Caught Empty-Handed
March 11th, 2022
Can he save the Bucs?
It’s hard to suggest the Bucs caught a raw end of the transactions earlier in the week when Denver traded for Russell Wilson and when Green Bay brought back drama queen/choke artist Aaron Rodgers.
Joe doesn’t believe either was an option for the Bucs. With Wilson, less is more. The fewer times he throws the ball the better he is.
Rodgers? Joe has maintained not only wouldn’t Rodgers play in Tampa — he hates the turf at the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway — but his record in warm weather sites is frightening.
(Consider Rodgers has a losing record in games played in Tampa and only once when the Packers played the Bucs in Tampa with Rodgers were the Bucs any good.)
But Conor Orr of SI.com is of the mind that at least Rodgers and Wilson were options for the Bucs and with both of those off the board, Tampa Bay will settle for sloppy seconds — or Blaine Gabbert.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
While the Buccaneers always felt like a candidate to regress massively, another domino off the board further puts their situation into perspective. Though they are desperately trying to hold onto pieces from their 2020 Super Bowl run, they will end up overpaying and ultimately overcompensating for what they’ve lost in Tom Brady. Tampa Bay returns to a once-in-a-blue-moon football outpost while their formula for success gets perfected elsewhere and used against them.
Joe doesn’t think the Bucs will overspend unless it is for Deshaun Watson. And if Watson can bring a lasting contender to Tampa Bay, is that overspending? Isn’t the whole goal to compete for a Super Bowl?
A quarterback like Watson doesn’t come available often. It seems to Joe a handful of draft picks for a quarterback the quality of Watson is a small price to pay.
March 11th, 2022 at 4:04 am
Watson alone won’t win a Super Bowl, those draft picks will mean the Bucs will have to spend money to get talent to fill holes that are opening up due to attrition and age.
March 11th, 2022 at 4:14 am
Rather cheer for Gabbert, and Trask than that POS. So would the Glazers, they learned from Jameis.
March 11th, 2022 at 4:23 am
Watson will never win a Super Bowl. He might bring some great football … for a while, before blowing himself up. I say pass.
March 11th, 2022 at 4:23 am
I’d rather bring back the mcclowns than sigh watson
March 11th, 2022 at 5:33 am
If Brady really wants to go to SF, and they really want him- I say we trade him for George Kittle, just signed a five year contract- let Gronk follow him over there- Good luck on your sunset tour, thanks for the memories…Can you imagine if we had that guy along with Evans and Godwin assuming he heals back to his former self?
Who’s with me on this trade idea? I doubt SF would part w him but you never know…
March 11th, 2022 at 5:43 am
Watson is a turd — do you really want a turd as successor to the GOAT in that locker room?
March 11th, 2022 at 5:47 am
The joes would trade the whole Bucs franchise for a dispicable QB. Didn’t learn anything from flaky Freeman or WinSTUNNED? F that…
March 11th, 2022 at 5:48 am
Kicking the tires on Watson would reveal a well made tire with a leaky valve stem—22 leaks have been reported to date.
Tell me, would you want to set your team bus atop a set of defective tires?
Personally, I’d rather spend some money on updating my vehicle and keep the cheaper tires I already own. Who knows, I might get more mileage out of them than I think.
If not, I’ll shop for tires again next year.
March 11th, 2022 at 5:58 am
Joes promoting franchise killer Watson. Unreal!!
March 11th, 2022 at 6:10 am
I just hope the whole situation gets solved with a happy ending for everyone.
March 11th, 2022 at 6:20 am
Go all out to get Watson!! I mean mortgage it all!! Probably won’t be a popular opinion here, but we just gave Godwin the tag. You don’t do that only to sign Bridgewater, who we can get anyways. You do that to attract Watson, who has a no-trade clause. Trask isn’t ready! Hopefully Watson hand-picks us as his best option snd sticks it to the Texans like they stuck it to him and forces them to accept less compensation than others may offer. We clearly are his best option as far as complimentary talent and its not even close. Seattle has great WRs but what else and he clearly saw what happened with Wilson. He can win here and the division is down. Make this happen Licht, Arians, Glazers!!
