“Always Take A Chance On A Failed No. 1”
March 11th, 2022
Fits philosophy.
It was a philosophy of Hall of Fame head coach Tony Dungy and one shared by a legendary general manager.
The personnel approach was explained this week by that Hall of Fame GM, Bill Polian, who said he and Dungy (and others) operated with a mindset of having faith that a supremely talented but disappointing player is worth investing in because he can be coached up to produce.
“Always take a chance on a failed No. 1,” Polian said, referring to a bust of a first-round draft pick.
The former Colts, Panthers and Bills executive was talking about free agent quarterback Mitch Trubisky and his surging demand in the marketplace this week on SiriusXM NFL Radio.
Joe heard all the chatter and immediately thought about how tight end O.J. Howard is sure to have a few options on the open market next week. The Bucs were not the only team to fall in love with him during the 2017 pre-draft process, and Howard has at least shown flashes in the NFL. He will find a job and be paid more than the league minimum.
But the “failed No. 1” line applies to quarterback Blaine Gabbert, the 10th overall pick in the 2011 NFL Draft and the quarterback mancrush of Bucco Bruce Araians. Arians sees the arm talent and the smarts.
Can it translate to the field when it didn’t before?
It’s worth noting that Arians is close with Polian and calls him “Coach” from their days in Indianapolis. Dungy is also Arians’ former roommate and they worked together with the Chiefs. Also, Arians has the ultimate faith in his offensive gurus being able to not only coach up Gabbert, but tweak the offense to suit him.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:04 am
LOL
March 11th, 2022 at 9:09 am
I’m open minded about it, but definitely feels like a stretch.
I’d really rather see Trask beat out Gabbert since he already sat for an entire year, and played in the SEC/most people ready conference.
Stack the team around them, don’t swing big for a QB unless it’s Deshaun Watson.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:11 am
As much as I want to hold my nose at the thought of Gabbert starting with Trask waiting in the wings to take over, it seems like no matter what, this is going to happen. It would be a really cool story (highly unlikely) if Gabbert rose up from the ashes of his past and gets us to the playoffs.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:12 am
Sometimes, sometimes coaches have a little too much faith in their own abilities. However, examples of this are abundant. The first one that comes to mind is Jim Plunkett. Probably more than that but I have to get back to work. On the other hand he could be the only one.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:12 am
I get that but at some point you need to move on. Plenty of quarterbacks have arm strength and mobility but give me Manning or Brady’s arm with what’s between the ears any day of the week
March 11th, 2022 at 9:14 am
I agree with some failed 1st overalls…even some first rounders. When the Giants release Daniel Jones next year I would take a flyer on him.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:18 am
I have said for the longest time it will be Gabbert for BA. This way he can finally show his coaching genius that was overshadow by Brady who got all the credit for his skills.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:20 am
What the hell, why not…..or why not an untested #2…..
We simply can’t afford much else……sorry fans….
March 11th, 2022 at 9:20 am
I read that Johnny Manziel is thinking about a comeback! If he were to come back here to Tampa, he would have his old receiver Mike Evans to throw to!
I also read that Phillip Rivers may come out of retirement!
March 11th, 2022 at 9:22 am
Look, Gabert isn’t great but he will do as good as Teddy and almost as good as Jimmy for about 1/3 of the price which let us keep more of our core
March 11th, 2022 at 9:23 am
Gabbert deserves another shot. Good with it here as long as another fall back option in place along with Trask, like a rookie pick.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:24 am
Blaine Gabbert did break Kaepernick when he took his starting job so he’s got that going for him.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:31 am
An issue I see with Media, fans and Joe in general is they place WAY too much stake in to draft stock when players have been in the league for years.
So what he was a number one pick. He sucked and continued to suck. That’s why he is a backup.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:34 am
He does know the Arians system!! Worth a look. Any other QB that’s brought in will have to learn the system.. not an easy one to grasp… First year learning could be a disaster!!
March 11th, 2022 at 9:36 am
@mike. You don’t know if Gabbert will do as good as the QG,s you mentioned. Gabbert has sucked out loud every time he has been a QB1.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:36 am
QB’s
March 11th, 2022 at 9:38 am
Gabbert que terrible
Blame gabbert will be trending if we go that route
March 11th, 2022 at 9:51 am
Gators 2020 were 8-4 last year, they beat Georgia and put up 44 on Alabama. They were 6-7 this year. I have faith in Trask
March 11th, 2022 at 9:53 am
So, if this is the logic…..Then JW should be at the top of their list. He knows the offense, threw for 30+ TDS and 5k in first year in this offense…..
