Another Punch To The Draft Gut
January 21st, 2019
Whiffs in the spotlight
Patriots captain James White, already a Super Bowl hero before this season, was front-and-center last night as the clutch and versatile running back for the Belicheats.
Hmmm, where was he selected in the NFL Draft?
White, who is more of a postseason running back hero in New England than LeGarrette Blount, was taken 130th overall in the 2014 draft. Earlier in that fourth round, Atlanta grabbed Pro Bowl RB Devonta Freeman at No. 103 overall. The Bucs left that draft with running back Charles Sims, selected No. 69 overall in Round 3.
It’s a Bucs life.
White has been so consistent and versatile that even Bill Belicheat gave him a second contract for $4 million per season, a rarity for Belicheat who doesn’t like to pay running backs.
Ironically, the Patriots gave Sims a tryout after the Bucs cut him last summer. Sims did not play in the NFL this season.
Joe is relying on Bucco Bruce Arians to remedy the Bucs’ sad recent history at running back. Another draft miss at the position and Joe might have a seizure.
January 21st, 2019 at 1:03 pm
Tell us something most of us don’t know Joe, Licht can’t draft worth a sh#t! Only in the minds of delusional Buc fans does Licht know what’s he’s doing, and has put together a talented roster that just needs the right coaching.
January 21st, 2019 at 1:05 pm
More salt please !
January 21st, 2019 at 1:16 pm
Can someone, anyone tell me how and why an utter failure like Licht remains in a GM role?
January 21st, 2019 at 1:17 pm
Please. Every team passed on White three times but Licht is the guy who is a dunce because he passed? I’m glad all you guys have 20/20 hindsight.
January 21st, 2019 at 1:17 pm
Say what you will about the Pats (I loathe’em), But they take everybody’s rejects..spare parts and turn them into Gold. They’ve been consistently doin it for years. Teams like us complain about this draftee or another. Patriots take a guy teams have no use for or have given up on and…Wah-la? Superbowl bound. Its the coaching and mngt people. Bellacheat could care less bout a draft. He knows his forte and treasures are just..a dumpster away You gotta luv it.
January 21st, 2019 at 1:20 pm
Patriots demonstrate the value of coaching every year.
January 21st, 2019 at 1:30 pm
I couldn’t agree more. Trade ROJO to NE for a 2020 7th round pick and Bellacheat will make him a 1000 yard rusher and start him in the 2019 Super Bowl.
January 21st, 2019 at 1:34 pm
Man Joe just please go back to when the Licht era began and go pick for pick round for round and fairly evaluate and grade each pick Licht track record is horrible! Compare it to what could have been in position of need or best available he still chose wrong time after time just recently we passed up Donte Jackson, Derius Guice, Justin Reid etc etc so many wasted opportunities to build from the draft high picks butchered by this guy smh
January 21st, 2019 at 1:50 pm
I know could have drafted Tom brady we are such idiots. Steve Young another draft bust along with Aqib Talib. I should have bought Amazon stock 2 years ago lol.
January 21st, 2019 at 1:56 pm
@TopCoach
I wondered how we passed on Eric Reid when we had a need at safety, even before we picked MJ Stewart
January 21st, 2019 at 2:01 pm
DL/OL R1
DL/OL R2
RB R3
DL/OL R4
RB R5
DL/OL R7
With preference on 3 DL to 2 OL.
FA = 2 placeholder CBs that can both start, a legit OG that can start day one at RG to not pidgeon hole our draft, one vet S, and shuffle the LBs as necessary.
We can easily do the above in FA if we move people. Could also likely get a 3rd or 4th I’d hope for McCoy.
January 21st, 2019 at 2:03 pm
Right….lovie smith who was essentialy jason lichts boss had zero control in the draft….even though lovie smith hired licht and even though charles.simms.was comparred to lovies running back stud.in chicago matt forte.yeah, no way.that was lovie smiths pick at all…it was obvioulsy the guy Jason Licht wanted.
YOU PEOPLE ARE.FRIEKING MORRONS IF YOU BLAME THAT PICK ON LICHT!!!! AND GUESS WHAT RONALD.JONES WAS DIRKS PICK FROM A KEY STAT.IN COLLEGE THAT DIRK POINTED OUT AFTER HE WAS DRAFTED!!!! THINK BEFORE YOU GO ASSIGNING BLAME FOR BAD DRAFT PICKS DUMMIES!!!!!!
January 21st, 2019 at 2:11 pm
YUP!!!!!
It is the off season! Joe is talking about RUNNING BACKS! lol
January 21st, 2019 at 2:12 pm
I’m sorry, who?
James White is nothing special. If you think that, then I got beach front property in KS to sell you.
White is a niche back, that is all. He is in for special plays. He doesn’t carry that team. This year is the first time he has really been used in their receiving game.
