Monken Dodges Playcalling Question
September 7th, 2018
Who is calling plays?
Intrigue!
The mystery of who will call plays for the Bucs offense is still unknown, at least to those outside the locker room and coaches offices at One Buc Palace.
Throughout preseason Bucs offensive coordinator has called offensive plays. Coincidence or not, the Bucs offense hummed through the fake games.
This has Bucs fans on the edge of their seat. The knock many of these same folks have against Dirk Koetter is they don’t like how Koetter calls a game. Joe has never been on this wave because, just for one reason, Joe understands the NFL is not PlayStation.
Monday, Joe asked Koetter was asked who was calling plays. He wouldn’t give a definitive answer. Yesterday when Monken had the first of his weekly in-season press conferences, he dodged the same question.
“I’m going to refer that to Coach Koetter,” Monken said with a chuckle. Monken did admit that while calling plays this preseason, “I enjoy the ones that work.”
Later when discussing playcalling, Monken was using past-tense terms and downplayed the significance of who calls the plays saying the plan to attack defenses is crafted by a group of individuals including himself.
Monken said each gameplan is the “Buccaneer Gameplan.”
Again, Joe is not hung up on who calls plays. Joe thought Koetter was unfairly criticized for this.
But if the Bucs are going to use the excuse (if the team has a winning record) that they won’t start America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston, at quarterback when he returns for the Bears game because they don’t want to upset the apple cart as the team is winning, then they better have Monken calling plays for the very same reason.
September 7th, 2018 at 12:14 pm
@Joe … “Joe understands the NFL is not PlayStation.” GRRREAT line Joe. Seems like JBF has a certain group of commenters for whom ever week is Fantasy Football Week.
Personally hoping that Monken does call the plays this Sunday. Have felt for quite awhile that the majority of NFL coaches can’t effectively be BOTH the HC & the OC (or the DC). Chucky got away with it because he had Monte Kiffin’s defense behind him … one of the Top-5 defenses of all time. Koetter doesn’t have that luxury obviously, although he does have a long-standing, trusting relationship with Mike Smith. But there’s no way the current Bucs’ defense should be confused with our 2002 defense. Hopefully by the end of this season they prove me wrong.
September 7th, 2018 at 12:17 pm
This does not matter one bit. Regardless, Dirk is responsible.
September 7th, 2018 at 12:20 pm
not only is the play calling trash but so is the 4vert scheme…..its too predictable….there’s no creativity involved(besides the OJ play)……
and the offense “hummed” because defenses weren’t game planning on stopping them…..it was preseason…..which is more about evaluating players on their conditioning, endurance, football IQ and execution…..can you put what we’ve been teaching you all together on gameday…..
monken may not want to be the “scapegoat” like jay hayes……which would lead to, you guess it, more excuses!!!!!
my favorite line is, “But if the Bucs are going to use the excuse”…..lol…..that’s all defense rules, rhealist and bonzai have been doing since last Sept……MAKING EXCUSES!!!!!!…..lol…..
#NOEXCUSESIN2018!!!!….#PRESSURESONTHECOACHES!!!!!…GO BUCS!!!!
September 7th, 2018 at 12:23 pm
I’m not sure where “Den of Depression” is coming from. I’ve heard it used for other teams to describe their home turf. Save that for teams with animal nicknames. It’s time for something original. We are Buccaneers! Pirate types. RayJay should be called the “Cove of Complacency”, “Port of Pessimism” or maybe the “Ship of Sadness”
We are tied for first in the NFC South.
Go Bucs Go!!!
September 7th, 2018 at 12:26 pm
offensive play calling won’t matter with captain blowout and company giving up 40 plus a game.
September 7th, 2018 at 12:34 pm
JABOO
GREAT ANSWER!!!!!!!
dirk is the HC…..he’s responsible for the entire team not just the offense…..but joe has written plenty of times how dirk doesn’t give input because he’s scared he’ll “mess things up”….well, guess what dirk, your “long standing” friend and “defensive guru” has already “messed things up”……
bill obrian calls his own plays…..so does kyle in san fran…..adam gase calls his his plays…..and others…it can be done by competent coaches…..
stop making excuses!!!!!!!!!
smitty is an “defensive guru” and he has the talent to make things happen…..dirk has the luxury to put his confidence and trust in someone who was a defensive coach on the ravens, one of the greatest defenses on all time….same with JAX(opps that was DEL RIO)……LOL…..
