Preparing For The Worst
March 22nd, 2022
Bucs GM Jason Licht.
There is an old saying that good organizers prepare for the worst and hope for the best. And that seemed to be the twilight zone Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht was stuck in a few weeks ago.
Licht had a hunch Tom Brady might unretire. But he had no idea what Brady’s decision would be. So Licht’s 2022 season could have been basked in sunshine or doomed in darkness. Famed JoeBucsFan.com columnist Ira Kaufman said on one of his recent podcasts the prospect of the Bucs starting Blaine Gabbert at quarterback had the organization “peering into the abyss.”
NFL Network talking head Peter Schrager, a closet Bucs fan, said the Bucs with Gabbert looking like the starter hours before legal tampering began had the Bucs “on the eve of destruction.”
Licht admitted yesterday what Brady did or didn’t do was out of his control so all he could control is to start building the Bucs for the post-Brady era until he learned nine days ago those plans could be thrown in the trash.
“Well, in this business you have to be ready to expect the unexpected, but you also have to have plans either way,” Licht explained. “There was nothing I could do about it at that point. We had a lot of faith in thinking that [Brady] might change his mind, that he might come back, but we had to have plans either way.”
So how much did Brady save the Bucs and Licht and Bucco Bruce Arians? Well, the Bucs figured they had enough talent to win a division, even if the team had an exodus in free agents.
Center Ryan Jensen and cornerback Carlton Davis confessed Brady played a major role in their re-signing. Though he was franchised, Chris Godwin said yesterday Brady’s presence sure did make signing his three-year pact easier.
And who knows who else may still come back, in part because of Brady?
Brady hit the pause button on the inevitable rebuild likely to come eventually. At least Licht and Bucs fans won’t have to worry about that reset for at least one more season.
March 22nd, 2022 at 4:12 am
“Brady’s return may have hit the pause button on the inevitable rebuild…”
Exactly. We already know how it feels to lose Brady. Most likely one more season, hopefully with a deep run if not another SB title, and we’ll have to face it again.
March 22nd, 2022 at 4:29 am
J Licht has earned some serious street cred since 2014 until now. It was looking pretty grim with Jameis at QB, but when the GOAT showed up to a team THAT J LIcht had assembled, Viola!!! It does not matter how good a team is assembled if you do not have the QB ingredient needed. Is jameis terrible–NO, BUT…. To lead the league in Turnovers by a wide margin for over 5 years of play. It just does not allow a team to be a consistent winner. He just kept shooting himself in the foot, let alone the off field things that seemed to follow Jameis during his time with the Bucs, and before that at FSU. But again, look at Licht now, he has grown into a very good GM, and he will only get better. I am very glad the Glazers had enough confidence in Jason, to stick with him. J Licht the GM with 9 lives. Most Owners would have said see YA!!!! But the Glazers have proven again that they are no idiots when it comes to owning the Bucs. The Glazers have 2 Lombardis so far, and most teams still do not.
In Brady we trust……
With the Schedule for the 2022 season, for the Bucs just to be 9-8, or 8-9 would have been a huge task.
They have a first place schedule, and it looks on paper so far to be about the hardest schedule with in memory to me.
It is chock full of great matchups with Brady, but with Brady OMG!!!! It would have been a tour of destruction in the wrong direction lol.
Thankfully we have at least 1 more year with the 7 ring GOAT to lead the way.
GO BUCS GO J LICHT GO BRADY!!!!!!!!!!! LOMBARDI #3 ?????
March 22nd, 2022 at 4:35 am
When is the new Brady contract coming? If it doesn’t get done, it’s just the proof we needed to PROVE that Brady clearly hates Arians.
March 22nd, 2022 at 4:46 am
Personally, I don’t think Brady even deals in hate. He’s above it. Jmo
March 22nd, 2022 at 5:22 am
They don’t SAY it directly, but you can infer none of those guys think success will be had with any of the other QB on the roster
March 22nd, 2022 at 5:24 am
Joe … ‘Brady’s return may have hit the pause button on the inevitable rebuild that is sure to come at some point’.
So you DO view what’s coming as a REBUILD Joe, and not as a RETOOLING or a RELOADING or a RE-WHATEVER like the BS that BA was trying to sell? Good to know …
JL has grown quite a bit as a GM since 2014 IMO, but I attribute a lot of that to BA’s influence. BA’s arrival changed things considerably, and JL has done a very good job of ‘making things happen’ to support the direction BA has been trying to drive the Bucs in. They work well together, and that’s critical to building championship TEAMS.
