Little To Quibble
June 13th, 2021
Bucs GM Jason Licht
When one goes over with a fine-tooth comb how a team handled or didn’t handle its offseason, positives and negatives are the focus.
Yet with the Bucs negatives, you really have to scrape away the paint to find something. And follically-challenged Billy Barnwell of BSPN admits he had to do some scraping.
Barnwell wonders why the Bucs got Giovani Bernard when they already had Playoff Lenny? Or, if you want to flip it, why the Bucs paid Playoff Lenny if they had their sights set on Bernard?
What they could have done differently: While Leonard Fournette played a meaningful role in the Bucs’ run to the title, I’m not sure they needed to commit $3.3 million guaranteed to Playoff Lenny and another $850,000 guaranteed to Bernard. With that being said, when we’re talking about $4 million across two veterans, you can see just how little there is to quibble with when it comes to this franchise’s spring.
Look, Joe understands keeping Playoff Lenny. He came up big in big games. Isn’t that what you want?
Now Joe knows why the Bucs went out and got Bernard. They seem to want to throw the ball out of the backfield. Given their mind-blowing talent in the passing game, this seems like a grotesque waste.
Don’t be shocked if Playoff Lenny, who was pretty good catching the ball out of the backfield in Jacksonville, has a better year catching the ball.
As for why the Bucs kept Playoff Lenny and signed Bernard? Well, would you be shocked if Mr. Seven Rings was pestering Bucs Super Bowl-winning coach Bucco Bruce Arians with texts each day pushing for both Playoff Lenny and Bernard?
June 13th, 2021 at 12:10 am
Mebbe it’s just my false impression, but Lenny didn’t seem effective catching the ball. More so than RoJo, (of course) but not near as good as James White
June 13th, 2021 at 12:46 am
I’d be surprised. Too many assumptions are made about Brady’s role in personnel. No reason to think he was on the horn pestering Jason Licht about G. Bernard as soon as he was released by Cincy. Now, was this a move made for Brady’s benefit? Of course. What makes Brady’s life easier corresponds to wins.
June 13th, 2021 at 12:50 am
sasquatch u r sooo right. Besides..receivers get injured all the time. We need a bunch of backup…
June 13th, 2021 at 1:06 am
Not likely to increase their run game by much, especially since we’ve added Bernard. Let RoJo go next year to someone that will appreciate him and get 1,000+ yards every year. If Lenny can show me that he’s really Lombardi Lenny, I think him, KV, Bernard would be a great set up for the pass happy offense in 2022.
June 13th, 2021 at 1:20 am
Never wrote that.
June 13th, 2021 at 3:18 am
I guess B Barnwell did not really pay attetion to last years offense, like so many others in the Media. Maybe Bill does not think to much about 3rd downs, sustaining drives, winning time of possession, and the defense getting more rest.
That is the dominoe effect of signing a COMPETENT and PROVEN recieving RB out of the Backfield for this Brady offensive Machine.
Opposing Defenses are going to hate Gio the drive extender. Because they will be on the field longer and getting more tired, along with Brady slicing them up, and the other RB pounding on them and making the clock disappear.
GO BIG BAD AZZ WORLD CHAMPION BUCS!!!!!!! 20-0 {28-0 Run}
June 13th, 2021 at 5:04 am
Mistake 1: Drafting a QB
Reasons: I would rather have Fitzpatrick or another savvy veteran backing up Brady. Do you really think Gabbert or Griffin is WORSE than Trask? Trask could not win us the Super Bowl. But a veteran QB could.
What we should gave done: We should have drafted a DT or 3-4 DE in the 2nd round and the 3rd round.
4th round should have been a C/G.
June 13th, 2021 at 6:21 am
Here’s the deal, Joe……The Bucs replaced LeSean McCoy $1050,000 with Giovanni Bernard $850,000….
We replaced one 3rd down back with another……would you have us just carry 3 RBs?
Will we pass more to Bernard than Lenny on 3rd downs? Maybe…..
But none of this means we are abandoning our downfield passing game.
June 13th, 2021 at 6:25 am
Here’s the deal Joe. We replaced LeSean McCoy ($1050,000) with Giovanni Bernard ($850,000)…..one 3rd down back for another.
Would you have us keep 3 RBs?
Will we pass more to Bernard on 3rd down than we would Lenny….maybe, maybe not.
None of this means we are abandoning our downfield passing game.
June 13th, 2021 at 6:28 am
Here’s the deal, Joe. We replaced LeSean McCoy $1,050,000 with Giovanni Bernard $850,000…one third down back for another.
Would you have us just keep 3 RBs?
