“Doug Martin’s Job To Lose”
May 13th, 2012For some reason, “The Professor,” John Clayton of BSPN, believes Doug Martin is tougher than LeGarrette Blount and the Bucs’ lead running back job is Martin’s to lose. Clayton explains in this BSPN video. Joe dove into the ongoing Blount-Martin debate yesterday.
May 13th, 2012 at 10:04 am
Of course it’s Martin’s to lose. He did get drafted in the first round. They didn’t trade up to get a backup player.
May 13th, 2012 at 10:08 am
IT’S CALLED TWO RUNNING BACKS SHARING TIME AND CARRYING THE LOAD. LET’S JUST HOPE MARTIN ISN’T A BUST!
May 13th, 2012 at 10:17 am
Martin is a 1st rounder, which means “immediate impact” player.
Kind of like GMC and Grimm, 207 draft positions better suggest GMC is that much better than Grimm.
May 13th, 2012 at 10:20 am
No way Martin is a bust@southtampabucman!
This competition is going to show Blounts true colors,I just hope those colors are pewter and red
May 13th, 2012 at 10:28 am
What he said would be true, if Blount wasn’t awesome. And as we all know, Blount can be crazy good.
May 13th, 2012 at 10:36 am
You spend a 1st round pick on a player to be a “complementary” player to another RB. If Muscle Hamster proves his 1st round status in camp, he will be the bell cow and Blount will spell him – not the other way around.
May 13th, 2012 at 10:37 am
I meant “You DON’T spend”
May 13th, 2012 at 10:43 am
It’s been done twice in our own division.
May 13th, 2012 at 11:26 am
Martin will start. Simply trading into the first round for a RB is justification compared to an undrafted power back.
May 13th, 2012 at 11:27 am
Umm..Joe he does appear to be stronger than Blount…have u watched his film. He doesn’t avoid contact like Blount. And he is all muscle!! Unless Blount improves on his ball handling he will be the #2. Which its always a great thing to have a very good #2 as well! I’m just happy we finally have 2 good RBs on our team!!
May 13th, 2012 at 11:28 am
Mark Ingram, anyone? Good in college. Drafted to a team with a pretty decent RB as the starter. Added another RB after he was drafted by the name of Darren Sproles.
This is eerily familiar when you compare all the players. And Michael Smith could prove to be the Sproles factor in the the BUCS’ scenario. Just sayin……
May 13th, 2012 at 11:30 am
Michael Smith was a 7th round pick…nothing says he will be good. he was the 2nd RB drafted out of his school. I hope for our sakes he is decent. But don’t get your hopes up! Martin is nothing like Ingram…that is just a crazy comment. He does everything a RB should do and does them at a high level!!
May 13th, 2012 at 11:33 am
Schiano wants to pound the rock. Two sets of fresh legs is always a plus.
May 13th, 2012 at 11:41 am
Off the subject, but did anyone else have a problem getting access to this web site this morning?
Small glitch for some people early this morning. It wasn’t you, Jim. –Joe
May 13th, 2012 at 11:44 am
@funkymunky How is Martin nothing like Ingram? They’re damn near the same. Ingram’s college career may well be better than Martin’s.
And Darren Sproles was a 4th round draft pick…not necessarily at the Must Have list as far as running backs go. Draft position doesn’t necessarily mean field production nor does it validate the future value of a player. Undrafted players have gone on to make huge contributions and even become the best at their respective postions.
So there’s no reason to have little to no hope for a7th Round draft pick….especially with that speed.
May 13th, 2012 at 11:47 am
@funkymunkey — Blount’s a proven pro nobody wants to tackle. Martin will have to prove it before I go calling him stronger than Blount.
May 13th, 2012 at 11:52 am
Success at RB is so dependent on the offensive line and the the offensive game plan. As long as back has decent skills he can be productive in the right situation. Can’t wait to see this group in action, and that includes the coaches which was the weakest position on the team last year and may have had the biggest upgrade this year.
May 13th, 2012 at 12:07 pm
I hope they make the guy earn it.
This ain’t Boise State.
It is amazing how these National guys pick up on a smidgen of info, repeat it, and act as if it’s original insight.
