Still A Bad Season
December 31st, 2012
Yesterday Joe appeared, as he often does, with his good friend Bobby Fenton on the Bucs Postgame/Postgame Show heard locally on WDAE-AM 620.
Fenton had an interesting rant about the Bucs season. He said in no uncertain terms the Bucs season was a failure. If a team doesn’t make the playoffs, Fenton explained, then said team has failed.
Fenton also noted that for any Bucs fan to suggest that the Bucs had a good season because they won three more games than last year is “a loser’s mentality.” This attitude, he believes, stems from a now 10-year absence of a playoff win.
Joe believes Fenton is on point, especially since the Bucs were in the driver’s seat for a playoff berth and fell face first in the dirt losing five straight and finding themselves on the couch for January football, as opposed to playing meaningful January football in the playoffs.
Sure, the Bucs made some inroads, improved in some areas (the rush defense in particular), but each team’s goal is to get to the playoffs.
The Bucs failed to do so. As a result, Joe, like Fenton, cannot see how the 2012 season can be called a success.
December 31st, 2012 at 9:12 am
Hey Fenton gueess what every team, but 1 is a failure every year.
December 31st, 2012 at 9:13 am
It’s been mostly a decade of debacles…a couple of one and dones, several collapses, poor drafting and a dwindling fan base. I swore I was not going to follow the Bucs as closely ( too painful ) after the collapse vs. The Eages…yet can’t seem to look away. Here’s hoping the next decade of Buc football is much better. Happy New Year to everyone…
December 31st, 2012 at 9:21 am
I see the season as a step forward from the last one, going in the right direction, but certainly not a “success”. I don’t think Shiano sees it as a success, the players, or anyone else on staff or in ownership do. The next two years should be a very interesting ride.
December 31st, 2012 at 9:26 am
I’m pretty numb to it at this point. Just when I feel like it’s safe to proudly wear my Bucs gear around town they pull the old disapearing act on us. Our depth at certain positions is what killed us. On offense we were great on the edges but very weak in the middle of the field and the defense was the exact opposite. Anyway, should be another interesting offseason of speculations.
December 31st, 2012 at 9:26 am
I’d feel a whole hell of a lot better about this team had GORER held on to that DAMN BALL against the EAGLES!!!!
Then we’re talking 8-8 and some real growth. Sounds better than 7-9.
December 31st, 2012 at 9:36 am
Who is calling this season a success? Or is this just another case of Joe making up crap just so he can find some filler content?
December 31st, 2012 at 9:52 am
I totally agree with Fenton…..it’s a FAILURE!!!! Winning 3 more games than last year means NOTHING to me.
@Adam
I’d feel a whole hell of a lot better about this team had GORER held on to that DAMN BALL against the EAGLES!!
Then we’re talking 8-8 and some real growth. Sounds better than 7-9.
Just like Fenton said, ” loser’s mentality “. REALLY??!! 8-8 sounds better than 7-9 ??!! In my opinion if you don’t make the playoffs no matter what your record is ( yes even the 10-6 season under Rah Rah Morris ), it’s a failure of a season.
December 31st, 2012 at 10:00 am
Any free agents you guys see as a fit for us? I like DRC from Philly
December 31st, 2012 at 10:03 am
A failure yea, but based on the circumstances with the new coach I guess I call it better than I expected.
Or, not as big a failure as expected.
Hopefully next year we can accomplish what dumb ole Bruce Allen did and win the division.
December 31st, 2012 at 10:04 am
Yes at 7-9 and no playoffs it’s a failure because of too many missed opportunities, but by those standards, so was Dungy’s first season (6-10 with a -72 point differential). And we all know what that eventually led to. I’m a realist… any season without a SB win is a failure, but except the 99 Rams it very rarely happens in 1 year. BUT- and a big one at that- there were way too many improvements from past years. Lavonte David, Bowers, Bennett, VJ, the coaching of the O-line (wow.. most amazing job since Belichik took a bunch of castoffs including Hochstein who was a summer Bucs cut) and won the SB.
I have been critical of Freeman the past few weeks, but needed some perspective. He may never be great— but.. Brees was a bust in San Diego until they drafted Manning and traded him for Rivers. And even then nobody wanted him after his injury (Miami chose Culpepper, remember? and nobody else was really in play) Eli was a bust too. I agree with those who say he needs someone to push him.. sign a free agent or draft a QB to push him.
December 31st, 2012 at 10:40 am
Jacko…can you imagine Jackson, Williams, and Greg Jennings GB in the slot…his natural position? Now we have moved up with the big guys in the receiver corp.
December 31st, 2012 at 10:46 am
No One called it a success
December 31st, 2012 at 10:58 am
No playoff appearances in 10 yrs. Sounds like an ownership issue.
December 31st, 2012 at 12:30 pm
@Mark
Never thought about that before but hell of an Idea.
December 31st, 2012 at 1:54 pm
To have to characterize it in binary terms is a source of misery for many fans. As a fan, realistically, I expected to see significant improvement in a number of areas. I did. Not an unqualified success, but a success in achieving a turnaround. Sometimes it takes a few years to build a winner when a new coach arrives. Sports talkers love to oversimplify so they can start arguments. A lot of fans have zero patience, and they’re miserable about their team all the time as a result. Breaking the season down as a ‘success’ or a ‘failure’ isn’t an intelligent way to analyze this.
