“Greg Schiano Is A Control Freak”
May 23rd, 2012
Popcorn-munching,coffee-slurping, fried-chicken-eating, oatmeal-loving, circle-jerking, beer-chugging Peter King, of Sports Illustrated and NBC Sports, is convinced the Bucs’ trade of Kellen Winslow was a chest-banging power play by the leader of the New Schiano Order.
In fact, the scone-loathing King opened his Tuesday story on the subject by telling readers “Greg Schiano is a control freak.”
And that’s the major explanation, at least in my mind, for why you trade a productive tight end like Kellen Winslow for something so paltry as a seventh-round draft choice, which the Bucs did Monday in dealing him to Seattle: The new coach doubted he was going to be able to control Winslow.
The Bucs are rewriting the rules of their program under Schiano. A friend of mine at Rutgers once told me Schiano was an acquired taste; he was insistent, for instance, that team meetings at road hotels be held with the room at a precise temperature. I forget what the temperature was. But that was the depth of his detail work. There’s nothing particularly wrong with that. It’s just that it’s not for everyone.
For Joe, this is just a bunch of silly drama by King. (Click through above if you want to read King’s complete take.) Outside of vibe-feelin’ and pool-party-loving Raheem Morris, nearly every NFL coach is a control freak. King’s going to have to come up with more than an anonymous source recollecting thermostat settings to convince Joe that Schiano is out of the norm.
If Schiano is so control-obsessed, then what is Butch Davis doing here, and why isn’t Schiano calling his own defense like he did at Rutgers?
Joe has no problem with Schiano’s controlling ways to this point. After seven years of Chucky, Bucs fans shouldn’t even raise an eyebrow watching a coach that likes to micromanage.
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:05 am
Yeah….I HOPE he’s a control freak. Things were so out of control last year that a control freak is exactly what we need. I think Schiano is definitely detail orientated and he wants to take care of the little things so the big things get taken care of. If that makes him a control freak then that’s fine with me.
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:12 am
A bunch of big men in a room can get hot and uncomfortable. You want everyone cool and focused. Having a set temperature shows attention to detail, the ability to learn from those details, and forethought. No negatives here. Just shows that our guys will undoubtedly be well prepared on Sundays by a guy that pays attention to every detail.
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:15 am
i could think of far worse articles to have written about a coach.
after last year, looking at my wife during games in our opening drive and saying (repeatedly) did these guys even practice this week? this attention to detail is a welcome presence.
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:21 am
“The new coach doubted he was going to be able to control Winslow.”
The coach should be able to control his players. Anyone that could not be controlled should be released/traded. I see no problem here even if it’s true…
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:41 am
Joe, Do you think that he is building a team and doesn’t want primadonnas?
Just think everyone playing together instead of the individual efforts in the ten game losing streak, what could happen?
How about a blocking TE and freeing up cap space, did that just happen?
A leader that states “My way or the highway”, looked what happened before, Lombardi?, Walsh? Who knows, do you?
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:51 am
Kinda like the revelation that accountants are meticulous.
It’s not a problem unless he starts losing. Just like with chucky. Win the SB everything is Rosey. Some shaky drafting and get bounced out of playoffs in first round and folks want your head.
In essence coaching is control. Just different ways of accomplishing it. Wooden famously started the first day of practice at UCLA demonstrating how he wanted the players to put on their socks. Super control freak.
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:55 am
Joe,
If it’s Schiano’s defense then what is Bill Sheridan here for? Adult night clubs?
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:57 am
Actually “my way or the highway” makes me nervous in that it was the battle cry of Ray Perkins, a very unsuccessful control freak.
May 23rd, 2012 at 8:57 am
I get it. It was a political move. Bring in your guys and get rid of strong-willed dissenters.
However, I think Schiano botched this entire transaction from beginning to end especially if they told K2 that he was “Their Guy” & that he could miss OTAs without being marked down for it. Why not trade him pre draft by lowering their asking price (5th rounder) if they really wanted him gone? This couldnt have been the plan all along could it? Seems like pretty weak timing.
To further compound the issue, Schiano went all Cold War on the media when they brought up the subject so we don’t know who said what nor do we know if K2 has a right to feel all butt hurt. I still contend that this is Schiano’s first credibility hit. NFL players don’t care if they’re cut or traded (relatively speaking) but they do care if you blow smoke up their butts then turn around and do the opposite a la Jon Gruden. I hope Coach handles situations like this better in the future.
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:08 am
So just because he like a room at a certain temperature makes him a control freak? That’s a pretty big stretch by King….
