Paper Bucs
June 5th, 2018
What does the future hold?
“You are what your record says you are.” — Bill Parcells.
It is one of the greatest quotes of all time. The words of the Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells ring true to this day. And in quiet times, most coaches will shrug their shoulders and confess Parcells was on the money.
Last year the Bucs finished 5-11, despite having what many believed to be a stacked team, at least offensively. The Bucs missed finishing 4-12 thanks largely to the arm of America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston. He threw a bullet to Chris Godwin for a 39-yard touchdown strike in the final seconds of the final game to upend the NFC East champs, the Saints.
That was fun!
One team that finished with a worse record than the Bucs, the Indianapolis Colts, ended the season 4-12. In a recent airing of “Pro Football Talk Live,” seen by intelligent football fans weekday mornings on NBC Sports Network, the creator, curator and overall guru of ProFootballTalk.com, the great Mike Florio, and co-host former Bucs quarterback Chris Simms, debated how long it would take the Colts to rebuild their team.
Florio thought two years. Simms suggested the Colts’ roster was so barren, perhaps three seasons. Both assumed Colts Pro Bowl quarterback Andrew Luck would return healthy this fall.
“You are what your record says you are.”
Mind you, again, the Colts finished just one game worse than the Bucs last season.
So if one is to take Parcells’ famous quote as Gospel, and both Florio and Simms believe the Colts are at least two years away from sniffing a playoff berth, what about the Bucs?
Have both Bucs fans and media types overrated the Bucs’ roster?
On paper, any owner/GM/coach would drool to have the receivers and tight ends the Bucs have. More than a few teams would love to have America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston. Despite the defense being too wretched for the naked eye to watch last year, there is individual talent on that side of the line.
Joe has to wonder, if Parcells’ quote is accurate, and the Colts, even with a stud quarterback, are that far away from seeing daylight, are we to conclude the Bucs might just be two years away as well?
“You are what your record says you are.”
June 5th, 2018 at 6:16 am
Forget the hype… Let ’em play the games and the we’ll see…
June 5th, 2018 at 6:20 am
Horray!!! My name & email are showing up!!!
Somehow I think we go too far when making individual and team comparisons in the NFL…….I don’t think there are many similarities with the Colts & Bucs…..let’s hope not.
June 5th, 2018 at 6:27 am
If Koetter and Co. can’t win at least 8 games with this current roster they won’t be here in 2019.
No excuses. Get-R-Done
Go Bucs!
June 5th, 2018 at 6:30 am
Off-season moves, drafts, coaching changes, circumstance all go into records. With that, and differences in schedule, I’m not so sure I buy the you are what your record says you are.
June 5th, 2018 at 6:32 am
“My name & email are showing up!!!”
Mine too Tbbf. Looks like Joe’s IT person deserves to be taken out for a cold one for chasing down the problem.
June 5th, 2018 at 6:32 am
With the schedule they play this season they will be lucky to win 6 games!!!!
June 5th, 2018 at 7:06 am
To be honest we look great on paper…..again…. and a lot of us want to be excited about this year but we are more weary of “buying into the hype” like last year, we have excited weariness i guess, life of a Bucs fan, lol. But i like the under the radar feel we have this year, i like not being noticed or not talked about as much nationally like last year with all the “hard Knocks” talk, I just hope we see the effort this year on defense especially, wouldn’t that be a breath of fresh air? To actually get to the quarterback or break up their passing or be in his face ? We definitely have a new and improved d-line and d-line coach but haven’t seen anything yet…. Anyone else love seeing the wind sprints at the end of Practice? Seems like they are saying we weren’t in good shape to play in the forth quarter last year, anybody watching last years 4th quarter games could see how gassed they were and defense just trying to catch their breath, was kind of embarrassing in close games where you are like here they come and sure enough we could stop them or even get in their way it seemed. The sprints are new this year at the end of practice and i love the extra conditioning aspect, saying lets go lets see what you have left.
June 5th, 2018 at 7:45 am
My name & email are showing up also Pickgrin & TBBF. Your IT person deserves a raise Joe.
