Bruce Arians Talks “PFOTXL” & Mutual Respect
June 23rd, 2019
Bruce Arians entered the NFL 30 years ago as an assistant coach following 14 seasons coaching in the college ranks.
He’s heard and seen a thing or two.
Last year, Arians spent his first season outside the coaching ranks since before the Buccaneers ever played a snap. He called games for CBS but wasn’t very good, though he improved through the season like most first-year analysts do.
During a recent Ira Kaufman Podcast (are you subscribing for your free alert?), Joe pleaded with Arians to help Joe and the rest of the NFL media understand where they can most improve.
Arians didn’t waste much time landing on the often faceless and baseless data peddlers.
JoeBucsFan.com: Coach, you spent a year in the media and obviously you’ve been around the media for years. Where do we all get it wrong? I mean, give us some education here. Where does the media get it wrong in the NFL? Where is it sort of off track where you think it could get a little better?
Bruce Arians: Well, the competition’s gotten so crazy. You know, 10 years ago there might be one person on radio. Now there’s a hundred. Now we’ve got eight different organizations that grade our film and tell us how good our players are. And guys jump on it and say,’ Hey, PFOTXL said this guy stinks.’ I think he’s pretty good. I don’t know who’s grading that film. But all that stuff, I get a kick out of some of that stuff now. But I think the media’s great. I mean, having been a part of it. I’ve always had a respect for the jobs that they do because I think they respect the job we do. And as long as that stays that way, it’s always great.
Of course, some major networks love to tout the often mysterious player grades. Hopefully, more coaches will push back and the NFL will realize there’s better use of valuable TV time than insulting fans with subjective and borderline fraudulent numbers.
Eventually, Joe suspects the NFL will wise up — and see dollar signs — and replace that with the reams of NextGen data they provide teams, the stuff generated by the league from high-tech tracking of uniforms and footballs. Right now, fans only get a handful of those crumbs at NFL.com.
As for media respecting the job coaches do, Joe not sure that broad of a brush can be applied.
June 23rd, 2019 at 7:22 pm
I don’t consider JBF media even though they get media credentials from the Bucs. That’s a good thing, not a sleight. Actually, that’s just goofy. Aside from being a daily outlet that has churned out 37,000+ Bucs posts over the last 11 years, Joe reports from the Super Bowl, the Pro Bowl, the Combine, all kinds of Bucs-related stuff including road games, charity events and visiting team locker rooms, in addition to being unafraid to share works of others that are of interest to Bucs fans. Oh, and throw in the podcast network that has many thousands of listeners per week. If Joe isn’t media, then you need to change your definition. –Joe
JBF is just a blog to me, that works out better than media. I wish the media in general would do more of what the word “media” is…a means for passing/communicating facts. In today’s 24/7 news cycle and information operations/strategic communications world, the “media” too often tries to spin the facts, vice just pass what happened. And sometimes the message desired is more important than the facts. Which is ehy of course many of us get info from several sources, and recognize a modified or crafted message (spin) versus just getting the facts and considering the opinions that come with it. Moreover, too many blogs now shut out the folks who don’t agree with the baseline ideaology. In sports media, ESPN is the worst of them. And they are perhaps learning their lesson–stop breathing things into sports that doesn’t belong.
June 23rd, 2019 at 7:56 pm
One reason sites like JBF have become popular in the off season is because of the drama and human element in the stories.
Baseball used to have alot of drama and personality.
Now, watching baseball is like watching a corporate executive business negotiation. And that is why baseball attendance is dropping.
June 23rd, 2019 at 8:14 pm
Think Joe got some of the current misinformation backlash in some responses. Contrary to what some might believe, media isn’t a bad word. It provides us so much information, that we would be totally in the dark without. That being said, Media comes in all shapes and types, some world changing for the better, providing accurate and critically relevant information to those of us that don’t have the time, resources or access; and some distorts and forwards false information, or biased information for selfish and self serving purposes. Joe…think your contribution is informative, and entertaining, in line with the former and not the later. And when you do speculate regarding some issues, in some instances, you say so. Keep up the good work… Media is an honorable word, especially when the line between fact and fiction is clear. And you do a great job.
