Mark Dominik Speaks
April 24th, 2010
Mark Dominik took a brief moment from his busy duties during the draft to speak with Joe’s good friend Justin, of WDAE-AM 620, this morning to talk about the Bucs’ moves.
“I am excited about this draft and we were going into it and that’s why we were stocking up on picks. We still have six selections to go.”
On picking defensive tackles Gerald McCoy and David Price:
“Those are two talented players. We stayed true to the board. Those two you know they will get after the quarterback. With Roy Miller, we can stay fresh and rotate and stay strong up front and get [pressure] up the middle.
“Price can play nose tackle and he has played some defensive end. We will definitely find a place for that young man.
“The football-love meter is very important for me. How much do they love the game? With Arrelious Benn, he has a tremendous work ethic and is a tremendous young man. The year before, he was a 60-plus catch, 1,000-plus yards guy and may be one of the best runners after the catch in the draft. Mike Williams is very exciting for us. We certainly had a big grade on him. We did a lot of work on him. We are extremely comfortable with him and the fans will like this kid. He is dynamic and he could be that No. 1 receiver.
“So far we’re very excited but there’s a lot of work to do. We will be wheeling and dealing.”
April 24th, 2010 at 11:18 am
Until the picks produce we have to withhold judgement but Man, Dom def gets an A for drafting potential.. this Draft has def been worth the wait so far and we still have 3 more rounds to go
April 24th, 2010 at 11:21 am
I think Mike Williams will be fine, but that said, how can the “football-love” meter be high when he quits the team?
April 24th, 2010 at 11:37 am
Ok I’ll be the first to say this about Dominik – I take back a lot of what I wrote. This draft filled many of the needs the Bucs have and if the players perform to their levels Dominik may have cemented his job for years to come.
If the Bucs were a store then the GM did a great job a restocking – at good value.
Now it’s up to the HC – Raheem – to make good on these kids. Since Rah-Rah demonstrated his defensive knowledge and coaching at the end of 2009 and with the first 4 picks being defense – well I’m cautiously optimistic.
I only hope that Dominik gets some “leadership” on the team to get Williams (along with Talib & TJ) motivated and flying straight.
Ok I’ll forget Marshall and Holmes and turn off the negative-meter.
April 24th, 2010 at 11:49 am
Charlie — I think there was a non-football reason he quit
April 24th, 2010 at 11:50 am
Mr. Lucky — that is a good take: cautiously optimistic
April 24th, 2010 at 11:52 am
I like Gruden and think he did a lot of good things with the bucs,but when have we had a draft this productive?I think all the way back to 95 with Sapp and Brooks.Lke the guy or not,Dominick is stockpiling some talent on both sides of the ball.
April 24th, 2010 at 11:56 am
You can’t award kudos etc right now. All of these kids could under-perform and other available kids may be better players.
I will say this – they were forced to take mccoy, no dispute with that pick. price was unnecessary if u believe in miller. not a huge fan of benn, would have preferred tate, but we will see on him – he was really bad at illinois last year but i know he blames the qb (which he will do here as well if he struggles). bell – who knows? williams – some talent but there is always a lot of risk taking a quitter, and especially one who isnt too bright b/c I know that he was told that quitting was going to hurt his draft position and cost him a lot of $ but he did it anyway. Williams missed all of 2008 after being kicked off the team for “academic dishonesty.”
But I guess a dishonest quitter w/ some skilss is worth a 4th rounder.
April 24th, 2010 at 12:17 pm
If we try and make Price a Nose Tackle , Carolina will run for 500 yards against us in a single game…im not even exaggerating . 500 yards.
No way he is going to be stout enough to take on a double-team during a run play and hold his gap.
ALso , a short squatty guy like him will not succeed as an edge rusher either, so scrap the DE idea.
Face it : He is in the Josh Johnson role. He will be McCoy’s career back-up , lol. Awesome use of the 35th overall selection!
April 24th, 2010 at 12:20 pm
We are proud of the way you are rebuilding our team so far Mark.
April 24th, 2010 at 12:20 pm
and even if Price COULD play the nose , it’s a total waste of his talents. He is best suited as a pass rusher , not eating up double-teams. You can get a player to do that in the 7th round, or just let Hovan keep doing it…
April 24th, 2010 at 12:22 pm
So, when does the “wheeling and dealing” start? We’re well into the 5th.
We won’t know for a couple years (at least) if this draft is equivalent to the 95 draft. This draft is so deep, it’s hard to screw it up (on paper). Time will tell if these guys produce on the field.