Will we pass more to Gio than Lenny on 3rd downs….Maybe…maybe not.
None of this means we are abandoning our downfield passing game….that notion is absurd.
June 13th, 2021 at 6:41 am
Scratching my head
Rojo has stone hands. “ Hey, he worked at it in the offseason “. Dude couldnt catch a cold the past few years. So , he worked on his hands in a contract year. Sounds pretty ridiculous to me
And playoff lenny has average to decent hands. Go back and watch the regular season and playoffs. Go watch the packers gAme in playoffs. And yes the sun was in their eyes. Receivers were catching the ball.
Which brings me to Gio. They signed him for 800,00 and change guaranteed . Sounds like a bargain (to me) that could become a grand slam if he catches 40-55 balls with limited touches and a few scores. Bengals experts think he was leader of the offense. Sounds great to me. Brady’s james white 2.0. Brady gets ball out in just over 2 seconds. He can read a defense pre-snap and will simply dump off to back if safeties playing over the top on evans and godwin.
June 13th, 2021 at 7:06 am
All of the RB’s should be better this year after a year with same OLine, Brady and coaching staff… including RoJo ( who has improved EVERY year) and Vaughn.
As Joe has said before- the biggest threat to Bucs this year is potential injuries …
June 13th, 2021 at 8:00 am
I agree with TBBF, Giovani clearly signed for a player minimum deal so he could have a shot at a SB. With McCoy gone, the Bucs had an open slot and Giovani is a huge improvement over McCoy at this point in the passing game. So, why not?
@teacherman777 Says:
Do you really think Gabbert or Griffin is WORSE than Trask? Trask could not win us the Super Bowl.
We should have drafted a DT or 3-4 DE in the 2nd round and the 3rd round.
4th round should have been a C/G.
————————————————-
Trask is not here to win a SB, this year. He is not here bc he is “currently” better than Gabbert or Griffin. Trask is the hopeful future, a shot in the dark at replacing TB years down the road (hopefully)
Interior Dline, such as DT and DE were extremely weak in this recent draft. Now, more depth in the secondary might have been nice…
This year’s 3rd Rd pick, Robert Hainsey, has been is expected to fill the position at C in the future and, I believe is our backup now for C and G
June 13th, 2021 at 8:11 am
+1 TBBF. A like-for-like depth upgrade, more than a philosophical shift.
And since when is an occasional backfield pass or RB screen a grotesque waste, especially if it counters opposing defenses sitting in downfield umbrella coverages? You want to sit back 20 yards downfield in prevent defense against scooter and ME13, then you’re going to die a slow death of Gio and Lenny for 8-yard catches underneath. Heaven forbid this team become more multiple in options of attack apparently!
June 13th, 2021 at 8:22 am
Like senor Harry said. Gio is a huge upgrade for Brady to throw to. He completes Toms offensive style that worked so well in Boston. Brady now has a complete set of great receivers from all aspects of the passing game. And neither Grifen nor Gabbert were long term prospects to replace Brady long term. Trask is physically similar to Brady, not a running qb, pocket passer, even taller than Brady, and can be developed gradually, learning from Brady, improving his passing skills, and under no pressure to step into a starting role. Gabbert is there if Brady is injured this year. After the end of this season the Bucs will know if Trask is the man or if they have to upgrade in next years draft. Remember Brady came into the NFL in much the same circumstances. Not a high draft choice and no great expectations.
June 13th, 2021 at 10:46 am
Teacherman777
Agreed about Trask. Very bad move in the second round Jason. He might of been available at the end of the third. For Joe and the rest of the UF fans (no discrimination) that are lying to themselves that are already positive that Trask will take over when Brady leaves and will be able to jump right in to the dynasty spot.
Then again, he is a Buc now and any Buc is a friend of mine and anything is possible. It’s not the bandwagon, I just didn’t like the pick in the second round.
June 13th, 2021 at 11:05 am
Bernard is one of the best 3rd down receiving backs in the league & he’s not done yet.
June 13th, 2021 at 12:04 pm
You guys Crack me up! First Senor Harry is correct, Trask was drafted for the FUTURE!!!! We had the Luxury of drafting for the Future so Jason took the shot.
For those of you who think that Trask would have been available later: Do you NOT think the JL was Dialed in???? Jesus people! Let the people who get paid MILLIONS of dollars and just won the Superbowl do their job.
Did you not even notice that Two of the next three picks were QB?!?!?!?!
June 13th, 2021 at 12:23 pm
The Bucs brass understand that it was imperative to get a QB to put in the “Tampa Bay Brady QB Incubator” while they still could, who knows how long Tom will play.