May 13th, 2012 at 12:15 pm
Doubts remain about whether Blount can be effective in short yardage, because he tends to dance around instead of just pounding it up the middle. Even if you can blame it on the previous coaching staff and/or lack of offseason work, it is still a true statement that he is unproven in pass protection and as a receiver. So, it seems Martin is a more well rounded RB at this point. That’s why it’s his job to lose. Everybody hopes Blount develops the other skills and learns the playbook well. If he does, the Bucs will have a very potent backfield.
May 13th, 2012 at 12:18 pm
I stopped ready article after ‘John Clayton’. Why and how this guy has any cred is beyond me. This pencil neck also said the Bucs get an F after the first round. So if the Bucs get an F according to him why would one of our selections be considered 1st string? He’s making himself look like an idiot more everyday.
May 13th, 2012 at 12:48 pm
Stranger: you are wrong. Fox did not trade up to draft a complementary back in Stewart. Stewart was a huge talent who fell to them in the middle of the first round.
If memory serves, Williams drafted 2 years earlier at the very end of the first round had not established himself as the starter over Deshaun Foster at the end of 2008 ( I think) so Fox drafted Stewart based on BPO and an unknown quantity in Williams. Letting Foster go caused Fox to need another RB.
As it turned out, Williams was the better player in 2009.
The Panthers did not trade up to get Stewart due to known deficiencies with Williams.
Also the Saints needed Ingram as a replacement for Reggie Bush, they didnt sign Sproles until just before camp to a tiny (6 mill guaranteed deal) contract at Brees request. As it turned out, Pierre Thomas and Sproles have been excellent making the injured Ingram a luxury.
Both situations are totally different here. We didn’t lose a Reggie Bush or Deshaun Foster to free agency. Those teams didn’t have brand new coaching staffs.
Our new staff evaluated Blount as a backup and badly wanted Trent Richardson, when they couldn’t get him they traded up for the next best player available.
Blount will get carries, but about 5-6 per game to Martins 15-17 plus 3-5 catches, unless Smith beats Blount out – then Blount will be the third string RB.
May 13th, 2012 at 12:50 pm
Mark Ingram was drafted in the first round and still isn’t the starter.
May 13th, 2012 at 1:06 pm
George:
You won’t be accepted around here … THomas, stop misrepresenting the rules of the comments area. The previous comment in this space was deleted.–Joe
The sheep want gratuitous positivity but only on the protected entities: Dominik, Gerald, Blount, Talib, the Glazers.
May 13th, 2012 at 1:14 pm
Have a nice day:
You are wrong.
I don’t remember if Ingram entered week 1 as the Starter last year but I think he did.
But I will bet you anything that in Week 1 he was the primary RB with by far the most carries in week 1. I don’t think Sproles got any carries in week 1, Sproles wasn’t used as a traditional RB until later in the year out if necessity.
Ingram got hurt and that is why he lost the primary RB job to Sproles/Thomas.
Totally different situations.
Let go of this Blount obsession he is the backup.
May 13th, 2012 at 1:20 pm
Let’s hope our Bucs run better than the 2011 Rutgers team.
Ranked 109 with 2.8 average.
Also gained one yard on 25 carries vs. N. Carolina.
Not such great stats for the new order and all. I know the Big East has some world class defenses, but still.
May 13th, 2012 at 1:21 pm
One thing is for certain, Martin will push Blount to become a better RB. Face it there hasn’t been an ounce of true competition for starting jobs on this team in years, one of Raheem’s biggest flaws. I am very excited to have both Blount and Martin on the Bucs, you can’t have a potent rushing attack with just one starting RB in the NFL. The Bucs will go back to an enjoyable team to watch next year, best off season out of any team in the NFL. Hands down.
May 13th, 2012 at 1:26 pm
That flaw would actually belong to Dominik.
May 13th, 2012 at 1:56 pm
From earlier post…..thanks for replying Joe.
May 13th, 2012 at 1:58 pm
Martin and Blount will share carries, Martin will probably start as of today.
Why does this bother anyone? Competition is good.
