What Does Tom Brady Want?
August 3rd, 2022
“Don’t worry Ryan. I will make some phone calls about centers. The NFL cannot touch me for tampering.”
In the mind of a former NFL suit, the Bucs are handling a very, very tough situation almost as best as they can.
The same day Bucs center Ryan Jensen went down with a significant knee injury, the former coffee fetcher for Bill Walsh, Al Davis and Bill Belicheat, Michael Lombardi, recorded his most recent podcast episode of “GM Shuffle.”
Lombardi did not know that Jensen will miss months, maybe the year. Lombardi explained what a team needs to do in training camp if they lose such a key player: Turn the page and prepare with what you have, or go swing a deal.
“Ultimately, [the Bucs] have to have an emergency list guy or they move someone to center they feel they can win with at that position,” Lombardi said.
Enter Robert Hainsey.
But also notice Bowles has yet to say Jensen’s replacement is on the roster. It could be Hainsey, it could be Nick Leverett or it could be someone on another roster.
While explaining how a team should handle a loss like Jensen, Lombardi detailed damn near everything the Bucs are currently doing.
“You are going to have to deal with injuries,” Lombardi said. “It’s sad. You don’t want to have it happen to Jensen or any player. But that is part of the job. You are not getting through this thing pitching a perfect game. It’s not a Hollywood movie.”
Lombardi noted this is how front offices earn their salaries. Did the team have capable backups ready to roll? If not, can they find one?
“You have to find players who can fill in and can play,” Lombardi said. “That’s the job of Jason Licht. That’s the job of the front office. … You have to have a contingency plan. You can’t just go, ‘Oh my God, we’re losing’ — you have to move on.”
It seems like the Bucs are doing that. Joe heard last week that Bucs told players they all have to start preparing for Jensen not to return. That move is exactly what Lombardi said the Bucs should do.
“I know there is a delicate balance between feeling sorry for the player who got hurt,” Lombardi said. “But you have to move on. The sooner you move on — you have to send messages to your team that you have to be ready to go and there is no magic wand. There are no players sitting on their couch right now who can come in and be a great player.”
If Tom Brady really doesn’t want Hainsey to play center — that narrative has been pushed this week by some in the local Fourth Estate — then Joe has to wonder what center Brady has spoken to or communicated with in the NFL?
If players don’t have to worry about getting popped for tampering, then Brady can be the point man for trade talks and the Bucs can claim plausible deniability.
August 3rd, 2022 at 6:27 am
Miami apparently….that’s the answer to the headline question right?!
August 3rd, 2022 at 6:52 am
I think Hainsey is going to be fine. I’m more worried about Stinnie/Goedke.
August 3rd, 2022 at 6:55 am
Yeah. Passive aggressive joe to the rescue! The same joe that took forever to warm up to brady being here in the first place 😂
August 3rd, 2022 at 6:57 am
Thisisouryear
No doubt. Seems like both are getting tossed around in these practices.
August 3rd, 2022 at 7:01 am
I think the players have moved on. It’s the Joes on this site that think there’s a player that the Bucs can easily trade for. If FA Tetter was the answer I would think the Bucs would’ve brought him in by now. They wouldn’t wait till the end of training camp, and preseason to bring the guy in cold off the couch to start the season.
August 3rd, 2022 at 7:16 am
It’s a like a Lifetime movie. You’re the kid everyone wants to push around in school but your over developed buddy will destroy anyone that messes with you until, you find out your big buddy and his family are moving away. Brady is gulping right now and going through his rolodex. I say retire and show all these Bucs fans that question Brady’s loyalty what a real turncoat is. 2 seasons over 10k yds passing, almost 100 tds, a SB and if not for coaching a strong possible 2nd and a NFC South title not to mention the bad knee he played with and the helmet shot to the face from Miller in his last game. Can you imagine how well he would of played if he was loyal??? Arsewipe Bucs fans. This guy found out the hard way the NFL is just a business, he ate shat for years under Belichick.
August 3rd, 2022 at 7:36 am
Is there anybody here who thinks that this staff is very cable of knowing what we have already in camp vs what is on the street or up for a trade?….please put some faith in your team ….don’t put all of (2022 season) eggs in T Brady’s pockets!