@Pickgrin … “If Koetter and Co. can’t win at least 8 games with this current roster they won’t be here in 2019.” Was wondering about that same thing Pickgrin, but decided that’s not necessarily the case. Say the Bucs start 2-6 then go on a 6-2 rampage to close out at 8-8. That’s a lot different IMO than starting 6-2 then folding with a 2-6 record in the 2nd half.
I don’t think the Glazers will be satisfied with 8-8 UNLESS it’s for reasons beyond the coaches’ control (injuries to multiple key players?). They’ve just spent a boatload of $$$ to be competitive … and win. Money will get a LOT tighter next year IMO because of limited CAP space left right now and several BIG contracts on tap.
Still, not sure about Joe’s bottom line that the “Bucs might just be two years away as well.” Tend to think that Koetter & company are working on a ‘It’s now or never’ premise.
June 5th, 2018 at 7:58 am
Counting on a lot of rookies a first year players. Thats an obvious concern . . .
June 5th, 2018 at 8:10 am
Exactly let them play so you can see who they are… You are what your record says you are so the record for 2018 says everyone in the NFL is 0-0 and the eagles were last years champs. This is a new season and a new year so that mantra is something said more in season.
They were what their record said they were.
June 5th, 2018 at 8:32 am
Things will be different this year. But I get the fan hesitation.
The thing to remember is that injuries hurt us a lot last year.
Licht plugged the holes pretty well. I’m not talking about the rookies, except Vea and Jones. Jones will have to produce right away, and RBs tend to have good rookie years here. Vea should start making a big difference around mid season or so.
But Winston is healthy now. We were less than a point from the league average on points scored last year…with him injured. The offense produced.
And the defense has added great veterans. They should be able to stop teams from scoring as many points and protect leads.
I don’t think a winning record is a stretch.
June 5th, 2018 at 8:55 am
Bucs division had three playoff teams last year so hard to compare when more than 1/3 of your games are against these teams.
June 5th, 2018 at 9:09 am
Bucs play 8 playoff teams (NFL high) and hold the #2 toughest schedule. It is more important this year to win your division games if you have any chance of success or making the playoffs.
June 5th, 2018 at 9:24 am
@Capt.Tim … “Counting on a lot of rookies as first year players. Thats an obvious concern.” Excellent point Capt Tim. But maybe (just maybe) it’s not as significant as in year’s past. We’ve got a pretty strong DLine even without Vea. LBs should be OK (hopefully Beckwith heals quickly once again). It sure would be nice if one of the rookies EARNS a starting spot at outside CB, but I still don’t expect to see a complete overhaul of the Secondary (to start the season at least). On offense RoJo needs to start strong if Bucs are to increase points scored & control the clock (both critical IMO). Bucs’ OLine remains the biggest concern far as I’m concerned.
Tend to think that it’s the 2nd & 3rd year players who need to step up their game for the Bucs to have a winning season. LOTS of unharnessed talent there. Imagine what a season we could have IF the following guys played lights-out all season long: OJ, Godwin, Beckwith, Evans, VHIII, Spence, Benenoch & Ryan Smith. Those are our 2nd & 3rd year guys who need to step up, like now.
June 5th, 2018 at 9:33 am
Well I for one am very hopeful and excited for the upcoming season. TAMPA BAY all THE WAY!!!!
June 5th, 2018 at 9:39 am
I have seen a lot of different aspects of this team change in the off-season and their attitude is much different than last year.
But if your record dictates who you are, than who are they when the season starts in NO and their record is 0-0?
This team has been looking for an Identity and they better have it figured out before that 1st snap. I for one believe this team CAN play with anybody and it seems they believe it too.
I heard a comment yesterday on Sirius radio NFL channel that Desean Jackson being at OTAs is already making a difference and that chemistry should show up early in games this year.
This is from people outside the Bucs organization that see the problem clearly.
We have all wanted to ship him off, but I truly believe he will be lights out this year. This is his chance to win a SB. We need that charisma back.
Anyway you are who you think you are, and I hope they think “We are a Bad Ass Team”
June 5th, 2018 at 9:42 am
With the offensive talent, this team should be no worse than 8-8. If the defense improves to AVERAGE, there’s no reason to believe that we can’t make the playoffs.
Cautious optimism, the story of my Buc life!
