A Failure For Recruiter Jameis?
March 10th, 2017
Non-believer?
Much has been discussed about how NFL free agents would want to come and play with America’s Quarterback, Jameis Winston.
But what about the guys already playing with Jameis?
Last night, NFL Network reported that the Panthers are gearing up to sign Bucs receiver/special teams ace Russell Shepard.
Joe will not cry about the loss of Shepard, the 2015 and 2016 special teams captain, though Joe would prefer to keep Shepard. But Joe can’t be a pro-Jameis hypocrite. It’s fair to ask why Shepard isn’t staying to play with Jameis. Could Jameis not convince him? The guy catches balls from Jameis, after all.
The lesson here is free agency is about money for 98 percent of players. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
Bucs cornerback and special teams ace Josh Robinson and Bradley McDougald are also looking for more than just Jameis to keep them wearing pewter and red.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:01 am
Hell, you can’t keep’em all Buc fans. And I’m all for players gettin that paper. If the Panthers will pay shepard more? Why not leave. There is no such animal as loyalty anymore. That went out with the eighties. Go ahead and get paid Mr. Shepard. And Good Luck to you.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:01 am
Once the Bucs signed Jackson, Shepard knew he was the #4 receiver at best and that’s before the draft where the Bucs are expected to take another receiver in the earlier rounds and bump Shepard to #5. Trying to compete with a team willing to offer him the #3 receiving job and also more money than we were offering is almost impossible. Sucks to lose him, but there was really not much we could have done.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:02 am
Would have liked to keep Shepard….but he is at best a #4 receiver…..I wish him well…..I do think he was worth more to us than anyone else because of his popularity & versatility.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:02 am
^^^What Mike Johnson said!
March 10th, 2017 at 10:03 am
Russell Shepard was little more than a special teams player.
Look, if we want to get great at the position, we have to make room for new players. I’m fine with Russell Shepard moving on. It opens a hole for a young guy to come in and maybe turn into a homerun.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:08 am
The NFL wants to lessen the impact of special teams each year, we really don’t need a great gunner like years past.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:09 am
An occasional good play or two doesn’t make a player great or worth keeping. The Bucs need consistency at every position. I would not have kept Conte for that reason and I sure hope he will prove me wrong.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:11 am
Sucks because he knows our playbook quite well. Would have loved to keep him but I am sure the Panthers over paid for this knowledge.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:11 am
He’ll be missed. His attitude and hard work is something that can be looked up to for younger late round or UDFA. He was the bees knees in college. Converted from QB to WR to be cut by Philly. He didn’t quit and worked on ST. Earned captain status and is one of the premier ST players. I think fans underestimate how a player like that helps others around him.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:12 am
All Sheppard did was catching everything thrown at him. Thought he was a great young talent worth keeping. However, he was looking at being a 4 at best, probably a five. Will get a better opportunity and cash with Panthers. Afterall, as a division foe they saw a lot of film on him. Good luck. But, I hope it doesn’t work out for the stinking Panthers and you go become a superstar in the AFC.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:15 am
Bucs want to pay him like a #4 and he wants #2/#3 money. He’s not worth it.
Not sure what that has to do with Winston.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:15 am
He will be the same player fro the Panthers; great special teams and a receiver that gets a dozen balls thrown his way each year. I trust we can sign another ST player who stands out.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:17 am
Not just money. Playing time enters it too. Shep did what was best for himself.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:19 am
Lol a failure money talks opportunity knocks how does this become a failure on Jamesis part lol congrats Shep you earned it!!
March 10th, 2017 at 10:21 am
Big news Bucs fans… special teams players grow on trees. How about adding the kind of special teams players that score touchdowns, you know the ones who actually touch the ball. We just got that. How about someone who isn’t a middling receiver, but who can actually stretch a defense. We just got that. He was a locker room guy, but last year proved this team is much more together now that in all the years Shep has been with us. We are better off today without Shep than a couple days ago when he was still on the team.
All that being said, thank you for your time, hope you suck when we now play you twice a season.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:21 am
This isn’t a failure of Jameis. Mike Johnson knocked it out of the park in his response. Comments section should have been closed after that.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:23 am
I need to take a step back. I’m not being fair to Russell Shepard.
The truth is, he wasn’t given many chances to play WR until last year. He didn’t blow the doors off, but he did show he can produce at least a little.
And he is young.