March 11th, 2022 at 9:57 am
If Arians and staff couldn’t coach up Jay-Miss what makes anyone think they could coach up Blaine Gabbert? Both are draft busts but I wouldn’t dare make the argument that Gabbert is more talented than Winston.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:59 am
True.
Most people forget that Kaepernick didn’t start kneeling and becoming a social justice icon until AFTER he lost the starting job to Blaine Gabbert.
March 11th, 2022 at 9:59 am
Anything is possible, Rich Gannon always comes to mind. Heck, lesser QBs have won SBs.
I’d hazard a guess that Gabbert’s never played with guys like Mike and Chris on other teams. You never know.
Honestly, we might as well get behind the fact that we’re going into next season with career back-ups or a 2nd year green-horn at QB.
We’re still a force in the NFC South, IMO. It’ll just be a little more “interesting”!
March 11th, 2022 at 10:01 am
Chris@apple
River is not coming out of retirement unless he gets paid and the Bucs don’t have any money. As as Johnny Manziel, I’m really hoping that is sarcasm, the guy is a complete waste
March 11th, 2022 at 10:04 am
By tweak the offense you mean run it until there is no other choice but to throw
March 11th, 2022 at 10:08 am
2 things that need to be acknowledged and admitted , @joe, love you guys but Tom Brady isn’t coming back, let’s just drop the idea, and the other thing is Jameis is the best available option to lead this team at qb, the quicker people swallow and accept this fact the better off this fan base will be
March 11th, 2022 at 10:15 am
What is it with this website and people who think Johnny Football who partied his way out of the browns would have worked out elsewhere.
He had no sense of personal responsibility and failed because of it.
March 11th, 2022 at 10:23 am
‘Dungy is also Arians’ former roommate and they worked together with the Chiefs.’
Never realized that. Nice little tidbit. Amazes me how many big name coaches BA has worked with & been around. Names like Bear Bryant, Tom Moore, Chuck Pagano, Tony Dungy … the list just goes on & on.
Just noticed too that BA started his NFL coaching career in 1989 with the Chiefs under Marty Schottenheimer (Bruce Cowher was their DC while Arians was the RB coach & Dungy was the DB coach). Got a hunch that BA knows a LOT of folks in the NFL.
March 11th, 2022 at 10:33 am
You know what at this point were working towards Cap hell. So lets just rebuild a championship team and draft The youngest Manning to come out of college in a few years. We got another SB win. I can take a few years off. just saying. Ive lived the depression years whats a couple more.
March 11th, 2022 at 10:34 am
Absent any new QB coming in here, Gabbert is the one who will would be successful (not sure how you’d define that) early on, as Trask didn’t even get PRACTICE reps last year. Packers are in far worse cap shape than us, and they just found $200 million for AR. If the Bucs really wanted Wilson, etc, they could have found the money. I’m thinking the plan IS Gabbert>>Trask, a has been all long
March 11th, 2022 at 10:43 am
Marcus Mariota would be a perfect fit for Tampa Bay and none of the talking heads are tying him to potentially being a Buc
March 11th, 2022 at 10:49 am
“Beeej Says: Trask didn’t even get PRACTICE reps last year.”
You’re full of sh*t. Arians said just recently:
“I’ve got a year with Kyle. Got to see Kyle every single day, watch him improve those nuances in the pocket, cause he ain’t afraid to stand in there. He can really sling it. He’s got all the throws.”
How does Arians know Trask “can really sling it” and “he’s got all the throws” if Trask got no practice reps as you claim? You’re just a lowlife hater resoirting to outright lies. Pathetic.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:00 am
lol… if BG could
He would have by now
2011
Yawn ball scratching
March 11th, 2022 at 11:23 am
@D.R.
“Amazes me how many big name coaches BA has worked with & been around. Names like Bear Bryant, Tom Moore, Chuck Pagano, Tony Dungy … the list just goes on & on.”
Indeed! And so I believe that BA has forgotten more about the game of football than I’ll ever learn. He SEES Gabbert’s arm strength every day at practice. I only read about Gabbert from the “experts” who wish to make a final pronouncement before Gabbert’s career is finished or he’s had an opportunity to see how much his game has evovled since he’s joined the BA group.
