Taking Lovie To Task
December 2nd, 2014
Joe suggested it before and it bears repeating. A team as sloppy as the Bucs, as undisciplined as the Bucs, and as reckless as the Bucs, that points to one person at the end of the day. That man’s name is Lovie Smith.
Finally, it seems Lovie has reached his boiling point. After losing to the Bengals, the head coach stopped short of calling out players but didn’t spare harsh words such as “stupid” and “dumb.”
It was a breath of fresh air. Time for excuses is long over.
One guy who decided to rake Lovie over the coals for his sloppy team is Tom Jones of the Tampa Bay Times.
The Bucs are the dumbest, most undisciplined team in the NFL, and there is one man to blame for that: Lovie Smith — you know, the head coach.
This is his team, his responsibility. He’s the one in charge.
And he is the one who needs to fix it.
Jones really hammers Lovie for all the dumb, knucklehead moves. This is largely on the offense. Jones said that if the players don’t learn, then it’s time for new players. And if the players don’t get it, Jones says, maybe you may have to start looking at the source of the problem.
As Jones wrote, it is crazytalk to think of dumping Lovie after one year. Joe is certain Lovie will get a mulligan for not having an offensive coordinator. Losing Jeff Tedford was an Act of God.
Joe is pretty convinced there will be sweeping changes to the offense next year. Just what credible offensive coordinator worth his salt is going to want to work with Josh McCown and/or Mike Glennon? Then there is the mess on the offensive line.
Oh, there will be changes. How many and how significant, we will find out in a handful of weeks.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:04 pm
Dumbest? Undisciplined? Who cares? The players love the laid back coach cuz he respects them by wearing flip flops and allowing them to eat the pasta they want. And they don’t have to put their toes on the line anymore. The players are respected and happy, so who cares?
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:08 pm
Yup,
Empty suit.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:12 pm
Lovie must have been hard watching last nights game. Jets almost won with 48 yards passing. Lovie would have been so jealous if they pulled off the win.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:13 pm
You give a Mulligan for your wife cheating on you with Brad Pitt.
Not the garbage man.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:19 pm
Stop talking and show me!
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:19 pm
Who is buying tickets next year?
Lovie will realize the impact when ticket sales plummet thanks to his poor head coaching performance.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:29 pm
There is absolutly something very wrong when you start a player at Center that has never snapped a ball before.
At the very least there should have been a backup center on the practice squad. EDS is average,….but not invincable…..surely they knew all along that injury was possible.
To blame Gilkey is like blaming Arroyo….the blame needs to be placed where it belongs.
I am not one calling for Lovie’s head this early…..but I do want him held accountable for this disaster.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:30 pm
Completely new offensive staff (not just a new coordinator), a 1st round QB, and a whole new line.
Please.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:36 pm
Get players who can remember the snap count (especially on the first series) and coaches who can count to 12. Is that too much to ask?
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:40 pm
It won’t matter. If there’s one thing Lovie excels at its f* up the offensive side of the ball. Lovie could coach the NFC probowl team and would still only put up 13 points.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:45 pm
I am calling for Lovies’ head because of all the dumb mistakes, omissions, and doing the same thing over and over and it never working or the personnel not working, this is inexcusable.
A new OC could have been hired when the need for one reared its ugly head. Practice squads could be raided when players didn’t or couldn’t perform, coaches could have been replaced with the present ones proved inept.
All of this points to the head coach who is either overwhelmed or incompetent.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:46 pm
I never thought I would say this but we can get Chudzinski and Mariotta screw it. Chud did great with Cam Newton when he was there. I think Mariotta will thrive in an offense like his. The more I watch “Mr. Crab Legs” Winston the more I want Mariotta. That’s only if they decide to take a QB.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:49 pm
Ive posted before, “just doing enough to get paid.” But I know that statement doesnt apply to everyone in the organization, especially CERTAIN players. True heart, grit, and passion will shine through in those who take it serious and LIVE IT!
….L&L and the Glazers keep me guessing which side of that coin they’re on.
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:53 pm
@ Ray Rice
Saw your wife on TV…..looking pretty damn good……why would you smack her around like that?
And….by the way……As long as Doug Martin is on the market….you’ll never work in the NFL again….
December 2nd, 2014 at 12:54 pm
Tony>Lovie….Tony never did such a thing…and while mild mannered….his carefully chosen words in public…delivered the same message I am sure in the filmroom was not so PC…..G’Boyz bought swamp land in Lovie….Malcolm… is turning over in his GRAVE….Tampa has flim flammed it self…and the media/guardian are content to keep getting their freebies and access…abcess
December 2nd, 2014 at 1:05 pm
The center debacle this past Sunday is solely on Lovie. I felt sorry for Gilkey – talk about setting someone up to fail. Gilkey had to be crapping his pants out there. How in world does the team not have a backup center – especially on a team that uses the shotgun quite a bit?
