No Excuses
September 3rd, 2020
So now the table is set. How do you serve the courses and will the outcome of the dinner be a winner?
Damn nearly every position on the Bucs roster, unless you want to nitpick about the secondary — this Joe will not — is at worst a quality starter in the NFL.
Let’s take a look:
QB: Tom Brady
RB: Leonard Fournette
WR1: Mike Evans
WR2: Chris Godwin
TE1: Rob Gronkowski
TE2: O.J. Howard
LT: Donovan Smith
LG: Ali Marpet
C: Ryan Jensen
RG: Alex Cappa
RT: Tristan Wirfs
DL1: Ndamukong Suh
DL2: Will Gholston
NT: Vita Vea
OLB: Jason Pierre-Paul
OLB: Shaq Barrett
ILB: Lavonte David
ILB: Devin White
CB1: Carlton Davis
CB2: Jamel Dean
CB3: Sean Murphy-Bunting
S: Jordan Whitehead
Now Joe is fully aware you cannot have Pro Bowlers at every position but this is damn close. Joe will argue there is no better foursome of linebackers in the NFL and no better set of offensive skill positions in the NFL.
The coaching staff, as Bucs higher-ups will tell you, is the biggest and brightest. Lot of experience. Big resumes.
With an expanded playoff field (by one team in each conference), there is no way this team shouldn’t be in the playoffs come January. No way.
For this team, this loaded team, to miss the playoffs, barring a rash of injuries that would include Tom Brady, would be an unspeakable act of underachievement.
If this team misses the playoffs, Joe wouldn’t be shocked if Team Glazer executes a thorough housecleaning.
To not make the playoffs after months of hype would be a gut-punching ending to the season.
To not make the playoffs after all the huge player acquisitions would be unconscionable.
There are no excuses. Building a talent-laded team brings responsibilities and expectations. The Bucs last night didn’t just buy a top-shelf running back, they also raised the bar one more notch.
There are no excuses.
As Brady himself would write, LFG!
September 3rd, 2020 at 8:20 am
I hope fans will be allowed at the stadium this year. Would be a shame to have this roster and not be able to see them in person.
September 3rd, 2020 at 8:20 am
Joe, since you added RT Wirfs to this list, why not add Antoine winfield? He is having a great camp and appears to be well round in both run and pass support. I wouldn’t be surprised if he makes the all rookie team,
September 3rd, 2020 at 8:21 am
Pablo thinks we are going to packet Ronald Jones and OJ Howard for a top tier offense of lineman right before the trade deadline
September 3rd, 2020 at 8:22 am
Can’t wait for the New Orleans opener! I’m still in shock from the Brady signing, let alone Fournette. I keep thinking I’ll wake up and it will all have been a dream.
September 3rd, 2020 at 8:32 am
Usually its the “make or break” claims from everyone!!!!!! But for ole stale biscuit it will be the “FIRED or RETIRED”!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ole stale biscuit will retire if the roster candrag him to a Superbowl appearance, and anything else, he is FIRED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And injuries will not be an acceptable excuse!!!!!!!! He bought old players and purchased players with known injury history!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The ” real” fans expect ole stale biscuit to crumbled like he always does under pressure!!!!!!!!!!
go bucs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
September 3rd, 2020 at 8:41 am
Not sure he’s starting right off the bat.
September 3rd, 2020 at 8:45 am
Is any Buc fan going to be satisfied with just making the playoffs? Is doing a one and done Cincy Bengal style season going to be rewarding? Hell no. Right now only a Super Bowl appearance will suffice.
If this team doesn’t even make the playoffs with now 7 teams then a thorough house cleaning will be in order starting with Licht & Arians. The whole staff must go!
Super Bowl or bust!
September 3rd, 2020 at 9:39 am
Repeat. Best Bucs roster ever assembled. On paper.
September 3rd, 2020 at 9:40 am
My only concern is the secondary. They were strong the last month of last season, but are they up for the task? If we are seeing shootouts with this team every week, I think we will win most, but if our secondary is strong, I think we will be unstoppable.
September 3rd, 2020 at 10:15 am
Joe Says:
September 3rd, 2020 at 8:41 am
Joe, since you added RT Wirfs to this list, why not add Antoine winfield?