#NOEXCUSESIN2018!!!!….#PRESSURESONTHECOACHES!!!!!…GO BUCS!!!!
September 7th, 2018 at 12:40 pm
You guys complain about koetters play calling yet he never had any issues hanging 40 plus on mcvoy and company when in atl.
September 7th, 2018 at 12:41 pm
I think Monken meant he is deferring the playcalling to Dirk Koetter…
September 7th, 2018 at 12:43 pm
Actually is a Jimbo Fisher line.
Once a reporter kept hammering Jimbo about playcalling and after a long back-and-forth Jimbo said, “This ain’t PlayStation.”
September 7th, 2018 at 12:49 pm
More concerned about dealing with Sean’s play calling.
September 7th, 2018 at 12:58 pm
Doesn’t matter. Brees is gonna have a field day against Mike Smith’s D. I hope the Bucs can keep it close.
September 7th, 2018 at 1:04 pm
“Joe understands the NFL is not PlayStation”
Of course not, but that doesn’t mean the play calling wasn’t incredibly predictable last year on the majority of drives and downs. It was.
September 7th, 2018 at 1:13 pm
*****Dysfunctional*****
September 7th, 2018 at 1:18 pm
The offense didn’t hum because the Defenses were vanilla and didn’t game plan.
What a joke.
All 3 QBs played well and were the best unit this preseason because of preparation and pre-snap reads and checks. Tampa didn’t run a single RPO either.
That’s a sign of good coaching and will continue into game 1 no matter who the QB is and who the opposing defense is.
JPP is one of the best DE against the screen in the entire league.
Plus if they get pressure who cares how great Brees is.
If these young athletic DBs can cover for 2-3 seconds we win hands down.
September 7th, 2018 at 1:36 pm
The “real” fans want the better play-caller to call the plays for the offense!!!! And that is Head Coach Dirk Koetter!!!!!!!!!!!!
GO Bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!
September 7th, 2018 at 1:50 pm
Billy,
You’re still thinking of the old saints. They have to show they can stop the run first. That’s what got the saints to the playoffs… An extremely balanced attack and much improved defense. Brees doesn’t scare me like he used to, at least deep down the field. He doesn’t have the weapons he once had. That said, Peyton is a great play caller, and Brees is still good, but as shown last year Bucs can beat them.
September 7th, 2018 at 2:17 pm
A lot can be said about coaching, play calling, and player execution.
Simply put, in my honest opinion, DK was just not ‘creative’ enough on the field last year. I was ecstatic when we came out in the rare, 1st down-four-wide formations!
This just CAN’T be a run on 1st down!!!
You guys remember the singleback, close ‘trips’ with Brate and another TE/WR as offset H-backs????
THAT FORMATION WAS DIRK’S GO-TO!!! Sooooo many bad plays run out of that formation. I am sure you all remember the horrendous sweep-toss that DK would call on 3rd-and-short EVERY! TIME!
I *hear* what Monken is saying regarding game planning and it being a team-of-coaches effort, but we ALL know that Koetter is gonna call what he feels like he wants to call. He’s the HC.
I am not, nor was ever, a professional playcaller. HOWEVER! I felt that Monken had better AND more creative playcalling/looks than I had seen the previous three seasons.
September 7th, 2018 at 2:41 pm
Dirk stinks at calling plays from the sideline, he’s ultra predictable, he’s ultra conservative and once you get past the scripted part his play calling has no flow. If Dirk is going to still call the plays, which I hope isn’t the case based on the last 2 years, then he needs to have Monken in his ear telling him he’s ran the same play on the same down and distance 7 times in a row now and the defense has 11 guys in the box ready to stop his 1st down run up the gut, perhaps he should mix it up.
Also the criticism of Dirk isn’t unfair. He did a great job as the OC, and as HC he’s obviously spending less time working with the offense and doing the offensive game plan, and it shows on the field.
September 7th, 2018 at 3:05 pm
The Buc Realist Says:
September 7th, 2018 at 1:36 pm
The “real” fans want the better play-caller to call the plays for the offense!!!!
unfortunately, that coach isn’t at OBP…..but will be here in 2019!!!!!!!!!
#NOEXCUSESIN2018!!!!…#PRESSURESONTHECOACHES!!!!….GO BUCS!!!!
September 7th, 2018 at 3:23 pm
I like Koetter but overall his effectiveness seems a bit overly exaggerated. Same for DC Smith. Good but not good enough seems to prevail. A new season fresh start with winning often results would be most welcome. Nobody loves you when you are down and out stuck in a rut losers.