Oh, and he has NOT been signed anywhere yet. He’s going for a visit.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:34 am
He obvioudly is going to get more many and a chance for a bigger role on another team. We like him but everyone in the world knows we were in the market for a very solid vet WR which we got, and our still in the market for a WR in the draft. Shep wants to make a name for himself and he needs PT to do that. We underutlized him on the Bucs too (as far as snap counts go), dont blame Jameis for that
March 10th, 2017 at 10:34 am
more money*
March 10th, 2017 at 10:36 am
Don’t think it was about $$ it was about playing. Reports are he is #2 or #3. Not #4,5 or 6 in TB. Bucs offered $2.25M per Season.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:36 am
If only gmc and his losing ways weren’t on the team maybe shep would have developed into a legit wr1
March 10th, 2017 at 10:37 am
I spy with my little eye… a troll
March 10th, 2017 at 10:38 am
Seems more like Shep making the best career choice. DJax, Evans, and Hump are all ahead of him on the depth chart, and the Bucs offer reflected that. Dude just wants to catch more passes, and that’s not likely to happen here if he’s #4. There’s a chance we still draft a WR and then he’s maybe down to the 5th or 6th receiver, or worse (out of a job). Good on him, it seems like maybe the money and the opportunity were aligned in this case.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:41 am
Adios muchachos! Now we sign Boldiin to replace him. Mike Johnson dropped the mic before it got too hot! Just like the guy from Verizon commercials!😂
March 10th, 2017 at 10:42 am
So Shep is going to get #2 or #3 money from the panthers? He’s also going to play WR as a 3? That’s the reasoning?
Car has Benjamin, Funchess, Ginn and Greg Olsen. They also have a lot less cap space than us. But sure this theory sounds legit!
Im hoping he’s testing the market them comes back. And there no reason he can’t compete for the 3 or 4th spot here.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:49 am
He’s 26….anywhere that gives him the opportunity for a #2 or #3 role as a WR is what he should take…..If productive, in 3 yrs he can reach for one more decent contract….That’s how players attempt to advance their careers/pay. Staying in Tampa as a 4,5,6 doesnt set him up for the next contract….if anything he loses all leverage and will be signing for veteran minimums….not bad money…but the objective is to maximize your pay while in the NFL because its a very small window of opportunity.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:51 am
DB55 Ginn has moved to NO
March 10th, 2017 at 10:53 am
Do you not think they asked Winston about what WR’s he would like to have on the field with him? There is a dollar figure attached to each position. Shepard was going to be a #5 option in the passing game at the very best, realistically #6 or #7 if you count check downs to running backs. He would most likely be a special teams player that saw maybe five snaps a game on offense at most.
March 10th, 2017 at 11:00 am
We ain’t win no Super Bowl lately! That could have been a problem for him!
March 10th, 2017 at 11:03 am
SCBuc
Stop bringing facts and reason into my arguement. I only care about my reality. Jk. Ty.
March 10th, 2017 at 11:04 am
Totally agree with Mike Johnson up top. Wish him well.
Side note-I always thought he looked a little like Dave Chapelle in this picture lol
March 10th, 2017 at 11:07 am
Wow…shepard leaving has nothing to do with jameis and everything to do with getting the opportunity to do more than just play speacial teams. And the money doesnt hurt either.
March 10th, 2017 at 11:08 am
So many here wanted to keep him… REALLY?
lmao you guys are too hilarious. He didn’t about to much here when given the chance. Keep it moving
Happy for him
March 10th, 2017 at 11:08 am
Can’t hate on a guy chasing the $$$$. NFL careers are short and bad for your overall health. Get as much money as you can and retire as early as you can. That’s why I’m happy for Glennon.
March 10th, 2017 at 11:08 am
I’m a huge Jameis fan but we need to remember that Russell Shepard will be catching balls from a former MVP.
As a side note your favorite website Pro Football Focus gave the Bucs good grades in their free agent acquisition yesterday.
March 10th, 2017 at 11:10 am
That sucks. I like him as the 3/4 guy with humphries.
They definitely need to draft/ pick up another quick/speedy wr and another big tall one
March 10th, 2017 at 11:27 am
Get yours Shep. Looking forward to kicking y’all @$$ twice a season for years to come.
March 10th, 2017 at 11:29 am
Is it just me or did he get hurt or dinged up every time we tried to give him more snaps at WR? Seemed like there were a few games where he ended up on the sideline in pain.
Great special teams guy and locker room guy but I’d rather use his spot for a WR with true upside to be a special player from the draft.
Also – is Djax going to return punts? He hasn’t really been doing it the last few years much but I doubt we have better options right now. Unless we can get a Curtis Samuel in the draft or Shelton Gibson late
March 10th, 2017 at 11:38 am
Need room for new playmakers.