December 31st, 2012 at 2:43 pm
Fenton is a loser.
December 31st, 2012 at 2:52 pm
this why we have the CRAPPIEST fan base in the country!
December 31st, 2012 at 2:58 pm
fenton is an idiot, then. “you don’t agree with me you are a loser, mentally.” really?!? i’d love to meet this mental giant, lmao.
December 31st, 2012 at 3:01 pm
When you can say that your team “made the playoffs”, it sounds good. It means you had a good season. You’re actually proud of your team. That hasn’t been the case here since 2007!
December 31st, 2012 at 3:43 pm
I don’t understand how the playoffs became the measuring stick of success. So arbitrary considering only one team winds the Superbowl each year.
December 31st, 2012 at 3:56 pm
This season ultimately is a failure. I can’t argue otherwise. Going 7-9 and being done before January does not make me happy. However, I do feel like we are headed in the right direction. Obviously we could take a step backwards next year, but I feel pretty good about next year, assuming we fix our secondary. I wouldn’t be opposed to finding a new DC either (what I would give to have Lovie Smith, even for a year. I know that’s not going to happen, but one can dream).
December 31st, 2012 at 4:34 pm
I’m sorry but most of you sound like idiots. you’re not a failure just because you don’t make the play-offs. Bobby fenton is a hot headed idiot who rarely makes valid points. his callers are the smart people here. so quit riding fenton’s dong. the bucs did an acceptable job this year. end of story
December 31st, 2012 at 4:55 pm
Losing 5 in a row after positioning ourselves for postseason play most definitely equates to a big fat FAILURE.
December 31st, 2012 at 4:56 pm
We failed in the situation we were in
December 31st, 2012 at 6:36 pm
Ultimately, the facts are on the field. Evaluating it as a success or failure is purely a question of perspective. Any fan calling this year a failure must have had some unrealistic expectations…. If you wanna be the kind of fan that spends all your time bitching, go ahead. But progress was obvious. A change in attitude was obvious. The areas of weakness will be addressed in this offseason. Things are headed in the right direction. Success. I’m excited for this team’s future. Those who wanna spend their time viewing it through the prism of failure are just determined to be miserable. The worst kind of fan.
December 31st, 2012 at 7:07 pm
It’s called being realistic.
Again if is not a perspective it’s the truth or did we not lose 5 out of our last six after being in prime position to make the postseason? You can’t deny fact. I mean you can be happy with that but it does not somehow mean that wasn’t failing to seize the position we were in fact in.
A losers mentality. Accepting mediocre because mediocre was expected. That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve heard yet. They said we were no better than 6-7 wins so its “ok we aren’t”. Laughable really.
And who the hell said that just because you fail at something doesn’t mean there isn’t growth and progress along the way???
You can be ignorant if you desire but
You can have growth and progression even when you fail and alot of us aren’t denying there wasn’t positive areas we just aren’t so bias that we can’t state the truth that we did fail. We were where we needed to be and we fell flat on our face losing 5 in a row.
Simple FACT, not perspective
December 31st, 2012 at 7:24 pm
prbucfan, just because you say it is a fact, doesn’t make it so.
the FACT is they lost 5 games in a row. now how you, or anyone, wants to judge that is not a fact, but opinion.
7-9 is a FACT. whether that is a success or failure is opinion.
December 31st, 2012 at 7:34 pm
Where did I say anything about my opinion being a FACT???
I stated exactly what you said it’s fact we lost 5 in a row after being in prime position for a post season run. That is not opinion.
That is indeed FACT
Don’t twist what I said. I never specifically referenced our record as a success or failure.
December 31st, 2012 at 7:37 pm
Again
FACT is we failed to seize the opportunity we had by losing 5 in a row
Leading to…
The FACT that we FAILED to make the postseason.
December 31st, 2012 at 7:50 pm
And again
Success and optimism
Failure and pessimism : Do not go hand in hand. That is just a narrow mind set
There are plenty of fans who understand that concept that although they understand we failed ultimately in that aspect still hold lots of optimism for our Bucs and that still see many bright spots within the season.
December 31st, 2012 at 8:16 pm
I don’t need to argue semantics…this is what you said:
“We were where we needed to be and we fell flat on our face losing 5 in a row.
Simple FACT, not perspective”
that is opinion…where we needed to be. some arbitrary record, point in time.. 0-0 is where we needed to be, like everyone else. chicago is home, like us, but at 10-6. that is a fact. whether their season was a success or failure is opinion, and, based on perspective, changes.
December 31st, 2012 at 8:40 pm
Sorry Lurker but just because you choose to play games with my phrasing/ word structure and apply it to where you so choose than claim that is what I’m saying it does not make it at all valid.
I’m telling you:
I wasn’t saying where we needed to be was FACT
I was saying that losing 5 in a row was FACT after being in in prime position to make the postseason.
Your something else if your telling me what I meant when I’m the one that said it. Anywho, I’m done playing this game with you.
January 2nd, 2013 at 12:55 am
From yours truly Free Free himself, mute point after this:
“Obviously, it’s what you play for. If you end the year without winning the Super Bowl, YOUR SEASON CAN’T BE CONSIDERED A SUCCESS”