Stamina Issues For Graham Barton?
September 5th, 2024
Joe always finds an intriguing nugget in the Buccaneers’ mic’d up segments.
A new one popped yesterday featuring rookie first-round pick center Graham Barton.
Unlike most Buccaneers starters, Barton played a lot in preseason so the NFL/Bucs video crew had enough game fodder to explore.
Barton is seen/heard in the opening drive against the Dolphins in Tampa huffing and puffing while referring multiple times to being so happy a long pass to receiver Jalen McMillian was under review by officials.
Why? That gave Barton a break.
Joe would think nothing of this but it was just the sixth play of the opening drive.
“Wooo, thank God they challenged. I need a break,” Barton told his teammates. “… That challenge, honestly, huge.”
Barton then is seen/heard on the sidelines after the Bucs’ touchdown talking to Baker Mayfield. “I was so happy when they threw the challenge flag.”
Yes, preseason is for getting in shape. But should Barton be feeling gassed that early into a game? It was his third preseason game, so Joe doesn’t think Barton was overly hyped or nervous.
Perhaps Joe is nitpicking but Joe will be keeping an eye on Barton’s fitness in the Tampa swelter Sunday against Washington.
September 5th, 2024 at 9:44 am
Oh boy! Tired in the preseason against backups? Lol…
September 5th, 2024 at 9:44 am
He is a rookie. That is seemingly a huge part of transitioning into the NFL. Why rookies usually “hit a wall” during the season. It seems takes them a year or 3 to understand how to regulate their play energy through a game/season/playoff run
September 5th, 2024 at 9:45 am
Thought the same thing while watching
September 5th, 2024 at 9:49 am
He played good amount snaps in the previous two games. He should’ve at least be acclimated.
September 5th, 2024 at 9:54 am
Maybe someone rang his bells a little? Took the wind out of his sails so to speak..
September 5th, 2024 at 9:57 am
Eesh.
We know Todd likes to rotate D-linemen like dancers at the Mons, but you can’t do that with centers or O-linemen.
Get fit, Dukey.
September 5th, 2024 at 10:10 am
Sounds like he has been hanging out with Vita Vea WAYYYYY toooo much!
September 5th, 2024 at 10:12 am
The heat and humidity are what he needs to acclimate too. There’s more of it and a stronger intensity than Durham NC.
September 5th, 2024 at 10:19 am
¿Muy gordo?
September 5th, 2024 at 10:21 am
We may see Hainsey more than we hoped.
September 5th, 2024 at 10:26 am
Big Difference between pushing around Defensive Lines in the ACC and the NFC West.
Going from Welterweight to Heavyweight the Rookie will get some wins but won’t be Bulling many over one after the other.
September 5th, 2024 at 10:33 am
LITTLE THINGS
A player being gassed … Mice nuts.
BIG THINGS (REAL STORIES)
If you want to worry about something relevant with Barton, meet Jonathan Allen. Arguably the best DT in the NFC. Here’s the resume on Graham Barton’s first NFL test:
>2021, 2022 Pro Bowl
>National Champ – Alabama
>Lombardi Award Winner
>3x 1st Team All-SEC
What the Duke Boy didn’t know was … He’s a beast.
September 5th, 2024 at 10:41 am
That FL humidity is no joke lol
September 5th, 2024 at 11:41 am
Here’s the thing, Florida heat and especially humidity IS GOING TO DRAIN YOU no matter who you are. The big boys have a much much tougher of a time versus it.
When I was a young man, my uncle owned a roofing company. A friend of mine and I needed the dough so we picked up a couple of days working for him. The job was an industrial building mostly slinging tar. ON A RIDICULOUSLY HOT summer day. Add boiling hot tar and you’ve got to imagine that hell itself might be close to that temp.
In any case he also hired an additional extra guy for the job. Mr. Universe! This guy was the size of a house! All muscle! I imagine this guy could handle this “with ease” All By His mself… it goes to show you exactly how much I knew of the human body and the reality of what size can and can’t do for you in heat. ESPECIALLY IF FLORIDA’S HUMIDITY HEAVY HEAT.
In the end….. FORGET ABOUT IT! Mr. Universe was out for the count PERMANENTLY within 20 minutes! It took him another 10 minutes just to get down the ladder. He had to lay down for another 30 minutes in the shade before he could even drive himself out of there!
I learned a valuable lesson that day and I learned that all the karate movies I watched as a kid (in karate movies the older you were made you stronger and faster and could go non stop all day) were full of hoowey! It turned out that youth TRUMPS ALL physically and the older and even muscled up means even less stamia than even the basic out of shape kid. Best style body type to work all day in THIS Florida heat is something akin to a “crack head’s body type”. Of which I don’t qualify.
I really thought as a young man kid (17) that the bigger the better, that a guy his size wouldn’t even need our help. And even though Graham is still quite young and is in constant training to keep as big and muscled up as possible, his size in this humidity is something he’ll need probably more than one season to master.
September 5th, 2024 at 12:43 pm
Reminder that the average commenter gets tired putting on their shoes
September 5th, 2024 at 12:52 pm
Joe, I am more concerned about Jonathan Allen. If you look at his top plays from last year in a You Tube video, he got by Bredeson with ease. Watch and wait. They’re going to attack him because those short little arms are not going to be able to stop Mr. Allen. Mark my words.
September 5th, 2024 at 1:23 pm
I noticed that too. There was another spot where he said he was tired. I hope he acclimates sooner.
September 5th, 2024 at 1:49 pm
Don’t forget he was coming off a joint practice, and training camp. Dude will be fine.
September 5th, 2024 at 2:12 pm
It was his first chance to play with the 1st team offense in front of a real crowd. I know Joe says he doesn’t think he was overhyped, but I’m not sure, he might have seen it as his first real ‘start’.
In any case, I don’t see how you can possibly make it through a Tampa training camp and be in bad shape … until you remember this was Todd Bowles Camp Cupcake where you took off 2 days for every 1 day of practice, and even the practices you held were mostly not in pads or weren’t full contact.
Still, he’s played football his entire life, I can’t believe he’d not be conditioned at this point – and I’ll just fall back onto the idea he was overhyped, or perhaps was fine and just talking to talk.
September 5th, 2024 at 3:19 pm
All young guys have stamina issues when they first go to Tampa (or even Miami).
September 5th, 2024 at 3:43 pm
Allen will be a huge challenge for our interior OLine and his running mate is no slouch either. Baker better be on his bike.
September 7th, 2024 at 12:36 pm
Maybe the sports science and conditioning staff have a say how training camp is run. Contemporary knowledge is incorporated in the setup. Just a thought.