Juice
April 28th, 2020
Kid has wheels.
No, sorry. Joe is not going to work himself into a panting sweat over a seventh-round pick.
The final round of the draft is more a Hail Mary than anything. Most of these guys are camp meat. However, if used intelligently, the Bucs may have a weapon in LaLa running back Raymond Calais.
(Joe always liked how his good friend the Dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, “The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig, used to refer to Louisiana-Lafayette as “LaLa.” You know, the abbreviations of the two words?)
Banking on a Sun Belt running back who barely missed undrafted free agency is a borderline pipedream. But sound coaches, like Bill Belicheat, have a saying. “Don’t tell me what he can’t do; tell me what he can do.”
And what this Calais can do is run, as pointed out by former NFL scout and current director of the Senior Bowl Jim Nagy pointed out.
#Bucs: Louisiana RB Raymond Calais 7th Rd. Smart teams target players with a redeeming trait late in draft and Calais has speed. Saw him play live last fall and he’s got juice. Ran 4.42 at Combine. 49ers hitting on Raheem Mostert is why this philosophy makes sense.
— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) April 27, 2020
Undrafted Mostert bounced around the NFL for a few years and finally found a landing spot with the 49ers a couple of years ago. While not a go-to guy, because of injuries when the 49ers needed him the most — last year’s playoffs including Super Bowl — Mostert shined.
Given how desperately shallow the running back position is with the Bucs, Joe would hope Calais can make the roster.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:08 am
Camp Fooder ^^^^^^^
April 28th, 2020 at 10:23 am
He’s a lightweight. (188ibs) Don’t know how much pounding he can take but I’m sure Arians will use him up like a non rechargeable battery.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:23 am
For the most part you’re right on this one Joe, but him being a contributor is certainly possible. Not the same type of players but recently we’ve seen guys like Phillip Lindsay, Matt Brieda, and Raheem Mostert all have big roles and do good things as undrafted running backs.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:27 am
It’s not like we have Zeke and Barkley in our backfield; there is room for a guy who can play.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:33 am
Scratch off ticket…
April 28th, 2020 at 10:37 am
Darren Sproles please.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:38 am
Watch this guys tape. It is very surprising he lasted until the end of the 7th round. His only issue is he is small.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:38 am
Sc – agreed. Furthermore I don’t think we NEED a Saquan Barkley. The Bucs are a passing offense, why in the actual F would anyone want to hand the ball off 30 gd times when we have the MOST weapons in the entire NFL. USE THE TALENT WE HAVE! People are whining too much. We just need a threat and some consistency like what dion Lewis and James white provided for Brady. IMO people are getting wayyyyyyy too caught up in things that are neither here nor there. The days of the Terrell Davis types getting 35 caries for 185 are over.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:53 am
If he can play Special Teams he’ll make the squad.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:55 am
The amount of new plays, folds and deceptions that he adds will make for a fun offense to watch.
He could be more than just an outlet, if he has time to learn it all. It might take a few games for the offense to reach its potential.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:55 am
All he has to do is beat out an often injured TJ Logan. He doesn’t need to be the next Walter Payton.
We carried 4 RBs last year and we will probably carry 4 RBs this year as well.
It Logan can keep his roster spot that’s fine. But he better work his arse off and stay healthy because this kid can ball. Check yo sheet!
April 28th, 2020 at 11:06 am
Honestly in the tape/highlights I could find I wasn’t impressed really.
He’s playing no competition / just running by everyone. If he ran a 4.28 at the combine I’d be more intrigued but I felt like I was just watching a 4.4 guy runnning past a bunch of slow LBs & Safeties when a hole blew open.
The 4.5 LBs and 4.4 S’s of the NFL won’t be burned like that. Rojo IMO is still our best big play threat at RB.
April 28th, 2020 at 11:27 am
@Gofortheface30
That’s exactly what I have been saying. I don’t understand why people think we have to have the second coming of Barry Sanders in our backfield. We just need reliable backs to do their jobs. If run blocking is better then rushing should improve as well. This is why you get Tom Brady, Gronk, and The first round tackle.
April 28th, 2020 at 11:27 am
LC…don’t think he was brought in to challenge Rojo. He will likely be a situational player, running the occasional wheel route and such, and a ST returner. I expect nothing more.
April 28th, 2020 at 11:30 am
Warrick Dunn did just fine at 5’9″ maybe 185lbs and maybe had 12-15 carries per game and a few catches a game. Ray Calais maybe be able to do some of the same things 7-10 touches per game. Not sure what the problem is with this pick.
April 28th, 2020 at 11:33 am
I can only see him making the team as a kick returner. Hopefully, he proves me wrong and becomes the next Tarik Cohen.
April 28th, 2020 at 11:36 am
There’s no problem whatsoever with this pick. There’s no problem whatsoever with the Bucs 3rd Round pick, either. Some people just like to complain. If he makes the team, fine. If he makes the practice team, fine. If he gets cut, fine.
April 28th, 2020 at 11:41 am
The guy who calls Calais “Camp Fooder”…It’s “Fodder”, Mel Kiper the 3rd. You might be right on this, but saying Antoine Winfield isn’t any good because he’s a “shrimp” shows you never have watched football.
April 28th, 2020 at 11:46 am
@Joe Winfield is not a Shrimp we need to educate people, he’s 5’9 and Tyrann “Honey badger” Mathieu is also 5’9. I don’t understand people calling him shrimp and not Tyrann shrimp
April 28th, 2020 at 12:57 pm
@mark
I don’t think so either. Just saying I’m not seeing super elite speed. I hope he can find a role as a returner – that seems to be his best chance to make an impact.
April 28th, 2020 at 1:29 pm
He would be a little cheaper than tj logan
April 28th, 2020 at 1:34 pm
God, I sure miss The Big Dog.
It sure is a pity he will not be around to see us win another Super Bowl.
But I am sure him and Chris Thomas will be watching.
April 28th, 2020 at 2:12 pm
I don’t know much but I know I love him.
April 28th, 2020 at 2:56 pm
He won’t be on the game day 46 if he even makes the 53. Practice squad.
April 28th, 2020 at 3:15 pm
I like this pick. He has speed and we need speed.
April 28th, 2020 at 7:29 pm
With small guys it’s not about speed it’s about quickness.that’s why work done was so good not his speed but his quickness.
April 28th, 2020 at 7:30 pm
Warrick Dunn
April 28th, 2020 at 9:50 pm
He’s a 7th rounder = practice squad or cut.
April 28th, 2020 at 10:21 pm
This kids a Buc so I am obviously going to root for him to do well, just like I will for Vaughn and Rojo. However, until one of these guys proves that they can be a consistent threat to defenses, I will have zero faith that they can be. Licht has yet to draft or sign even a solid running back during his tenure and I will need to see it to believe it. Sign a veteran running back that is actually good Licht!
April 28th, 2020 at 11:53 pm
anyone else remember Michael Morton? This is who he reminds me of…
April 28th, 2020 at 11:54 pm
All draft choices after rd. 3 need to be able to play special teams to make team.
April 29th, 2020 at 7:08 pm
Tarik Cohen-type traits and skills.