March 11th, 2022 at 6:26 am
Let’s just resign ourselves to the fact it will be Gabbert until Trask takes over. The Bucs may have been counting on one more year of learning from Brady, but that’s out the window. If he can’t go, then they have to admit they blew a second round pick. It’s still a little fishy to me that the Bucs talk Trask up, yet he may as well be invisible.
March 11th, 2022 at 6:29 am
Trask: Played well in the SEC. Wasn’t the plan from the beginning to let him sit and learn at the feet of the master for a year or two. Point being, this talk of him only being fourth string and not even dressing for a game was the plan. Not saying he’s the real deal just hopeful that he is. I’m changing my name from “Jaymiss” to “Eternal Optimist”
March 11th, 2022 at 6:34 am
You want to follow up a class act like Tom Brady with him please!!!!!!!!!.
March 11th, 2022 at 7:01 am
Thomas E is right about Watson. He has a laundry list of charges against him. He will take the 5th. Garapollo is better than Gabbert.
March 11th, 2022 at 7:22 am
We haven’t made moves because we’re getting Deshaun, it’s really not that hard to see …. All we did is secure his wideout in Godwin.. Darcie glazer wants to win rings, not win a citizen award
GoBucs!
March 11th, 2022 at 7:27 am
Joe, your article is missing one important factor. Well, make that 22 important factors.
March 11th, 2022 at 7:30 am
What has Watson done in this league? Good Lord this guy has been placed on such a high pedestal for having meaningless stats.
March 11th, 2022 at 7:33 am
Dewey Selmon, that was hilarious.
March 11th, 2022 at 7:42 am
Dewey wins the comment of the day.
March 11th, 2022 at 7:49 am
Lol all of you talking bs about Watson. If the rape allegations were true, why not a single woman file criminal charges? 22 allegations and 0 criminal charges. Why is that? Because evidence doesn’t support rape. These women all filed civil lawsuits. They’re looking for a payday not a conviction. Because they know it didn’t happen. Much like the rape case against Big Ben and Winston. Not a single criminal charge pressed by these despicable women.
March 11th, 2022 at 8:10 am
The obvious character flaws of Watson probably go much deeper than his massage hassles…..stay the f away!!!
March 11th, 2022 at 8:39 am
Tire analogies and happy endings… I feel like I’m driving south on the ol DM past Gandy with the windows all the way down and my dog chomping at the air. Instead of staring at more snow and 30 degrees out of my office window. Thanks for the nostalgia and smile fellas… eff it, I just booked tix for home
March 11th, 2022 at 8:40 am
Every team that needs a qb has a better chance of getting him than us. Carolina, even Seattle now has the capital to go get him. The colts or Steelers could jump on board too. When it comes to trades you never know, I didn’t see Russ going to Denver
March 11th, 2022 at 8:41 am
I say build through the draft and use Trask or Galbreth this year behind center. If Brady really wants to go to San Fran trade him for future draft picks. Plenty of good options next year at QB. Plus you never know, Trask might be the real deal! Also rebuild the the D and O lines cause that is where games are won or lost!
March 11th, 2022 at 8:53 am
Bucs92′ the bucs are to tight with $ to get Watson or any other high paid QB they only paid Brady 25 mil a year. They are going from that to nearly 40 mil a year. Plus their draft picks are not very attractive 27th pick in the first and 59th in the second. So it cost the bucs 3 first rounders and 3 second rounders.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:52 am
Don’t overpay for Watson! I say keep the draft picks, in fact trade Brady if he really wants to go to San Fran and get more picks! Rebuild the O and D lines and go with TRASK at QB this year! You never know, he might be the real deal. If not, better options coming out next year in the draft. We had a great 2 year run with Brady bur time to move on!
March 11th, 2022 at 10:00 am
I can’t believe that we’re still having the Deshaun Watson discussion. Had a very good 2020 season (last year that he played): 33 TDs passing, threw for 70%, and oh ya, Houston went 4-13 (which was Watson’s QB record that year).
