Crisis Mode Running Wild
September 13th, 2011
There’s nothing Joe loves more than the rollercoaster ride of a football season. It’s glorious. It’s a man holiday every week all week, when the fire rages over what happened on the field, the team’s reaction, and what’s coming up next.
Joe could walk into Mugs Grill & Bar or any fine establishment around town tonight, sit at the bar and find someone to debate Bucs football into the wee hours.
But even jaded Joe is amazed by how many Bucs fans out there already have a sky-is-falling attitude about the 2011 Bucs.
True story: This afternoon Joe talked to a guy wearing a Bucs shirt who started making a case for the Bucs going winless. Winless! So Joe asked the dude what his preseason prediction for the Bucs was. He said, “8-8.”
Joe also hears all the craziness burning up sports radio.
Look, Joe’s as passionate as the next guy, but it was just one game on Sunday. The Bucs looked ugly. Absolutely. They were outplayed and outcoached. But Joe’s not about to lose his mind unless the Bucs somehow aren’t 2-2 after their first four games.
If that happens, you’ll find Joe among the raging lunatics, as well.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:22 pm
Agreed. One game doesn’t make a season. While its doubtful we will make the play offs, it should be entertaining season watching our young team grow. So far this organization has made many strides in learning from it’s mistakes. Not saying they are always successful in doing so, but they are much further along then we envisioned them just a short while ago.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:23 pm
It’s common knowledge among NFL fans across the country that the Bucs have the worst fan base. Lacking understanding, disloyal, finicky, panicky, ignorant and uninformed are just a few accurate terms to describe a significant majority of them. I love the Bucs but I absolutely detest 90% of the “fans”, unfortunately. Living in Dallas I’m almost embarrassed to tell people I’m a Bucs fan….not because of the team but because of the football fans in the Tampa Bay area in general.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:25 pm
That’s funny because last week one of the Joes said that the Lions game was a must-win. Must have been the other Joe that didn’t write this post.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:31 pm
Joe here,
@MoBucs — It was a must-win, as in a critical NFC game for a team expecting to win a division and tiebreakers needed to make the playoffs. Not a must-win, as in the season is over and the team is grossly overrated, which Joe’s hearing quite a bit. Big difference.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:40 pm
If we lose to minny after seeing how they played against the chargers, I will lose a lot of hope.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:40 pm
Three facts about the Bucs:
1) not quite as good as they believed themselves to be coming into the season
2) nowhere near as bad as the stupidest of the fans think they are at this point
3) somewhere in between points 1 and 2, but exactly where is still yet to be determined
September 13th, 2011 at 4:42 pm
FLBoyInDallas
Uuh…….. no that is not true. Maybe with the few people you hang out with in Dallas, but I have lived in Denver, Texas, upstate NY, California, and many places outside the country.
To be honest, most do not have an opinion of buc’s fan because they were irrelevant for most the time.
To be honest, most think of DALLAS as some of the worse fans because the perception is they are bandwagon and all from the rich part of Dallas.
Personally, I disagree with that, but it is what I have heard most.
I also hate the term bandwagon because unless you are in GB or a Cubs fan…….. EVERY SINGLE TEAM IN PRO SPORTS is loaded with fans who show up & watch when the team is winning.
I know I don’t want to shell out 100 per seat to watcha a piss poor product. I don’t think that is bandwagon, I think it is common sense.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:46 pm
As far as “The Sky Is Fallling”…….
get a grip people, it is the first game.
last I checked the Packers were 3-3 last year and
8-6 before winning two to squeek into the playoffs and then go on a tear.
Not saying the bucs are equivalent to last years Packers, but 1 game does not mean much.
Heck, even in pre-season, I saw a D-line that damn near dominated 3 teams besides the Patriots. Would not surprise me to see them get all over McNabb next week.
Patience
September 13th, 2011 at 4:48 pm
Thank you for the voice of reason, Joe.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:51 pm
Dave:
Even though there are many teams in the NFL that are much worse than the Bucs, and have been worse in many past years, too, it is only the Bucs who are going to have a majority of blacked out games again this year. The correlation with the quality of the product on the field and sold out games doesn’t work the same in Tampa as it does in the rest of the country. Call it a carpetbagger culture, an non-native Floridian culture, whatever you want, but this peculiarity falls mainly on the fans and only partially on the Bucs.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:56 pm
Can anyone tell me why Larson is playing at left guard?Is zuttau that bad that LARSON is playing? Larson was constantly getting killed by the lions dt’s. The only way he wins is if faine helps him. Some one please explain.
