Brady Throwing To O.J. Howard
April 12th, 2020
O.J. Howard reacts to recent Bucs news.
Last year when Bucs wide receivers Mike Evans and Chris Godwin were lost for the season with injuries, everybody and their brother thought tight ends Cam Brate and O.J. Howard would finally be involved and blow up in the offense.
That didn’t happen.
And it wasn’t like the guy behind center didn’t like throwing to his tight ends.
So Joe finds it very interesting that folks are jumping to the same conclusions about Brate and Howard now that the Bucs have Tom Brady at quarterback, another guy who loves throwing to tight ends.
Howard last week dropped in on the Tampa Bay 55 podcast with Ryan Bass and Rob Higgins. He too thinks he can max out his talents with Brady.
But it has nothing to do with Brady throwing him the ball.
“I am sure he will help me with some things,” Howard said. “Tom will know what I was not doing before that I may have never heard of, like when running combinations and routes.”
Howard said he can envision Brady showing up in the tight ends room to help him and Brate get on the same page and take their games to new levels.
Now Joe has no idea when this interview with Howard was recorded, but Howard had yet to talk to Brady or meet Brady; he’s back home in Alabama.
(Interesting aside: Howard said he plans to return to Tampa “within the next couple of months or so.” Couple of months would be the middle of June. That’s about the time teams break for their summer vacation. Guess that is pretty much confirmation the Bucs are unlikely to have any OTAs or minicamps, which wouldn’t be a real shock.)
Howard added he hopes to link up with Brady as soon as he gets to Tampa.
“Tom is a hard-working guy, a proven winner,” Howard said. “Adding him is only going to make us better. I think this is going to be awesome.
“I really wish this [sickness] would go away so I can get back to football. When I heard we signed Tom, I am ready to go.”
If the Bucs allow or even encourage Brady to use his stellar tight ends (what a concept!), this offense could be even better.
And it was damn good last year.
April 12th, 2020 at 8:23 am
Brate and Howard will get more chances this year. Brady will go through his progressions not stare down certain options.
April 12th, 2020 at 8:40 am
Why didn’t the Buc’s use the tight ends last season. Coach Bruce said it takes a year or even two before a quarterback gets his offense. This will not workout because Brady will be yelling at player’s because he do not understand this offense. I feel sorry for the offense coordinator, their will be arguments like it was when he was with the Patriots in the latter part of his time with them. Please do not use the statement he want to win. I see a split locker room, by race in the middle of the season.
April 12th, 2020 at 8:46 am
Happy Easter, he has risen, not the Bucs but Jesus… With so many people dying and no cure in site please stop talking about football and the draft since there will not even be an NFL Season and go do something productive on this Easter like spent it w your family or just give your fingers a break from typing on this post every day like a loser.. Take it from me Danny Dimes, there will be no Sports at all in any way shape or form until a vacine is invented, no players will agree to live isolated in a hotel for 4-6 months not seeing there family etc… The sports world as we know it is over, heck you will not even be allowed to go to a bar or restaraunt again prob until next year
April 12th, 2020 at 8:47 am
It’s just my opinion, but I think the ATM was at fault for not passing to the TEs, not the fact that Leftwich or BA didn’t call plays to include them. I think the ATM wanted to go for the bigger 20 yard plays, rather than just hit a TE for a positive gain in yards.
OJ and Brate will get a lot more looks with Brady as QB
April 12th, 2020 at 8:57 am
So I have always been of the opinion that our current coaching staff is much better than any of our recent coaching staff’s but this may actually speak to a problem on our current coaching staff.
Maybe the guy that BA picked up as his tight end coach, Rick Christophel, might just be a bad or less than average coach. His back ground of coaching tight ends just appears to be in Arizona before the Buc’s and the rest of his coaching background is very limited.
Maybe all the combination routes that Koetter and his staff did with Tight ends is essentially missing.
April 12th, 2020 at 9:15 am
Howard has got to catch the balls thrown his way. If not Brady will not throw to him. We all recently read that if Brady doesn’t have faith in you catching balls he doesn’t throw your way. Simple concept..
April 12th, 2020 at 9:21 am
DannyDimes Says:
April 12th, 2020 at 8:46 am
Things are changing in some countries already.
People in the Czech Republic can now shop at hardware and bicycle stores, play tennis and go swimming. Austria plans to reopen smaller shops after Easter. Denmark will reopen schools on April 15th. Germany and Norway are also easing restrictions.
There are no plans for large gatherings in any of those countries right away but obviously a gathering of school kids will be over the 10 that we are seeing.
It is a “resurrection” of normal functions that will happen in waves going forward. This easing of restrictions is not an end point, and there will certainly be failures going forward.
Moving forward we have to be cautious but I am hopeful on this Easter day and moving forward that things will return to normal for people in their lives and for us sports fans.
April 12th, 2020 at 9:22 am
PA- That’s not “opinion”, that’s a fact. People keep saying that BA and BL don’t use TEs, and that is patently false. They were out there running routes like the rest of the receivers, and more times than not, open.
Between the QB not making the read, and one of the TEs inability to catch or hold onto a ball, it made it look like we just use TEs as blocking dummies!
OJ had better step up, this is the best shot he’s going to get.
April 12th, 2020 at 9:26 am
The flip side to this TE argument is that we have two of the best WRs in the league. When you have dual 1,000 yard WRs, there’s a pretty good chance that TE numbers will not be all that spectacular. Oh and those WRs CATCH the balls thrown to them!
