!!!!
June 26th, 2017 at 10:36 am
That would be a nut punch to McCoy but prior to last year he’s never been a captain of a winning team…
Good player but not really a leader that demands the best from his teammates
June 26th, 2017 at 10:39 am
Kwon is a no-brainer. According to some, Ayers is as well. Some would put Ayers in the HOF if attitude won games! Average-above average player, GREAT attitude!
June 26th, 2017 at 10:46 am
Bucsfanman
just as many here would put the crying ice cream man in the hall of fame and ring of honor yet he has NEVER WON A MEANINGFUL NFL GAME IN HIS CAREER… Perception is not reality. McCoy is like a politician kissing babies and smiling all the time yet accomplishes he NOTHING!
Bucs need a leader to be a captain and if anything gmc has PROVEN he’s not a leader. good player but nothing more. wont matter she is already crying about knees so he will play less tan 8 games this year. write that down.
June 26th, 2017 at 10:52 am
I said it months ago..it needs to be Ayers and Kwon..
June 26th, 2017 at 10:52 am
Leaders refuse to lose!
June 26th, 2017 at 10:55 am
Why would we want players with fire in their bellies and a win at all costs attitude for team captains?
We’ve done very well without that for say the last 5-7 years.
Come on Licht…… make the trade I’ve been dreaming about and get rid of the Soft Cancer.
June 26th, 2017 at 11:08 am
Yeah McCoy shouldn’t be a capt. He is a great player but not a leader. That’s the frustration with most of his critics. The ones with blinders on say he socks, but the less hate filled ones say he is a good player that does not and never has made the players around him better. That makes him a poor leader, not a poor player. I can think of white a few other guys in that category (t.o. meshawn, Ronde barber, d jax, etc). It never hurts a team when there are others around who can lead. But when they are forced into leadership positions it gets ugly.
June 26th, 2017 at 11:08 am
Don’t see it happening w/ GMC. Kwon getting the nod over David I can see, but not Ayers over GMC.
June 26th, 2017 at 11:13 am
you can’t have a team captain who leads joyous celebrations and is smiling and dancing all over the place after an embarrassing LOSS… Time and Time again we had to watch this BS from cancer93
June 26th, 2017 at 11:38 am
tmax- It’s not that I have an issue with putting Ayers in the captain seat. Lets face it though, as a Buc what has Ayers accomplished? Being “beastly”?! And it’s this constant juxtaposition of 2 polar different personalities that have people actually believing that Ayers, through his attitude, is somehow this JJ Watt-type player.
Attitude and production are 2 different things.
Give Grimes the “C”.
June 26th, 2017 at 11:58 am
There’s only 1 Captain, Morgan. drops mic
June 26th, 2017 at 12:04 pm
What about offense and ST? #3 and #13. Who replaces Shep?
June 26th, 2017 at 12:13 pm
When any of these “Captains” get us to the playoffs let me know. Other wise they are just football players trying to be winners.
June 26th, 2017 at 12:27 pm
Haha. Nice thought Ira but if the jolly green giant isn’t a captain the TB booster club will have a brain aneurysm.
Plus I said this same thing 3 weeks ago and the consensus was that with only 6.5 sacks Ayers is all bark and no bite. Hilarious I know.
PS. LVD too much of a baller to be put out as captain.
June 26th, 2017 at 12:35 pm
tmaxcon Says:
“McCoy is like a politician kissing babies and smiling all the time yet accomplishes he NOTHING!”
Aside from leading hte team in sacks most of the years he has played, right?
June 26th, 2017 at 12:37 pm
That change needs to happen. Let the real Stick Carriers be the captains!!!
Go Bucs!!!
June 26th, 2017 at 12:38 pm
DB55 Says
“with only 6.5 sacks Ayers is all bark and no bite.”
I agree with you, but I also find it a little ironic that 6 sacks was fine with most fans when it was Michael Bennett getting them.
June 26th, 2017 at 12:42 pm
Kwon and Gmac seems more likely to me as well, but I wouldn’t be shocked if Ayer is named captain instead of 93.
June 26th, 2017 at 12:44 pm
Bonzai
That’s before they knew That Bennett was a RN. And I’m not talking registered nurse you feel me?!
June 26th, 2017 at 12:52 pm
Here are my thoughts on the matter:
Gerald McCoy IS a leader…of sorts…whether he is a Captain or not. He works hard. He has a team-first attitude, and he is a great example off the field. And regardless of certain people being unable to acknowledge it, he does motivate the team (https://youtu.be/ERbESDhPDrg).
But…I’m fine with him NOT being a Captain. Leaders can be leaders and not be Captains. It’s time to rise up new Captains. There was a time when teams made players Captains because they felt the added responsibility would help them mature. I would not mind it if Kwon and say…Noah Spence…were made the captains. It might help Noah mature.
Ayers, as mentioned above…talks a big game, but plays a little game.
June 26th, 2017 at 12:53 pm
@DB55
lol, I know. But I don’t really like the thought of ‘feeling’ a dude, so I’ll pass on that part. 😉
June 26th, 2017 at 12:56 pm
This is the one area where I believe GMC is clearly not a natural fit. He’s not a leader of men. Obviously on this team it’s JW. And on defense I agree with Kwon (LVD is also clearly not a leader of men). But at the end of the day, who cares? These guys can play on Sunday. No fan worth his salt gives a rat’s arse about team captains. Quick, name the Pats defensive captains? How about the Falcons? Meh, it’s not important.