May 13th, 2012 at 1:59 pm
All I said was Martin will be the starter with Blount being a great #2 and both will play. I am happy we have 2 really good RBs now. I just think Martin can do more as does all the reports and scouts. Thats just fact. I really hope Blount steps up and gets serious. But for people to try to argue the fact that he dances and jumps over people instead of running straight at them is crazy. How many time did he have a hole inside and bounce it out. This year will be different with a real staff but its up to him to keep his job. I have always been a supporter of Blount. I also really like Martin and I think its pretty obvious he will do more as a pro. But thats my opinion and some people think differently.
And I had an issue this morning as well getting on here. It took me to godaddy.com and said the website ran out this morning and had to be paided for before it reopened. Obviously it was paid for and won’t be a problem for another year! Not a big deal at all!
May 13th, 2012 at 2:06 pm
And Martin and Ingram are nothing alike. Martin is way faster on the field and has close to the same strength if not more! He can run inside and out and catch exceptionally well. He picks up blocks better than any RB in this draft class and is very smart to boot. Ingram is a bust and cannot stay healthy. He was hurt often in college as well. Martin is always there. And to be able to pair him with Blount is way better than pairing Ingram with Sproles. Sproles has years where he is great and then has some that he does absolutely nothing. I would much rather have our combo of RBs versus the Aints’ anyday of the week. Especially on Sundays!!
This is Ingrams make or break year and mark my words…dude will suck yet again this season. He lost the job because his average yards per carry was terrible to start out with. He had like 2 games where he did ok and that was it. I hated him coming out of college and I’m glad the Aints’ wasted a 1st round pick on him!!!
May 13th, 2012 at 2:06 pm
Thank you @Garv…well put. Simple and to the point!!
May 13th, 2012 at 2:12 pm
Thomas I agree with everything you said except 1 little thing. If Blount can hold onto the ball…. theres no way he only gets 5 to 7 touches a game. I’m thinking 10+ and martin will be 15+.. but i dont see martin gettin double the touches. Blount is to good to only get single digit touches.
May 13th, 2012 at 2:27 pm
You guys can listen to all of the psycho-babble you want to, but this coach and staff know what they are doing and will get the best out of the skill set they have on the team.
Trying to debate whether Blount or Martin will start is tantamount to having both Rachel Watson and Kate Upton in the car with you and trying to decide which one gets to ride in the front seat. If it’s my car, they’re both riding up front if one has to sit in a place that would obstruct my vision.
They say opinions are like….well you know, everybody’s got one. For your continued debate, because I feel like this one’s going to be around for a while, here’s one more. Please watch the highlight video in the inset, lest we forget that Blount is no 3rd string RB. This guy is going to be on the field early and often with our new Caterpillar road-grading unit we now have up front.
Down with heresy and up with common sense! Enjoy!
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1181288-schianos-buc-ball-redux-how-nicks-blount-martin-can-resurrect-tampa-bay
May 13th, 2012 at 2:35 pm
Blount is no Kate Upton, more like Kate Winslett in Titanic.
May 13th, 2012 at 3:30 pm
If Blount could work on pounding it in short yardage and display a more rounded skill set, not to mention quit fumbling, he could be one of the top-5 backs in the league. He certainly has the athletic ability, and he’s not a dumb guy. If he becomes proficient in the other areas, there are few backs in the league who would unseat him as a starter. But, it remains to be seen whether that happens. The dancing in short yardage may be the most frustrating thing of all. For a guy with his obvious strength and power, he should be dominating in short yardage.
May 13th, 2012 at 3:48 pm
Alstott was a dancer and had trouble with fumbles, but he is worshiped here.
Politics will decide who starts and gets the rock, 1st rounders always prevail over UFA.
May 13th, 2012 at 3:57 pm
I dont remember Alstott dancing. I remember him pushing the pile forward constantly and bulldozing his way into the endzone.
May 13th, 2012 at 4:29 pm
Miguel’s “memory” is liken to Larry Stooge’s “intellect.”
Alstott attacked the line, hitting the holes when called for.
Thus far in his career LaGarrett has been hesitant in short yard situations.
We’ve all seen it. but I do believe it can be corrected and he can be more than a runaway train once in the secondary.
