Turnaround Time?
January 24th, 2019
Playoffs a stretch in 2019?
Bucs new coach Bucco Bruce Arians has made it clear he didn’t come to Tampa Bay to rebuild anything.
He doesn’t have the time. In case you missed it, Arians is 66-years-old and counting. Good luck finding many NFL head coaches who coached beyond 70.
This year alone five teams made the playoffs that watched the playoffs from their couches in 2017. Given how the NFL is built for turnarounds and the Bucs have proven winners on their new staff, it’s not a stretch to guess the Bucs could make a playoff run in 2019.
Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report thinks there are five teams poised to do just that, and he includes the Bucs.
The key for a potential Bucs turnaround after a seventh last-place season in an eight-year span is that there’s a lot of hype surrounding a coaching staff that might finally put a tight grip around a notoriously undisciplined team. But new head coach Bruce Arians isn’t just a no-nonsense disciplinarian. He’s also a two-time Coach of the Year who got the best out of an aging Carson Palmer, helped groom Andrew Luck and oversaw some of the best years of Ben Roethlisberger’s career.
Arians—who was 49-30-1 with the Cardinals and 9-3 as an interim head coach with the Colts—has won everywhere he’s coached, even in Cleveland! The Browns’ only playoff appearance this century came when he was the offensive coordinator there in 2002.
Could he be exactly what the doctor ordered for Jameis Winston? It’s possible, and it’s also a good sign that the 25-year-old supposed franchise quarterback posted a triple-digit passer rating in seven games down the stretch after reclaiming his starting job from Ryan Fitzpatrick.
Shoot, the stars aligned for the Bucs to make a run this past season, and the Bucs threw up on themselves. The Dixie Chicks and Stinking Panthers were vulnerable and the Bucs jumped out to a 2-0 start. All the Bucs had to do was play just a little bit better than .500 ball in their final 14 games.
The road was there for a playoff berth. And yet the Bucs imploded.
Want a reason why Arians is here and Dirk Koetter is not? You can start right there. The Bucs had a real shot with a path cleared to advance to a meaningful January game and the team simply melted down.
January 24th, 2019 at 3:32 pm
Bruce would have fired Smitty during the bye. No excuse for that mess and the Chicago game was the exclamation point.
January 24th, 2019 at 3:41 pm
I am getting dizzy after 10 years of turning around…
January 24th, 2019 at 3:43 pm
Ghost
Lol. Bruce would have never hired Smitty. He is aggressive. Loves blitzing. Finally gona see a real defense
January 24th, 2019 at 3:50 pm
thats exactly right…..last year, bucs had the talent to at least be 1 and done in the playoffs but we lacked the nfl level coaching…..
this a competent staff in place, we should see major improvement…..
the catch will be, do the panthers and falcons improve making this once again one of the toughest divisions in the league…..meaning we have to win 11games to make the dance…..or will it be a fight between the bucs and saints for the division crown with 10games getting us a wildcard?…..
#REALISTKNOWSNOTHING!!!!!!!….GO BUCS!!!!!
January 24th, 2019 at 3:51 pm
*with
January 24th, 2019 at 3:54 pm
Bruce would have fired smitty after his first 8 games in 2016
January 24th, 2019 at 4:23 pm
I don’t buy any of this “falcons were weak panthers were weak BS”
I don’t care how “good” any team is because we should beat them anyway
You Bucs fans have soft mentality
January 24th, 2019 at 4:31 pm
“Defensive talent?
Our pass coverage and tackling is putrid and 1 of the worst
Get a pass rush and the Bucs are in the playoffs?
KC Chiefs lead the NFL with 52 sacks….they cant pass cover and was 31st in overall defense.
We need complementary defense in all 3 levels. If Bowles can get us ranked in the teens defensively next year, we will have over 10 wins”
Kobe Faker
January 24th, 2019 at 4:36 pm
The annual off season Buccaneers hype is strong yet again. Back to back off season champions. Everything looks good on paper until you realize that your competing against other NFL teams.
Happy with Arians and The coaching staff in place but I’m not gonna get too excited until Jason Licht can figure it out and I’m not sure that he can. Not gonna get excited until there are better players on defense, Simple as that.
Coaching can only take you so far at the end of the day the team with the better players will win whether fans wanna hear that or not. And right now, the Bucs are about the same as the Miami Dolphins in terms of talent. Does that pump anyone up?