Not sure he’s starting right off the bat.
???
RB: Leonard Fournette: Not sure he’s starting right off the bat either. A great veteran addition to our RB’s but he has never seen our playbook, practiced within that playbook. Not a first-game starter. Will he play in that game Yes! I just do not think he will be the starting RB.
Week 3 and on maybe so but not at the tainted dome in NO. I would like to see him get 10-12 touches the whole game running and receiving.
September 3rd, 2020 at 10:36 am
One correction, this is not no excuse to make the playoffs, this is there is no excuse not to win the Super Bowl. Its you win the Super Bowl or the lying, backstabbing, useless coach gets fired that’s the bottom line!
Nothing but WINNING THE SUPER BOWL will be acceptable, PERIOD!!
September 3rd, 2020 at 11:12 am
Sickening. Literally bending over backwards to give Tom Brady all the weapons that Jameis never got.
If the Bucs don’t win a Super Bowl this year, it was a complete and total waste.
September 3rd, 2020 at 11:23 am
⬆️
Somebody actually gets it!
September 3rd, 2020 at 11:51 am
@Ndog … The Bucs gave up a decade of stability with their own #1 overall pick, a pick they had to go 2-14 (0-8 at home) in order to get in order to get (possibly) 2 years with Tom Brady – at the end of his career.
Like the Jon Gruden “trade” if this doesn’t yield immediate results, it was a bust.
These goobers who are hedging with “playoffs means success” nonsense are cowards who don’t know how much of the future got leveraged to make this move. Teams don’t part with good quarterbacks.
September 3rd, 2020 at 11:55 am
NDOG Go root for New Orleans traitor.
Neither you nor any other jackwagon get to tell us what MUST happen to define success. It’s YOUR definition not ours and considering you feel JW was successful your opinion is not respected here….and I don’t believe it’s just me who disrespects you.
September 3rd, 2020 at 12:00 pm
BTW Speaking of jeopardizing the future…it would be virtually impossible to damage the future any worse than we did when we made loser JW the #1 pick in the entire draft. With he and MM at the top of the board how many quality draft picks does that represent?
How many great stud players did we lost JUST to get loser Jameis. 28-42 five years down the drain. It’s about time we started playing for this year instead of the NEXT YEAR we were always promised from JW fans.
September 3rd, 2020 at 12:20 pm
Teams also dont sign “good” qbs to become the back up to the back up!
let me ask you boys, how much of the future, minus jw (bc we all know yall have a hard on for him) got “leveraged?”
September 3rd, 2020 at 1:29 pm
@SPBF:
Great posts!
But I hope that NDog stays, and continues to supply his own brand of comic relief.
tickrdr
BTW: It was reported that Chip Kelly offered two 1st’s and two 2nd’s for that #1 pick in 2015. Instead, the Bucs made the big JabooBoo.
BTW#2: Can I change my 12-4 pick in the recent poll to 13-3 or better?
BTW#3: I voted trade down in every single JBF poll.
September 3rd, 2020 at 4:03 pm
Great article. It’s all or nothing this year man. Football!
September 3rd, 2020 at 5:16 pm
Although JW is no Tom Brady,
Blaine Gabbert is no JW
Hopefully this new “Super Team” does not have to be captained by BS’s
scrub crush backup.
I’d rather see Griffen
Should have been a push to keep JW as our backup. Which I believe most would have happily lived with, being that he was actually the NFL leader in total offense, passing yards, passing yards per game,and #2 in TDs behind only the MVP Lamar Jackson
September 3rd, 2020 at 5:52 pm
JW3 also led the league in INTs in 2019, and by a WIDE margin.
Here are the top 7 teams in turnover differential (turnovers vs. takeaways).
Patriots, Saints, Packers, Seahawks,Vikings, Ravens and Chiefs.
Hmmm, what do they have in common?
Here are the bottom 7 teams in turnover differential.
What do they have in common?
Giants, Chargers, Bengals, Panthers, Buccaneers, Dolphins, and Browns.
tickrdr
BTW: The Bucs’ defense ranked 5th overall in number of takeaways last year with 28 total, bailing out JW3 and the offense many times. All the more reason for optimism this year!