Martin will make the running game better, obviously. That does not mean Blount has no place here.
May 13th, 2012 at 4:49 pm
Blount is a good cheap backup for Martin – provided he stops fumbling. He will get 5 or so carries per game if Martin doesn’t get hurt.
Backup RB is an important part of a team. That is all Blount will be.
My prediction: Blount will basically quit by chronically complaining when Martin becomes the starter – which will end his time in Tampa prematurely.
Don’t be surprised if Blount balloons up to near 300 lbs, he was close to 280 at times at Oregon.
May 13th, 2012 at 5:05 pm
Alstott def had a problem dancing behind the line of scrimmage. But not on the goalline. He plowed forward in those situations. It was all the other plays that he wanted to make a huge gain instead of just moving the chains. I know Alstott is a “God” here and people will disagree, but its fact. Watch the tapes again. Peoples memories get clouded when you talk about one of the most popular players in team history. I can remember tons of articles and news reports saying Alstott needed to quit dancing so much for a guy his size. Same problem with Blount. But unlike Alstott, Blount never hits the hole hard goal line or not. But Martin will do just that and Blount will still have atleast 10 carries a game unless our D still sucks and we are down huge points again early on. All I have to say about Blount and not hitting the holes hard is simple. Watch the Atl games which he cost us!!
May 13th, 2012 at 5:07 pm
Don’t be surprised if bucsfansince1997 changes names to bucsfanuntil2012 if Blount is mostly sidelined without due cause. For 2 seasons now, Blount is the exciting part of watching games. Since, they are supposedly planning a run-first strategy, carries should go as follows:
Blount – 20 carries a game
Martin – 15 carries a game
Freeman -5 carries a game
If they are serious about running, give both backs a serious number of carries.
Someone posted the other day that they thought Martin should primarily carry the ball during the first half and Blount should take the majority of carries during the second half when he can just blast up a worn down defense. This strategy seems strong to me, as long as the Bucs can avoid 3 touchdown deficits before halftime.
Essentially limiting Blount’s role got Raheem fired, Schiano probably won’t make the same error.
May 13th, 2012 at 5:11 pm
Thomas you’re being a total idiot about Blount. The guy has produced very good for being UNDRAFTED. You hate on K2, Blount, etc…..In other words, you hate our best players.
There’s 15-20 players I’d get cut/release before Blount.
May 13th, 2012 at 5:22 pm
Sometimes a back has to “dance”, when there are no Holes to run through.
Alstott did it, and so does Blount.
I like little, powerful Men like Martin, reminds me of Emmitt Smith, the way he is built. You can’t see these little guys coming, until it is too late sometimes.
May 13th, 2012 at 5:33 pm
Bucsfansince97: apparently you haven’t been watching games since 1997.
There are very very few 40 rush NFL games anymore. You will be lucky to get 30. Most team’s have less than 480 rush attempts, only 2 or 3 surpass 500 which is 32 rushes per game.
The bucs averaged 31 per game last year.
Some teams are in the low 300’s, basically 20 per game.
So of the 30 rush attempts, 25-27 will be to the RB – martin is your primary back – that leaves 10 tops for Blount if he doesn’t fumble – if Martin is very effective he will get 80-90% of the carries.
Blount gets 7, give or take 1 or 2.
May 13th, 2012 at 5:39 pm
Alstott might dance a little bit on first and second down but when it was third and short he would go north straight up the gut for the first Blount always dances.
May 13th, 2012 at 5:41 pm
I still love Blount but not as a starter or on 3rd and inches.
May 13th, 2012 at 5:50 pm
You know what just may happen? The best player will get the most touches (what a concept). I would guess it would be a slight edge to Martin, but you never know. Blount has proven he can run in this league, Martin has not. He will definitely get an opportunity, but if he doesn’t perform, you can bank on it that Blount will be the man. What’s the point in declaring a starter in May anyway? They are both going to get plenty of chances to show what they can do, and the one who performs the best will play the most – simple as that. I’m actually kind of hoping Blount gets more touches, just to piss off Thomas.