Like SB said the next 2 picks were QB’s. Trask would not have been there, and Trask was who they felt the best about, to stick in the “Tampa Bay QB Incubator”
As Joe has stated, the Bucs simply could not miss the a Golden Opportunity to groom a QB with the GOAT Brady as the model for an apprentice to learn from, along with the whole QB room contributing.
So like the pick of Trask or not, the Bucs Brass felt the best about Trask of the QB’s on the Board.
And again like SB said, they get paid millions to make these decisions, and by the looks of the roster, J Licht and Co has done quite well at assembling a World Champion.
GO BIG BAD AZZ WORLD CHAMPION BUCS!!!!
June 13th, 2021 at 1:00 pm
SB….You’re obviously one of the UF fans I speak of. Behind Tyler of course, QB and DT were soft as hell this year. Bunch of people wanted a a QB with Jack Cichy health profile out of Stanford in the first round. Soft QB class is not where you begin searching for the future after Brady signed an extension and who knows when he will stop playing. Plenty of other positions that needed to be addressed for the future if you look at this roster and other than WR and TE, QB might have been the last. Gabbert and Griffin are better vets than Trask so now we have four QBs on our roster (at the moment). We signed Trask so we might be out one of those better back ups on the WIN NOW 2021. I just thought it was a really dumb spot to use our second round pick. But with my Bucs right now…Anything is possible.
#back-to-back-to-back!!!
#dynasty!!!
June 13th, 2021 at 1:12 pm
August 1976
“Like SB said the next 2 picks were QB’s.”
And Trask was the name on those other teams big board after the Bucs got him? You guys really know how this works huh? Teams just get DraftKings round one through seven and push the button.
June 13th, 2021 at 1:24 pm
I wasn’t a fan of taking Trask in the second round either. Super Bowl windows are very brief, you needn’t look any further than the one year dynasty of Seattle. As soon as Russ Wilson went off of his rookie contract, it became exceedingly difficult to keep the band together. The question becomes this: “How long do you expect Brady to continue until the wheels fall off?” If the answer is three years, which is reasonable, then Trask has one year. If that year is good (which would be very surprising) he’d be immediately off the rookie scale. You’d also have a solid but aging TB roster. Unless you see greatness in Trask, I just cannot imagine TB sustaining a Super Bowl window of opportunity along that timeline.
In terms of serving as an emergency backup, Brady just doesn’t miss games due to injury. He lost one season due to a low hit, and Drew Bledsoe filled in for Brady during the 2001 AFC Championship when Brady injured his knee early in the game. Trask is no Drew Bledsoe, the latter was considered one of the best NFL QBs back then. Simply put, Trask is like earthquake insurance… sure it’s nice, but the cost of the premium is very pricey when you consider the likelihood of an earthquake.
In my humble opinion, the selection of Trask only makes sense if you see him not as a starter, but rather as a franchise QB, and that he’ll start after two seasons.
June 13th, 2021 at 1:25 pm
I wasn’t a fan of taking Trask in the second round either. Super Bowl windows are very brief, you needn’t look any further than the one year dynasty of Seattle. As soon as Russ Wilson went off of his rookie contract, it became exceedingly difficult to keep the band together. The question becomes this: “How long do you expect Brady to continue until the wheels fall off?” If the answer is three years, which is reasonable, then Trask has one year. If that year is good (which would be very surprising) he’d be immediately off the rookie scale. You’d also have a solid but aging TB roster. Unless you see greatness in Trask, I just cannot imagine TB sustaining a Super Bowl window of opportunity along that timeline.
In terms of serving as an emergency backup, Brady just doesn’t miss games due to injury. He lost one season due to a low hit, and Drew Bledsoe filled in for Brady during the 2001 AFC Championship when Brady injured his knee early in the game. Trask is no Drew Bledsoe, the latter was considered one of the best NFL QBs back then. Simply put, Trask is like earthquake insurance… sure it’s nice, but the cost of the premium is very pricey when you consider the likelihood of an earthquake.
In my humble opinion, the selection of Trask only makes sense if you see him not as a starter, but rather as a franchise QB, and that he’ll start after two seasons.
June 13th, 2021 at 2:09 pm
Sounds like a steal to me and you can rotate fresh players in and out. Great move Licht
June 13th, 2021 at 2:42 pm
Too much ammo is better than not enough.
June 13th, 2021 at 3:00 pm
SB, totally agree with you. Trask is “possibly” the future. Licht has earned the right for his decisions to be trusted, IMO. I doubt Trask would have been there after the 2nd Rd.