September 13th, 2011 at 4:58 pm
I don’t worry about anything in the NFL until week 3, it takes that long for teams to really get into the groove, this season may take longer due to the assine lockout, yeah we looked like crap but so did quiet a few other teams, namely the one up I-75N. Talk about panic.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:05 pm
I agree 100% Personally I’ll wait till the bye week to gauge the panic level.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:05 pm
Because people know this team played a very easy schedule last year and is looking more and more like a fluke. Freeman is regressing. The OL is bad. We had all that cap space and sat and did nothing in free agency. And nowhere does the team look improved over last year.
“The plan” isnt going to work. That’s what I dont like about this team. Just like Dan Sileo said this morning on the radio, the Bucs have this arrogant attitude that all their draft picks are diamonds and will develop into pro-bowlers. THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE! It’s not going to happen! No team in this league can hit on every draft pick!
Does McCoy look like a first rounder? Does Price or Benn look like 2nd rounders? They are looking more and more like busts. Freeman was a good pick…1st rounder. Mike Williams was a steal. But outside of those two, who have the Bucs hit on? Why is “Rockstar GM Mark Dominik” considered a draft guru?
This team is nothing but marketing hype.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:19 pm
Joe… NFC South is 0-4. I think Freeman and Co. still have a chance at winning the division and/or making the playoffs. I get the tiebreaker argument, but calling the first game of the season against a non-divisional opponent a must-win seemed a little presumptuous to me.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:25 pm
@Joe
Thank you. Very well said.
Actually, I know this is wrong. It wasn’t the Bucs who thought they were better than they really were, it was the media and the fans. The media built expectations too high and the fans bought into it. And now? The media has something to right about. It’s a common tactic in the media.
For this team give it to game 6. A young defensive front (Foster, Bowers, Clayborn and Okam; GMC is only in his second year).
There is no way they will excel in less than 6 games, and probably not for 8 games. But they will get stronger from game to game.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:25 pm
The Falcons and Saints lost to the Bears and Packers….Teams we still have to play both away. We lost to the Lions at home.
Everyone is 0-1….but who now has the tougher road? We do.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:33 pm
FLBoyinDallas – You are overreacting like those Bucs fans based on your first comment! Can’t buy a word of that.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:35 pm
Bucs play better on the road.
3-3 by the 6th game…that’s all I ask for. If they do better…great.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:43 pm
Count me as a panicker.. I know it was one game but it wasn’t the fact they lost it was how the entire team looked in doing it. The offense which is supposed to carry the team until the defense got some experience looked as bad as they did all preseason. The team as a whole looked unprepared and I believe a coaching staff, that had since last year to prepare to save face and invoke some revenge on a team that I really think is inferior to the Bucs, should be called on to the carpet. If I’m the owners I’m pissed.. We are playing at home and trying to win fans over and we looked as uninspired as we did in our first preseason game at home against the Pats. Couple that with the fact we just let the biggest free agency period in the history of the NFL come and go without a wimper and it demands an answer for the fans. Was this truly by design (if so Dominic really does think he is a rock star) or are the owners truly cheap and didn’t want to spend money (according to Dominic this is not true). If the answer is by design then Dominic needs to be called on to the carpet and answer why did he let Caddy and Ruud go before their replacements were ready to take over. I know we won 6 games on the road last year which is a great feat but personally as a season ticket holder that means I had to sit thru 4 losses at home and it really pisses a person off when you have to walk out of your own stadium listening to the opposing fans jeer you and your team. Until Dominic and the team understands this, and the owners prove there are zero financial restrictions placed on this team, I don’t think fans are ever going to come back. A casual fan sitting thru that shi* on Sunday won’t be back for a longtime. If selling tickets and getting fans back into the stadium are the goal, the plan of building this team only thru the draft, will make achieving this less likely and could be catastrophic for the fan base for years to come.
