Habitual Losing Changes Standards
March 18th, 2015
What now seems like a generation ago, the Bucs were a top franchise in the game.
A team with a ferocious defense, one of the best in NFL history, suffocated opponents before sold out crowds at what now is referred to as the Den of Depression, where the Bucs haven’t won a home game since 2013.
The Bucs were a strong, boastful team, and it seemed half the cars in the Tampa Bay area had some sort of Bucs sticker or flag affixed to them.
Now, going on a dozen years since Tampa Bay last won a playoff game (ironically, the team’s lone Super Bowl championship), the team is the epitome of woeful. Their last victory was winning the Chase for Jameis, awarded to the worst team in the NFL.
Diehard fans remaining are downright angry. They have every right. This franchise has turned into an absolute mess on the field.
(In retrospect, the near-playoff-miss season of 2010, under Raheem Morris, the lone winning campaign since Chucky was jettisoned, was one of the best NFL coaching jobs in years.)
Paper-bag-wearing fans at Bucs games are back in vogue.
Bucs fans are coming close to a tipping point, a year after being whipped into a frenzy by some cheap-arse stunt pulled by two-bit radio frauds. Billboards were erected all over town demanding the firing of then-Bucs commander Greg Schiano. Fans screamed for former rock star general manager Mark Dominik’s head on a platter.
Today, the Bucs are worse, but no billboards. Joe is not suggesting there should be, but if the scumbag that organized that cheap stunt had any balls, he’d be hard at work revising his stunt. Where are they, a-hole?
Knowing how the radio industry works, the clown that concocted the billboards scheme is likely now selling ads in Columbus, Ga., or is mopping little kids’ puke off the floors of a Brandon Walmart. Setting up families — when coaches lose jobs, their families suffer more so than the jobless coach — in a shameless radio promotion is about as low as it goes.
Legions of Bucs fans are frustrated, desperate. Joe feels their anger, understands their disgust and reads their rage on this very corner of the Interwebs. Daily.
Having gone a decade since the Bucs had a double-digit sack man, fans are livid the team cannot find a replacement for the great Simeon Rice. Hell, a team almost has to try to have a defensive end drought this terrible. Seriously. Salt in the wound was letting Michael Bennett walk away for no good reason.
So when Greg Hardy, an alleged woman-beater, who is a proven double-digit sack guy, became available in free agency, Bucs fans didn’t — and don’t, largely — give a damn what the hell Hardy did. They wouldn’t care if he sold drugs to kids.
Damn it all, Bucs fans said, a proven sack artist is available for likely less than was wasted on Ghost Johnson, get him! So what if he might be a skunk? You are trying to win, not hand out communion! It’s not like Warren Sapp was a saint, Bucs fans argued. Get Hardy, now! Allow us to watch decent football for a change, will ya?, Bucs fans begged.
Joe can understand this mentality. Again, it’s what losing year after year after year after year does to the mind, and to priorities. Joe can only guess how many new TVs have been sold since 2010, due to Bucs fans impaling their flatscreens with a remote or shattering their TVs with a beer bottle.
Compare the pulse of Bucs fans — two polls generated locally were off the charts in favor of signing Hardy — to the mindset of Seattle fans.
Rumors of Hardy dancing with Seattle for a contract moved Rob Rang of Scout.com, who covers the Seahawks, to do a poll of his own. Thirty-six percent of Seahawks fans wanted Hardy, per Rang’s poll. Some 40 percent said Hardy was a low priority, and should be signed only if fully cleared by a team investigation.
That’s a far cry from Joe’s 84 percent who wanted Hardy signed, now.
The difference in fan bases? Seattle has played in the Super Bowl the past two years, winning it all in 2013.
The Bucs? They have mostly been urinating in the wind since that glorious Sunday evening in late January 2003, when Chucky hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy aloft in sweet victory.
Like a broke man who will accept any demeaning job so his children can eat; like a homeless man who uses sheets of cardboard for a blanket on a winter night; a team’s fanbase, mired in years of losing and seemingly unending despair, has its standards adjusted as well.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:21 am
Well put Joe. Well put. Even if you don’t like me
March 18th, 2015 at 8:22 am
I still say that Gruden taking a team to the playoffs with Chris Sims at QB was the best coaching in Bucs history!
