One Man Can Save Bucs
July 23rd, 2019
Preventing a reboot.
Nate Davis isn’t feeling it.
You can sell all the feelgood stories about the Bucs any fan would want. But Davis, a USA Today NFL writer, isn’t buying. Nor can he see the Bucs somehow scraping together more wins than losses this year.
Except…
Except there is one man Davis believes that can save the Bucs from yet another 11-loss season. And that one man is America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-11): They had the NFL’s No. 1 passing offense in 2018 but couldn’t run the ball. As good a coach as Bruce Arians is, he’s got a major challenge trying to improve on that formula in such a brutal division while likely getting this one shot at salvaging Jameis Winston or else facing a major reboot in 2020.
If the Bucs are going to “reboot” after this season, then don’t half-arse it. Sell off any trace of a decent player, get out from salary cap hell, load up on draft picks and bring in decent players via free agency who have the will to work and the desire to win, not slovenly malcontents from Washington who just want to b!tch and whine and grind on palm trees, and practice mutiny and cash very large checks.
If the Bucs are going to “reboot,” the only players you then keep are decent players still under rookie contracts. And Mike Evans. Everyone else gets the heave-ho if Bucs fans have to heave through another nauseous season.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:11 am
Oh sheesh…… Groundhog Day. Again.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:11 am
The Truth is inevitable!!!!!!! The sheep and local media have over evaluated the talent on this team for almost a decade!!!!!!!!!!! The Truth that incompetent lovie has set this franchise back for so many years, and has fallen to blame the glazers for allowing licht weight to band-aid and duct tape so many bad decisions, like building around gmc and forcing the dc to run a scheme that keeps gmc happy!!!!!!!!!! You are D@rn right it is time for the full reboot, like the Realist has asked for many years ago!!!!!!!!!! The “realization” that they swapped coaches and did not fix any problem will unfortunately have to play out thru another wasted year!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2019 will reveal answers to the sheep, that the “real” fans already know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Go Bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:12 am
Sounds like it time to smash my HDTVs or become a curling fan.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:16 am
Good QB’s with poor run games find ways to win more than 3 games a year which is Jameis’s average wins the last two years. Outside of 2016 when the d carried them to 9-7 Jameis has shown he can’t carry a team.
In 2016 the Vikings, Lions, Ravens and Giants all had poor run games and all won between 8-11 games
In 2017 Arians Cards had the 30th ranked run game and finished 8-8 that was with their qb hurt
Jameis In 56 games has yet to consistently carry this team if you think he will magically In year 5 you need to be drug tested or are related to the Winston family
Wake up, one elite year at FSU where he peaked is as great as he will ever be and he will never become that again since the NFL isn’t the ACC
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:17 am
This team is weak in too many key areas, Jameis would need to play like Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, or Tom Brady to save that team and I don’t see it happening.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:20 am
@Loyaltotheend
What were those teams defenses ranked?
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:20 am
I’m just saying:
Ryan Fitzpatrick ranked 9th QB rating
JW ranked 24th in QB rating.
Looks like the guy to save the Bucs is playing for the Dolphins now.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:22 am
Tall order…USA Today has it right…nothing new here. I’ll add guys like Mike Evans may also do a little camp holdout of his own if the whole team around him is stripped away, leaving basically just him. That kind of stuff makes players start thinking about their own equities. It can make a slippery slope even more slippery. Winning more games than losing will not be enough. As I’ve been saying too, the fan vibe must come back this year where fans are endeared by the players, the team, the image…to get them back into the building. If the CBA falls flat, if there are more NFL-wide PR problems, or if the Bucs players themselves don’t follow the straight the narrow, that can only hasten the dismantling. I say “dismantling” because the wheels have already fallen off over the past few years. Play hard, keep focused!
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:22 am
What I don’t get is Lichts job is on the line, Winston’s career is on the line , BA’s legacy is at stake and we do nothing to improve the running game which everyone agrees will help the offense out tremendously. It seems very reckless and darn right stupid knowing what’s at risk ..