In the draft, they are going to add 1-2 WR/TE
March 10th, 2017 at 12:38 pm
Where did this idea of players having ‘loyalty’ to their team come from? Maybe from back in the 1920s/1930s when a lot of fans thought college football was the only worthwhile football, and pro players should be looked down on because they ‘play for money, not team’?
When has ANY employee EVER had the kind of loyalty to their company that some sports fans seem to demand from players? If YOU work for company X today, and another (comparable) company offers you a 25-40% pay raise, would you turn it down out of ‘loyalty’? It’s ALWAYS been about the $$$, and those sports fans need to grow up and stop believing that players are super-powered comic book characters.
Good for Shepard! Hope he does well (except when playing the Bucs).
March 10th, 2017 at 12:51 pm
See how this works 🙁 …you don’t let core players walk…bad move
March 10th, 2017 at 1:08 pm
The reason our punt game was so successful last season was b/c we had Shepherd, Josh Robinson, and Ryan Smith chasing down balls and pinning teams inside their own 5 or 10 yard lines.
That important fact can not be undervalued.
March 10th, 2017 at 1:14 pm
Miko, Shep is not a core player.
March 10th, 2017 at 1:14 pm
Special teamers are a dime a dozen if we are honest with ourselves.
March 10th, 2017 at 1:17 pm
Let Mr. Optimist put a very positive spin on this. As our team gets better and better we are going to lose some decent players because we are good enough that the next up is just not good enough for us…but still good enough to play in the league. I think that is Shep.
ME13 and DJAX are the two main targets…Brate continues to improve…hope he comes to camp with 15 more lbs this year…Hump is a decent 3rd…he was out of position as the 2nd WR…and I suspect our new RB…Dalvin or McCaffery will be catching plenty of passes out of the backfield.
Now if we could pick up another WR like Curtis Samuel…we are suddenly loaded with weapons for #3!!! Again let’s start booking flights to Minneapolis eh?
March 10th, 2017 at 1:35 pm
Robinson was the key to our kick coverage
March 10th, 2017 at 1:53 pm
V-jax needs to be put on the couch list. Stay in shape and if an injury happens. You’ll get a call. More as a TE slot guy.
March 10th, 2017 at 2:02 pm
If the Panthers are going to pay him like a WR and not a special teams guy, then no amount of recruiting is going to make a difference. God for Shepard to get paid, I wish we would have kept him as he looked pretty good at WR and could have been depth – also you could tell watching him play that he learned from VJ since he looked like a smaller version of him – which is a compliment.
March 10th, 2017 at 2:07 pm
I feel like the Glennon mob became the Shepard club. The guy was a great teammate and a good gunner on special teams, but he just wasn’t that good a WR. With Desean in the fold now he would have been and SHOULD have been WR #4, and that’s how they would’ve paid him.
He was a mediocre spark on a really bad squad of WRs (with the obvious Evans exception).
Bye!
March 10th, 2017 at 2:40 pm
As stated several times, and the obvious answer is, that Shepard was going to be the 4th receiver on the team at best. If anyone else was signed/drafted he’d be the fifth. He got an opportunity with Carolina to have more of a role and likely some more money so he took it.
Most people aren’t going to willingly be a benchwarmer and take less money because they like one person on their team. I hate to break the news to Joe, but it doesn’t quite work that way and is not a reflection or lack thereof of Jameis recruiting powers.
March 10th, 2017 at 2:48 pm
So the panthers who have 11mil less than we do in cap space are willing to pay him more than we are. Hmmm interesting.
March 10th, 2017 at 3:08 pm
Hate to lose Shep – but he wanted more $ than the Bucs thought he was worth and also likely wanted more opportunity at WR than he was likely to get here moving forward.
The up side is that for every player like Shep and Akeem Spence who leave the Bucs for a more lucrative deal with another team – the more likely it is that we will get a nice comp pick for Mike Glennon.
March 10th, 2017 at 3:18 pm
Tis headline is ridiculous. Why the hell would that be on Jameis? Just look at the rosters, Joe and tell me where there is a better chance to actually see the field as a receiver…
Behind Evans, DJax, and Adam Rudy and the assured new draft pick WR coming in or behind Kbenji and err, Funchess, and some guy they call Phill Brown?
March 10th, 2017 at 4:48 pm
Hopefully, James was honest and told him to do what was right for him.
March 10th, 2017 at 8:49 pm
Shep didn’t show me nothing he was not a good returner we need a speed returner with great moves like T. Hill.
March 10th, 2017 at 10:44 pm
Jonzey – Russell Shepard has never returned a punt or kickoff for the Buccaneers