So after coaching one SB champion for us along with his other accomplishments with other teams, I consider BA HOF. Can he make a mistake? Surely. But not very often and there’s rarely a time when I’ve read someone here make a cogent point about a BA deficiency.
AGAIN…Gabbert has historically played to the level of his team. He’s not an inspirational GOAT but he doesn’t have to be. I’m just sayin too many here have already pronounced him as an anchor that will hold the Bucs back.
There’s not really enough games started to truly measure his career but in THOSE he has he ends up losing or winning at the same % as his team. IE..loser with JAX…loser with S.F….winner at Tenn.
At minimum Gabbert can be expected to play to the level of this team. NO he’s not going to inspire or “lead” the team but he can certainly be a functional piece of the competitive puzzle. There’s a HUGE difference between being better than your team and elevating them…see Tom Brady…and being a dead weight who is irresponsible with his decisions…see JW..or a mature talented QB like Brad Johnson.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:24 am
This scenario seems to be the best one for us if Our Lord and Savior, Mr Tom Brady decides to grace us with one more fling at the title later this year. If we heavily invest in a a higher tier QB, it would be harder to accommodate a last minute change up
March 11th, 2022 at 11:25 am
Truth DR. “Amazes me how many big name coaches BA has worked with & been around. Names like Bear Bryant, Tom Moore, Chuck Pagano, Tony Dungy … the list just goes on & on.”
Time to see if BA’s hype is simply the product of his environment, or if he truly has the qb whisperer chops. I’m sure I’d look pretty bright myself, if standing next to the sun.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:28 am
Niles Says:
March 11th, 2022 at 10:49 am
“Beeej Says: Trask didn’t even get PRACTICE reps last year.”
You’re full of sh*t.
Apparently so is the TBT
Of course, it’s a complete guess how prepared Trask would be to lead a Bucs team that believes it has enough talent to defend its NFC South title.
Not only did he fail to play in a game as a rookie, Trask rarely got any reps in practice. On the few days that Brady didn’t practice in order to rest and recover, Trask may have gotten to run the scout team offense.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:30 am
“Dooley Says:
March 11th, 2022 at 10:43 am
Marcus Mariota would be a perfect fit for Tampa Bay and none of the talking heads are tying him to potentially being a Buc”
Wasn’t one of Mariotas issues was his inconsistency with the deep throws?
March 11th, 2022 at 11:31 am
Tony Dungy didn’t win jack sh@t until he had a hall of fame QB. So this whole line of thinking is hot air. Please do a revisit of these opinions when we’re in the basement of the NFC South. Joe is spreading the propaganda for the Bucs management.
March 11th, 2022 at 11:41 am
QBs in an Arians offense throw career high picks their 1st, everyone even the Goat the 1st half of 2020 struggled, 2nd season everything clicks, I’d bring back JW, he’d win the QB competition, lack of effort was never his problem, he starts throwing stupid picks, then you can change to Gabbert or Trask, follow the article advice, take a chance on former 1st round players, JW played well with no talent at WR, Mike Thomas was MIA
March 11th, 2022 at 11:43 am
With JW, we’d be favored to win our division, imagine the press the Return would garner
March 11th, 2022 at 12:01 pm
You guys keep saying Trask has 1 year learning from Brady. Well Gabbert has 2 years learning from the smartest QB ever. Maybe he learned a lot. He was also throwing to these receivers in practice after Brady taught them how to run routes.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:02 pm
I don’t want Winston back here, but even if I did the Saints have already cleared cap space with the thought of bringing him back. Cam Jordan, notorious Donovan Smith lover, just redid his contract as part of that effort. Winston will be headed back there and will get to see him twice a year again.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:06 pm
Guzzie- JW didn’t just struggle in Arians’ offense. He is a turnover machine. His small sample size in NO means nothing. It’s the “devil we know” all too well. Arm talent he’s got. After 5 years, I’ve seen enough.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:14 pm
PLAY THE GUY THAT LOSES THE MOST GAMES …
The Bucs have too many holes. They need two drafts to reload. Speed up the process by trading for picks and losing games. Play Trask and just lose a lot.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:18 pm
The Brady Effect is real. Him leaving has Bucs fans desperate enough to go clamoring for America’s Turnover Machine back. You can’t make this stuff up.
111 turnovers
72 games
And that was BEFORE the torn ACL.