May 13th, 2012 at 5:51 pm
Blount only signed a 1 year deal. He will perform well then leave TB for a multi-year deal somewhere. It’s amazing how he was the fans chosen one 2 seasons ago and now he’s not worthy to tie Martin’s shoelaces. BTW, he wasn’t near as bad as Freeman last year. I wish him well.
May 13th, 2012 at 6:11 pm
For being a terrible waste of a running back, Blount has produced more highlight reels than any other Buc RB in the last….. probably ever. Blount has made his share of mistakes, but he can break one at any moment of a game, and break half the defense in the process. Blount is one of the best wild cards to come along in years. If the Bucs were to cut Blount, he would have a new home in less than 15 seconds, and teams would be fighting for his rights. The guy has only been in the league for 2 years and I find it a little unfair to be overly critical, giving the Crappy Coach he played for and an O line that in 2011 totally sucked. I’m all for Martin and Smith in there with Blount. I am happy about the Martin pick, but I would have drafted another defender at 31. I wanted the Bucs to take Janoris Jenkins, but Martin appears to be a good back, risky as a first rounder, but all the Media seems in favor of it.
May 13th, 2012 at 6:12 pm
If the defensive coordinators in the Big East can effectively destroy Schiano’s running game how we gonna do against Nolan and Spagnuolo?
May 13th, 2012 at 6:17 pm
you can debate martin/blount all you want but the bottom line is you dont draft a rb in the 1st round for him to sit on the bench. hes gonna play and hes gonna play alot
May 13th, 2012 at 6:24 pm
“If the defensive coordinators in the Big East can effectively destroy Schiano’s running game how we gonna do against Nolan and Spagnuolo?”
—-
That’s such a stupid comment, it’s not even funny (which is what I think you are trying to be). Do you even think before you type?
May 13th, 2012 at 6:29 pm
2.2,
The coach said that they are going to break the mold of the current NFL, and be a run first team. If they are successful, there is no reason that 40 rushes a game are out of the question, with a few passes thrown in. Does it seem odd? Yes, definitely. However, the Bucs chances of winning go up dramatically the longer the other team’s offense stays off the field.
With the league’s defenses all reworking their defensive personnel to better shut down pass happy qb’s, there will likely be a lot of holes for running backs to tear through. And once you are successful running in a game, you keep going until the other team shows they can stop it.
But we will see. Even if the totals are wrong, the mix I prescribed is about how I think it should go. Blount should get 4 touches for every 3 that Martin gets, and freeman show definitely return to adding an extra dimension to his threat in the backfield.
May 13th, 2012 at 6:41 pm
@hawaiian,
Actually the questionable notion is that Greg Schiano is some sort of running game guru when there is very little in his coaching history which reflects it.
For example, Rutgers 109th NCAA rushing ranking just last season.
May 13th, 2012 at 6:56 pm
@eric,
Who were his running backs last year? How was his offensive line? Did they have injuries that kept them from running the ball? My money is that you don’t know a damn thing about any of these questions, and you really come off as pretty stupid. So yeah, let’s go ahead and judge a coach by one season, that makes perfect sense. You make as if Rutgers is some powerhouse program that recruits by its name. You obviously don’t understand the landscape of college athletics, nor do you understand how far the Rutgers program grew under his watch. But nah, he can’t coach because he didn’t lift Rutgers to a national championship! You’ve got it all figured out genius.
Maybe he will be a horrible NFL coach. It sure appears as if that is what you are hoping for. Then again, maybe he’ll be very good. God forbid you give the guy a chance. You weren’t happy with Raheem, you obviously aren’t happy with Schiano, and my money says you wouldn’t have been happy no matter who we hired (just like you aren’t happy with who we drafted). If only we had a genius like you as our GM, all of our problems would be solved.
May 13th, 2012 at 6:57 pm
rutgers NCAA rushing ranking with r.rice
2005: 43 — freshman
2006: 16
2007: 23
May 13th, 2012 at 7:01 pm
Obviously Shiano is not teaching his running backs how to hit the hole or break tackles. He is definitely terrible at teaching RB’s. I mean, he’s only produced one all-pro RB while at Rutgers – a historically RB-rich program. I mean, this year their leading back had nearly as many carries by himself as the number of passes their QB’s threw. I’m sure if their backs were coached a little better, they would have finished 1-2 in the Heisman Trophy award.