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:13 am
Joe here,
@Amar – Bill Sheridan himself, in his one public appearance before the media, said he will be running Greg Schiano’s defense. He went out of his way to say he’ll be coordinating under his boss’s orders.
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:15 am
After the god-awful RahRah debacle that some of us were able to recognize as a fraud and disaster from the outset – with a major failure being no control by the head coach – it is very obvious that the Glazers desired a coach who would return control to the organization.
Schiano is that person.
Winslow, THC, Talib etc controlled RahRah – that will never happen again under Greg.
Greg is not afraid of these punks – similar to Gru. However, Greg doesn’t have Gru’s over-sized ego which rubs people the wrong way.
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:21 am
I don’t care what Schiano does. Like all NFL coaches, he’s got to win. Simple as that!
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:37 am
Yeah, I think these talking heads like Florio and King are missing two big issues. One, K2 had an enormous amount of offensive PI calls. He was always pushing off to create distance b/c his knees no longer allow for him to run routes like he used to. Also, he was CONSTANTLY in Freeman’s face last year with an attitude which is why Freeman forced balls to him. I wouldnt complain if we kept him, but I get why we dumped him as well. Why cant King?
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:47 am
Sensiblebuc, U made a good point and got me thinking with all the trade talking before the draft with the Bears,maybe Winslow heard about it N had talk with Greg about it and that’s when Greg told him he’s his guy
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:50 am
I find it funny that the talk before the trade was nothing but, “The chances of trading Winslow are next to nil, so the Bucs will likely be forced to release him.” Then they manage to get a 7th rounder that could become a 6th, and it’s all, “How could they let a player of Winslow’s caliber go for just a 7th round pick?” You were just saying we were going to get NOTHING for him!
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:57 am
Thomas,
I like the new found faith! Teams will usually take on the personality of their coach good or bad.
May 23rd, 2012 at 9:59 am
Richard,
Winslow=Bad attitude, Bad Knee’s, Bad Cancer!
Solution: Cut ties and get what you can ASAP
Just keep spinning those tunes there Kellen.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:08 am
Thomas, I know you hate Dominik, but he deserves slight credit for getting Schiano in here.
IMO Schiano is the perfect marriage to this team at the right time and we will be seeing Great things to come. Maybe alot sooner than some might think.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:25 am
All 0-0 coachs are revered.
Control freak doesn’t bother me, Rutgers background with very little NFL experience does.
If you look at our history the two guys who had good success (Dungy and Gruden), had extensive NFL experience before taking over as head coach.
This guys credentials aren’t close. Maybe he can come from Rutgers and take the NFL by storm. But, common sense and history stack the odds against him.
No matter what the room temp.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:27 am
I’m sure Schiano is a big guy and can handle the media. I can already see the Fourth Estate (print media) beginning to circle the wagon.
Schiano is not starting off as a media darling. No complaint here, but when you take that approach, you have got to win. If you flounder or don’t win, they will be merciless because of the personna created by his so-called peculiarities.
Even Joe, whether intended or not and I won’t put words in his mouth, ended his comments with a “no problem with Schiano’s controlling ways TO THIS POINT”.
Schiano is undoubtedly a different kind of guy and maybe for the better. But remember the adage – “live by the sword, die by the sword’!
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:33 am
You can’t have ‘special treatment’ players on a team like Winslow. He had to go.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:44 am
I think i’m gonna pop my shirt collar next game. Hah!! Must be a 80’s Jersey thing.
May 23rd, 2012 at 10:51 am
So is Tom Coughlin, Bellicheat, Tomlin, Harbaugh and 99% of all the other head coahes – lotta insight by King
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:00 am
Eric, you need to get over this weird obsession with Rutgers.
Rutgers is a Division 1 program that competed with the big boys, and at times beat them. Turning a nothing program into one that frequently was ranked in the top 25 – means a hell of a lot more than finishing in the middle or bottom of the SEC (see Muschamp).
You can argue that the college games are different and may not perfectly prepare a NFL coach, but to argue that coahing at Rutgers qualifies you less for NFL coaching than say Florida or Miami etc is just plain foolish.
Pro assistants fail as NFL head coaches, College head coaches fail as NFL head coaches and both succeed. it is the measure of the man not what d1 program he came from.
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:25 am
@thomas,
Ok, recite the list of NFL head coachs who succeeded that came directly from a school on the level of Rutgers.
Nobody else has tried such a thing.
Totally unproven ground. Which makes it surprising to me that you are such a believer before the man has coached a game. I think you are caught up in “anybody has to be better than Raheem” land. Sorry but “better than Raheem” is not my standard.
