Concern For Short Weeks
May 17th, 2020
Former Bucs G Ian Beckles.
Like most Bucs fans, former Bucs guard Ian Beckles is stoked over getting to watch his team five times in primetime this season.
That’s partly because the popular local sports radio personality said he played in so few of them during his NFL career.
“I know I didn’t play on Thursday night,” Beckles said in his podcast, “In the Trenches.”
At one stretch in the schedule, the Bucs will play four of five games in primetime. This seems to have Beckles concerned.
Beckles added playing on short weeks takes a toll on an NFL player’s body, and two of those four primetime games Joe cited are Thursday and Monday games.
“[Three] games [total] with short turnarounds,” Beckles said. “I don’t think the average fan knows how tough that is. [Playing a Thursday after a Sunday game] is tough on anybody’s body. Mentally and physically, that is tough sledding.
“When you are Tom Brady and Rob Gronskowski and you have been in the league for a while, your body is beat up, that’s not what you really want is those short turnaround games. So let’s keep an eye on that and how it affects our older guys.”
Beckles added, however, that the Bucs must come to play in those primetime games or they might return to being poisonous to networks for national television.
“Obviously it is great for all the players that want to get maximum exposure,” Beckles said. “You know, Mike Evans and Chris Godwin and all of these guys who want to make a name for themselves, now is the time to do it.
“You’ve got the GOAT at quarterback, with [Rob] Gronkowski there, there are going to be a lot of eyes on the Buccaneers. So if you want to make a name for yourself, now is the time.”
That’s just it. If fans want to see a lot of the Bucs on primetime in the future, the Bucs better win no fewer than two of these games. Otherwise, it’s very likely it would be a long, long time before we see more than two Bucs nationally televised games without a playoff game included.
Of course, getting to the playoffs for a change and maybe make a run at the Super Bowl would help keep the Bucs on primetime, too.
May 17th, 2020 at 12:10 pm
Beckles happy about something? Thought that was a misprint.
May 17th, 2020 at 12:44 pm
SC bucs fan: awesome.
Yea, what he said! ^^^
May 17th, 2020 at 12:50 pm
The horse’s face is like who the f is this guy?🐴
May 17th, 2020 at 12:56 pm
Some are actually longer weeks…..the MNF after the previous Sun game…..and the Sun Night games after the previous Sun games are actually longer….
The Thurs night game is shorter but every team must endure that.
May 17th, 2020 at 1:11 pm
Sometimes I cant tell if Joe is being funny with his thumbnails or if he’s taking settle shots at people.
May 17th, 2020 at 1:41 pm
Is that the horse that the “genius” Beckles punched out when he got arrested? Just sayin…….hehehehe
May 17th, 2020 at 2:10 pm
This is just me …CGodwin ad Big Mike are already household names and one other fact they did it without TB12 …now if TB12 can bring out some other talent on this team I’ll be happy with that!!!
May 17th, 2020 at 2:24 pm
Skip Balys was saying in a video this week and he has high hopes for the Bucs but said we totally got screwed with the schedule starting with game one at NO. Bucs made the biggest off-season boom in a very long time and yet we always have to get f#cked over by NFL. Classic.
May 17th, 2020 at 3:04 pm
SOE come on man. F***ed over? That’s a bit dramatic. Because of one game? Jeez, maybe we should just forfiet cause they screwed us. That game is totally unwinnable. How dare they give us a hard game.
May 17th, 2020 at 3:04 pm
What’s the problem? Beat NO and we start the season on top of the division. Why is everybody so scared of NO? It’s one game. You’d think we’d hadn’t beaten the Saints before.
May 17th, 2020 at 3:31 pm
Bucs always want to complain about something. Short weeks now, that’s what happens with prime time games all the sheep on this website wanted. People complained about too much travel distance wise, then it was road games back to back.not being able to prepare because of weather or hurricanes. Bucs just want a built in excuse.