August 3rd, 2022 at 7:48 am
Jenesen’s loss is very important, but I can’t help thinking back to the Rams of the mid – late 90’s. Trent Green goes down and some clip board carrying bench warmer named Kurt Warrner comes in. We don’t know what we have in Hainsey but who knows..maybe we find our future center for the next decade. Some guys just need an oppurtunity. Glass half full folks!
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:10 am
Hainsey is no Jensen. And Brate is no Gronk. We saw plenty of evidence of that in the past. That’s why the Bucs scrambled and got Rudolph. And it’s why they should scramble and get Tretter. We need backups for backups to try to makeup for what we lost. Solid depth. That’s the key. Be able to rotate guys in and out and keep them fresh. You think Hainsey can handle a whole game against the Rams DL?? Why do that when you can rotate Tretter in.
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:24 am
Isn’t it obvious what Brady wants? To get away from this Mickey Mouse franchise and fair weather, back stabbing, ungreatful fans!
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:26 am
This situation is still in flux. Since Jensen’s knee is still undiagnosed, keeping him on the roster versus moving him to be flexible with his salary is likely unknown. I think they watch the waiver wires for another lineman. The real sad thing about Jensen’s injury is with the GOAT gone next year, he likely will be a cap casualty, and in particular if Hainsey demonstrates the ability to hold his own. There is a possibility that we have seen Jensen take his last snap for this team. Sky isnt falling, but there is enough of a draft to close our championship window down.
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:40 am
One thing we know for certain is that Hainsey won’t be Rookie of the Year. Beyond that, will he adequately fill-in for Jensen this season? That we don’t know … YET … but there’s only one way to find out. Same thing with Goedeke (or Stinnie). Same thing with Rashaad White, and the same with Cade Otton & Ko Kieft. Even Logan Hall isn’t a sure thing at this point, or our new punter, Jake Camarda. We’re counting pretty heavily on those young guys producing this year.
We’ve got TONS of other questions about our roster. How well will the guys with injury histories (like Vea, Hicks, LVD & just about our entire Secondary) hold up? How well will our RBs & WRs hold up in this grueling schedule? Can this OLine properly protect Tom Brady through all 20-21 games, assuming we make it to the Super Bowl of course?
And those are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to questions about this team. But the good news is that EVERY TEAM is facing the same questions. The unknowns are plentiful at this time of year. The other good news is that we’ve got a LOT of talent on this roster, and an excellent, highly experienced coaching staff to develop it. Patience isn’t one of my virtues to be sure, but there are no alternatives but to be patient and see how this hand plays out. For now, still cautiously optimistic.
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:42 am
One thing we know for certain is that Hainsey won’t be Rookie of the Year. Beyond that, will he adequately fill-in for Jensen this season? That we don’t know … YET … but there’s only one way to find out. Same thing with Goedeke (or Stinnie). Same thing with Rashaad White, and the same with Cade Otton & Ko Kieft. Even Logan Hall isn’t a sure thing at this point, or our new punter, Jake Camarda. We’re counting pretty heavily on those young guys producing this year.
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:42 am
We’ve got TONS of other questions about our roster. How well will the guys with injury histories (like Vea, Hicks, LVD & just about our entire Secondary) hold up? How well will our RBs & WRs hold up in this grueling schedule? Can this OLine properly protect Tom Brady through all 20-21 games, assuming we make it to the Super Bowl of course?
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:42 am
And those are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to questions about this team. But the good news is that EVERY TEAM is facing the same questions. The unknowns are plentiful at this time of year. The other good news is that we’ve got a LOT of talent on this roster, and an excellent, highly experienced coaching staff to develop it. Patience isn’t one of my virtues to be sure, but there are no alternatives but to be patient and see how this hand plays out. For now, still cautiously optimistic.
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:43 am
And those are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to questions about this team. But the good news is that EVERY TEAM is facing the same questions. The unknowns are plentiful at this time of year. The other good news is that we’ve got a LOT of talent on this roster, and an excellent, highly experienced coaching staff to develop it. There are no alternatives but to be patient and see how this hand plays out. For now, still cautiously optimistic.
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:48 am
Joe … Your algorithm is getting more interesting by the day. Whole comments just disappearing … POOF … doesn’t happen all that often, but there seem to be certain words (good clean, perfectly acceptable English words) that disturbs it. Find the word and everything else goes through. (Today’s word of the day was ‘vertue’ it appears … when spelled correctly).