JBF cracks me up
March 11th, 2022 at 12:27 pm
I remember when we drafted Winston, I had my eye on Mariota. At first Mariota looked good and then he took a nose dive. In the case of Jameis his turnovers got the best of all of us who wanted to win soo much. Tampa was looking for a savior and we didn’t until Brady arrived. If you are looking for a cheap first rounder that hasn’t worked with coach Arians, Mariota might be a good fit for competition with Gabbert. Teams today that draft quarterbacks in the first round usually throw them to the lions their first year. You can really strike a cord with some of these young quarterbacks and damage them permanently. Jordan Love will go through this for a few years for sure. Mariota could thrive in this system and he has no baggage, oh and by the way he can also tuck and run with the dame ball.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:32 pm
I don’t think the Bucs can even afford Gabbert at this point.
March 11th, 2022 at 12:37 pm
13 and 35 with 50 TD and 47 INT.
March 11th, 2022 at 1:11 pm
Packers were in worse cap shape than us, and they just found $200 million for Rodgers
March 11th, 2022 at 1:30 pm
Player 1: That was a narrative that was peddled when he was with the Titans and playing hurt in 2018. Since then he’s been on the Raiders sideline behind Carr and totally healthy. IJS it’d be interesting to see how this all plays out, but of all the available names like Bridgewater, Trubisky or an other QB thst’ll be available, mariotas’ name should be in the mix
March 11th, 2022 at 1:35 pm
What’s that smell? Desperation
March 11th, 2022 at 2:30 pm
I have YET to find ONE person that can tell me how Gabbert LUCKED into the first round!!!!!
First round pick my ARSE!!!!!! Trask threw for more TDs in ONE YEAR than Gabbert did in Three!!!!!
Gabbert was ABSOLUTE GARBAGE in College. I haven’t researched but that might have been the worst QB class ever maybe for Gabbert to go at 10
March 11th, 2022 at 2:31 pm
StPete … I’m not really expecting Gabbert to be ‘the guy’ this year. I think everyone wants to see what we have in Kyle Trask, and we need to figure that out this year. If he’s not ‘the guy’ then we need to find someone who is. Derek Carr’s a FA in 2023, and there’s supposed to be a good QB class then too.
Is Carr the one to run BA’s offense? Probably not optimal, but he’s a very good QB & still fairly young. I question anyways how long BA will hang on as HC here. Gut feel is that this’ll be his last year, then he’ll move up the food chain. Personally I consider his offense to be still productive in the hands of the perfect QB (The GOAT filled that square), but anyone less than the perfect QB will struggle under BA IMO.
Even with Brady at the helm, it wasn’t truly BA’s ‘bombs away’ philosophy that got us the SB championship. It wasn’t until they tempered it with what Brady does best that we really started kicking ass. Jameis didn’t have a chance under BA for a very simple reason: he’s not the perfect QB by a long shot. A second year under BA probably wouldn’t have been much different than 2019.
March 11th, 2022 at 2:34 pm
James could thread a needle 40 yards away off his back foot as he was being tackled by 2 guys, then throw it straight to the middle linebacker on the next play, under no pressure at all. Could never grasp what was behind that
March 11th, 2022 at 2:37 pm
Beej … Packers didn’t find $200 mil for Rodgers; they mortgaged their future even more than it was before. They now sit at #32 in terms of current salary CAP space (MINUS $44.9 mil). That’s almost exactly what Rodgers’ CAP hit is right now ($46.7 mil).
They’ve got some big names on their roster right now, but I’d bet that several aren’t on their roster come Game 1. THAT’S when the salary CAP really becomes meaningful.
March 11th, 2022 at 3:06 pm
“find”….”mortgage”… What’s in a name?
March 11th, 2022 at 4:38 pm
Nine accusations, no indictment for Watson
March 11th, 2022 at 4:39 pm
Trade is also expected very soon
March 11th, 2022 at 4:39 pm
Its Tampa or Vegas from what GOB hears
March 11th, 2022 at 5:06 pm
The problem with that philosophy being applied to Gabbert is that he was a reach at his draft position and probably should have been a 2nd, and maybe even a 3rd, round pick. Gabbert has had enough starts/snaps to have shown he can be coached into being a winning QB if he were capable. Something is obviously missing. He is who we think he is.
March 11th, 2022 at 8:34 pm
Watson to the Raiders and the Bucs get Carr would be a dream scenario…
Best guess is that Watson goes to the Seahawks or Colts…
March 11th, 2022 at 8:54 pm
Trubisky is at least somewhat consistent. Gabbert, never.