May 13th, 2012 at 7:07 pm
@hawaiian,
I understand enough about college football to know a good coach can get a better running game going than that.
I am only saying stepping up from Rutgers to install an NFL running game to be dominant, as is being discussed, may be more of a formidable challenge than some on here believe.
It’s like expecting a .250 minor league guy to take the majors by storm. Harder than it looks.
But hey stay in your dream world like you did with Raheem. Enjoy the fantasies.
May 13th, 2012 at 7:16 pm
Do you understand that he was coaching Rutgers, not Alabama? Do you also realize that when he had talent (Ray Rice), they ran all over everyone? Is that too much for you to grasp? Do you understand the concept of talent? A coach can look really good as a result of it, or really bad if there is a lack of it.
Go ahead, keep bringing up Raheem. I could give a sh!t less. I’ve acknowledged that I was wrong (although he did a very good job in 2010). What, you’ve never been wrong? You are just like a woman, bringing up stuff like that. Pretty petty, but I encourage you to keep doing it.
May 13th, 2012 at 7:29 pm
I hate to take sides in all this, because I like what Eric posts sometimes, and the same with Hawaiian Buc.
But facts are facts, and the facts are siding with Hawaiian Buc, as far as Coach Schiano goes, and his ability to take a tiny little school into a respectable Football Program.
This for a minute how hard it was for Coach Schiano to recruit players for Rutgers ?
Jersey ain’t exactly a nice place, especially in the Winters. Yet Coach Schiano has many players in the NFL.
I say give the guy a chance. It is my opinion Coach Schiano has been the best thing to happen for us in a long long time.
May 13th, 2012 at 7:29 pm
I totally understand he was coaching Rutgers, which is what worries me.
He really has no qualifications to make anyone believe he can coach up an NFL running games. Teams in this league don’t let you run it down their throats.
Unless of course you are Raheem Morris.
Well see, maybe it will happen. I’m gonna have to see more than toe lines myself.
May 13th, 2012 at 7:33 pm
Blount will either step his game up with the impending threat of supplantation by Martin, or he will spell the muscle hamster. Blount as a pissed off back up playing for extra carries could be especially dangerous. Really all hinges on the attitude he takes regarding the competition. Either way with the upgrades to our line, we should be much better in the run game this year.
May 13th, 2012 at 7:41 pm
Eric,
You’re quite myths pessimist. Give Schiano the benefit of the doubt. He seems to be an oraganized, hardworking, up and coming coach.
For the 1st time in 3 years we are PROFESSIONALLY being run.
Sure, you can bust his balls for the way he runs his practices with such an emphasis on detail, but lighten up.
Coach Schiano has fire in his belly. He wants to prove nay sayers such as yourself, wrong.
Fasten your seat beaky because ground and pound ball is now in effect.
May 13th, 2012 at 7:41 pm
“I totally understand he was coaching Rutgers, which is what worries me.”
—
You know what we should do, we should get that coach from Alabama to coach us next. Alabama is one of the best running teams in the country, which is obviously the result of his great coaching. Especially with that lack of talent he was working with. If he’s not available, there’s an old ball coach from Florida that now coaches somewhere else (can’t remember where). That seems like the best way to do it, since those guys built up their programs from nothing, without the benefit of great facilities, boosters, and a great recruiting pool. They will obviously be great coaches in the NFL, because they are so good in college. What were we thinking???
May 13th, 2012 at 7:44 pm
Of course Schiano has to prove he can do it at the NFL level. What else is new? But you appear to be hoping he’s going to fail. Perhaps that isn’t your intentions, but I promise you that’s exactly how you come across. Nobody want to hear that sh!t in May. If we are 1-5 and look like crap, then knock yourself out – you’ll have lots of friends. But my goodness, do you have to be such a f-ing negative Nancy now? I guess that’s how you get off.