January 24th, 2019 at 4:36 pm
Pathetic coaching staff couldn’t take advantage of all these offensive weapons once teams firgured out their basic scheme and shut them down by week three. Koetter was trash and extremely overrated
January 24th, 2019 at 4:44 pm
I’m pumped for 2019 n cant wait to see what ba n his staff can do n who they’ll draft
January 24th, 2019 at 4:45 pm
7423
not sure what your talking about….lol…
my point is, winning the division and hosting a playoff game will be easier next year if the saints fall off and the panthers and falcons stayed the same…..who knows 12 wins could mean a first round bye….
but if the saints stay the same and the other 3 teams in the division get better, we could end up like the chargers….a 12win wild card team that doesnt host a playoff game…..
either way, if we made the playoffs i would be down for throwing a parade with the amount of losing bucs fans have dealt with…..lol…
that aint a soft mentality….a soft mentality is thinking dirk shouldve kept his job if he reached 7-9 or 8-8…..
#REALISTKNOWSNOTHING!!!!!!!….GO BUCS!!!!!
January 24th, 2019 at 5:01 pm
813bucboi Says:
January 24th, 2019 at 4:45 pm
7423
not sure what your talking about….lol…
——-
Lol
I didn’t read your comment before I made mine. I was really talking about Joe and his soft Buc fan mentality
January 24th, 2019 at 5:07 pm
@813bucboi
but if the saints stay the same………..
After the Minneapolis miracle and now the Louisiana Looting, how could they ever be the same? That’s a lot of mental baggage to off load and then reload for 2019.
January 24th, 2019 at 5:11 pm
Fix the defense…..establish a running game and Jameis will take care of business.
Coaching is key…..it can get the best out of mediocre players and turn good players into great players……and great players into superstars.
We will start to see things clearly when FA hits……look for several surprising changes.
I’m thinking GMC & Donovan Smith may be gone…..Djax also….perhaps Kwon.
I am hoping Humphries is signed and that our draft focuses on the lines.
January 24th, 2019 at 5:59 pm
I am a 68 year old fart. Age is irrelevant, Joe. Today’s 65 was 20 years ago 55.
Bruce, kick some a$$ including Joe’s.
January 24th, 2019 at 6:13 pm
Bucs Fan #7423…way to have that tough fan mentality.
What’s it get you?
A cookie?
January 24th, 2019 at 6:21 pm
“Three or four plane crashes and we’re in the playoffs.”
John McKay
January 24th, 2019 at 6:50 pm
By my count, there were SEVEN teams that made the playoffs this year, that weren’t in the playoffs in 2017.
The Baltimore Ravens, Los Angeles Chargers, Dallas Cowboys, and Seattle Seahawks were all 9-7 in 2017, and thus had only a short way to go to playoff caliber in 2018.
The Bears were 5-11 in 2017, with Trubisky throwing for only 7 TDs and 7 INTs that year but improved to 24 TDs and only 12 INTs this year.
The Texans were 4-12 in 2017, with Watson throwing 19 TDs and 8 INTs, but only starting 6 games! This year Watson threw for 26 TDs and only 9 INTs.
The Colts were also 4-12 last year with Jacoby Brissett, but Andrew Luck returned this year to throw 39 TDs and only 15 INTs.
So, the franchise QBs for those teams all contributed GREATLY to their teams’ overall success, resulting in a turnaround to make the playoffs.
America’s QB, ProBowler Jameis Winston had 19 TDs and 11 INTs in his third season in 2017, and this year threw for 19 TDs and 14 INTs. During his four seasons in the NFL, JW3 has NEVER thrown for twice as many TDs as INTs, and his TD% minus his INT% has NEVER been above 1.8, let alone in the > 3.0 plus range of nearly all of the playoff quarterbacks.
tickrdr
January 24th, 2019 at 6:57 pm
If Arians can fix JayMiss, he will have earned a 3rd Coach of the Year award. Hell the Pope would nominate him for Sainthood.
January 24th, 2019 at 6:59 pm
Still not sure why the Yucs hired BA, but as long as Jason and Jamiss are still there it’s going to be more last place results. I’m sorry for sounding like a negative newton, but with another botched draft and FA signings ( what good player would want to come here and end their career as a loser ) as long as the Glazers own this team. Once again thank you Lord for our Bolts and good work Joe
January 24th, 2019 at 7:21 pm
As…this guy…has told @Joe several times before, anyone, anyone…from Bleacher Report is…well, completely worthless. Matt Miller included. Like Yahoo, and Charles Robinson, at Yahoo. Same drivel. Yet @Joe keeps doing this for weak, “new” stories. Shame. Big shame.