SOEbuc, I get where you are coming from, but I would not call this year a “soft QB class, not with the first 3 picks, and 5 of the top 15 being QBs. Further, anyone who claims that Trask is most definitely the future QB of the Bucs is crazy. The Bucs have to take a shot, maybe multiple shots at finding our future QB. There is no guarantee that Lawrence, Wilson or Lance will be stars; not with 1st Rd picks having a 50/50 success rate. “IF” Trask is a hit, he is golden of the level of Russell Wilson who was taken in the 3rd I think. That is a big, big “IF”, but well worth the risk, IMO. And lets keep in mind, 2nd Rd picks have an even less success rate, so if JL had drafted for another position, DL for example, there is NO guarantee of success
June 13th, 2021 at 6:01 pm
SOEbuc Says:
June 13th, 2021 at 1:12 pm
August 1976
“Like SB said the next 2 picks were QB’s.”
And Trask was the name on those other teams big board after the Bucs got him? You guys really know how this works huh? Teams just get DraftKings round one through seven and push the button.
…………….
I don’t know if you ask “Would you like fries with that order ma’am”? or if you push papers for a living or fix cars.
You Don’t work in an executive manner in Football operations
You probably should be smart and shut up thinking you know more than they do
June 13th, 2021 at 6:03 pm
Just a suggestion.
June 13th, 2021 at 6:10 pm
SOE says “And Trask was the name on those other teams big board after the Bucs got him? You guys really know how this works huh?
……………….
I know someone who does. His name is Jason Licht. Not SOE buc
June 13th, 2021 at 6:56 pm
If ROJO does what he needs to do, ROjO will get the contract and Gio will be re-signed, KV will move up in the pecking order and Lenny will sign elsewhere, probably the Pats, lol
June 13th, 2021 at 8:26 pm
SOE..lol lol you take yourself a little to seriously,
So tell me, what NFL front office are you working for?
Are you a Scout for an NFL Franchise?
So BA and J Licht are clueless about the NFL?
Did you happen to look at the current WORLD CHAMPION ROSTER?
Results do matter.
I do not know you or why you say the things that you say. I assign no motives to you about what I am saying here.
If BA and J Licht believed that Trask was the best option at QB on the Board at that point, then it was time to pull the trigger or risk losing him.
SOE…You can say whatever babble about Draft Kings that you want, but like it or not SOE, it was proven out that the next 2 picks were QB’s
Again please tell us what NFL Franchise you work for?
Also have you personally talked with BA or J Licht Before and After the Draft Draft?
If so please tell what they were thinking when they pulled the trigger on Trask. He was the guy left on the Board they felt was their best option when they made the pick to groom under Brady and Coaches.
Again results speak louder than words, and the current assembled WORLD CHAMPION ROSTER speaks volumes about J Licht and BA.
We know that the roster is made of Free Agents and Draft picks that were assembled by J Licht.
J Licht built the Roster that Brady wanted to come to.
And J Licht did not fumble the signing of Brady.
So like it or not SOE they drafted Trask, and we will all see what happens.
GO BIG BAD AZZ WORLD CHAMPION BUCS!!!!!!
June 13th, 2021 at 8:56 pm
August 1976: Well said GO BUCS!
June 13th, 2021 at 9:51 pm
It’s not like Brady threw for 400 yards every game, plus both rbs has problems with catching the back where as Gio won’t have that problem. Gio will hero more than you know. It’s not a waste
June 14th, 2021 at 1:21 am
No I’m not Jason Licht who is a top tier GM. I say soft QB class because I see with MY eyes more good college QBs that will not be transitioning well into NFL QBs, Trask being one of them. Im just speaking on how I think it was a dumb f#ck move to add a rookie second round number four QB when the GOAT was going to extend. How about a CB? Davis and Whitehead in contract years. I agree with Michael Clayton that the secondary is the Bucs largest inconsistency. 6’2” Wilcox gonna be a diamond in the Licht? We shall see. Go Bucs!
June 14th, 2021 at 2:00 am
August 1976
Lol. Another too apparent Gator. But Trask is a Buc now. Let it ride.
June 14th, 2021 at 5:33 am
Sorry SOE…. I have been a Florida State fan since 1979.
Wally Woodham and Jimmy Jordan were the QB’s 1979 for the undefeated regular season for the Noles.
I could care less where a player comes from. If he can help the Bucs, then good, if not then let them go.
GO BUCS!!!!!!!!
June 14th, 2021 at 9:00 am
Joe, I don’t know why you object to a checkdown option in the passing game. It has been generally accepted since Bill Walsh invented it and Roger Craig had 1,000 receiving yards in 1984. Brady never would have come back against the Falcons four years ago in the SB without James White’s 14 receptions.