He has 425 yds rushing and 751 yds receiving on 123 targets. What are we talking about losing again?
January 21st, 2019 at 2:16 pm
Hey, we could have drafted Sony Michel, but we drafted Vita Vea also. Write about that.
January 21st, 2019 at 2:17 pm
Oh, we could have drafted Alvin Kamara, but we drafted Justin Evans instead.
January 21st, 2019 at 2:38 pm
It’s not about drafting talent it’s about drafting the right players to fit your system
Belichick knows this, that’s why most his players don’t do so well when they play on different teams
GM and Head Coach must be synchronized so they’re not just drafting players because they have talent. They need to draft players that are good at doing very specific things to fortify the coaches system / schemes
January 21st, 2019 at 2:43 pm
ouch. Even worse will be Joes article 4 years from now highlighting all the talent from the 2018 2nd round we passed on only to grab a decent cb and a bust of an rb
January 21st, 2019 at 2:49 pm
Apparently 31 other teams whiffed as well. Stoking the fire of licht haters when even you admitted that since Lovie was the one making draft decisions since he hired licht, why wouldn’t you mention that in this post now?
January 21st, 2019 at 2:52 pm
Vea is a good player. Not a good comparison.
January 21st, 2019 at 2:53 pm
Joe don’t try to match up Tom Brady and Belicheat to the Bucs. They whoop every ones a$$ and go to the SB every year.
January 21st, 2019 at 3:04 pm
Vita is coming along but if he doesn’t become a top 10 defensive tackle it will be considered a bust.
January 21st, 2019 at 3:23 pm
If we had drafted James White, the previous staff would not have developed him or put him in a scheme that matched his skill set. We would calling him a bust and half the posters would still be calling for Jason Licht to be fired.
January 21st, 2019 at 3:39 pm
[Suggesting any Bucs player committed a felony unless he actually stood before a judge can and will get you banned. Since you seemed to be on troll patrol, you just got run. Thanks while it lasted. — Joe]
January 21st, 2019 at 3:53 pm
BA is a quarterback whisperer I’m pretty sure he didn’t write a book about drafting great players, for some reason he wants licht so I’ll go out on a limb and The reason is because he knows licht can be successful. It’s so funny to here fans talk like they can do better and actually believe it.
January 21st, 2019 at 4:01 pm
Let’s not forget the Joes wanted Johnny “Drunk” Manziel drafted here so their football draft acumen isn’t all that high to begin with
January 21st, 2019 at 4:03 pm
Not there yet Says:
January 21st, 2019 at 3:53 pm
BA is a quarterback whisperer
.
.
he’ll be whispering under his breath next year….
January 21st, 2019 at 4:37 pm
Lord C, I was right there with you in Rnd 1 (OL/DL depending on who’s available when we pick), and even in Rnd 2 (DL/OL again depending on who’s available). But you lost me in Rnd 3. We desperately NEED to draft a LB (MLB preferably) . Right now the only one I feel comfortable counting on is LVD (still scared of counting too heavily on Beckwith) and Kwon & Taylor are FAs (I’d wave Bye Bye to Bullough & Cichy in a second). I’d personally pick up a quality, experienced RB in FA & then draft one in Rnd 4 or 5 (depending on who’s available). Counting on Barber, but not on RoJo.
Your scenario is intriguing though. In the draft & FA together, we NEED the following STARTERS & key rotational players IMO: 2 RB, 3 OLinemen, 1 WR, 1 QB (backup), 1 DT (plus another IF GMC won’t renegotiate his contract), 2 DE (possibly 4 DE IF Gholston & Curry won’t renegotiate their contracts), 2 LBs (possibly 3 IF Beckwith isn’t back at 100%), 1 CB, 1 Safety, 1 Kicker.
I know it sounds like a lot (15 max 19) but that’s how bad I believe this roster really is. Part of that gets filled by us re-signing some of our own FAs (preference for Hump, Griffin, Taylor … that’s it). I would hope that we can get 3 starters from the draft (optimistic admittedly), meaning that we need to be VERY active in free agency. And also meaning that we NEED to free up a LOT of CAP money if we expect to improve in a significant way this year.
January 21st, 2019 at 4:49 pm
Watching some replays I’d say the offensive line has a great deal to do with their success running the ball.
January 21st, 2019 at 5:01 pm
@Joe says written @2:52 “Vea is a good player there is no comparison “
Let’s see Joe what this big softie is like at the start of next season. Especially with the comment getting off the plane after the draft “God it’s hot here”
Guarantee he only did better once it started to cool down in Florida a bit. Put him in pads in July and August and have him playing REAL games at Ray Jay in September and he will get “hurt” again right away!! WATCH!
January 21st, 2019 at 5:01 pm
AlteredEgo, While I am not a fan of your anti-Jameis posts, that one was pretty funny! Lol
January 21st, 2019 at 5:09 pm
Watch Rojos college tape highlights.