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:29 am
“Sell off any trace of a decent player, get out from salary cap hell, load up on draft picks and bring in decent players via free agency”
Horrible idea.
First, you won’t get picks because everyone will know you are ‘rebooting’ and the players will hit free agency. Second, finding those quality free agents is more difficult than you seem to think. And it makes zero sense to get rid of great players and replace them with so-so free agents.
It is clear to me which Joe wrote this article, lol.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:30 am
@B-Rad
It;s not hard to figure out. Just look at how much the run game figured into Arians offenses in the past.
He’s a pass first guy.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:31 am
Loyaltotheend Section 312 Says:
“In 2016 the Vikings, Lions, Ravens and Giants all had poor run games and all won between 8-11 games”
All of those teams had good defenses and good kickers.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:41 am
Buccaneer Bonzai Says:
“And it makes zero sense to get rid of great players”
Joe’s point is just that Bonzai.
There are NO “great” players when the team continues to suck with your “great” players. So get rid of them all. Makes sense to me.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:45 am
The problem is the dynamic between BA & Jason Licht……If the players can’t be coached up….then it is the players & Licht selected the players…..if we fail miserably, Licht needs to go…..but we have Arians standing in the way…..
I do agree that Winston could be the one player who makes a difference….it is usually a QB that does.
The other is Devin White…..the key to our season will be the improvement or lack thereof of our Defense….
I think we will see significant improvement…..in particular with speed and aggressive play.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:55 am
One of the players who could have saved the Buc’s, Darrell Henderson, is currently saving the NFC Champion LA Rams.
Another player who could have saved the Bucs DL, Josh Allen, is playing in JAX.
The legendary National Champion MVP CB, Treyvon Mullen, is currently saving the Raiders for Jon Gruden and draft genius Mike Mayock.
Gump did manage to draft one possible NFL player, Devin White.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:57 am
I threw in the towel on the Bucs ever losing less than 10 games for the next century. Keep expectations low and when they go 7-9 it”ll be like they won the Soup Bone.
July 23rd, 2019 at 10:58 am
Eeeeaaaassssyyyy there Big Fella. If we do this one thing we will competitive…
FINISH DRIVES!
In BA I Trust!
July 23rd, 2019 at 11:04 am
I didn’t know I was on camera the 2nd day of the draft.
When Gump traded the best RB in NCAA history to the Rams for 2 much later compensatory (free) picks, I slammed my computer screen with the remote keyboard and threw my desk chair through my 52″ Samsung Smart TV.
If that TV was really smart it would have ducked!
July 23rd, 2019 at 11:09 am
People keep forgetting how bad the defenses have been, with exception of that 6 game run in 2016, this defense has sucked. The season really wedges on the play of the defense. If Bowles can at least make the defense average, this will be a competitive team.
July 23rd, 2019 at 11:20 am
@Waterboy
The defense doesn’t make Jameis turn it over
Yes, we all know the d is awful. But again the d doesn’t make him inaccurate or make poor decisions
If I had a choice I’d rather the d be better than the run game as you can still win with a poor run game. No excuse for a “franchise qb” to win 3 games a year and no road wins in two years.
July 23rd, 2019 at 11:31 am
if we’re going to “reboot” mike evans and LVD need to be the first to go….mike would fetch a 1st and 3rd round pick and LVD could bring us back at least a 3rd…..
but it aint happening!!!!…LOL….BA and the staff will win 10games and we’ll back door into the playoffs…..
but the article is right….if JW fails, the season is lost….
GO BUCS!!!!
July 23rd, 2019 at 11:41 am
You sort of have a point but you are also overlooking a major problem:
Four times in 2017 Jameis and the offense gave the Bucs a lead in the fourth quarter only for that disgusting defense to choke it away. Tom Brady would struggle to get wins with that disgraceful defense.
July 23rd, 2019 at 12:00 pm
lol @ the 16th ranked scoring defense “carrying” Jameis Winston.
lol @ giving up 23 points per game as being some elite defense that carried freaking anyone. The top defenses that year agave up 15.6 / 17.8 PPG or an entire TD less. That’s carrying a team.