About Greg Hardy, its too easy to sit back and point a finger and say he is the Bad Guy. He should not be on any team in the NFL and should be in Jail. I would rather see Hardy on a NFL team where there is finally Programs for DV and Anger Management. If he is on a team he will be in programs that hopefully will help him become a man.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:26 am
“an alleged woman-beater” – alleged is incorrect. He WAS found guilty in court. Under NC Law that case automatically went to appeal. Now, because the defendant could\would not testify the case was dismissed. I’m not debating whether or not to sign Hardy, simply saying the use of ‘alleged’ is incorrect.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:29 am
You hit bottom when your circumstances deteriorate quicker than you can lower your standards! Bucs fans have hit bottom. I understand L&L wanting to build a respectable team, but dammit it is time to win on the field too! a few good years under Dungy and a super bowl under Chucky since the 70’s?! That’s pathetic! A long time to be a fan of a loser! And still I read this and other sites daily just hoping for some good news….
March 18th, 2015 at 8:30 am
Who likes losing?
Seriously.
I grew up during the glory years, where teams feared and respected the Bucs and their all-time great defense, with guys like Alstott, Lynch, Nickerson, Sapp, Brooks, Barber, Dungy, Kiffen, Marinelli, Gruden, etc.
Now we have to swallow this garbage every single year, and the problems are always the same, but it’s never addressed. This team has been pathetic for far too long, and that’s not going to change by simply drafting Winston or Mariota. This team is so far away from even being mediocre it’s embarrassing!
When is the winning going to start?? When is Tampa Bay going to be respected again?? When are the Bucs going to stop being the punchline of the joke?? When I’m dead?? Frankly, I’m just sick of waiting.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:30 am
Wow damn. This article is spot on JOE. The pain of watching my beloved team lose year in and year out is very difficult. Pooring salt on open wounds and adding insult to injury my wife who knows nothing of football asks me why do I ckntibue to watch the bucs every Sunday if we all know they will have a losing season. I tell her it is because I am a true fan. It has become a way of life for me to get excited every off season for free agents and the draft to give us dreams of a better season then be disappointed as we become the laughing stock of the nfl. If you go to nfl.com it is rare that there is an article about the bucs in a positive light. But yet we stay true.
It’s a bucs life for me
March 18th, 2015 at 8:30 am
If one were to exclude Every Misdemeanor offender in the NFL I suspect there would be a lot less teams.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:32 am
Reaching the NFC championship game with Shaun King ranks up there.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:32 am
I don’t think the Bucs need Hardy. If Lovie has 1 strength, it should be finding D-ends. This draft is suppose to be deep with D-ends!
Hardy was a 3rd round pick by the way.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:33 am
If Hardy doesn’t even come in for a Visit then I doubt we were ever seriously considering him. That would be a bad sign for Winston. No Incognito, no Hardy, no Winston?
IDK a thing but how to build stuff but I must say this could be a telling piece of the puzzle
March 18th, 2015 at 8:33 am
I’m just glad I didn’t pay for the NFL package for the last couple of years. Who wants to come to Tampa and play when they have better teams with better chances to get to the super bowl.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:33 am
Amen. I can’t stomach watching this team drown any longer…if a guy is allowed to play in this league, and he can help us win, then sign his ass up. Beggars can’t be choosers.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:39 am
It is what it is. When I’m buying tickets, I’m not paying for a babysitter for my kids, morality isn’t my highest concern.
High character guys are great but I’d rather root for an A-hole than sit through another 2-14 season. Hell, I met Sapp and hated the guy, but I was rooting for his arrogant *** every Sunday.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:43 am
3 bad coaching hires and 2 bad GM hires have killed this franchise. Joe laments the billboards but is on the radio with a host who begged for Gruden to be fired.
Coaches have guaranteed contracts lets not feel too bad for coaches who can’t win in this league they still get paid. Unlike the hard working fans who pay to get into games. Let’s remember the media don’t pay to get into games.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:44 am
One day we will get back to winning football. I believe in Lovie.
March 18th, 2015 at 8:58 am
Hardy is officially deciding today per Drew Rosenhaus
March 18th, 2015 at 9:08 am
I have no use for this guy but no one nationally would give af. This could be the team that most likely can get away with it
March 18th, 2015 at 9:10 am
Starts at the top with the Moe, Larry and Curly Glazer…
Dom, Rah & Toes on the Line set this franchise back decades…
That will take time to fix…
That being said… L&L have a lot to prove after the three terrible free agents that they signed last year…McClown, Ghost and Collins.
Not much confidence so far in L&L…..
So, we will be mired in CRAP…like some other looser franchises for a long time until the Stooges sell the team and new ownership brings in a new culture. Get used to the loosing…
March 18th, 2015 at 9:17 am
Oh wow, powerfull article Joe, respect.