December 2nd, 2014 at 1:05 pm
Duh it’s time for new players. All these critics who scrutinize moves but don’t know how to make real moves themselves. I mean seriously Leonard Johnson is in his third or fourth season and is still face guarding like he just got out of college, yes he made bad moves but penalties were just as high under Greg schiano who also had no answer in his last season. Guess what I do believe the defensive false starts have stopped so If the offense hasn’t improved hey he’s a defensive coach, we don’t have an offensive coordinator so we? Shut up Tom Jones, write about hockey
December 2nd, 2014 at 1:06 pm
Lovie calling others stupid and dumb?…classic pot calling kettle black
December 2nd, 2014 at 1:08 pm
Buc4lyfe
Great point mccoy didn’t just offsides once. Big improvement from his usual 3 or 4 a game.
December 2nd, 2014 at 1:11 pm
@Tampabay Bucs Fan
Hey man I love Janay. It’s unfortunate she got in the way. As far as Doug Martin goes well I can’t argue there.
December 2nd, 2014 at 1:36 pm
I’m telling you guys, even if we do end up in position to take a franchise-potential QB, LOVIE WILL FIND A WAY TO SCREW IT UP. He’s gonna call Captain Murtaugh and Mr. Looney (Loon-ehh, it’s French) over to be his special draft advisors. Harriet is gonna make him a sandwich while Eddie drives his car through the garage door (again!) because of Waldo’s shenanigans. Meanwhile, Urkel is going to be readying a “did I do thaaaat?” in preparation for Carl- Lovie’s next buffoonish blunder in his long long long long long list of stupid, buffoonish blunders. But who cares about winning right? Or building a respectable franchise? As long as the head coach wears flip flops and floppy hats and Hawaiian t shirts and tells you your in the playoff hunt at 2-9 and you’re doing a good job, that’s all that (Family) Matters!!!
December 2nd, 2014 at 1:41 pm
Seriously, can we all just CUT – IT – OUT and get rid of this guy? Come on. I’ve seen deer on the highway make smarter decisions than him! He is nothing but a BIG FAT PHONY!
December 2nd, 2014 at 1:48 pm
Watching Lovie Smith roam the sidelines is like watching one of those bosses in an old video game. Remember that really, really, laughably bad artificial intelligence? Like they get stuck on a wall or something and just walk in place and are just completely hopeless and are so easy to defeat you almost feel like you wasted your Christmas money on a dumb game cause it was so easy. That’s Lovie Smith. Don’t spend your Christmas money on Lovie Smith. Or the change and Cheeto you found under your sofa. Or, or, how about, two dollars… and a CASIO??
December 2nd, 2014 at 2:04 pm
Lovie Smith isn’t so much a head coach as he is an “artist.” He is actually a singer/songwriter, author, and movie producer/director. Trouble with that is, we’ve all read the book twice, seen the movie a hundred times, know all the words to all his songs AND we hate the sound of his voice. We KNOW how the story ends. There may be an unexpected twist or turn here or there, but in the end, it’s all the same.
If they were to compile a list of the Top 5 Worst and Most Predictable Storytellers of All Time, THIS one would leave them all behind.
December 2nd, 2014 at 2:14 pm
These players just don’t believe in their coaches
Especially the entire offense
and it is more than evident
December 2nd, 2014 at 2:39 pm
What plays such a major role in the coaching profession is reputation and relationships…. That is a huge reason you hear so much about “coaching trees”… Lovie may have had a good reputation and could have gotten a good O.C. before all this garbage this season but now it is highly unlikely… After what has happened and the way he has handled it I would not be surprised if even his closest friends avoid the talk with him about being the O.C. for the Bucs….
Lovie’s reputation as the Bucs HC: Liar, delusional, can’t stick with QB, likes vets over youth regardless of talent, can’t evaluate talent to pick even decent players for their position, His way or no way, It’s not me it’s them because I am so great, poor clock manager, has control and yet nearly every decision he has made has come back to hurt this team….
Now, what O.C. in his right mind would stake his own reputation to be under that type of leadership… Who wants to marry their career to Lovie 2-14 Smith?
December 2nd, 2014 at 3:05 pm
Losing Jeff Tedford was an act of Jeff Tedford, by the sound of it. Until i hear otherwise, my assumption is that the guy saw our offensive line perform this offseason and once the medical issue came up he used his health as an out to protect his coaching resume.
December 2nd, 2014 at 4:12 pm
Pick6- I suspect the same thing and have since week 2. Lovie talked a great game on his couch but in action he proved to be a far different leader and decision maker. Hiring Trash McCown as a starter practically gave me a heart attack.