May 17th, 2020 at 4:01 pm
Buddy you are right the complaining is ridicilous. Reguardless the short weeks being a big deal still has merit. I don’t know how tough a shorten week is but former NFL stars do and we hear all the time it isn’t easy.
Using it as a excuse is pretty lame. But we can still use it as a measuring stick. Point it that’s it’s gonna take some mental toughness to get through a stretch of short weeks….If we see the Bucs start to crumble in these tougher games we shouldn’t use it as a excuse. Instead use it as evidence this team just aren’t mentally tough enough to compete.
Same applies for last year played a much tougher long road trip. I came back bitter about that trip with a losing record but I will commend the grit we showed down the stretch of that road trip. We played some damn good football games there, even though we lost.
I expect this team to come out just as hard this year ready to play good football. And I expect us to be a better team this year and win these tough games like we couldn’t do last year. And if we can’t come out and do it then we just aren’t tough enough. No excuses. Either show up like good teams do or you just aren’t good enough.
May 17th, 2020 at 4:07 pm
It was just a part of the discussion. At NO week one was just where he started. And I’m certainly not afraid of being the underdog week one, but Bayles was just talking about what Joe is talking about, with the less practicing and OTA. I’m still saying between between 11-5 and 13-3 to a true Bucs fan not a national that says we’re a 9-10 win team cus Brady is to old and can’t work with BA.
May 17th, 2020 at 4:19 pm
No sheep here. Talk Bucs football not cute little insights towards Ndog and Kobe like so many.
May 17th, 2020 at 4:20 pm
It wasn’t just this article though. People are crapping their pants over NO since the schedule came out. We play them twice a year every year. This is nothing new.
May 17th, 2020 at 4:29 pm
Lol. You guys are funny. The saints are beatable every year especially week one. Dirk even put up 48 on em week one a couple short seasons ago. Anyone can beat anyone. That’s why we watch. Brees can hardly throw it 40 yards anymore either. Might be an easy game by the time it’s over. Let’s wait n see. Go Bucs
May 17th, 2020 at 5:12 pm
Knuckle Sandwitch……And they crapped themselfs when we had to open with New Orleans and Philly two years ago. We win both and finish 5-11.
They crapped themselfs last year about our road schedule. We win 2 home games and finish 7-9.
A couple years back it was our division is too hard and 3 out of 4 teams finish with a losing record. He k, I remember one year our division won by an 8 win team and we were still talking playoff chance with 2 wins in December.
These narritives rarely play out. Only bad teams whine about schedules which is why we hear about it every year.
May 17th, 2020 at 5:14 pm
“Only bad teams whine about schedules which is why we hear about it every year.”
Amen J.J. !
May 17th, 2020 at 5:16 pm
Agree with you Knuckle. Be the team no one wants to play. Do your job, kick some A$$!
There is zero film on this Bucs Team on O. We know everything about the Saints. Would much rather play them in the first game for that very reason.
Go Bucs!
In BA I Trust!
May 17th, 2020 at 6:16 pm
Just STFU and use half the energy the Lightning players do and win like they do. Hell they play more and travel more.
May 17th, 2020 at 7:33 pm
BUC CHEEKS Says:
May 17th, 2020 at 12:50 pm
The horse’s face is like who the f is this guy?🐴
that was funny ….never saw a horse do that…
May 18th, 2020 at 12:46 am
All anyone can talk about it the “totality of talent on Bucs” > Brady, Gronk, Evans, Godwin, OJ, Brate….. Jiminy Christmas! Get real, Tompa will find one of these six players open against the Saints on any play on opening day, regardless of “prep”. Not to mention RB options…..R-E-L-A-X.
May 18th, 2020 at 9:09 am
When the NFL apologizes for you schedule….. I don’t think the complaining was uncalled for.
May 18th, 2020 at 9:09 am
Your*
May 18th, 2020 at 8:16 pm
Heckles is right on the money.