Turning around Rutgers and turning around an NFL franchise are two entirely different matters. If you can even call not ever winning the conference “turning it around”.
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:32 am
Well, for once I totally agree with Thomas. I think I just threw up in my moth a little… Anyway, you are absolutely right Thomas.
“Pro assistants fail as NFL head coaches, College head coaches fail as NFL head coaches and both succeed. it is the measure of the man not what d1 program he came from.”
I would much rather have a guy who came into a program that was struggling and put that program on the map than a guy who came into a program with great recruiting in place, good talent on the field and did well. That’s not nearly as impressive as what Schiano did at Rutgers in my opinion.
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:32 am
I threw up in my ‘moth’?????
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:44 am
With Dungy we were on the left side, with Gruden it swung to the right side.
Morris swung it back to the far left side, now we are back to the far right.
This means Romney will probably win the election and if Schiano doesn’t do well and gets the ax Snoop Doggy Dog will be the next Bucs coach!! Snoop has a lot of coaching experience!!
May 23rd, 2012 at 11:56 am
Actually I take it all back.
Didn’t realize the man had won the Papajohn AND the Pinstripe Bowl. Not many have done that!
With a sterling 28-48 conference record.
Hard for me to wrap myself around the idea that he is NFL head coach ready.
May 23rd, 2012 at 12:14 pm
Eric,
Every head coach has to come from somewhere, and has to start somewhere.
I understand your concern for Schiano, but live a little.
May 23rd, 2012 at 12:15 pm
Eric,
Would you rather have Raheem Morris, and Albert Haynesworth back on the sqaud?
We are a much better “team” under Schiano.
May 23rd, 2012 at 1:06 pm
@Bobby
Be nice to your moth.
May 23rd, 2012 at 1:18 pm
steveK,
Eric has every right to doubt Schiano at this point. I believe as you do that we are a better team today under Schiano, but we both might be better served if we said that we look like a better team since no games have been played.
Remember a better team will have to beat the Saints and Falcons both times because the inept, incompetent coach split games with them last year. We should at least split a game with Carolina to be a better team.That incompetent and inept coach won 10 games in his 2nd season and was runner-up to COY. Surely Schiano can best that especially with the upgrades we made in FA and the draft. But shouldn’t we wait and see?
E.J. Biggers has been playing CB with the 1st team since OTAs began even ahead of Eric Wright. That’s enough to give me pause to wait and see how much better we really are. lol
May 23rd, 2012 at 1:20 pm
@stevek,
I suppose Plant High’s coach would meet the qualification of “coming from somewhere”. Seems like your standards a tinsy bit slack.
Heavens no I don’t want Rah back. Primarily because my fingers hurt from trying to dissuade folks from the notion that he was the next Chuck Noll.
Or was a better DC than Monte.
May 23rd, 2012 at 1:23 pm
“King’s going to have to come up with more than an anonymous source recollecting thermostat settings to convince Joe that Schiano is out of the norm.”
If you need convincing, make a tweet next time you attend a Bucs practice 😉
But yeah, as long as he wins, he can demand no brown M&Ms for all I care.
May 23rd, 2012 at 3:12 pm
Eric,
Who the hell else wanted the Buc’s HC job?
For what we are currently, he was a great hire.
I understand your doubting of Schiano because he hasn’t done anything yet, but give it a rest.
There is a lot of reason to be excited. The owners are actually utilizing the salary cap (about damn time), and we got rid of Haynesworth.
We are leaps and bounds better then we were the last game of the season.
May 23rd, 2012 at 3:16 pm
Kraig Lumpkin, K2, and Allen Bradford are all reunited.
May 23rd, 2012 at 3:37 pm
Just because Peter King says Schiano is a control freak, doesn’t mean that he is one. Schiano has had a handful of practices, and the media has seen a few minutes of each. King doesn’t have anywhere near enough information to make an educated comment about Schiano yet. I don’t buy any of what he is saying. K2 needed to go, and Dom may have decided he wanted to cut his losses with K2 before Schiano was even hired. Everybody is a freaking expert these days and most of them don’t know jack squat. If Schiano was a control freak, things would look much different with the team and coaching staff. Everything coming from 1 Buc these days seems to be very positive and upbeat. But,,,,, someone had to take charge of that mess.
May 23rd, 2012 at 6:31 pm
No wonder Eric thinks he is so smart his friends must look up to him and think he is Einstein. What were you doing with that finger? Eric, get some smarter friends.