Keeping Up With The Joneses
May 11th, 2018
BY IRA KAUFMAN
It was that brilliant football scout Hannibal Lecter who uttered a powerful message that still applies to today’s NFL: “We begin by coveting what we see every day.”
This is reality, not “Silence of the Lambs,” but Anthony Hopkins knew what he was talking about.
What NFL executives see every day are the other teams in their division, which brings us to a second-round draft pick of the Buccaneers expected to play a pivotal role this fall.
In 1967, Raiders boss Al Davis was tired of seeing his quarterbacks flattened by Chiefs defensive tackle Buck Buchanan every year. That’s the main reason Oakland drafted Gene Upshaw, who developed into a Hall of Fame guard.
Upshaw and Buchanan had memorable battles over the years and both ended up with a bust in Canton for their efforts.
So here comes Carlton Davis, a lanky cornerback drafted by the Bucs in the second round out of Auburn. Davis is joined by dozens of first-year players attending Bucs rookie camp this weekend, and he stands tall among the greenhorns.
It’s fair to say Jason Licht has grown a wee bit tired of seeing 6-foot-3 Julio Jones roam uncovered against the Bucs. Tampa Bay fans won’t soon forget how Jones tortured the Buc secondary in Atlanta last season with 12 catches for 253 yards and two touchdowns.
Every time you looked up, Ryan Smith was getting torched by Jones. Meanwhile, Brent Grimes was assigned to Matt Ryan’s lesser targets.
When I asked Mike Smith why he didn’t tell Grimes to follow Jones all over the field, Smith said the Bucs didn’t know where Jones was going to line up.
I hope President Trump has better answers for the Mueller team.
New Matchups
Now the Falcons have added a weapon by drafting another Alabama receiver, Calvin Ridley, in the first round.
Ridley is 6-1 and he put up better numbers than Jones with the Crimson Tide.
“I think I’m a route-runner,” Ridley says. “I can catch the ball, get YAC yards. I get in and out of my breaks real good and I get open real well. I can run any route from any position and I can just get the job done.”
At 6-1, 204, Davis has the frame to match up against Jones, one of pro football’s most physical wideouts. Davis is stout in run support and he prefers to jam receivers off the line rather than rely on a pronounced cushion.
That’s music to the ears of Buc fans wondering why opposing receivers rarely get knocked off their routes.
The biggest question regarding Davis comes when the ball is in the air. His ability to adjust to the ball in flight will determine his effectiveness.
“As a person and as a player, I’m passionate about the game,” Davis says. “Hard-working and someone who wants to be consistent, emotionally and physically. I bring a lot of things to the table, being able to press every down, being able to disrupt their timing. I’m one of the best corners in the draft.”
Bucs rookie cornerback Carlton Davis
So it seems that Ridley and Davis don’t lack for confidence.
Jones has been a one-man wrecking crew against the Bucs over the years. In 12 career games vs. Tampa Bay, Jones has caught 83 passes for 1,413 yards and 10 touchdowns.
That’s five more TD receptions than Jones has against any other team.
Davis has the size Licht has coveted at the cornerback position since becoming GM in 2014. He will be given every opportunity to force his way on the field opposite Grimes while fellow rookie M.J. Stewart competes against Vernon Hargreaves at nickel.
Sweet Dreams
The Bucs haven’t given up on Hargreaves, but he certainly hasn’t played up to expectations as a first-round pick. Licht was positively giddy when he moved back two spots and chose Hargreaves at No. 11.
“We’re very excited with Vernon,” Licht said after the 2016 draft. “He was a guy that we targeted. Vernon is a guy that we feel brings a lot of versatility to our defense. He can play outside and he can play inside.”
At the moment, Hargreaves is playing inside, giving Davis the inside shot to start on the outside. Got it?
Davis now has an opportunity to make a favorable impression on Tampa Bay’s coaching staff.
My advice? Keep your head buried in the playbook and drift off to sleep thinking about Julio Jones.
Ira Kaufman is the most revered sports personality and writer in town. He has hung his hat at JoeBucsFan.com world headquarters since July 2016. Tampa Bay’s only Pro Football Hall of Fame voter, Ira busts out columns here every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and his award winning podcasts fire Tuesdays and Thursdays. You can also hear Ira on SiriusXM Mad Dog Radio Wednesdays during football season, and see him now on Mondays at 10:30 p.m. on Spectrum Sports 360 (aka BayNews 9). Ira also is part of the FOX-13 Tailgate Sunday show and enjoys beet salads, Riesling, Chiefs victories and needling Joe.