April 12th, 2020 at 9:48 am
When you keep bringing race into a situation that does not include race…such as who starts at QB..you totally NEGATE your views on racism.
You become like the little kid who cried wolf over and over not to be believed when he FINALLY saw a wolf.
When you pull this crap you are giving the racists a chance to blow off your opinions about black lives matter…lack of representation…the glaring disparity in black health care that has been exposed once again in this Covid crisis.
WHY do you insist on WASTING your voice and negating your other opinions.
Yeah I’m speaking to you Big Hog..ED…your posts are consistently weak so I do not know whether your black or white or just a troll.
I’m not the blog police…Joe is the sheriff in this town….just tryin’ to let you know from an old white dude who has seen enough racism to confirm many of you observations.
When Warren Moon played there was a clear prejudice against black QB’s. But Moon and guys like Randell Cunningham shattered those racist myths long ago.
Now you guys insult all of us, yourselves and JAMEIS. He can’t fail on his own because he’s black?
April 12th, 2020 at 10:12 am
Danny, Danny, Danny (not sure what your handle was before)
Sorry on this beautiful Easter Sunday you are stuck on gloom and doom mostly caused by media hype, hysteria, and Government overreach. Not only will we have football, but most likely half a season of baseball. Starting with the mid west states will start easing restrictions between May 1st and May 15th. By the end of May only NY (city not upstate), Seattle, and a few cities in California will still have strict restrictions but will not be able to keep the general public from breaking the curfew. Quick fact though did you know the entire west central Florida with a population of almost 5 Million has 50 Deaths? That’s about .0001% of the population. Keep up the good fight though some will believe you.
April 12th, 2020 at 10:15 am
SPBF…I called out BigHog the other day.
Told him he’s been calling everyone a racist for over 2 years on here….
It’s like an obsession with him….everything’s about racism.
April 12th, 2020 at 10:25 am
Trade OJ. The Bucs are not going to pick up his 5th year contract and he will be a FA in a year. The Bucs won’t re-sign him. Trade him now so you can get something for him.
April 12th, 2020 at 10:27 am
Howard scares me as someone who don’t love the game and is just getting as many checks as he can before the NFL realizes he is a fraud. He is an athletic freak that happens to play football. A couple months!!! If Brady has anything to say about it, they will be together in a couple weeks throwing passes in the closest field to his house.
April 12th, 2020 at 10:30 am
“Byron Leftwhich aka 813bucboi
Has absolutely no idea how to use a tightend nor play action
It will take 3 hours until Tom Brady realizes the incompetence and futility of Leftfoot as the OC
Sh!ts going to hit the fan when TB12 demands a new playcaller
Not if but when”
Kobe Faker
April 12th, 2020 at 10:43 am
Howard might…..might…..get his head out of his ass and start playing to his ability.
The safer and much more probable scenario is that Brate becomes TB’s favorite TE because he is consistently open and rarely drops the ball.
I predict CG14 and Brate will be Tom’s 2 favorite targets this year.
April 12th, 2020 at 10:45 am
87
Yeah I saw that post and obviously agree totally with your take.
I actually like BigHog…haven’t walked a mile in his shoes but have walked next to many brothers who have…even worse shoes in fact.
Perhaps we’ll get through to him…maybe not.
April 12th, 2020 at 11:10 am
I think if the pandemic continues its going to be hard for any team to develop some continuity. O.J. Howard or anyone on that team believing Brady is some how going to make them better is wishful thinking. Tom doesn’t know the offense himself. If there’s a football season ,I suspect it will take six games for Brady and the offense to look anything like normalcy.
April 12th, 2020 at 12:10 pm
I suspect Tom already knows the offense backwards and forward…all the terminology…goals of the coaching staff. That doesn’t worry me.
But he will have to develop timing with OJ and all his targets. If as someone suggested on another thread they are already doing this next to the airport on Davis Island great…it’s not KNOWLEDGE that worries me…it’s timing and learning his receivers.
April 12th, 2020 at 12:43 pm
Once again, the Brady throwing to OJ is getting as old as Brady’s challenges in TB offense and Winston talk. I see Godwin talk but why the hell have I not seen multiple articles on a no doubt HOF WR Mike Evans? Strange.
April 12th, 2020 at 1:07 pm
Its easy to to love tight ends if they run and come down with ball like Gronk.
OJ has to put in a lot of work just to see his touches increase after last year. Then again ,I don’t recall Gronk running routes across the middle much either. OJ can be a weapon in the flat or on deeper routes. But he may have improve his blocking just to get those touches. Also hope that Cam can come back from injury
and come close to the production he produced earlier in his career.
April 12th, 2020 at 2:25 pm
Here is betting Brady says to Arians, I can’t trust this guy on the field. I’ll give it a month, but I bet Brady schedules a workout before then. And those who don’t make it, will be on the summer trade list
April 12th, 2020 at 6:58 pm
I saw the tight ends open a few times toward the end of last year. I did not see the balls going in their direction, though.
I expect them to get a considerable amount of plays next season, Leftwich will have another year under his belt and a QB used to tight ends.
April 12th, 2020 at 7:16 pm
“And it wasn’t like the guy behind center didn’t like throwing to his tight ends.”
He rarely, if EVER, threw to them
April 13th, 2020 at 8:57 am
OJ appears to be one of the “From the neck up,” busts.
April 13th, 2020 at 5:59 pm
I still think they should go after Edelman. Think he’ll come cheap & then restructure his contract.