The only point to take from that season, is the only year Jameis Winston had just an AVERAGE defense with this crap franchise, we had a winning record.
Every other year we have had arguably the worst defense in the entire league when you take into account all metrics.
Oh wait did our last place ranked kicker and bottom 4 run game from 2016 carry him too lol?
Average defense + worst kicker in the league + 4th worst rushing team at 3.6 YPC + Jameis Winston = Winning Record and pushing for playoff birth.
I’m curious what Average defense/kicker/run game + Winston = in wins?
Or my god – what if he was on a team with an ABOVE average defense?
Oh wait the formula we want is historically bad defense + bad run game + bad kicker + decent QB play where we continually blame the QB for why we aren’t winning despite decades of NFL history showing you can’t win jack when you have the worst D in the league.
GO BUCS
July 23rd, 2019 at 12:02 pm
Correction our Kicker wasn’t worst in the league in 2016 – just bottom 6 in FG % at 75%. Top 10 teams were 87% or better
July 23rd, 2019 at 12:08 pm
I am with you 813, if we are going to reboot, then reboot, everybody not on a rookie contract gets traded for draft picks. Everybody goes. Hell, if we are out of it before the trade deadline, I would start dumping players this season. By the way, 11-5 go Bucs.
July 23rd, 2019 at 12:13 pm
Right Guard, Right Tackle, Right Defensive End and a decent Kicker and this team can be competitive. I don’t see blowing the whole team up. I’m still optimistic that Bucco Bruce and Todd Bowles will improve the Bucs this year.
July 23rd, 2019 at 12:51 pm
@Lord Corn
Without the D catching fire in 2016 for those 5 games this team wouldn’t have a winning record since 2010
In that 5 game win streak the offense averaged 19 points a game, ouch
While the d only gave up on average 13 points a game
Jameis hasn’t shown he can carry this team consistently in 56 games
July 23rd, 2019 at 1:07 pm
Well said LC!
Give me any semblance of a defense and we easily win 7. A stronger defense and we get closer to 10.
July 23rd, 2019 at 1:11 pm
If you read enough “self help” books and make an effort to manage your mind you’ll quickly see the same thoughts over and over again. Live in the moment! Mindfulness.
And the one that pops up this time of the year…don’t try and cross the bridge before you even get there. People here are trying to make decisions without even getting all the input required to decide.
The decision has been made to keep JW this year. That bridge has been crossed. ALL the other bridges are still out in front of us and we don’t even get to some of them till the end of or late in the season.
Primarily there are several things that can happen. JW can suck and he gets dumped and the team is in an awful position having wasted the top pick in a draft…can you say three other decent players? OR…JW can light it up and play well…if he does this team will win. OR…worse case scenario which I do not see happening…JW could be mediocre…the D mediocre with just enough promise to tease us all.
I do not wish to blow this team up if ONE player JW doesn’t turn out as hoped.
There will probably be 4 or more new starters on D. I think White is a clear upgrade over Kwon…Suh a slight upgrade over GMC…and 2 or 3 of those rookie DB’s will make an impact.
Bottom line…the 2019 Bucs are going to be a significantly different team than the 2018 Bucs.
July 23rd, 2019 at 1:11 pm
@Joe,
I’ve heard your point about the 2017 leads the defense gave away like Jameis gives money away for lawsuit settlements (zing) but also consider this
In those 4 fourth quarter leads that were blown Jameis had 9 turnovers in those games resulting in 30 points by the opposition. To be fair though one of those turnovers was at an end of a game where he was stripped by Peppers.
In one score games Jameis turnovers are killing this teams chances to win.
July 23rd, 2019 at 1:12 pm
@Joe,
I’ve heard your point about the 2017 leads the defense gave away but consider this
In those 4 fourth quarter leads that were blown Jameis had 9 turnovers in those games resulting in 30 points by the opposition. To be fair though one of those turnovers was at an end of a game where he was stripped by Peppers.