June 23rd, 2019 at 8:43 pm
The Joes might not always love new technology but it really plays a big part in fan interaction. Video streams and high def TV’s give fans live information where they can immediately get facts or form a quick opinion. Hard to get things wrong even as a fan when you have stop rewind stop slow motion stop back 3 seconds stop play. Even before this modern technology Gruden would preach tape doesn’t lie. You know what coach neither does a 70″ TV with high def.
June 23rd, 2019 at 9:18 pm
Nobody Cares!
We just want more ZACHARY SEIFTER!
June 23rd, 2019 at 9:21 pm
“If Joe isn’t media, then you need to change your definition.” Actually, I don’t have to do anything. But thanks for your input.
June 23rd, 2019 at 9:33 pm
@ Mark2001…says “and some distorts and forwards false information, or biased information for selfish and self serving purposes.” That says it well. I think Joe mistook what I meant in the conventional/traditional term versus the way it often is now–which is not flattering. I should/could probably clarify to mean “mainstream” or large media giants…I did use ESPN as an example. Those are the ones who can and have earned the word “media” a bad name. And of course internet media will continue to grow, to the point it will put traditional print media on their head. You also said it well in discussing the line between fact and speculation.
June 23rd, 2019 at 10:02 pm
Of course BA likes the media Joe. He uses it well. Just like ‘The Donald’.
June 23rd, 2019 at 10:20 pm
Comparing BA’s use of the media with BS’s…err… Donald Trump, is unfair D Rules.
June 24th, 2019 at 12:06 am
“If Joe isn’t media, then you need to change your definition.“
As much as Joe (sometimes) drives me crazy with an aversion to negative takes within most articles, I’ll give credit where credit is due. Joe is THE BUCS MEDIA! That’s why Joe is my home page within my browser. To say otherwise (“JBF is just a blog to me…”) is ludicrous.
June 24th, 2019 at 12:40 am
Amen. Joe loves baseball but it’s turned into beer league softball. Batters either strike out or homer. Two minutes after the last pitch.
But oh, baseball fans are smarter now thanks to analytics. Is that why a guy got a double by bunting against a shift was treated like some genius move last week? Ugh.
June 24th, 2019 at 12:41 am
On the contrary. Love technology.
June 24th, 2019 at 4:17 am
@Todd…and you’re the guy who thinks the Bucs are going 6-0. Uh huh. Lots of cred there.
June 24th, 2019 at 10:23 am
I can’t stand most of the media because usually its not news. Report the news. Not your opinion with it.
Its partial news with opinion that’s based on not all of the facts reported.
And in the age of the internet, those people “reporting” are everywhere now.
June 24th, 2019 at 10:29 am
Baseball is just boring. Yakity yak to fill empty space. Do they ever shut up?
June 24th, 2019 at 11:51 am
Sure TV and radio analysts, pundits, and even the most casual fan can see when a defender gets pancaked by an offensive lineman, a wide open receiver just plain drops the ball, or a running back muffs a pitch out for a fumble. Beyond those obvious faux pas though I remember what Dirk Koetter once said about anyone other than the coaches grading player performance.
To paraphrase, Koetter said none of us other than the coaches and perhaps the players can assign a legitimate grade because we don’t know what any given player was supposed to be doing on any given play. Sure guys like Tony Romo calling a Dallas game the year after he retired probably have a 95% idea of what each guy should be doing and likewise analysts with a long NFL career behind them have a better than average idea. But, once the head coaches, coordinators, position coaches, players shuffle around some and start bringing differing talents to different systems, at some point what a given player is supposed to do on a particular play is going to be foreign to anyone who doesn’t own a copy of a given teams current playbook.
June 24th, 2019 at 3:33 pm
I have no problem with the Bucs going 6-0 lol. I’d love to see it and anything is possible. It is more likely that Ron Rivera will see GMC get thrown around like a rag doll and leak oil all over the field.
June 24th, 2019 at 3:53 pm
I wonder if maga realizes that his first two posts here have completely destroyed his argument against the morals of the player who lives rent free in his head?
That being said, I agree with him that the “news” reported by the media needs to be met with a grain of salt. It’s hard to discern the actual facts among all of the hearsay and opinion, regardless of which side of the aisle it comes from.