Just disagreeing about the billboard thing:
Shiano just wasn´t good for the Bucs, even if good talent evaluater.. should have gone into FrontOffice and Coaching IMO..
and yes, its not easy for the familiys, i get it, but when you are willing to call Coaching your job, you got to be able to live with it..
Just as players need to live with it (the business side).
Agreeing with those who say: Domestic violence shouldn´t be accepted by NFL. Its such a privilege to be a player in the NFL and they are in the spotlight, that includes being someone, that the younger generations look up to, so why behaving like an rat is just not accepable IMO
in that regard, Lovie seems to make a good job.. hopefully Licht can help him on the decision making in terms of personal..
March 18th, 2015 at 9:19 am
Not a done deal in Big D, reports is that Hardy will make a decision this afternoon between the BUCS and Boys. Bucs fans want to win, but also think they want to be competitive, yeah there were a few games that they lost by less than one score, but who as a Buc fan had faith for the team to hold on to a lead or come back and take the lead. Even if they won 3-4 of those games, the team still didn’t show four quarters of play.
March 18th, 2015 at 9:26 am
team distraction…no way…draft,draft,draft
March 18th, 2015 at 9:33 am
Nice piece Joe
March 18th, 2015 at 9:33 am
Hardy has been charged with 1 domestic assault charge, Sapp has like what 3 or 4 altercations with the law, maybe more? Nobody cared back when we were winning about Sapp and his issues. Just saying. If McCoy wants Hardy I think L&L can get him and the TEAM can keep him in line. We can rehabilitate him, fine tune him, make him a better person, and then the Bucs could look like a class act for doing so. Just depends on how you look at it. Not to mention Hardy, if he came here, could start a foundation for beaten/battered women and face the issue head on. Mike Vick killed dogs and he was able to turn his image around. Either way if we get him or not we need someone to rush the QB. Draft him or pick him off the street, I don’t care who he is just find someone that can handle the job. I’m not wanting to get pissed every Sunday because we suck and are the laughing stock of the league as SHAT-ON-YO put it. That rat
March 18th, 2015 at 9:38 am
Great job Joe!!! You nailed it.
March 18th, 2015 at 9:38 am
Cowboys don’t have as much money to offer as we do. If Hardy chooses Cowboys it will be based on the opportunity to win, and if he chooses Bucs it will be for the money. We must make an offer that he can’t refuse. In my opinion, it will take a multi-year contract for the bucs to win over Hardy. Cowboys want a organization friendly contract.
March 18th, 2015 at 9:40 am
Here’s what we’ll most likely here from a certain select group of JBF posters.
If he signs with us:
If he doesn’t sign with us:
March 18th, 2015 at 9:43 am
There are great teams in the area. someone should point out that the organizations of the Rays and Lightening are some of the best in sports.
So what is different. OWNERSHIP.
March 18th, 2015 at 9:43 am
The Bucs do have to overpay to get Hardy. This is not up for debate. He’s taken a physical with the Cowboys. He’s only leaving Dallas for money, period. So overpaying comments are valid and 100% correct. Denying that is being naive.
March 18th, 2015 at 9:45 am
You’ve driven away a good number of Mariota fans, so of course the Winston-lovers that remain have no problem with a guy like Hardy.
Your Winston-Mariota poll was about 2 to 1 in favor of Winston, but Buccaneers.com poll was 45 to 38, much closer.
So the JoeBucsFan fan has thrown in the towel on player character, but not as much the average Buccaneer fan willing to vote online, let alone the average Buc fan who’s not a nerd.
March 18th, 2015 at 9:47 am
Joe, really good article. Thank you.
@Realist, don’t forget Lovie gave up a 2nd round pick to take Gaines Adams off our hands. IMO, I am not all that confident in Lovie’s ability to find a whore in a whorehouse.
March 18th, 2015 at 9:53 am
Good article joe loved it
March 18th, 2015 at 9:58 am
I’m sick of people treating the NFL like it’s the damn police department. It’s entertainment. Hardy dealt with his issue in court, end of story. Sean Connery can admit he slaps women on national TV yet nobody says he should never be able to make another movie. Women still watch his movies. Why? Because it’s entertainment. His movies have nothing to do with his personal life. I don’t agree with what Hardy did but if the law has dealt with it and he is cleared to play I feel like that has nothing to do with his play on the field.
March 18th, 2015 at 10:10 am
I got a phone call and an email from a Bucs ticket salesperson yesterday. Here was my response:
“I’ll be blunt. The team was dreadful AND unentertaining last year. I won’t be spending any money on Bucs tickets until they’re worthy of my entertainment dollar.”
