Changing The Culture
May 28th, 2021
TE O.J. Howard explains.
A lot has been typed about the impact of Tom Brady. Not just on the team, but the entire Bucs organization.
This enlightenment happened, from many accounts, the day Brady signed with the Bucs last year.
Joe is of the mind Brady was the singular reason why the Bucs went from an NFL fire hydrant in a dog park to Super Bowl champion in less than a year.
Former Colts punter and SiriusXM radio host Pat McAfee has heard the same stories about Brady. So when Bucs tight end O.J. Howard appeared on McAfee’s show earlier this week, McAfee asked Howard if Brady changed the organization from the Glazer Family down to the landscapers.
Howard said, in so many words, absolutely.
Pat McAfee: Has Tom you think — you were there before Tom — has the entire building’s culture, you think, potentially changed because Tom is coming in there? I’m talking athletic trainers, equipment managers. I’m talking everybody as soon as he showed up. Are you feeling that? Is that something that is real?
O.J. Howard: Real. Super real. You can feel it, man. I mean, it wasn’t even me. There were guys that were there years before me. I played there three years before Tom came. I knew the culture. And as soon as he walked in the building it, it felt like — I told people, ‘Bro, this feels like Alabama to me.’ We’re coming in with a mindset. We are focused. Guys were ready to win. We took the field not wondering if we were going to win. We had confidence. We had the talent. Tom just brings a level of confidence to everybody the way he carries himself. And most importantly you know you have this guy on your side.
Now that last sentence is very interesting to Joe. Howard wasn’t by chance referencing DeSean Jackson or Swaggy Baker, was he?
In the interview, Howard also added something that spoke to the lack of focus players had prior to Brady coming in. Or at least it seems a lack of focus on offense.
Howard mentioned when Brady tells someone to do something, he doesn’t have to tell them five times. He says it once and it is taken care of.
Before Brady, were dudes not laser-focused and just making sure they didn’t get hurt so they could collect checks from Team Glazer? Or did players simply have a lack of respect until Brady showed up?
This is all very interesting to Joe.
May 28th, 2021 at 8:38 am
Another beautiful article from Joe….about Brady (no monikers)
This is what leadership is all about and we simply haven’t had it from the QB position….and that’s really where it needs to come from.
It took someone with Brady’s resume to get it done.
May 28th, 2021 at 9:04 am
If that is “beautiful” Joe has to strive harder to be ugly.
LOVE the “monikers.” The spice of life! Gotta add some more. Any suggestions?
May 28th, 2021 at 9:45 am
Sure……Crypto Currency Investing…… (look it up)
Also, have suggested you put in the hyperlinks so that monikers could be in red and either skipped or actually there would be a link to the adjectives you have chosen.
You’ve done it for Peter King…why not Brady.
May 28th, 2021 at 9:59 am
Exactly TBBF. I don’t know where half of the Brady Monikers come from and would like to see….. please Joe!?
May 28th, 2021 at 10:04 am
I wouldn’t blame Koetter for the team’s lack of focus. I mean, I would in the sense of everything comes back to the head coach, but….
The reality is that it is insanely hard to turn around the losing culture of a locker room. A really good, even “great”, ones can’t do that. You have to be at an ELITE coaching level.
There is a reason that what Tony Dungy did in Tampa was such a huge deal. It doesn’t mean that every other head coach was just plain horrible necessarily, but it is incredibly hard.
Dungy has a gold jacket for a reason.
So does the blame fall on the head coach? You could say that, but I also don’t think that every one of the 8 head coaches that didn’t take us to the playoffs should be considered bad either.
I probably sound like Koetter’s momma. Haha
May 28th, 2021 at 10:14 am
You will be able to tell if it’s a culture change the next 4 or 5 years. 1 or 2 years is not a real culture change they have to have sustain success and that means after Brady is gone. Then we will know if the culture has really changed.
May 28th, 2021 at 10:17 am
LEADERSHIP!!!!!!! Brady has it! Jeter has it! Jordan has it! Montana has it! These are athletes and people who have that innate ability to lead men to victory! THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN!!!!!!!!! GO BUCS!!!!!!!
May 28th, 2021 at 10:54 am
They were beaten puppies just waiting for the next beating. Brady came in and showed them how to be confident in themselves.
May 28th, 2021 at 11:27 am
Thanks Joe! Sure Brady changed the culture. The players always had it in them, but how the hell did Brady know that? Amazing! GO BUCS!
May 28th, 2021 at 12:05 pm
Hey Joe….. I say long live JBF’s “Moniker Mania” yes Joe, “Living Legend ” would be a good addition lol
GO WORLD CHAMPION BUCS!!!!!!!
May 28th, 2021 at 12:56 pm
I never commented on the moniker thing before, but I have to admit that this post was a more entertaining and enjoyable read due to no lengthy moniker reading/trying to skip to get to the good parts.
May 28th, 2021 at 1:31 pm
I think it’s just normal workplace behavior. When a great coworker tells you what to do, you listen. When a mistake prone coworker tells you what to do, you don’t.
May 28th, 2021 at 3:10 pm
conference-transcending
May 28th, 2021 at 11:24 pm
Am I the only one who saw a SUBSTANTIAL ongoing culture change after only one year with Bruce Arians at the helm? There is no doubt that Tom Brady put us over the top in regards to attaining the mountain top in his first year, however!
I was one of those who had ignored TB for many years so I really did not know what to expect from him when he arrived.
May 28th, 2021 at 11:31 pm
Brady and the Bucs won by 22.
Brady’s first 5 Super Bowls he won by a combined 19 points.
So this is getting easier for him… 😂