Kareem Huggins Can Thank Derrick Ward
August 15th, 2010
Just judging by the comments on Joe in the hours after the Bucs lost to Miami to begin the 2010 preseason, a lot of fans are down on Kardashian-chasing running back Derrick Ward.
Ward has done little since being signed as a free agent from the Giants. He’s gotten his name in the paper for hanging with a celebrity (?) more so than he has running the rock.
This doesn’t seem to be lost on Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune who posted the following little nugget on the TBO Bucs Twitter feed.
Bucs RB Kareem Huggins needs to thank Derrick Ward for this golden opportunity to become a No.2 running back.
This illustrates the point Joe has been making all offseason. The Bucs running backs as a whole are below average.
If Kareem Huggins, a good, good guy and hard worker but also a running back that each NFL team passed on for their active roster last year, can make the leap to the No. 2 tailback, that obviously shows Huggins’ work ethic but it also reinforces that the Bucs’ running backs are subpar.
August 15th, 2010 at 10:26 am
You keep talking about how 31 other teams passed on taking him last year, but if you remember, he had a knee injury that kept him out the last game of preseason. Other teams are not gonna sign a practice squad guy with a knee injury to their active roster if they don’t know the status of the knee. It wasn’t a bad injury, and he was fine, but I’m guessing he got passed over because of the knee. Good for us, bad for them. That doesn’t mean he’s subpar or below average, just that last year wasn’t “his time”.
August 15th, 2010 at 10:29 am
Before Huggins gets a real shot he will have to get past King Dominik. It will be up to Dominik to swallow his pride and allow Ward to be benched. He made sure that Ward was part of the offense. So much so that he forced the offense to give ward extra carries, no matter how awful and disruptive to the offensive flow it was.
So we plead to The King Dominik. please give someone else a chance. Watch Ward’s video in Ny, then watch Ward’s video from the Bucs. Unless he had offseason surgery, he is obviously not trying anymore.
August 15th, 2010 at 10:44 am
Bucs running backs are subpar…wow idk caddy was subparyou will eat them words…
August 15th, 2010 at 11:18 am
Joe .. its not like all the teams have incredible backfields … The Bucs are somewhere in the middle … If Earnest Graham was a running back he brings great consistency
August 15th, 2010 at 1:00 pm
Huggins should replace ward in the lineup he runs with a purpose. Ward was a terrible mistake for a percentage of the money your paying ward cleaver you can have a productive back who holds on to the ball and has a burst
August 15th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
I don’t like the idea that Huggins should be Caddies back up. I don’t think he is cut out to take the beating of a #1 feature back. They aren’t the same type of player.
I think we should look to the Chargers for our backfield blueprint. Caddie should be the feature back with a heavy dose of Huggins as a change of pace back. Just like Tomlison and Sproles were…but Sproles wasn’t Tomlisons back up. Micheal Turner was. Earnest Graham should be Caddies back up. Graham can be Caddies main back up when he needs a breather or is injured, and he can also split FB duty with Pressley.
Ward can drive his new $800k car out of town as far as I’m concerned. I think we’d be better off with Caddie/Huggins/Graham and the best young RB we can find off waivers. Ward sucks. He’s fatter, slower, and older than he was last year…and he sucked then too. It’s time to cut our losses and say goodbye.
August 15th, 2010 at 2:01 pm
Well it is what it is…Personally I say rest Caddy for the pre-season. Treat him like Gruden did Galloway to perserve those knees. lets give Ward the starting lineup next week and even run Ward with Huggins.
I was just glad to see the team RUNNING THE DAMN BALL more than last year.
August 15th, 2010 at 2:39 pm
“This illustrates the point Joe has been making all offseason. The Bucs running backs as a whole are below average.”
ROFLMAO
Way to spin it brother.
I believe “the point Joe has been making all offseaon” is that Derrick Ward needs more carries. That Derrick Ward is a “a healthy, talented 1,000-yard rusher that the front office wants to see succeed.”
https://www.joebucsfan.com/?p=32931
It’s just a preseason game, but between Ward and Zuttah Joe is batting the proverbial 1.000
BTW please tell your front office buddy that it might be time to start updating his resume.
August 15th, 2010 at 3:10 pm
Kareem Huggins was passed on because he is completely unproven against a starting quality defense and was injured most of the year. That doesn’t mean he isn’t back up quality. How many teams “passed” on Donald Penn before he proved himself as a starter? It’s really a lame argument to say just because a guy spent time on the practice squad and didn’t get claimed that he must not be any good. I expect better of you Joe.
Now, the pessimists can easily point out that the number of guys that make it off the practice squad into playing time roles is small. That’s a very legitimate statement. But to dump on a guy simply because he was on the practice squad is foolish. Some guys develop and Huggins definitely looks like a guy that could develop into something special. Big emphasis on could. I still would feel a lot more comfortable drafting another RB next year, but don’t write the guy off before he has a chance.