May 11th, 2018 at 11:16 am
Great article as always but stay away from politics, sports is a getaway.
May 11th, 2018 at 11:35 am
will smitty play to the CB’s strength and allow them to play at the LOS and jam WR’s?……that’s the question…..
its been well documented that VHG, ryan smith and now davis and mj are man press CB’s…..the only CB that excels in off coverage is grimes….will smitty handcuff the defense and force them to play off or will be put CB’s in position to be successful…..
#NOEXCUSESIN2018!!!!…#PRESSURESONTHECOACHES!!!!….GO BUCS!!!
May 11th, 2018 at 11:40 am
SHOOTERS Says:
May 11th, 2018 at 11:16 am
Great article as always but stay away from politics, sports is a getaway.
———
This x 10000
Appreciate the sentiment, guys, but do you really want Ira to be writing, have a one-liner pop in his head and then censor himself? That’s not why Joe hired Ira. The reference here is playful and really not political; it was a jab at Mike Smith, not a political statement. –Joe
May 11th, 2018 at 12:15 pm
Your right Joe, I want him to be real.
May 11th, 2018 at 1:15 pm
We can’t take everything so serious. I chuckled at it Joe nice read Ira
May 11th, 2018 at 1:43 pm
Here’s hoping Carlton Davis is exactly what our CB room needs. An aggressive and confident, “large”, long armed CB.
Banks teased us with hope for a minute there – but aside from that apparent mirage of a “player” – we haven’t seen a CB like Davis around these parts since old man Talib was in town as a Buccaneer – keeping TPD on their toes…
May 11th, 2018 at 1:56 pm
Ira and the Joes have the right to write what they feel is right. It’s also a rite or solemn act in my eyes. Joes and Ira, I think you dudes are righteous!! And GD it, GO BUCS!!!!!!
May 11th, 2018 at 2:02 pm
Well….it doesn’t seem like Ira agrees with Joe that Bucs coaches can’t develop young CBs……at least we aren’t hearing it.
THe only thing that bothers a WR more than being constantly jammed at the line is having a CB stuck to you like glue wherever you go. Let’s hope Davis can do both.
I had very high expectations of Johnthan Banks….but he simply didn’t work out.
Now Joe, take note of this….not only could the Buc coaches (different then) not develop Banks but the coaches of the Lions, Bears and Texans couldn’t either…..for now, he is out of football….like many other Dominick picks.
May 11th, 2018 at 2:10 pm
Funny jab at Smith Ira, that had me rollin LOL!!! You’re right though, it was a poor answer when everyone could see what was going on on the field.
May 11th, 2018 at 3:04 pm
I thought the Hannibal Lecter quote was simply, ” you covet what you see”? Great and poignant quote regardless.
May 11th, 2018 at 3:18 pm
It was a good article but I did not appreciate the comment about Mueller/Trump. It is clear as day that Trump is well on his way to being the best president we ever had. Hillary Clinton is a crook and belongs in jail. Obama was the worst president ever. These are facts and we all know they are the truth.
So maybe it is ok for Ira to broadcast his politics but not for us?Nobody wants to hear it period–good way to aggravate your loyal readers.
May 11th, 2018 at 4:07 pm
fire
April fools was last month…..why you still joking around?……
#NOEXCUSESIN2018!!!!….#PRESSURESONTHECOACHES!!!!….GO BUCS!!!!
May 11th, 2018 at 10:08 pm
Just making a point-leave the politics out of our sport and our sport column but get this–I’m actually serious! Lol!
May 12th, 2018 at 11:58 am
It was a joke people! Lighten up! And if you want politics out of football so bad, like I do, then tell players to stop kneeling and protest on their own time.
May 12th, 2018 at 3:18 pm
@firethe cannons
Please look up the word « fact. »
I think you are a little confused.
Objectively speaking,
Calling Obama the worst and Trump the best are opinions. Not facts.
Obama and Trump are both dishonest people. Now that is a FACT. Why? Because we have video evidence of both of them LYING.