April 24th, 2010 at 12:55 pm
I’m a little late to the party here. Haven’t been near a computer but its nice to see Radio Mushmouth can still find something to complain about.
I think that 2nd pick, while unexected, was a great pick. When this defense was at its most dominate it had interchangeable peices all along the line. They even used to say there were no starters just 1a and 1b. There was no let up of pressure when one guy came out of the game and was replaced by another. The “back up” saw close to the same amount of playing time as the starters.
This takes one of the weakest links on the team and potentially makes it into a strength.
And also where are the people that said they would never keep the third pick because of the money issue?
April 24th, 2010 at 1:15 pm
D-money , we won the superbowl with Chatric Darby at Nose tackle.
You don’t need a star there , you just need a grinder….Spending a high 2nd on a talented undertackle and then shoving him into the Nose position to eat double teams all day is a waste of a pick.
Defend it all you want , but it was stupid , bottom line.
April 24th, 2010 at 1:17 pm
and don’t get me wrong , I like the draft so far except for that abortion of a 2nd round pick …and because of it we will not have an edge rusher yet again this year.
April 24th, 2010 at 1:24 pm
Nattering nabombs of negativity
April 24th, 2010 at 1:43 pm
Nobody can say yah or nay whether it is a good draft. We might look back and say Price was the best pick in years, or McCoy could bust, or Benn might be all pro.
Nobody ever knows till the cleats hit the ground in the regular season, and that often takes two-three years to evaluate. We dont even know if Freeman is our answer at QB yet.
Was it the Super Duper Dynasty building draft we all hoped for, or a collection of busts? I suspect it is somewhere in between.
Personally, id still prefer BM and Holmes!
April 24th, 2010 at 1:56 pm
Eric, of course we do not know with certainty what to make of this draft, but the “nobody can say” argument is actually the hater’s fallback. It is a defensive way of dismissing the obvious improvement.
It is virtually impossible to say anything other than that the Bucs are greatly improved after this draft and that they are on the right track. The Bucs cannot turn it all around in one draft, but this is a good start, as was last year’s draft.
Further, we do know more and more about Dom’s and Morris’s work and philosophy. It should be clear to everyone — even the most ardent haters — that both Dom and Morris are good talent evaluators (see Miller, Freeman, Strougher etc.) and that they intend to try to build the team with guys that were productive in college as opposed to guys that have “potential,” which was often the Gru/Allen approach. Dom/Morris are also focused on picking leaders and for the most part chaarcter guys, which was often the Dungy/McKay approach.
These known facts, plus the players drafted, should be enough for any reasonable — that is the key, reasonable — person to be optimistic. Surprisingly (not), we still have a lot of negativity on this board. Oh well, who ever said sports fans were “reasonable.”
April 24th, 2010 at 2:14 pm
@Jimbuc
“the Bucs are greatly improved after this draft and that they are on the right track”.
How in the world do you know this if none of the players have even dressed for an NFL game?
“production” in college? Benn had two touchdowns his last year and less than 500 yards. Williams didn’t even play his Senior season. And how does he fit this “good character” mode?
Me thinks you are a bit premature and rosey with your evaluation sir.
Even McCoy did not have impressive “production” in terms of tackles and sacks.
And, how do you know that Freeman, Stroughter, and Miller will be good players in the NFL? Don’t all those guys have to improve before that can be said?
Before we declare Dom is a “good talent evaluator” dont they have to select someone who becomes a good player? (not defined as a starter for the bucs) And have a winning season at some point?
April 24th, 2010 at 2:26 pm
Eric — No one knows how each player will produce but the Bucs are undeniably better in the middle of the defense –their biggest area of weakness — unless EVERYONE of their picks over the last two years flops. You seem to be starting from the point of view that all might flop. Thery are undeniably better at WR; again, unless every guy flops. By the way,Benn was chose because he was a leader, character guys and VERY productive in college. Even someone that does not follow CF would know that Benn’s numbers were down due to QB and scheme. Why is it that you only seem to find the negative facts? Hmmm.
Again, the “haters” fallback position is to say “we do not know.” It’s a true statement but not necessarily accurate. That’s why I think you are proving my point. You have found a way to discount objective improvment.
April 24th, 2010 at 2:38 pm
Bad decision. They’re looking for character and choose this guy????!!!!! And they could’ve gotten Holmes for a 5th round pick!!!???? Not only that, but Carlton Mitchell and Jacoby Ford were still on the board and are probably better.