May 13th, 2012 at 7:58 pm
Coach Byner has the RB’s now and he was pretty good in his day. I don’t see how the Bucs won’t have a decent rushing attack. Better depth and quality of backs, better O line, QB more experienced and mobile. Should be a formula for success. Demar Dotson is the best blocking option at TE, IMO.
May 13th, 2012 at 8:02 pm
Eric:
You are way off. In the NFL, mostly, the playing field is balanced.
In major college football it isn’t, Huge schools with storied Programs get the pick of the litter, everyone else fights for the scraps.
Schiano built a program from nothing, and competed year-in-and-year out with lesser players.
He turned jobs from Miami etc because he wanted his next step to be the NFL.
You can’t compare statistical categories in College to the pros. The games are very different. College games are much longer – due to more clock stoppages (I.e. First downs) which means more plays, which means different planning depending upon how you stack up.
The NFL game is, mostly, unless you are Green Bay and one or two others – stay close in the first half (8 or less deficit), play field position in the second half, get off on third, convert on third, don’t miss field goals – you will win more than you lose.
Turnovers kill you (Blount anyone?)
Schiano knows this and everything that he is doing is consistent with this.
Mark Barron is an ideal 3rd down player – think Polamalu.
Rah was basically clueless believing that cute words, and closeness between player and coach motivated enough. Wrong.
Schiano will be great – so long Dom doesn’t stand in his way.
Schiano knows
May 13th, 2012 at 8:04 pm
Running back guru Spunkie Monkie, a 145lb. janitor at USF, declares Alstott, Graham and now Blount to be below average running backs. He must be right!
May 13th, 2012 at 8:09 pm
Ok so Saban and Spurrior failed in NFL but Greg Schiano is a sure fire winner.
I come across as hoping he fails?
Ok you guys come across like the varsity team all goo goo eyed over the coach. Or the cheerleading squad swooning over the local high school QB.
If i see a dominating run game my hats off to the man. Im not holding my breath.
May 13th, 2012 at 8:14 pm
@thomas
Who are the big time athletic football programs in the Big East?
May 13th, 2012 at 8:16 pm
Eric:
Schiano did not fail at Rutgers. Many would bet you dollars to donuts that spurrier and saban would have had less success at Rutgers.
How much greatness did saban have at Michigan state or spurrier at duke? Exactly.
May 13th, 2012 at 8:23 pm
Eric: I am not arguing that the Big East is a good football conference.
Compared to where Rutgers came from:
Pitt, west Virginia, Syracuse, Louisville all have recruiting advantages.
In 2007, Rutgers finished ranked higher than Oklahoma and many other powerhouses.
The point is: does the coach make the organization better? Ask anyone familiar with Rutgers and they will say heck yes.
The primary place where Rutgers struggled was to get a top tier qb, which forced their hand into being conservative.
May 13th, 2012 at 8:51 pm
@ thomas
Steve won the ACC at Duke. He says it was his finest coaching achievement. Havent won it since he left.
Lots of small college guys turn around programs. Rarely do they get scooped up as NFL head coachs.
Im just saying all these blount v martin comparisons skip right over whether schiano can do the job.
May 13th, 2012 at 9:49 pm
I almost get embarrassed when I read how some of you gush over the Little General when he hasn’t done anything yet.
I was shocked when Raheem said he didn’t make adjustments at halftime yet his cheerleaders wouldn’t quit. He was a moron.
May 13th, 2012 at 11:20 pm
Way to go Joe! A lot of comments for a slow news day. For all arguing one way or the other, take a look at you calendars. Today is a victory for JoeBucsFan.com. And also finally, for the Rays.
May 13th, 2012 at 11:39 pm
I don’t have any doubts about Schiano or the team right now. Even if I did have doubts, I would suppress them because I prefer the positive outlook. It is just a much more comforting place to reside in. So I feel they took major strides to plug gaping holes and address the needs to turn the team around. I could care less what Schiano did 6 months ago, or if Blount fumbled, or if Freeman was overweight and slow. Its a new day, a clean slate and none of that matters now. Nothing is worse than dwelling on a mistake or a problem. The sooner you can put it behind you and move on, the better. So if I wear rose colored glasses, or if I’m goo goo eyed, it works for me. I think it is going to be great season and that all the pieces will fall into place.