June 26th, 2017 at 12:57 pm
Tmax give it a rest bro you got your Playlist on repeat you bitch about the same thing all the time what do you think the bucs are better off with Mccoy off the field…..I think not but what do I know
June 26th, 2017 at 1:22 pm
Silly season continues. Bucs players will determine who gets to be captains, not Ira, not the fans. Personally like what I think is Joe’s bottom line: “The captain label is nice, but it certainly has nothing to do with winning games.”
June 26th, 2017 at 1:27 pm
Its up to the players to decide who best exemplifies the characteristics of leadership on the field and in the locker room for this team this year.
Past honors are unlikely to be a major consideration in most player’s minds regarding who to choose for Captain this year.
My guess at this early juncture is:
O – Winston, Evans
D – McCoy, Alexander
ST – Josh Robinson
June 26th, 2017 at 1:27 pm
Stripping the C off of Frreman jersey was devastating. I remember
June 26th, 2017 at 1:33 pm
Anyone see the pregame speech McCoy gave last year?… how bad we lose that game?
June 26th, 2017 at 1:58 pm
@Lamarcus
I hope that you also remember that it was “devastaing” for him to show up to his own football camp!!!!! He melted down showing up to the team bus for an away game the same morning!!!!!! He folded like a lawn chair just trying remember more than 3 plays out of the playbook!!!!!
He was a mentally weak individual, he is a liar, and one of the biggest pile of human garbage that disgraced the Bucs uniform!!!!
June 26th, 2017 at 4:24 pm
Having that C may mean Captain, it doesn’t mean you’re a leader. McCoy is not a leader. I constantly rack my brain trying to remember the one game he went crazy and took over. It never happened. Sapp has like 5 of them. All McCoy’s games just blend together.
June 26th, 2017 at 4:40 pm
“Captain” doesn’t necessarily mean “leader”. It really makes no difference to me. I know the leaders will lead regardless if they have a C on their chest or not.
I will say that it would be hard to strip a guy of the C. A guy like McCoy who is well respected throughout the team. Probably would not get stripped. The players know what it means to him. They wouldn’t disrespect McCoy like that, imo. But I wouldn’t be surprised if Lavonte actually campaigned for Kwon to take his C. Those 2 are brothers on the field, and I could see LVD passing the torch. That would really be the only way to switch captains without messing up team chemistry. Messing with egos isn’t a smart thing to do. Next thing you know your $100m DT is moping around because of that stupid C. or maybe it motivates him. Idk. Not something I would play with just for fun though.
June 26th, 2017 at 4:54 pm
Bonzi
leading a team in sacks that is in the basement and a national embarrassment is not an accomplishment anyone should be proud of. the dude has been in the league 7 years and has NOT accomplished anything but meaningless pro bowls. pro bowls are a popularity contest and are not based on actual accomplishments similar to the recent hall of fame inductees. Trooper is right he has NEVER had a take over game not one in 7 years that is a bust realm for a 3rd overall pick
Bryan
I do repeat myself because the bucs will not win consistently with a loser like mccoy on the roster in a prominent role. sure he is a good player on the field during passing downs. he is a huge liability against the run therefore he can be replaced easily. he’s never dominated a game much less a season. getting a locker room cancer who loves losing out town will surely offset his pedestrian on field play.
Write this down…. this will be gmc last season with bucs. he will go back home and play for jerry jones for one more injury plagued season and that is the end.
June 26th, 2017 at 5:14 pm
Light a fire under GMC’s ass, get him a little fired up and throw him in the edge every now and then.
June 26th, 2017 at 5:44 pm
Being a very good player does not make one a leader.
I feel sorry for McCoy. Folks have been forcing “leader” on him and he is not. And there is nothing wrong with that.
Alexander & Ayers would make great Captains.
June 26th, 2017 at 6:07 pm
Wow…so let me get this straight, a guy supossedly does not remember a play and miss a bus equates to him being the biggest pile of human garbage? Some of you internet trolls are hillarious.
June 26th, 2017 at 6:34 pm
This is irrelevant ….we all know who the true captains of this team are….the question is when it’s time to pay the big playmakers who’s the odd man out? McCoy has a Fat contract….and Winston Evans and Alexander are due big bucks….no pun intended
June 26th, 2017 at 11:17 pm
Just bc you wear the c doesnt mean you cant lead. These are 5 guys trying to lead 53. They will need help. A lot of players will have a voice in that room if they earn it. I wouldnt mind a shakeup on d though. Need some more fire backing that c. David imo is a great LB but kwon seems to have that fire and energy.
June 27th, 2017 at 1:02 am
TMAXCON: hey genius who will you put to replace home with ??
Why is it he is garbage to your expertise and NFL players and X rate him as top tackle every year??
Have you played the game at that level not include your years on Xbox ?
Do research and look at history of players and that position and compare stats by years played.
Oh incase you forgot he is a DEFENSIVE TACKLE not DEFENSIVE END.