September 13th, 2011 at 5:50 pm
I’m not panicking, I’m pissed. I’m pissed that our WRs can’t get separation, pissed that Freeman seemed so hesitant to pull the trigger in the 1st half, pissed at the poor play-calling by Olson. I’m not worried too much about the D, they stopped the run, now they suck against the pass, they’ll get that. Stopping the run is about attitude (we have the attitude), rushing the passer is about talent and technique (we’ll get the technique), and stopping the pass is about talent and not blowing assignments (we have enough talent except for at safety, we must need to execute assignments better).
I’d rather have an early season wake-up call rather than one in the playoffs. This team will do nothing but improve this year. By the end of the season, if we play Detroit again, we will do much better.
September 13th, 2011 at 6:00 pm
Give us a good product to justify the outlay of our hard-earned cash. Just because they’re the Bucs (and I am a life-long fan) doesn’t automatically give them my pin number and wallet.
September 13th, 2011 at 6:00 pm
FL boy in Dallas. Please stop projecting. Its easy to hate on the fan base…they are an obvious target. Truth is, there is a bit of a disconnect between the fans and the ownership. The multitude of reasons why the fans dont show up is for another discussion. The fact that you are embarrassed to be a Bucs fan is quite telling. The badge of Buc fandom is that we dont care what anyone else thinks about us or our team because we were the laughing stock of the NFL for years. Be proud or take the Jersey off! That said I agree with your assessment that the Bucs think they are better than they are. You build up a little hubris after going 10-6. Raheem’s mentality before reality bit is not going to carry this team. I also agree that the coaches and front office are a bit high on themselves. These young players like McCoy need to walk the walk before they tweet the talk. As for the week one loss…the lions are good, the season is long, and we were never going to be 16-0!
September 13th, 2011 at 6:16 pm
Wow not saying we are going to have an outstanding season, but not only did we lose our first game of the superbowl year, but I believe it was 2003??? That the patriots got crushed in their first game. In fact it was a loss 31-0 to the Buaffalo Bills. They got totally humiliated. What did they do for the rest of the season? go 14-2 and win the superbowl.
Again I am not saying we are going to even make the playoffs much less go all the way. What I am saying is do not read too much into it. Could be said even if we had one the game 44-0
September 13th, 2011 at 6:20 pm
need a win this week. 0-2 is super hard to overcome.
September 13th, 2011 at 6:22 pm
Jerry. Let me get this straight and on the record. You watched the game and football in general and you think the Lions are a bad team and McCoy, Price and Benn are on their way to being Bust or bad draft choices? I will go on record in saying that you will be proven wrong on all accounts.
September 13th, 2011 at 6:33 pm
I’m not panicking either, but I am not overwhelmed with confidence either. I didn’t like what I saw on Sunday, nor did I like much of anything I saw in the preseason. We are in HUGE trouble if we lose on Sunday, which makes me very nervous. Hopefully we come out and play with urgency as a result. I hate to say the second game of the season is a must win, but it’s not that far away.
September 13th, 2011 at 7:01 pm
Guys I see one common thing, a “Reactive” coaching staff. It appears that the coaching staff does not have an identity from a fans standpoint, which does matter because we buy tickets and provide the owners with revenue so they don’t pay out of their operation’s cash flow.
I see a coaching staff that react to a week by week problem. This week they solve the problem that happen last week and so on. This from the outside looking in looks to be the byproduct of young leadership. This week they will force the run and playcalling will lack creativity, which is counterproductive also. Basically, after seeing last season, the preseason, and 1 game looks to be the identity. I can see why the Glazers would not over commit to this staff from a business sense.
I am not writing the Bucs off as a good young team but my word they looked awful and under-prepared to say the least. Fans we just could not assume it was playoffs but as of now they don’t look like a playoff team. Our offense from top to bottom looks weak and slow. We will see but no sell outs in the near future is the forecast. Also I am a Buc fan in Dallas so location has nothing to do with someone’s perspective so lay off FLboy. I hate the Cows but they looked extremely coached up. The Bucs roster look a lot better but Dallas just looked WAYYY better than Tampa. I am not going to get excited over this team from here out because I don’t want to not enjoy this season and Lord knows the Bucs have ruined so many seasons for me.
September 13th, 2011 at 7:12 pm
Listen, it is only one game. But It was the home opener against a mid-level team. I think that they are a 7 win team and I had them beating the lions.