Last 2 days….been realllll slow, on….NEW, news.
Go Bucs!
January 24th, 2019 at 7:54 pm
Joe….articles like this only make me get my hopes up for yet another year of a Buc’s Life. I hope Bucco Bruce Arians can turn Magoo into a winner. I really do. I doubt it though, but we will see.
January 24th, 2019 at 7:57 pm
Can’t wait to see who stays and who’s cut. Free agency and the draft will be so exciting! GO BUCS!
January 24th, 2019 at 8:44 pm
Bucs14
Drew Brees couldn’t win with this defense….how do I know that? Because it’s a proven fact….look at the Saints record in recent years when there defense was terrible. So blaming Jameis for losing is incorrect.
January 24th, 2019 at 9:24 pm
@813bucboi … “last year, bucs had the talent to at least be 1 and done in the playoffs but we lacked the nfl level coaching.” Bucboi, you’ve been smoking that same stuff now for many moons and you’re still no closer to being right. We had the talent to go 10-6 last year? Ya that’s what it would’ve taken to get to the playoffs. Newsflash: we went 5-11, which happens to be FIVE wins from 10-6. Do you seriously expect any long-suffering Bucs fan to believe that it was STRICTLY COACHING that kept us from going 10-6 and being in the playoffs? Coaches don’t tackle. Coaches don’t miss assignments. Coaches don’t commit penalties. Coaches don’t drop passes. Coaches don’t fumble & turn the ball over. But players do.
There’s this little thing called ACCOUNTABILITY that you seem to neglect in all your analyses. These guys get paid VERY handsomely to do their job. Folks like you need to stop making excuses for them when they don’t do it (blaming their poor performances strictly on coaching?). My one big hope right now is that Coach Arians doesn’t think anything like you do. That he’ll hold these guys ACCOUNTABLE for their performance on the field. Enough with the excuses.
And BTW, you’re hardly the one who should be ending EVERY posting with the phrase
#REALISTKNOWSNOTHING!!!!!!! I put a lot more credence into what Realist says than what you say. Start backing up your comments with FACTS for a change.
January 24th, 2019 at 9:26 pm
How does this guy win with the
28th ranked O Line talent wise
With close to the worst running back stable
The 23rd best qb
24rh ranked d line
Worst secondary
There is a reason college football puts such a big emphasis on recruiting
U can’t win without players
January 24th, 2019 at 11:34 pm
Trubiskys bum @$$ made Mike Evans look like a clown in the pro bowl skills challenge. The guy can throw for $hit
January 24th, 2019 at 11:48 pm
813 I’m down for the parade we could really use one. I started watching football wen we had THE best defense EVER an after we won the super bowl it’s bin disappointing after disappointing after disappointing season I’ll always be a fan but I’ve learned one very important thing with all this losing don’t get to hyped, get hyped but just not to hyped so the disappointment is not as bad hahaha it’s a Bucs life
January 24th, 2019 at 11:51 pm
Bucs jumped out to a 2-0 start
—————-
Patriots don’t even worry about the first month of the season. Ijs
January 25th, 2019 at 1:56 am
Buc1987 Says:
January 24th, 2019 at 6:13 pm
Bucs Fan #7423…way to have that tough fan mentality.
What’s it get you?
A cookie?
——
It got Bucs fans Bruce Arians and a whole new coaching staff cuz tough Buc fans held Buccaneers ownership accountable to high standards and expectations
January 25th, 2019 at 8:45 am
Pisses me off that people keep talking like BA is a certainanty gone after three years. Four years with a fifth round contract. He sounds very inspired to come back to coaching and everyone has him guaranteed to quit after two years. Once again, Pete Carroll or Belicheat don’t look like they’re quitting NFL HC for at least three more years.
January 25th, 2019 at 8:46 am
*Four years with a fifth year option.
January 25th, 2019 at 10:54 am
Can not believe fans are already talking about BA quitting after 2 or 3 years. Guy hasn’t even done any real coaching yet. Why are so many so called Bucs fans talking this crap. Really depressing. Best coaching hire since Gruden.