Kinda tells me that a decent QB surrounded by a crappy team will have, oh ya, a crappy record. And if the Bucs spent what few salary CAP dollars AND draft picks we have to bring Watson here, we’d be a crappy team just like Houston.
Let’s spend 2022 (and 2023 if we have to) TEAM BUILDING instead of constantly lusting after the shiny bobble. MAYBE Trask will be the answer we need at QB; or MAYBE he won’t be. There’s only 1 way to find out. IF he is, we’re sitting pretty. IF he isn’t, at least we’ll know and can address our need for a starting QB in 2023, either via FA OR via the draft. But in order to give ANY QB a fair chance, we have to support them with a decent TEAM. And right now, our TEAM has more holes than a piece of Swiss cheese.
March 11th, 2022 at 10:03 am
I read recently that the Bucs are trying to talk Phillip Rivers out of Retirement!
Watson scares me, not only because of his legal problems, but because he quit on his team.
But he does have all the talent in the world, and would make us a contender again.
Plus, he is only 26 years old too.
March 11th, 2022 at 10:09 am
I would rather lose than sign Watson. “Simple as that!” At least I can cheer for Trask. If Watson were to sign I would be rooting against my own team.
March 11th, 2022 at 10:19 am
PHILIP RIVERS out of retirement !!! Be still my heart 😳
March 11th, 2022 at 10:55 am
Many Bucs fans will be disappointed when they run out trask and gabbert this season but it’s going to happen. I cannot see how the Bucs would be interested in Watson after those allegations.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:11 am
W. Dunn charity bought and built his mothers home so Watson started a similar charity. He was always known as a model citizen in Houston until he had a problem with the football brass and refused to play for them. Once he want public suddenly all these civil suits happened. I’m not claiming to have inside information but I do have insight that others don’t. My brother lives there and is has been affiliated with a former HTX coaching administration. So he still runs in those circles. I text’d him about it and got a one word response. Railroaded. We always meet up for the NFL draft. I’ll be curious to hear more what he knows.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:16 am
I think we’ll either get him or we’ll play him twice a year for the next 10 years. Panthers are going to pounce if the Bucs don’t.
I agree ☝️ that he probably would still prefer to play here and stick less compensation to the Texans.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:25 am
Trade those damn picks… Watson is more valuable than Joe Tryon and anybody we would draft in the next 2 years combined. If Brady comes back, work out a 3 team deal that makes the 49ers, us, and Houston happy. Anybody saying that we should deal with what we have is delusional. How did we do with this team before we got Brady? Let’s not overreact to how good we are without a GREAT QB.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:30 am
Big deal, Deshaun likes to get massages… all of you calling him out are a bunch of clowns. You don’t think those women knew what they were doing? None of them are claiming force, and all of them came back for more to his home… why is that even illegal? It’s pretty much legal everywhere else in the world. Jerry Jones, Dan Snyder, and their respective staffs do much more sketchy things than this…
March 11th, 2022 at 11:33 am
Yall are soft for not approving my comment. Is this an open conversation or are you only approving those who don’t want Watson? What a joke.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:26 pm
The problem is great QB’s can still handicap an organization these days based on the contract. So when you give several picks up for a couple of seasons. It really puts a team behind the 8ball. I would like Watson but I don’t want that stupid high contract and to overpay a lot in draft picks.
March 11th, 2022 at 10:00 pm
Say what you want about his off field issues but Deshaun Watson is an incredible QB and he would make us a contender.
He is being put on a pedestal because he is on a pedestal statistically. He has the 5th best TD to INT ratio of all time. Tied for 2nd all time for rating. He has the highest career completion percentage of all time.
March 12th, 2022 at 9:43 am
who cares whos qb if we don’t fix offensive line and get a decent rb if they don’t do that doesn’t really matter whos getting sacked
March 12th, 2022 at 5:00 pm
Few hopefuls that could potentially come Ridder/Willis would be nice additions. But Buccs have what #1 pick is 27th? Kinda thins the herd for potential qb’s outta this current draft pool.