So, where does that leave us. If they beat Minnesota, they are okay, not great but okay, since many thought they would be 2-0 going into the Atlanta game.
If they lose to the Vikes, they are in huge trouble because the Falcons are better and will be smelling blood. What Sunday did was increase the importance of the Viking game. The Vikes are flawed but they are going to run Ap 25+, more than 1/2 right at McCoy. If AP goes off the outcome is obvious. This defense and inept coach are going to have major trouble stopping AP.
I hope that the offense rebounds, mostly Freeman who I was not thrilled with through 3 quarters. I am leaning toward predicting a Bucs win, mostly because McNabb is a disaster, if the Vikes got smart and started Joe Webb, I would take the Vikes at home.
September 13th, 2011 at 7:15 pm
Gentlemen:
If the Bucs lose Sunday and to the Falcons to start 0-3, we may have in 30,000 range for the rest of the year, including Monday Night.
If that happens, Rah must be fired or the Glazers do in fact have ulterior motives.
September 13th, 2011 at 7:36 pm
@FLBoyInDallas – So you say the Bucs aren’t as good or as bad as people think they are, but somewhere in between? Thanks for clearing that up for us. You may now have a seat on ESPN’s Sunday NFL Countdown.
September 13th, 2011 at 8:14 pm
Yeah I do think McCoy and Price will be busts. Price can’t get healthy. Potential or not he’s useless if he’s hurting all year, every year. McCoy talks a big game but doesnt do anything. Seriously, you think McCoy is worth the #3 overall pick in the draft? If you put McCoy on the trading block, you seriously think someone would give up a 1st round pick for him? Not a chance.
Maybe he can one day develop into an average and effective NFL player, but he’s never going to be a pro-bowler. I’d put money on that statement right now. And being the #3 pick in the draft…that puts him in bust territory. When you are picked that high you are supposed to be an ELITE player. Not average. Gaines Adams was drafted #5 overall and was average at-best and everyone ran him out of town.
September 13th, 2011 at 8:16 pm
Thomas, I believe you hit the panic button back in 2003 or probably when Gruden got canned. Hey maybe the bucs can hire him back…
September 13th, 2011 at 8:34 pm
You don’t fire a coach 3 games in, especially one who was second in coach of the year. I know that upsets you that I have just crushed your dream, but get real. They must get better, starting with the coach, but even you are smarter than that.
September 13th, 2011 at 8:37 pm
Pretending like you know what McCoy will be is ignorant. You have absolutely no clue what the hell you are talking about. He hasn’t even played a full season yet! He was every bit as good as Sapp in his rookie year. Everyone is not Suh. DT is probably the toughest position in football (besides QB), and it takes time to learn it and be effective. But no, I’m sure you have talent evaluation skills far superior to the rest of us, and you can see into the future and tell us what he is or isn’t going to be. This site is starting to become overrun with morons.
September 13th, 2011 at 8:40 pm
@ Jerry
Gerald McCoy’s Rookie Year: 13 Gms, 22 solo tackles, 3 sacks, 4 passes defensed
Warren Sapp’s Rookie Year: 16 Gms 16 solo tackles, 3 sacks, 1 INT
September 13th, 2011 at 9:08 pm
@sensiblebuc,
You can’t try to be sensible with some of these people. They will just spin those facts around to support their ridiculous claims. They want GMC to be a hall of famer right now, without allowing him the normal growing pains most NFL players go through. I’m embarrassed by the negative reaction of some of these “fans” after one loss. The same people who were singing the praise of Raheem are now wanting him fired after one game. Whenever we lose a game, everyone freaks out as if the sky is falling.
September 13th, 2011 at 9:35 pm
I’m definitely not gonna start calling for Raheem to be fired, as it’s way too early to do something that crazy. Now if we have a really bad start, say 0-5 or 0-6, then I might.
September 13th, 2011 at 9:43 pm
Sensiblebuc and hawaiian:
I love how you guys manipulate statistics. You forgot to mention that Sapp only started the final 8 games and played sparingly in the first 8 bc Wyche made Sapp earn his position, it wasnt gifted to him. Mccoy played manh more snsps as a rook.