They need help on their offensive line and Bruce Campbell would’ve been a better pick. He has projected to be an early rounder and was said to the most athletic lineman in the draft. He was still up for grabs.
April 24th, 2010 at 2:41 pm
ok, Jimbuc,
I guess there is some difference between true and accurate for which I am unaware.
Did they improve? Ok, lets say they did.
I saw an interview with Bellichick before the draft and he said “every team will improve”.
This doesnt occur in a vacuum. Improvement only matters if you close ground on the competition. One undeniable truth of every NFL draft is that every team “thinks” they got better.
U will not find a GM saying, gee we just got worse!
My only point is that whether the bucs gained ground is unknowable at this point.
BTW, questioning draft choices is not “hateful”. Its merely an opinion and no different than yours.
April 24th, 2010 at 2:57 pm
@JimBuc:
You r guilty of what u r accusing Eric of – u accuse him of assuming that all are busts yet u r assuming that these guys r all better than their replacements.
For example, does anyone know is next year or 2011 if mccoy and price will be better than hovan and wilkerson? No. If they arent than that area has not been “undeniably upgraded.” The odds are that 1 of the 2 (mccoy / price) will disappoint.
Benn sucked in 2009 and blamed his qb – maybe that was true – maybe he contributed to his qb’s problems. Williams was suspended in 08 for academic dishonesty and quit in 2009 (not a great record if u ask me).
Finally, how many GM’s, HC’s and fans really expect vast improvement in years 1 and 2 solely based on the draft. Just Radio, Dom and their idiot supporters. Rookies almost by definition struggle – particularly in the 2nd 1/2 of the season.
If this draft is successful – they will see improvement in 2012 b/c of it. If they are better next year it will have almost nothing to do with this draft (it will be do freeman getting better and the o-line improving and the LB’s maturing). Good Luck – I predict 4-45 wins next year.
April 24th, 2010 at 2:57 pm
Eric, questioning draft choices (i.e. we should have picked receiver A instead of receiver B) is not hateful, of course. You know I was not talking about that. Saying “we just don’t know” is a begrudging tacit admission or fallback by someone who is defending their position as opposed to looking at the facts objectively. If Dom and Morris and the Galzers are as bad as everyone say they are then how could they do any good. So, an objectively good draft becomes “we just don’t know.”
Next, we should look for the explanation as to why the cheap, broke Glazers picked a guy at #3 instead of trading back to avoid the bug guaranteed contract. Here, I will save all the haters the time. The answer will be: because they had no choice. LOL.
April 24th, 2010 at 3:02 pm
Thomas — like a moth to a candle, I knew you could not resist this post because you are the classic example. Just go look at some of your comments on the other pages.
Anyway, you prove my point with the “we do not know” comment. If we drafted #3 overall DT and another that most expected to be a 1st overall and they are both in their early 20s and we already have Miller, chances are we improved the interior of the D over Simms and Hovan, right? I mean if we want to reduce it to math the probabilty of improvment is better than regression, right? So why the “we do not know” defense?
April 24th, 2010 at 3:08 pm
@JimBUc:
the fact that they used there 1st round pick is not proof of anything. How do you know if there were any legit trade offers?
Also, saying that “noone knows” is not a fallback it is true. I remember the Chargers saying how thrilled they were for being able to draft Ryan Leaf over Peyton and that he was the number 1 all along. Just an example of how wrong GM’s can be.
The great talent evaluator Dom also signed a 24 million deal (10 guaranteed) and wasted another 10 million on Mike Nugent, Luke Mccown (before giving him away), the hefty lefty, Crowell (injured when he arrived) – so sorry if I still question his judgment.
Honestly, who can size up last years draft? I can’t – Freeman was okay, Stroughter surprised and everyone else disappointed. If FRreeman and stroughter fail to improve – than you may say that was a bad draft- the juries still out – hence “noone knows.”
April 24th, 2010 at 3:09 pm
@jimbuc
There are no objective facts about an NFL draft before anybody plays a game!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Its inherently subjective!
And, i never said the bucs wouldnt take the third pick!
April 24th, 2010 at 3:15 pm
and JimBuc:
I am happy to be considered ythe polar opposite of you in terms of opinions.
I express frustration at the state of a 3-13 franchise being run by in my view the incompetent. 3-13 didnt have to happen – the idiots fired both coordinators before/during the season when the H.c. primarily was the problem.