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:51 am
Suh. & Flowers.
August 3rd, 2022 at 8:52 am
This isn’t that hard. Our pro bowl tough guy center who we all love is injured. We have a possible / likely replacement on the team that the coaching staff has watched for over a year. Joe posted the other day about how Hainsey was in many practice sessions not divulged or available to the public last year. The team has seen what he can do. They’re giving him his shot. And then in a few weeks there will be cuts all across the NFL. No reason to clamor for tretter at this point in time.
August 3rd, 2022 at 9:17 am
So many trolls
August 3rd, 2022 at 9:18 am
JL is waiting for Tretter’s price to go down.
Meanwhile, Suh. If sending Suh a bouquet of flowers lowers his price, do it.
August 3rd, 2022 at 9:25 am
Trade Brady for the best C available.
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:04 am
Listnfrmafar = should be banned from jbf for being a Pats fan.
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:10 am
Lombardi wanted Brady to fail. When he went to Tampa all he did was say it will never work. He was rooting for Brady to fail. He does a show on VSIN called the Lombardi line. Find archives from April 2020 on. Lombardi is a Belichick loyalist. They all wanted Brady to fail so it would make it like Brady needed Belichick not the other way around. Lombardi kid coached at pats when Brady was there.
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:15 am
What does T Brady want?
The approval of his family and (I’m hoping) to win another super bowl with the BUCS this year. Hell yeah!
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:21 am
Start Hainsey. Then pick up a vet off the waiver wire before the season starts as backup. Seems simple to me, but I’m simple soo….
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:21 am
I’d be interested in knowing what the local yappers have to offer as evidence that Brady doesn’t want Hainsey at center… Sounds like bullshyte to me. People seem to forget that Brady played and won with rookies and UDFAs on the interior while in New England.
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:31 am
He want #8
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:32 am
I am at least glad that there are less we need Tretter posts.
Like people on this site watched Tretter and would know that he could work in the Bucs power run scheme instead of the zone scheme that he is used to running.
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:47 am
The Bucs are still in great shape, compared to the rest of the league.
Hainsey isn’t Jensen, but I don’t see a drop in blocking protection. The drop will be in the information flow to Brady. Hainsey has no way not to be confused by some defensive formations, so, a slight drop in offensive production.
That drop will be small enough to just be statistical. The win/loss record will still be the same, maybe 14-3
August 3rd, 2022 at 10:57 am
@DR
To me the Bucs are deeper in the defensive backfield than last year.
We lost Whitehead but gained Keanu Neal and Logan Ryan in free agency and we drafted Zyon McCollum.
Plus, our guys are more experienced.
Defensive backs get injured.
Of PFF’s rating of top 20 cornerbacks heading into 2022, 18 of the 20 corners missed games last year.
i.e. Only J.C. Jackson and Casey Hayward played all 17 games.
We have depth. We have good coaching there.
August 3rd, 2022 at 11:49 am
It’s not what Tom Brady wants, it’s what the NFL wanted!
To get the Deshawn Watson story pushed from front page news!
Mission Accomplished!
August 3rd, 2022 at 12:23 pm
It’s normal for Brady to have some trepidation about Hainsey. He’s a second year player, switching positions. The blessing behind Jensen’s injury, is that it happened on day two of camp. They have plenty of time to get him up to speed. He doesn’t need to be a pro bowler, to be effective. Brady isn’t in the business of anointing backups. Hainsey will need to earn Brady’s trust.
August 3rd, 2022 at 12:32 pm
Geno711 … I agree with you wholeheartedly about our defensive backfield; we’re in much better shape this year than we were last season. Particularly optimistic about Ryan & Neal; I think they’re gonna be 2 great additions.
I see us keeping 10 Secondary: Davis, Dean, SMB, McCollum, Cockrell & Delaney at CB, plus Winfield, Neal, Ryan & Edwards at Safety. What’s somewhat concerning is that 7 of those 10 will be FAs next season (Davis, McCollum & Winfield will be the only 3 under contract). And with money being tight next year, hard to imagine any DB getting big money.
August 3rd, 2022 at 4:55 pm
Pretty sure Brady sent Jensen to Europe to have stem cells injected directly into his knee. All kidding aside, I believe in licht and the scouts. Im sure if the guy isn’t on the roster they have someone else mind.