Sapp also had 9 sacks in year 2. Mccoy looks like he will be lucky to have 3 or 4 legit sacks. Not the kind where the qb dives on a fumble and gmc is the nearest guy to him.
You could start to see Sapp emerging about now. Mccoy looks no different than early last year.
September 13th, 2011 at 9:46 pm
@Brandon,
I think you make a very good point. I agree with what you are saying. I have read your comments for a long time on different sites and I know you think before you post.
My main concern right now is that the O line should be better. Keeping a QB from getting sacked more than twice does not make a great O line. I watched the Packers’ offense destroy the Saints and I saw what a good O line can do. I hope that Raheem and his coaches watch every play of that game until they figure it all out. For a copycat league that last GB/NO game was chapter one “Offense” of the text book. I’m not as worried about the defense either, but I felt the Bucs were too generic and could have made more adjustments when they were getting pounded by the Lions.
September 13th, 2011 at 9:48 pm
Like I said, my beef with this team is “the plan.” I don’t have faith in it. I think it’s just an excuse for the Glazers to not spend any money. That’s just my personal opinion and obviously Im not the only one. No one is paying to go to these games anymore to watch a cheap, unproven product that will take years to develop. If the Glazers keep saying we are “building for the future” that telegraphs to everyone that they know we have no chance at the post-season. So why spend hard-earned money during a recession to watch a team come out completely emotionally flat the way they did on Sunday?
And the real deflating thing is knowing the fact this ownership won’t do a damn thing next offseason to improve the team. What era does that remind you of? Culverhouse.
September 13th, 2011 at 9:54 pm
I just read that McCoy had the highest grade in run protection of any DT/NT this week according to PFF. Like I said before, McCoy is played very well against the run. If the Vikings are smart, they will run at Bennett and Okam/Miller, not McCoy. Much better so far than early last year.
September 13th, 2011 at 9:55 pm
We should be able to beat the Vikings and Colts for sure. Definitely the Colts especially after seeing the a$$ whooping the Texans gave them. Being on Monday Night Football and getting one of few chances at national exposure, we better f’kn do it.
September 13th, 2011 at 10:19 pm
Im still standing by my original prediction of 7-9. I thought there was a high probability of losing to the Lions but I didnt think the team would look that bad doing it. I expected it to be competitive. If they look like crap again next week against the Vikings, I’ll have to think 5 or 6 wins will be the ceiling.
September 13th, 2011 at 10:41 pm
@Thomas,
I’m not manipulating any stats. He has had slightly more snaps than Sapp, but then again, he has better stats. Factor that in, it’s about even. Besides, I’d be happy if he were even close to Sapp. Asking him to be better is one in a million. Sapp was the greatest of all time at his position. McCoy is at minimum on a similar pace to Sapp. I will grant you, however, that if he doesn’t start sacking some QB’s by the end of the year, then you can start talking.
I argue with the fact that you can access his progress after one game. But we all know that unless he had 4 sacks, you would say he did nothing anyway, so it’s really irrelevant. You made your mind up on GMC a while back, before he played his first snap. Nothing will change that.
September 13th, 2011 at 11:28 pm
we learned what we all should have already known. this is an extremely young team that still has alot to learn. if our coaches are worth a damn, sunday’s film is a major teaching tool. if the same mistakes are made this week then it’s time to question.
September 13th, 2011 at 11:38 pm
Jerry Says ” Does McCoy look like a first rounder? Does Price or Benn look like 2nd rounders? They are looking more and more like busts. Freeman was a good pick…1st rounder. Mike Williams was a steal. But outside of those two, who have the Bucs hit on?
Why is “Rockstar GM Mark Dominik” considered a draft guru “”
Mark Dominick may become known as the man who really messed Tampa up ultimately, if more of his draft picks don’t start playing well. His decision to allow replacing BOTH our O and D Line coaches from a 10 win team with a 1000 yard rusher will be under scrutiny too, as will allowing Caddy to walk, and caving in to fan pressure to replace RUUD w/o a suitable replacement.
I love my Team, but it is my opinion that IF McCoy and Price turn out to be busts, as well as most of Mark Dominik’s draft class of this year, Tampa must send him packing. This team can not afford any more bad drafts.
Hopefully, that will not be the case!
September 13th, 2011 at 11:43 pm
Rah has earned a full season before any speculation on his future.