You encourage the continuation of this charade i.e. the team being run by these kids. I would like a Cowher, Holmgren, Shanahan, Dungy, Parcells type-pro involved either as GM or HC – but that cost $. I supported these kids week 1 – I became embarrassed and frustrated.
I still am, you should be. The fact that you are not tells me that you are one of those that begged for Gruden to be fired now feel ownership in Rah. I was okay w/ Gruden being fired but wanted him replaced with someone qualified – not Radio.
April 24th, 2010 at 3:27 pm
Thomas — on the most recent article you just referred to the Bucs trying to trade Hovan and Sims as “purely” a cost-cutting move. If there was any doubt about you before, it has been completely removed. LOL
April 24th, 2010 at 3:30 pm
Thomas — your latest comments here also prove my point. Even if everything you say in your latest comment is true, that does not mean that the Bucs did not improve their team over the last three days. But, because you view everything about the Bucs as negative you are forced to explain away any success. That is what most people call having an agenda. Your agenda is to prove that your thought about the Bucs incompetence is true, so a successful draft is discounted with “we do not know.” Simple.
April 24th, 2010 at 3:32 pm
Eric — I don’t know the sun will rise in the East tomorrow because it has not happened, but I am going to bet it does. You can draw reasonable and objective conclusions from the facts, that is unless you are biased. (See Thomas above).
April 24th, 2010 at 3:34 pm
JimBuc, do you believe in Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy? I’m betting you do. Everything is blue sky and the Bucs can do no wrong.
Dude, when the Bucs start proving they can win on the field, we’ll lay off them. What have these clowns done in the last year to give any one optimism? Freeman? Maybe. None of last year’s picks started until mid season (Freeman) and that was after the season had been written off. So, what makes you think these new guys are going to make an impact in year 1? I’m just hoping last year’s picks start making major contributions to the team.
April 24th, 2010 at 3:35 pm
By the way, what happened to all the “wheeling and dealing” that Dominik was talking about. They haven’t made a single move.
April 24th, 2010 at 3:44 pm
FINALLY! A Florida school pick.
April 24th, 2010 at 4:06 pm
Louie, if your think my comments are only “blue sky” it only underscores that the overwhelming majority of commentary on this site and others is ridiculously negative. The only point I made on this thread was that saying “we don’t know yet” is just a way to try and explain away a successful draft. Hardly the stuff of Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. If you look at the authors of the “we don’t know yet” commentary — Thomas is a shining example — my point should be obvious. I am only trying to provide the other side of the picture.
April 24th, 2010 at 6:35 pm
“You can draw reasonable and objective conclusions from the facts”
This is what is commonly called an “opinion”, which is all anyone can have about the 2010 draft, whether it be the Bucs or any other team.
Just because you have a particular opinion does not make it based upon objective facts. Whther a particular college player will make a good pro is obviously subjective. Otherwise, every team would have a good draft every year.
Therefore, i am not a “hater” as you accused me of, but a person with a contrary subjective opinion.
You criticized Gruden and Allen, does that make you a hater? Or are u expressing an opinion?
April 24th, 2010 at 8:19 pm
Eric you are a hater because you are not objective or reasonable. That is the defintiion of a hater: a person who hates notwithstanding the facts. No one person is all bad or all good so your opinion should vary if it is objective. Allen did a great job with the cap but he made some bad player moves. Gruden won with limited talent but he alos fell in love with marginal guys (Clayton) and he had a dog house. Dom made some really bad moves, but he also made good one. Morris made many mistakes, but he alos kept the team playing and turned the D around. Get it? A hater refuses to recognize the good with the bad. Kind of like saying that “we do not know” if the Bucs improved with this draft
April 24th, 2010 at 8:46 pm
To Thams and Eric and Tampa2 and RM and the rest:
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/story/13292105/draft-grades-bucs-give-contenders-some-competition-for-honor-roll?tag=coverlist_active;coverlist_footer
April 24th, 2010 at 11:24 pm
@jimbuc
Well you can refer to me that way if you wish. But if you check my posts you will see positive remarks.
I have referred to Freeman in glowing terms, gave Dom credit for the Winslow trade, Adams trade, and the McCoy draft choice.
You, other hand, seem 100% all positive all the time!
Anyhow, Rock on my friend.
April 25th, 2010 at 11:20 am
Thanks for the link JimBuc, it was an interesting read. Time will tell, but we sure look good, on paper