August 15th, 2010 at 4:13 pm
Why is it Joe you have to have one player to kick around. Ward no doubt had an off night but part of that was due to the part of the field he was running on and also the fact Miami was still playing many of thier first stringers when the Bucs had thier entire second unit in. How many times was Ward engulfed in the backfield. One time he had just barely gotten the handoff before he was tackled. Put your rope away until after the preseason or unless we can see Ward run with the first team.
August 15th, 2010 at 4:16 pm
Jeff Saturday was also a castoff. Now I believe he is an All-Pro center with the Colts. Come on Joe, you should have more football knowledge than to write some of the things you do. I also believe Graham should be running the ball. All he ever does is pick up 4.0 yards a carry. Another idiotic move by Rah.
August 15th, 2010 at 4:23 pm
Raelist said…
“He made sure that Ward was part of the offense. So much so that he forced the offense to give ward extra carries, no matter how awful and disruptive to the offensive flow it was.”
How do you know this?
August 15th, 2010 at 4:29 pm
Drdneast…Do not forget
Priest Holmes
Antonio Gates
Rod Smith
John Radnle
Wes Welker
Tony Romo
amd of course Kirt Warner
I also grew up with a guy in Tarpon that was undrafted, signed by Dallsa, cut by Dallas, picked up by StL, and snapped the ball to Kirt Warner (undrafted as well) in the Super Bowl.
August 15th, 2010 at 4:34 pm
That was just a small sampling of great players that went undrafted and unwanted by at least 31 other teams, some were cut by their original team, so Maybe Huggins will be like these guys. I believe Rod Smith holds every Denver receiving record, and I believe the Pats signed him first and later cut him. In other words, anything can happen!
August 15th, 2010 at 5:12 pm
drdneast:
And Donald Penn was a castoff too. What are you saying, that all guys who clear waivers and wind up on practice squads are future studs in the NFL? Please.
August 15th, 2010 at 5:49 pm
We just hope Huggins is like the guys above Joe, only time will tell.
August 15th, 2010 at 6:03 pm
Didn’t 31 other teams pass on another Hofstra guy in Marques Colston?
Was that because the rest of NO’s WRs were “subpar”? Maybe. But it seemed to work out pretty well for the Saints, didn’t it? So did it matter in the end where he was drafted?
August 15th, 2010 at 6:18 pm
Snook…What do you know, your just a fish! Just kidding. Great point. I hope this Huggins atnds up to the standard.
August 15th, 2010 at 7:49 pm
I’d like to see Huggins get a few runs with the first team. Who cares who passed on him and how he got here. If he turns into a star we got a steal.
August 15th, 2010 at 8:08 pm
Ward knows he a lot to prove and I think he’ll play better at home next week. Our Punter wasn’t too bad, had a couple inside the 10, nice control.
August 15th, 2010 at 9:24 pm
To all of the cubical queens that would defend Ward after a season of terrible production and effort, you may correct me if I am wrong but I do believe Huggins ran on the same field and behind the same line as Ward the only diferance being that Huggins was impressive. Now Joe we expected more of you than to write Huggins off becouse he has been on the practice squad for one year Gram was on it for three year and Pinn also lets look at athletic ability and fundimentals. Huggins runs down hill and has shown above average vision along with enough speed to get it to the house be patient it takes three years to evaluate a top prospect at least give him that champ. GO BUCS! !!!!!!!!
August 15th, 2010 at 10:31 pm
Mark Dominik, you are doing a great job, overall. Admit Ward was a mistake, and let’s move on. Ok Mark, maybe there is some Ego involved here because Huggins is Raheems Guy, and Ward is yours. Who gives a Funk, Huggins is clearly better. Yes, Ward did good in New York, but they had Plaxico, Eli, and Big Brandon Jacobs to wear out opposing defenses. He ain’t doing good here, so please let him go ?
August 15th, 2010 at 10:41 pm
Steve White breaks the Ward/Huggins comparison down on his blog. Says Ward had Zuttah at Center against that big 355# DT where as Huggins had a different Center against a smaller DT. Not exactly apples to apples, and not to defend Ward too much, because it was weak effort on his part, but the Guy was awesome when he played for the Giants. He has the ability, the question is does he have the Desire. We’ll see, but Kareem if healthy just muscled into the #2 spot behind the Cadi.
August 16th, 2010 at 8:41 am
Just like I want to wait until we play on a regular (dry) field this week to really start getting excited about Huggins; I will do the same before I really start hating on Ward.
Yea they played on the same field with mostly the same line but I wonder how much better the fins D would have played on ideal field conditions. Huggins has speed, I would think he would be even faster but so would the D. Ward has power, he couldnt get traction and use that power.
I agree with Mr. Lucky. Lets run ward ALOT next game. We know Caddy will bring it, please rest him for the season.