But August 1976, the team that JL built prior to BA’s arrival had talent, but it also had gaping holes. And you can’t win consistently with gaping holes. But we also had a very favorable salary CAP position, and in these past 3 years we’ve traded that by going all-in to win the championship. We’ll pay the price for that … some day … but it’s worth it when you have The GOAT as your QB.
March 22nd, 2022 at 5:28 am
they might wait until later to extend tommy and free up some space as the season approaches or during the season as it moves along…
it depends on a lot of things…and how tight the cap and budget get…and what other players are willing to do right about now…
we shall see…
personally i think lenny should go get a beard shape up at gronk’s barber when he’s back in town and talk contracts, and returning on video, like gronk did…and let it go viral 🙂
#VideoKilledTheRadioStarButNotGronkyAndLenny
March 22nd, 2022 at 5:34 am
Rod Munch Says:
March 22nd, 2022 at 4:35 am
When is the new Brady contract coming? If it doesn’t get done, it’s just the proof we needed to PROVE that Brady clearly hates Arians.
^^^^^^^^^^
Rod Muncher=Florio=The love of fake news
March 22nd, 2022 at 5:54 am
Rumor and innuendo run rampant on this site.
As a fan “in the know:”
You love the QB who you believe hates the coach who loves the QB, but not enough to allow him to run his life.
Meanwhile, the QB has never said he hates the coach, but you believe it to be true because the QB has not made a new financial arrangement with the GM who loves both the QB and the coach.
Meanwhile—meanwhile, the QB quit the team only to return a few weeks later despite hating the coach who chased off a psychopath wide receiver who the QB loved, but not enough to demand a trade from the coach he hates.
Meanwhile—meanwhile—meanwhile, the QB says he returned for his love of the game combined with a green light on that return from his wife and family, but you think this return to the Bucs to be a ruse for some covert move by the QB yet to come. The aforementioned trade demand?
And that, ladies and gentlemen, concludes another episode of, As The Stomach Turns.
Stay tuned for another exciting episode tomorrow. A unsubstantiated rumor (aren’t they all?) foretells of a scenario where the QB and the coach come to blows. Only a runaway imagination can prognosticate the true meaning of “blows” before the episode comes to fruition.
And I’m sure that imagination will show itself on this website.
Once again, thanks for the entertainment!
It’s a nice break from viewing the ongoing horrors being cast upon the innocents in Western Europe.
They are fighting for their lives while we are fighting over a football team. We are lucky!
March 22nd, 2022 at 6:32 am
Good one, JA and spot on.
March 22nd, 2022 at 6:44 am
Too funny JA – Bice writing of as the stomach turns. It would be a blatant rip off of as the Pack turns, but what if the Bucs trade up and picked a QB in the first rd with a 3rd rd grade and didn’t tell Brady?
March 22nd, 2022 at 7:47 am
I lost some respect for TB after him pulling a Favre
March 22nd, 2022 at 7:50 am
DR, what speaks the loudest to me is that J Licht a team that Brady wanted to come to after scouting the Bucs. As I am sure you remember, Ryan Jensen and Godwin and Evans were stoked that Brady reached to them and had actually studied them, that he knew who they were. So again, J Licht built a roster that Brady felt good coming to. That and also the fact J Licht did not fumble the signing of Brady. That could have happened too, but did not. Thats what I think about when speaking about that time when Brady signed. Yes they had gaps, but the roster was good enough for Brady, so that really says it all right there.
GO BUCS!!!!!!
March 22nd, 2022 at 7:54 am
What is the backup plan for Lenny? Sign Gio & draft?
Still needing plenty of FA–really hope to learn of a few good pieces added.
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:23 am
Since we know its eventually coming……time to elevate Trask to the #2 slot….sure, sign Gabbert because he will be dirt cheap…..but lets start getting Trask ready….2 years should be enough.
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:32 am
Seems like Bradys the GM not Licht. I will enjoy it while hes here. Please just go with Trask as number two and give him all the reps possible. Don’t bring in some over the hill QB to take away his reps.
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:33 am
August 1976 Buc … ‘Yes they had gaps, but the roster was good enough for Brady, so that really says it all right there.’
You’re spot on with that August. The team that finished 2018, with Dirk as captain & Jameis at the helm, finished 5-11. That’s FIVE years with JL as our GM. Decent offense; terrible defenses.