Kids got talent with a capital T.
Iam hopeful with new staff he will be able to be a top back in the league. Young man is no bust yet!! Get him on jugs.
January 21st, 2019 at 5:23 pm
@DR
Yeah I don’t think the roster is as bad as you do:
Agree on 2 RB at least. This draft has good ones in the mid rounds and typically the best value at RB is still in the draft and not FA every year.
For O-line in terms of truly horrible starters we only had 1 and it was at RG. Dotson / Smith at OT were still better than a lot of other teams’ OT situations as crazy as that may sound.
Ideally we’d move on from Smith and get a LT AND RG (either top 2 round pick or FA for each – possibly 3rd round for an OG), move Smith and his salary and attitude, and draft a developmental OT to go with Cappa/Leidke/etc as depth that can play along the line.
We don’t need another WR. That’s a luxury. ME/Godwin/Hump/Bobo/Watson is a great group. The Watson kid looked very promising when given time as a rookie. Bobo has flashed a bunch before. The other 3 are proven.
LB comes down to Bowles plans. If we retain Kwon/lavonte/beckwith/others I don’t think it’s much of a need. If we are trying to make big changes then it is definitely a need.
Agree on a CB and S.
I think we could be fine with just:
-2 O-lineman
-2 RB
-1 CB
-1 S
-1 DT
In terms of true desperate needs. Which probably makes my “draft all defensive line” comment confusing lol. It’s moreso that our DL group is super old compared to our LBs, secondary, skill players, or O-line, and this draft is loaded on DL/edge rush. And philosophically elite trench teams typically always do well.
January 21st, 2019 at 5:24 pm
I also just like the idea of allocating the large older DL contracts we have to younger other needs I’ve listed, and replenishing that DL talent via the draft.
January 21st, 2019 at 5:32 pm
Talking about anyone on the Patriots is fools gold as they make every player look about 3 times better than they would look anywhere else.
January 21st, 2019 at 5:51 pm
Nailed it, NDog.
I always enjoy this pic of The Goof now known as Gump in many threads here. His staying power has been pretty amazing. Can Bucco Bruce save both his career and our belved Bucs? Stay tuned!
January 21st, 2019 at 5:52 pm
Dotson / Smith at OT were still better than a lot of other teams’ OT situations as crazy as that may sound.
Name one starting left tackle pair worse than Dotson / Smith… Dotson is the worst olineman on the field every single sunday for both teams and has been for years. smith is slow, lazy and plays with NO heart…
there is not a single keeper on that oline if you want to be great… marpet is and will be nothing more than average on a good day. raise your standards.
January 21st, 2019 at 5:55 pm
This gig has appeared to age Gump at a similar rate to that of U.S. Presidents. .3375% and a slew of second round busts will do that I suppose.
January 21st, 2019 at 8:04 pm
Joe
All you’re doing with your revisionist BS is spreading malcontent towards Licht. There’s a reason EVERY team passed on Freeman 4 times or rather 102 times. Sims was the higher rated back. Are you saying you would have drafted Freeman if you were in charge then? The draft is a gamble. Every team misses on guys. Every team passes on guys. The problem has not talent or drafting, it’s been COACHING!
January 21st, 2019 at 8:17 pm
They have the best QB of all time and the best coach of all time.
The number of players around the league that would have been productive players for the Patriots over the last 18 years is uncountable. James White probably would have fizzled out had he been draft by the Bucs at that point in time and Charles Sims would probably be a superstar in New England.
January 21st, 2019 at 8:30 pm
Licht whiffs, he hits. That makes him like any other GM. But not every other GM lands BA or scoops up undrafted free agents like Adam Humphries who is due to GET PAID. We can disect every pick ever and marvel at the Marpet and LVD picks or we can whine about the missed picks. This is more of a story about not being able to get a RB worth a crap. It’s a true story and by the way, you’re ignorant to write off ROJO. Got to see what B.A. gets out of ROJO and Winston. That’s when you’ll know how to judge the talent on this team.
January 21st, 2019 at 8:32 pm
I meant Kwon not LVD.
January 21st, 2019 at 8:58 pm
cmurda rojo.is gonna be a playmaker!
January 21st, 2019 at 9:43 pm
Sims was a great 3rd down back, and him and Martin lead the league in rushing in 2015. The issue with Sims is/was injuries, but when healthy, he was a really productive 3rd down back. Really not mad at the pick, we saw when Lovie ran the team and forced Dirk to run the ball how well the team ran the ball, however Dirk just running up the gut on 1st and 10 in the first half of games, when everyone knew it was coming, it’s real shocking that hasn’t been productive. Personally I don’t really care if you have a running game or not, you can use the short passing game as your running game, but to run like Dirk did, to merely meet a quota was stupid. For Sims the guy, as a 3rd down back, was really productive, and when the team was down to having to start Hump as a WR because of injuries, he was actually in there playing as the 3rd WR – to say the guy is/was a bust is really overstating it.