Man, all the NFC South teams have some tough games.
I could see everyone 0-2 or the bucs in first with a 1-1 record.
Why do people continue to compare Sapp and McCoy. Might as well compare Freeman to Brady or Blount to Barry Sanders. Theres only one Warren Sapp.
September 14th, 2011 at 1:09 am
Amen.
September 14th, 2011 at 2:38 am
Well said Eric.
September 14th, 2011 at 7:21 am
apple roof, get over this o and d-line position coach thing. they asent the problem. claiming todd wash is better than keith millard makes you look borderline stupid. you want bruce allen back too while we’re at it?
September 14th, 2011 at 8:05 am
McCoy is not “going” to be a bust. He Already is a bust! This week he was crying in the media about Detroit’s O-line cheating because they got down too low and he couldn’t get in. Game 10 of last year he cried that the D-line coach hadn’t taught him anything, and that coach was fired. You can look for McCoy to “get hurt” again in the next couple of games. It’s easier to claim you are hurt than it is to face up to being bad. Year 3 of a “learning on the job” HC/DC. How many more years before we get a Real coach in here that knows how to scheme, develop & train his players, and knows the rules of the game? Let some of us fans know, Glazers, and we’ll plan for that date to purchase tickets. Maybe you will have learned that being cheap actually costs you more money in the long run.
September 14th, 2011 at 8:45 am
Freeman will continue to be a franchise QB. Blount is a monster, once we decide to use him. Our young WR will be a excellent for years to come. McCoy played great Sunday. Anyone who didn’t see that, knows nothing of Football. The entire D- line showed great promise. Foster is a hitter, but will take time to adjust. He doesnt look comfortable in coverage. He should be starting at Sam LB, Not MLb. Grimm looked good. Jones is serviceable, Meybe a tad better. Ronde somehow still looks like our best defensive player. Talib got beat badly- but he’s rusty, and hasn’t played in a while. He is good, he isnt great, and keeps giving up TDs by gambling. That has to stop.Biggers looked ok. Wish Lewis could stay healthy, he has talent.
The reason fans are feeling panicky is pretty obvious. We have the same problems this year as last year, plus two new ones. Our O-line still can’t run block or pass protect. They never have. The line sucked for eight games last year. Then we replaced the center, RG,RT. Suddenly, Caddys average per carry doubles, and Blount gets a thousand yds.
Faine , Joseph, And Trueblood are bad linemen. Always have been. We are sick of watching them fail. This should have been fixed.
Black and Hayes picked up where they left off. Invisible. Neither should be starting. We will never stop the run until we get LBers who play the run. Black also looked terrible in pass coverage Sunday. Shallow middle was open all day. Quincy was no where to be seen.
We have nobody -NOBODY!- behind Blount. They let Caddy go, with no plan on how to deal with the lose.- that’s rediculious!
Anyone wanting Ruud gone should be eating Humble pie today. He wasn’t an intimidating hitter. But he set the defense, didn’t mods tackles, and covered the middle of the field like a Tarp. His Lose will cost us more games this year. I honestly believe that Dominick made a popular choice, not an intelligent choice. Ruuds absence yesterday was painfully obvious!
That’s why the disgust- not panick. The team did absolutely nothing to improve, and actually got worse.
Not what a very young, talented team should do!
September 14th, 2011 at 9:11 am
WOW…
I haver never….NEVER….seen so many people wrong in one threat in my life! And to make matters worse, most are so out of control emotionally that their even insulting one another. Are you all adults?
Hawaiian and Eric are right on the money.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but aside frrom a relative few, one month ago most of you were saying how good Dominick is in the draft, right? And didn’t you say preseason doesn’t matter as well?
Now, after only ONE GAME, you people are throwing him, McCoy, Price and everyone else under the bus…even Freeman.
NEWSFLASH
In the past 10 years, as I pointed out elsewhere, the Bucs have lost 7 of 10 opening games…including the superbowl year.
And even though only 24% of the teams that loose their opening games actually made it to the playoffs since 1992, the Bucs hav done it 3 times. (With Dungy 1x, With Gruden 2x).
I swear…I’m beginning to think 99% of the Buccaneers market are bandwagoners. Certainly, most of you guys are with the exception of a few.