In one score games Jameis turnovers are killing this teams chances to wi
July 23rd, 2019 at 1:35 pm
I am convinced Ghost has some weird sexual fetish with a rookie RB from Memphis.
NOt that there is anything wrong with it, I just don’t want to see any noodle-rubbing in action.
July 23rd, 2019 at 1:37 pm
I’m not so sure the 2019 Bucs will resemble the 2018 Bucs.
There are a lot of lazy “journalists” who only rely on other lazy “journalists” for their learned opinations.
July 23rd, 2019 at 2:28 pm
@Loyal
Don’t give a sh1t. 5 games isn’t a season. Fact is the D was horrible before Winston got here and horrible after he got here, and we’ve averaged more wins with him being the only difference, while the run game / special teams was actually better before he got here.
Not saying Winston is an elite QB. Just saying he isn’t the main problem or close to it through 4 seasons.
GO BUCS!
July 23rd, 2019 at 2:50 pm
Jameis isn’t the main problem but he is a problem.
76 turnovers in 56 games
Only 17 turnover free games
Franchise qbs are suppose to give your team a chance to win every week with turnovers and poor decisions he doesn’t do that
He’s the type you can win with if your defense is good and you surround him with talent. He can’t carry a team
July 23rd, 2019 at 3:16 pm
Aaron Rodgers couldn’t save the Packers in 2018 yet Jameis Winston can save the Bucs in 2019?
Yeh sure I’ll buy your Arizona oceanfront property.
July 23rd, 2019 at 3:19 pm
@Loyal,
41 of Winston’s 58 interceptions have come when the Bucs were trailing in the game. I’d like to see what he can do with an average team around him.
July 23rd, 2019 at 4:04 pm
Let’s stay away from comparing Jameis to hall of famers who have in past years carried teams to the playoffs
July 23rd, 2019 at 4:35 pm
Compare Jameis to Wentz, Goff, Mariota, Prescott, Watson, all QB’s who have played a few seasons. All who have led their teams to winning seasons and the playoffs. All but Wentz, have played in a playoff game.
These insane posts of comparing Jameis to Hall of Famers and elite QBs is borderline moronic
Watch how his contemporaries play, grow and win while fans here blame the coaches, kicker, defense, owners, GM, water boys, receivers, the media and concession stand workers for his failures.
Take a dive into the stats of Jameis vs his contemporaries and you will see he is the definition of inconsistent
July 23rd, 2019 at 5:22 pm
At this point Jameis hasn’t earned any favorable comparisons. The talent is obvious but some Quarterbacks never take that next leap. The next leap is understanding the defense, knowing what you can get away with, making the smart decisions even is it results in little success. The intangibles are always what has held JW back. We will find out if the main culprit has been coaching or if JW will just never be the guy we had hoped for. The time is now. The decision on Jameis happens this year. He will determine if he gets an insane contract extension or if he is playing for a new team in the 2020 season. I’m hoping for the best. As much of a JW fan as I am and as bad as I want him to succeed, I can’t debate the points made by Loyal. Those are facts.
July 23rd, 2019 at 6:16 pm
What type of garbage ass fan is thinking about rebuilding when we are gearing up to enter a new era of Bucs football.
I won’t expect anyone to be optimistic like I am but to stat a conversation about rebooting is completely spinless.
Some of us would actually like to be excited about football for a change. Doesn’t the team hammer us down enough? Totally needless to talk about rebuilds before this year’s team takes the field.
July 23rd, 2019 at 6:56 pm
Your last paragraph is depressing as hell, but I agree with it 100%. 🤣
July 23rd, 2019 at 7:46 pm
@JJ
Amen brother!
July 24th, 2019 at 1:40 am
Swaggy da tree- humping Baker. I hope they cut down that poor palm tree down and put her nightmares to rest, she didn’t deserve that violation and neither did we watching his ugly weak arse suit up on Sunday.
July 24th, 2019 at 9:48 am
The comedic comments are appreciated by this Bucs fan.