March 18th, 2015 at 10:15 am
Hey, stop it, we love our lovable loser Bucs. If the Bucs did’nt exist here, there is no other team in the NFL I would call my own. The Bucs or bust!
March 18th, 2015 at 10:30 am
Why you have a website that constantly rips and writes one negative article after another is beyond me. I enjoy reading other websites to get info on the latest happenings and everytime I give this site another chance, BOOOOM more negativity. It must be fun for Joe to write doom and gloom stories everyday.
March 18th, 2015 at 11:04 am
Fuzzy Red Coin Purse Says:
March 18th, 2015 at 9:33 am
Hardy has been charged with 1 domestic assault charge, Sapp has like what 3 or 4 altercations with the law, maybe more? Nobody cared back when we were winning about Sapp and his issues. Just saying. If McCoy wants Hardy I think L&L can get him and the TEAM can keep him in line. We can rehabilitate him, fine tune him, make him a better person, and then the Bucs could look like a class act for doing so. Just depends on how you look at it. Not to mention Hardy, if he came here, could start a foundation for beaten/battered women and face the issue head on. Mike Vick killed dogs and he was able to turn his image around. Either way if we get him or not we need someone to rush the QB. Draft him or pick him off the street, I don’t care who he is just find someone that can handle the job. I’m not wanting to get pissed every Sunday because we suck and are the laughing stock of the league as SHAT-ON-YO put it. That rat
@fuzzy
I’m pretty positive that Sapp was never arrested until his days with the Bucs were over, big difference. He’s been arrested like 3-4 times since like you said though..
March 18th, 2015 at 11:10 am
I am going to be the optimistic here, Lovie knows were not 1-2 players away from the playoffs, we are rebuilding. We need more than Greg Hardy (who I do not want, imagine that was your mom or sister) I would rather sign George Selvie and draft a pass rusher in the 3rd-4th round. A lot of great depth with pass rushers in this draft.
And now to talk about Winston, he is not the QB for this time. He wants to win NOW and we are far away from that. He is already talking about playoffs and Super Bowls, NEWS FLASH, we were the worst team in the NFL. I think he wouldn’t like losing so much that he leaves to play Baseball and we get screwed, AGAIN!
#MariotaorBUST
March 18th, 2015 at 11:15 am
via rotoworld:
Greg Hardy – DL – Free Agent
Free agent DE Greg Hardy will sign with either the Bucs or Cowboys on Wednesday.
That comes straight from the mouth of Hardy’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus. Hardy remains in Dallas after visiting the Cowboys on Tuesday and is taking a physical for the team this morning. He hasn’t taken a trip to Tampa, so it’s possible he’s using the Bucs as leverage against the Cowboys. Dallas is the clear leader for the 26-year-old. Hardy is a premier sack master and is equally elite in run defense.
Related: Buccaneers, Cowboys
Source: Profootballtalk on NBC Sports
March 18th, 2015 at 12:59 pm
While I don’t believe the Bucs need or should want the likes of Greg Hardy or others of his ilk, this is more about the team’s overall woes of the last 12 or so years.
Yes, Chuckie did some masterful coaching jobs. What he also did, however, was bring in truck loads of aging veteran free agents. Guys like Joey Galloway, Ike Hilliard and Cato June, who were all released along with Buc icon but aging veteran Derrick Brooks soon after Raheem Morris was named head coach. All these men were great in their time and still make valuable contributions under Gruden but Father Time was catching up with all of them and much of Gruden’s roster.
Since then, the Bucs have been abysmal save for the 2010 season in which they barely missed the playoffs. For those years credit poor drafts, notions like those held by Mark Dominic that we don’t draft offensive linemen, Greg Schiano’s “Buccaneer men” mentality that led to the release of Michael Bennett, the infamous “Lovie’s basement” and yes notions like Joe’s that you can build a team through free agency.
It’s time for the fans, Joe, the Glazers, the front office at One Buc Place and everyone associated with the Bucs to suck it up and accept the Bucs need to rebuild through the draft.
Free agents are free agents for a reason and it’s not usually a good reason, although it would be great for the Bucs to land Stefen Wisniewski at C and get rid of Dietrich-Smith. A slot receiver, if one is still out, would be a good pickup too.
It’s also going to take a couple of years, at least to get the Bucs’ ship righted and sailing in the right direction. Last year’s draft was a good start with Mike Evans and it could get better if ASF stays healthy and if they can develop Kadeem Edwards and Kevin Pamphile at G and T, respectively.
This year it’s time to land that QB, grab an edge rusher, a monster guard if one is available and begin filling in some depth across the board.