Don’t Worry, Be Happy.
May 14th, 2012 at 5:39 am
Bobby McFerrin, 1988!
May 14th, 2012 at 8:11 am
@JonBuc
WTF are you talking about. I did say EG wasn’t as good as some people make him out to be. But I said nothing of the sort with either Alstott or Blount. I have supported Blount since day one and that has not changed. What does “I’m glad we finally have 2 good RBs on our roster” mean???? Obviously I like him. And all I said about Alstott is he didn’t always go straight ahead which was true. Nowhere in my post did I say he wasn’t good!!!! He did a ton for out team and helped us win a SB. I was making a point that he danced some but not in the pivotal moments. Blount seems to always dance. The only thing I said that was bad about Blount is on the goalline. You can’t dance there and he does. One bad thing about the guy. Read the story correctly before you sound like a JackA$$ making comments like that!!!!!!
May 14th, 2012 at 8:14 am
@HawaiianBuc
Don’t worry about #eric…he makes some ok post every so often but he is as negative as 2.2 Don’t waste your time making them feel better for getting attention for absurd comments!
Although 2.2 did just make a good post supporting your arguement against @eric
May 14th, 2012 at 8:20 am
And @jonbuc
I posted facts about EG and no one was able to post anything else supporting his case for being “so great”. He did sacrifice a lot for our team I will give him that. But that still doesn’t make him the stud RB people make him out to be. But there is a huge difference between EG and Alstott or even Blount for that matter. The latter 2 are lightyears ahead of EG and until someone puts some facts to state the contrary. Leave it be and read the whole post before you make dumba$$ comments. You have pissed me off if you can’t tell!! I’m not gonna be an “internet toughguy” since there is no point in that. Just read it all before you want to resort to namecalling and whatever else you might find appealing to your simplemind!!! Following the pact does not make you legit or even worth responding to anymore. Deuces
May 14th, 2012 at 8:25 am
Blounts dancing allows him to make some huge plays. But when you have a chance to score a 1 yard TD and your that big go straight ahead and plow them. Thats not being negative…thats stating facts. Blounts main issue is ball handling and as I’ve said before. Hopefully a new really good RB will motivate him to be greater himself. Atleast I hope so for our teams sake. Which some people forget on here. Its a Bucs website and we need to support our team. Especially after what we just went through the last couple seasons. Be happy he have a coach ala Tom Coughlin, who pays attention to the small details now. So when it comes time for the games they will be drilled into their brains and the players can react instead of thinking before they act!!
May 14th, 2012 at 8:35 am
@BigMacAttack
Great post!!! Nothing else needs to be said!!!
May 14th, 2012 at 10:32 am
Spunkie Monkie benches 125lbs…gets tough on a Bucs message board.Z-z-z-z playing Madden 12 does not make you either a badazz or a running back guru.Shut it down and return to reading your Teen People.
May 14th, 2012 at 11:03 am
@jonbuc
What are you talking about??? first off I haven’t played madden in years…i have more important things to do than play video games! I’ve watched football all my life and played it for almost 10 years. Great comeback bro. You started the name calling like a kid and I responded back. You obviously think more with your heart than your brain. This is my last reply to you ever since you have still not brought any facts to your arguement. You want to name call and act tough over the internet…get a life and maybe you should lay off the Madden a little!! That was the worst reply I’ve ever heard!!!
May 14th, 2012 at 11:48 am
Spunkie Monkies tired playbook:
1)Claim to know anything about football whatsoever
2) Throw a hissy fit when taken to task about his nonsense
3) Start kissing berries of other posters to try and appear ” included”
4) Critique players… Particularly rbs…when he never saw the field except in marching band
5) Act tough
6) Use a lot of exclamation points cause he means business!!!!
May 14th, 2012 at 12:28 pm
@ eric’s comment
Did rugers have the offensive line that we do here in tampa? No. You dont have to worry about our average per rush being anywhere close to 2.8. We have a solid O-line and IMO 2 solid running backs that compliment eachother well, and watch out for michael smith I think hes going to be a steal in the 7th