When BA came in 2019, still with Jameis at the helm, we improved to 7-9 … ending with a #3 offense but a #29 defense. Yes Brady saw ‘something’ in that team in terms of potential, BUT … it wasn’t until the defense got its’ act together that we really took off.
It was the 2019 draft (White, SMB, Dean, Edwards, Nelson) that turned our defense around. Adding Suh & Shaq in 2019 as FAs was HUUUGE obviously, as was adding Winfield in the 2020 draft. But the most important addition of all IMO was getting Todd Bowles as a DC, and keeping him. Some may pee & moan about one call, but HE is the one who created this defense, and he’s the key cog in that wheel.
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:37 am
LOMBARDI LENNY IS BACK
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:43 am
Lenny 3yrs 21 mil plus incentives at running back in the draft not a priority!
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:45 am
It was the 2019 draft (White, SMB, Dean, Edwards, Nelson) that turned our defense around. Adding Suh & Shaq in 2019 as FAs was HUUUGE obviously, as was adding Winfield in the 2020 draft. But the most important addition of all IMO was getting Todd Bowles as a DC, and keeping him. Some may pee & moan about one call, but HE is the one who created this defense, and he’s the key cog in that wheel.
Spot on, that run defense put together by Bowles and company, was one of the best
Here is a headline from the Bucs website
Bucs’ 2019 Run Defense Among Best of All Time Data Crunch: Tampa Bay finished the season allowing just 73.8 rushing yards per game, the lowest total by any team in nearly a decade and one of the stingiest marks in NFL history
the 11th-best run defenses of the past four decades, since the NFL went to a 16-game schedule in 1978.
Who assembled that group?, J Licht, who was the Defensive coordinator? Yeah Todd Bowles.
Yeah I know W Sapp talks about it being a passing league, and it does not matter like it used toyes, but if you cannot stop the run, then teams can just do whatever they want, thats not good.
So I agree DR, people can moan about the last Rams game if they like, but T Bowles is no slouch, the facts are there for all to see.
GO BUCS!!!!!
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:46 am
Glad to see the bucs signing players to three year contracts so we don’t have to go with this free agent circus every year.
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:53 am
AWESOME NEWS ON LENNY.
3 YEARS. LFG
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:54 am
JA,
Great comments, love “As the Stomach Turns”!
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:54 am
Good to have Lenny back in the fold. Obviously Tom likes him and he’s been quite productive here after pouting early on.
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:55 am
You guys beat me to it. Welcome back Lenny!
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:55 am
LENNYYYYYYYYYY!!!!
March 22nd, 2022 at 8:57 am
Lenny makes me smile. 110% plus on every phase of the game and improving.
March 22nd, 2022 at 9:08 am
Lenny is a every down back. He runs hard, pass blocks and catches the ball most of the time. Drafting a value RB later in the draft to back him up will be a solid pick.
March 22nd, 2022 at 9:16 am
Rod Munch … That was an underrated humorous post. Well done.
March 22nd, 2022 at 10:38 am
All that is clear here is that Blaine Gabbert has had, and looks to continue having, one of the easiest and most entertaining job in the NFL. But how in the World could the QB be as bad as everyone is saying after bring in the GOAT’s hip pocket for two straight years? Wouldn’t his throwing technique and fundamental mechanics have improved tremendously during this period under the GOAT’s and Clyde Christiensen’s supervision? And he has had a front row seat and a clinic in situational football and leadership from the GOAT of GOATs. Surely SOMETHING must have rubbed off? No? And for Trask, more importantly? It’s not like Tom Brady is an Aaron Rodgers or even a Brett Favre when it comes to ignoring or outright dissing the backup(s). Right? Or is it just a ‘competitive nature’ DNA thing for starting QBs?
I know there has always been a friendly-ish competition in practice with these guys but you would think that Tom wouldn’t be able to help himself, watching Gabbert and Trask making the same fundamental mistakes over and over. Surely they must’ve grown as NFL QBs. If not, what does that say about Tom Brady? Like with any other professional athlete, you either grow or die. So what fundamental fatal flaws do Gabbert and Task have that can NEVER be coached and trained out of? smh.
March 22nd, 2022 at 11:26 am
JA spot on!
March 22nd, 2022 at 1:19 pm
SlyPirate Says:
March 22nd, 2022 at 9:16 am
Rod Munch … That was an underrated humorous post. Well done.
Agree!
March 22nd, 2022 at 2:08 pm
You haven’t really peered into the abyss until Josh McCown is your QB and Lovie Smith is your coach.