June 5th, 2018 at 9:50 am
The Bucs 2 years away? …smh
It better be this season or a whole lotta sh|t gonna change
June 5th, 2018 at 9:54 am
If you truly consider the adversity last year with no bye week, Jameis’s injury, Doug’s terrible performance, no pass rush, injuries, etc it is not ridiculous to think things will be a lot better next season. We are 2 seasons removed from a winning record. We also had a dominant defense that I believe was not a fluke. We addressed all of our issues and improved in many ways with experience for last year’s rookies, a vastly improved d line, chemistry, etc.
I get it we sucked last year. But I think being excited about this season is more than just optimism. Every piece of this team has flashed brilliance. We get the yards. Our defense has shown extreme production with a pass rush. We have one of the best receiving, tight end, and linebacker units in the NFL. Our kicker is better. Our o line should be better with Jensen and marpet moved. Jameis should be better. If we can help the red zone efficiency and the Ronald Jones is the truth it is not illogical to expect a very good season. I get the division is rough but let’s be honest, cam is not what he once was, saints had one good season in last how long and the falcons just can’t get the job done.
I love being under the radar. It’s a different mindset now not infected by Chris baker and we should see something special this season. Our defense can only go up from here and with the additions I guarantee we will be top half of the league. If that’s the case it’s on Jameis. I believe in him. It’s gonna be fun.
June 5th, 2018 at 10:08 am
Let see if my email address stays. Testing testing 1 2 3
June 5th, 2018 at 10:08 am
SUCCESS!!!
June 5th, 2018 at 10:12 am
I think (Hope) that RoJo is gonna have between 3-5 50 yard TD runs this year.
He is just too good in open space to not think that.
With all the talk about Red Zone efficiency, long TD runs will be something miraculous to behold for Bucs fans.
I remember Chucky talking about this when we drafted Cadillac and his 1st game he broke a long TD run straight up the middle.
If (when) we get this from RoJo it saves us from having to score in the Red Zone all together.
Quick points will be awesome to watch. If RoJo has a ROTY type season then there is no limit to what this team can accomplish. And I’m trying desperately to not be Over Confident. I just can’t help myself. This team is LOADED.
June 5th, 2018 at 10:25 am
im in wait and see mode……nothing more…nothing less…..
no way the staff survives 8-8….winning season with playoffs or they all go fishing…..
#NOEXCUSESIN2018!!!!!….#PRESSURESONTHECOACHES!!!!….GO BUCS!!!!
June 5th, 2018 at 10:42 am
Our Bucs will be d..yham skippy to reach 8-8 and save Koetter and his sidekick Smitty’s job. To many rookies they are counting on to perform well. They still got lots to learn at this level. Only if Jameis and the Defense plays lights out..will we have a chance to go beyond my prediction of 8-8. Could happen…Right?
June 5th, 2018 at 11:31 am
New season ..new players. I’d say by the 5th game we will get our answer.
June 5th, 2018 at 12:15 pm
The brimming enthusiasm is getting sticky like the outside humidity. It’s a Bugs er Bucs life. A testament to Buc fans patience and positivity in spite of much past bumbling mediocrity.
June 5th, 2018 at 12:27 pm
NFC East Champs? (“…He threw a bullet to Chris Godwin for a 39-yard touchdown strike in the final seconds of the final game to upend the NFC East champs, the Saints…”)
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Yes – Bucs are a 5-11 team until proven otherwise.
June 5th, 2018 at 1:45 pm
Test
June 5th, 2018 at 2:52 pm
The place kickers alone cost us two wins last year…
June 5th, 2018 at 3:39 pm
It’s scary for me to think, but I still say we are the worst team in the NFC. Oh well top 5 draft pick here we come I’ll be watching the college games this fall in search of our next starting quarterback.
June 6th, 2018 at 8:40 am
The Buccs can win now. The main issue is the division they play in. Arguably, the Buccs are a playoff team in the AFC, and possible division champ in the AFC, depending on where you put them. However, the NFC is absolutely stacked. The Buccs must win their division if they want any guarantee of a playoff spot. It all starts in New Orleans…
June 6th, 2018 at 8:41 am
To be the division champ…you must beat the division champ. Let’s get it cranked week one!