January 21st, 2019 at 10:49 pm
Joe, it wasn’t a draft miss. It was a coaching miss. It’s not that Licth hasn’t picked the right players, it that he hasn’t picked the right coaches to coach them up. Did you hear how many time Glazer mentioned “developing” our players, “Teaching ” our players? When the previous draft picks like Hargreaves and Ryan Smith and Gholston start playing well all will see that It’s not the draft. It’s the coaches
January 21st, 2019 at 11:11 pm
I know Licht has had a few bad picks but until we get some coaching I’m going to reserve judgement on how he actually has done. When you look at the first round picks he has had (Mike Evans, Jaimes Winston, Vernon Hargreaves, Oj Howard, and Vita Vea) they all looked good at the time. Personally I would have passed on Heargraves but I understand he was trying to get the best corner in the draft. Now second round picks: ( Austin Seferen-Jenkins, Donavan Smith, Ali Marpet, Noah Spence, Roberto Agiayo, Justin Evans, Ronald Jones, MJ Stewart, and Carolyn Davis) these were some risk reward players. So far I think about half of these guys are working out. This is where I think the coaches can make a difference. They may elevate the play of these second rounders that are still with the Bucs and give us a shot next year. Coaching is everything. These players are so close in talent by the time they make it to the NFL it’s the way coaches prepare these young players that makes winners and losers. Good luck to Brice Arians and his staff.
January 21st, 2019 at 11:14 pm
I hate auto correct. Carolton Davis and Bruce Arians in my above statement. Arghhhhhh…
January 21st, 2019 at 11:49 pm
Drafting is half the equation. The other is development. Consider the last four coaches revolving in and out developing these players… It all comes so clear.
Belichick is the gold standard. He’s a gangster
January 22nd, 2019 at 12:28 am
Every player we drafted besides aquayo got rave reviews. Go look atbare draft grades right after the draft we are always in the b+ to a range top 10 in that department. There has to come a time when you say it has to be coaching. These guys can’t be highly ranked at there position and yet we keep drafting the overrated turd. I think are previous coaching staffs sucked at developing these players during the offseason. Giving them very limited reps and such. Then injuries happen and we expect them to just come out and ball because of where they were drafted. Most teams when they draft a player higher first three rounds they get work from day one with the 1st team. We always seemed to just put them at nickle or situational pass rush and expect when they are forced to start to be ready. You have to throw them to the fire and see what you have from day one. But sometimes you just get to cute and draft a corner who runs a 6.5 and every scout doesn’t think he has the speed to play cornerback and is a project strong safety. Yet you still start him at nickel covering the teams fastest receiver. Stewart was the worse draft pick of all even worse than aguayo to me. And Spence everyone said that was the steal of the draft. He had 6.5 sacks as a rookie with a bum shoulder. Then he can’t even sniff the field. Either he went back to his partying college demons or the previous staff couldn’t coach up players.
January 22nd, 2019 at 7:16 am
Hey Bill Mauer are you an ex Bucs fan? Or you just have nothing to do other than trash underdog teams on a fan website.
Dude!!! Go home!! I’d really like to hear you trash our team in front of real fans in person instead of hiding behind your smartphone or computer. Typical coward like behavior
January 22nd, 2019 at 7:42 am
Watch the film on Rojo against Alabama. Most teams in the NFL play at least as good as Alabama. He’s the kind of running back that needs space. He’s not going to break many tackles in the nfl.
January 22nd, 2019 at 11:08 am
Yes ROJO needs space to do what he does best (hit long gains at the second level of the D), so create some damned plays that get TE’s and WR’s blocking on DB’s and get the OL to open a hole that lets ROJO get past the line of scrimmage to do his thing (vs. only opening a hole that lets DL men get immedudtely 2 yards deep in the Bucs’ backfield). As for Licht missing…he certainly deserves some criticism but the flip side is it’s gotta be tough for any GM in Tampa when there’s a constant coaching carousel (coach A wants players to fit his scheme, coach A fails leading to coach B coming in 2 or 3 years later and suddenly those players might not fit his scheme, so jettison the guys and draft new guys to fit coach B’s scheme, and then the cycle repeats so there’s coach C and D,..etc, repeat process)
January 22nd, 2019 at 11:35 am
But is it really the player.. and not the coach that coaches him up?
I can easily picture this story reading “Bucs pass up Charles Sims for James White” and then it’s Sims who blossoms into the can’t-miss super star under Belicheck.
January 22nd, 2019 at 3:35 pm
JFC i hate looking at jason lichts face. Anyone who smiles like that cant be doing a good job. GTFO licht my balls.