The Power Of Jameis
January 25th, 2016
America’s Quarterback has pull.
The hiring of offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach Todd Monken yesterday was curious to Joe.
But the answer lies in a player.
Monken, a gifted coordinator with Oklahoma State earlier this decade, took over a moribund Southern Miss program and had just one victory his first year in 2013, and last year guided the Golden Eagles to a nine-win season and a bowl berth.
A trusted source told Joe that Monken turned down a contract extention with Southern Miss. Hell, with his Big XII resumé, another bowl season in Hattiesburg would have put Monken in line for a top-shelf college gig. Instead, he turned it all down.
Why?
Well, outside of pay and being able to work with America’s Quarterback, Jameis Winston, if the Bucs win and Jameis plays well, then Monken can ride that wave to either another top college gig or a better job within the NFL.
This isn’t unlike what Joe heard last week at the East-West Shrine Game practices: that one reason Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht was hounded so much by NFL scouts and player personnel types was they knew he has an opening.
Generally, teams don’t hire general managers from teams with losing records. NFL insiders believe, thanks to Jameis, the Bucs are on the cusp of something special. Riding shotgun with Licht on the waves of wins from Jameis very well could grease the wheels for a high-ranking guy in the Bucs’ front office to get a general manager gig, too.
Look how much the perception of a team changes, even in a losing season, with a solid quarterback at the helm. Talented people actually want to work for the Bucs.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:06 am
Hopefully this will help with bringing in top tier free agents as well.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:10 am
I feel all the right gears turning in Tampa…first a GM that has put together 2 solid drafts, and now a top tier QB! It’s about to get fun boys and girls!
January 25th, 2016 at 11:16 am
This guy made Brandon Weeden and Justin Blackmon into national celebrities. I wonder what he can do with The Messiah, Mike Evans, Adam Humphries and Laquon Treadwell?
January 25th, 2016 at 11:17 am
LWD…right now one of the FA’s that I have on my radar is Norman from the Panthers. It would be a nice steal from a division opponent and a very quality player added to our secondary.
I don’t know if they will be able to land him, but it seems to me that he has the swag I’m looking for if I were the Bucs GM.
I just hope Koetter and Smith don’t start coveting players from the Falcons like Lovie did with his former Bears. To me that would be a mistake.
Are Jenkins and Jennings off the team yet? If not how long do we have to wait to see this happen? To me it would be like Christmas all over again.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:21 am
Agreed, HOWEVER…the team and it’s mentors need to be ever vigilant this off-season, being JW’s first…”the POWER of Jameis” needs to be highly parented.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:33 am
Parenting and mentoring???
Such rubbish.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:41 am
I think norman is smart enough not to join a team that is still building. If he gets the chance he will jump on an already established team and defense. Not to mention the panthers will likely do everything they can to keep him. And he has no reason to want to leave.
To get norman here it would have to be a $17m a year contract. If you want him to play on a losing team the price is going to go way up. Hopefully jameis has some impact on getting good talent to come here in free agency. But is jameis as attractive as Luck, or rodgers, or newton, ect. There are some good qbs in the league. Jameis isnt the only one.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:45 am
It starts at the top. Bring in quality people with quality expectations. Hopefully, before long, the FAs will be looking for us.
’87- Norman would be a dream if we could snatch him. I’m not holding my breath on that one though. I would assume that the Panthers will ‘break the bank’ to keep him.
This will be an interesting off-season. There’s a lot of pressure on Licht & Co. to get this right.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:47 am
Jennings was released last fall. Jenkins is still listed as on the team.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:48 am
Exactly I don’t really see us landing him, but you never know.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:50 am
Norman would be a coup. That said, I’d like to see what the top 3 CBs on the roster (Banks, Verner, Moore) can do in a different defensive scheme.
Much more concerned about upgrading DE and S specifically.
January 25th, 2016 at 11:54 am
LWD- you’re correct. Do we really know what we have in our DBs? I find it hard to believe that those guys just forgot how to play this year. If we don’t have to replace them, that puts us in a better position to get the ‘best players available’ (aka DL) this off-season.
January 25th, 2016 at 12:36 pm
The Bucs can see clearly now, the rain is gone,
they can see all obstacles in their way
Gone are the dark clouds that had them blind
It’s gonna be a bright, bright Sun-Shiny day.
Thanks to Licht, Koetter and Americas QB.
January 25th, 2016 at 12:45 pm
We have a better chance of drafting the next Josh Norman than we do acquiring him in FA.
January 25th, 2016 at 12:58 pm
Our DB’s might be a lot better than we think. Whenever you see a quarterback holding onto the ball for more than 4 seconds, the coverage is good and the pass rush is bad. I don’t care what kind of talent you have at CB and safety, if you give the QB 5 seconds to look around, someone’s getting open. And if it takes that long for someone to get open, well geez the coverage is great. What we need is a better pass rush. Period.
January 25th, 2016 at 8:34 pm
Certainly Jameis is PART of the equation that attracts coaches, players, etc., …BUT… how can you ignore the pulling power of Licht/Koetter ? I am extremely encouraged by the types of coaches that Koetter has landed. The seemingly ALL have a lot of good experience. Yet, they wre willing to leave secure jobs to join Koetter/Licht. Why ?… I believe:
#1: they have confidence/trust/faith in Koetter, and/or
#2: they really think they can contribute to turning the Bucs into a winner
Now, yes, Winston may be part of #2 (maybe, even a big part), but title this “story” The Power of Jameis is just another example of Joe’s giving Jameis an unwarranted – over-the-top- amount of credit for something.
January 25th, 2016 at 9:33 pm
I agree with you wholeheartedly Mr D. I also don’t think Banks. And Verner forgot how to play football. We had 0 pass rush all year I think we need to go best player available regardless of position. We can draft and develop a corner in the 3rd or 4th just like Norman.
January 26th, 2016 at 5:32 am
how can you ignore the pulling power of Licht/Koetter ? I am extremely encouraged by the types of coaches that Koetter has landed. The seemingly ALL have a lot of good experience. Yet, they wre willing to leave secure jobs to join Koetter/Licht. Why ?… I believe:
#1: they have confidence/trust/faith in Koetter, and/or
#2: they really think they can contribute to turning the Bucs into a winner
oh please he hired his boys