Get over yourselves. Boo hoo, the Bucs lost. Boo hoo, they once again looked bad on their opening day (as they have for 7 of the last 10 years). Boo hoo, no money was spent in free agency. Boo hoo Caddy and Ruud are gone. Boo Hoo the concessions messed up. Boo hoo the sun is hot at the games.
Just how many whiney excuses are you people going to drum up to hate on the team??? The only valid compaint I saw above was ONE of Brad’s points:
That is a valid point and something the Bucs must address, but as to the rest? Boo hoo.
Have you not been watching this team for the past decade? This is how they operate and it gets results. If you want different, go elsewhere. I’m sure as soon as the team starts winning youi’ll be back on the wagon again…only to jump off with the next loss.
Yesterday, someone made the statement that the entire league thinks Tampa has the worse fans. He was told he was wrong, that other fans don’t even think about Tampa fans.
He wasn’t wrong. While it’s true other team fans don’t think much about Tampa fans (when was the last time you thought about the fans of another team…like Colts fans, Skins fans or Browns fans?), the media makes it a point to make us look bad…and why not? We make it easy for media like BSPN who has a grudge against Tampa.
The media MAKES other fans think of us…just like it made us think of Jags fans when their team was getting blacked out.
When are you guys going to realize your behavior is reflected upon this team?
And you know what? As SOON as the Bucs win against the Vikings (which they likely will), you will all change your tunes (except for guys like Thomas who only knows one tune). On again, off again.
HERE’S A CHALLENGE, PEOPLE
While the Bucs focus on becoming a better team, why don’t you all focus on becoming better fans? Previous generations must be shaking their heads in disgust at you guys right now. Heck…my father is probably rolling over in his grave!
You are being tested…and you are failing the test…again.
You know what? I can’t go to the games. I live a decent distance away and even if I lived closer, with the state of my health I can’t go anyway. But STILL I buy a ticket from official channels. Why? Because NO ONE is going to say I don’t do my part.
Until you people start rebuilding your fandom, things are always going to seem bleak to you.
Hate on me if you like. I would rather you do that than hate on the team.
There are things the Bucs need to address. Year after year they see weaknesses exposed in the first couple games. And year after year they deal with them…even in Morris’s first year (they took steps to make things better eventually, remember?).
If you guys can’t see the positive aspects of this team, then you are not true fans. You are “thrill me now” viewers of games and that’s it.
We’re witnessing something special in Tampa, and half of you don’t even realize it. Back when Brooks, Lynch and Sapp were drafted, what if we had fore-knowledge of the future?
Well, we have it with this generation, people. Who cares even if it takes another year or two? The team is going to eventually be one of hte best in the NFL with this generation of players. Instead of whining the whole time, you should be enjoying the stories as they unfold.
Things that need to be addressed:
1) Offensive Line
2) Freeman’s timing
3) Running Game
4) Stop the run
5) Adapt to the quicker offenses
6) Give the young d-line and MLB time to develop
See? I can acknowledge weaknesses without screaming like a child. I’m not calling for the head of Dominick I’m not calling players busts. I’m in touch with reality and it reduces my stress levels. I knew the team would struggle at first.
Heck…I hate to tell you guys this…but its entirely possible the team WILL struggle all year. 3-4 rookies up front on the dline. If it were just one player, you would all be saying it takes 2-3 years for a rookie to develop.
But now, because its a group of young players, you are calling them all busts? Grow up!!!!
September 14th, 2011 at 9:12 am
“in one threat” = “in one thread”
September 14th, 2011 at 12:24 pm
Pete I don’t always agree with you, but that was the best post I have seen in a long time…
September 14th, 2011 at 12:32 pm
They probably need to win 11 games to make the playoffs.
Going 11-5 is hard enough. Going 11-4 is more difficult.
Every loss is a nail in the coffin for this team.
September 14th, 2011 at 1:07 pm
^I agree that going 11-4 would be difficult in today’s NFL.
:/
September 14th, 2011 at 1:15 pm
@FLboyInDallas LMAO Yeah, it would be really hard. Almost impossible. No wait, it is impossible.
September 14th, 2011 at 3:34 pm
Just occurred to me…I need to check that 24% thing against our divsion rivals.
September 15th, 2011 at 4:08 pm
great post and obsevation Pete Dutch