“It Takes Great Communication”

October 7th, 2013

After hearing Bucs coaches and management talk so much this spring and summer about how challenging the Bucs offense is and how it takes years for a quarterback to master, Joe can’t buy in to the hope/hype that Mike Glennon can be a miracle worker.

Sorry. It’s just far too much to ask of a rookie third-round pick who didn’t get the majority of first-team reps until two weeks ago. Schiano himself even said the Bucs were not simplifying the offense for Glennon.

Success in the Bucs offense “takes great communication” between quarterback and receivers, explains former Bucs tight end Dave Moore, the Buccaneers Radio Network game analyst. Today, Moore used Xs and Os to detail why route running and receiver/quarterback connections are so challenging for Tampa Bay, via the WDAE-AM 620 audio below. It’s nothing new, but Joe thinks it is important to remember the difficulty level of the Bucs offense hasn’t disappeared just because Josh Freeman is gone.

Joe really hopes the New Schiano Order’s scouting and evaluation of Glennon is on the money. Joe’s really not up for the inevitable suffering if it’s not. (Enjoy Dave Moore’s full audio below. He’s always a good listen.)

31 Responses to ““It Takes Great Communication””

  1. Bobby Says:

    I don’t expect miracles but from some of the throws Glennon made in game 4 it seems that he already anticipates the routes better than Freeman. The thing I liked was the short throws. Those are the ones good QB’s look for to move the ball down the field. Freeman just took too many shots with back shoulder throws to the sideline when all we needed was 6 yards to move the chains. If we can get a TE involved and a viable 3rd receiver, I think Glennon will be fine. How good he will be remains to be seen. That kind of stuff can’t be predicted. Freeman’s ADHD may have prevented him from thinking quickly at times and making split second decisions.

  2. blackmagic00 Says:

    So…..guess that 12 game winning streak is on hold for a while?

  3. White Tiger Says:

    Perhaps they’re not simplifying it – but I bet HE is simplifying it – if he hasn’t yet mastered the offense – then he’s only employing what he understands of it.

    From what I understand – he got the majority reps in preseason and his reps rivaled that of Freeman during the season.

    …because “someone” had plans to do exactly what they’ve done.

    Nothing against Glennon – but it’s A) going to take a while and B) Glennon is still sdjusting to the speed of the NFL WHILE learning a new system…

    …all this translates into – losses, many, many losses…but…go bucs, right?

    Maybe the analysis should be – why are we force feeding this kid calculus – when extremely good algebra would do?

    Translation – why isn;t the coaching staff streamlining the offense in a planned manner? Shouldn’t we be feeding him bite size portions of Sully’s offense, then adding options as concepts become undertandable?

    It’s how Gruden systematically installed his offense – he brought the stone tablets, looked at the talent availble to employ it – then tailored a playbook around it.

    I don’t think there is a larger, more complicated playbook than Gruden’s?

    …but he did win a Super Bowl that way…just sayin’

  4. Couch Fan Says:

    Glennon doesn’t need to do anything special. He just needs to play smart and avoid turnovers. His first game went well in my opinion except for the last 2 drives. I believe he’ll only get better.

  5. Splengo Says:

    As I go from thread to thread on JBF, I have come to the opinion that the 2 Joes are taking turns writing a piece – one is right-brained and the other is left-brained. It’s like they feel very strongly both ways. Got this blog thing nailed!

  6. Walter Says:

    Glennon sucked ass against the Cardinals, there’s no need to sugarcoat it. I bet he’d say the same thing. He played scared check down football, and the second the pressure started to pick up and the game crept into crunch time, he imploded. And I expect that for the duration of the season.

  7. JT Says:

    Since the playoffs are out of the question, It’s time to see if Glennon has a future with The Bucs. I hope he does but I am a bit skeptical. It’s said Sullivans offense takes roughly a year to master. If Glennon were to throw say 17 tds, 18 ints with a 58 completion percentage do Glennon, or even Schiano for that matter, return in 2014?

  8. BucsfaninChina Says:

    Uh, it was his first game off the bench against the cards? Give the guy a break. However if he cant put anything together against the Eagles horrendous defense… pack your bags folks, season is over.

  9. RealityCheck Says:

    How about we just call a play where everyone runs their route and the QB throws to the open guy? If we do have the superior talent everyone seems to think we have to “win now” then why do we need to outsmart ourselves on every play? Why can’t our talent just win their individual battles?

  10. BucsfaninChina Says:

    @JT With that stat line of course he will be back. Rookie contracts allow for quite a bit of breathing roomto screw up! I’d expect no matter how well he does he will be competing with a fresh rook if Dom can’t get a dependable vet inthe offseason

  11. Couch Fan Says:

    @Bucsfaninchina

    You have to ignore the stupidity. No matter what Glennon does, there will be some who will hate him for absolutely no reason. Well there is a reason but we wont get into that since that idiot has left town.

  12. Patrick in VA Says:

    why is it that it takes QBs years to master the offense when it takes opposing DBs 3 quarters?

  13. Bucs1987 Says:

    Glennon (a rookie) had basically 3 days to prepare for the Cards. I’m willing to cut him some slack. I still think by the end of season he will look better than what the Bucs previously had at QB. I also know that’s not saying much.

  14. Walter Says:

    Haha what are you going to say if we don’t win 3 games this year? Honestly.

  15. JT Says:

    Yes but will he be starting China? obviously he’ll be on the roster. and couch I said I hope he does have a future with the Bucs so how do I hate Glennon?

  16. Bucs1987 Says:

    Walter…I’m going to say that sucks, can’t wait til next season. I’m not looking that far ahead though. Why anyone would want to do that, is beyond me.

  17. JT Says:

    And btw couch, how am I an idiot? Are you always the derogatory towards people or are you more passive when your not safe behind a computer screen?

  18. White Tiger Says:

    Glennon was being prepared since day one of camp – he took 75% of the reps and snaps in pre-season – and took 50% of reps in practice. He had 4 extra games to get prepared on the cerebral side of the game – after getting more reps in the offense than the starting QB – and his best performance generated a loss to arguably the worst team – other than the Bucs – in the NFL.

  19. JT Says:

    I may be a bit optimistic here but I think Glennon can lead the offense over Phillys garbage defense. that and a little locker room leadership from Revis/Goldson Leads to another great defensive effort and this time a “W”. I don’t care if Vick or Foles is starting The Bucs got this.

  20. Touchdown Gus Says:

    I think this offense as a whole has been figured out. Look at the Giants. Their offense isn’t looking too sharp and they are 0-5 running it with a quarterback that has mastered it.

  21. Adam L. Says:

    If you made an offense that takes years to learn you’re a jerk-off of an offensive coordinator.

  22. Bobby Says:

    @White Tiger says….

    after getting more reps in the offense than the starting QB – and his best performance generated a loss to arguably the worst team – other than the Bucs – in the NFL.

    _______________________________________________________________

    There are times people can hide their stupidity by remaining silent. You should be one of those people who never post more than a sentence or two. You just stated that Glennon lost to a team in the Cardinals that is arguably the worst team in the NFL other than the Bucs. Now, I’m going to assume that you have a brain larger than a walnut but I’m not really sure. The Cardinals are 3-2 and just beat Carolina 22-6. They have one of the best defenses in the NFL. So, riddle me this genius boy…how can a team that has beat 3 other teams be ‘arguably’ the worst team in the NFL??? Just curious….

  23. mvermulm Says:

    White Tiger, you apparently haven’t watched the Cardinals much, have you? Their defense is 100% legit. Great against the run, and good in the secondary, with one of the best young CBs in the game. In addition, Glennon put up more points with less than a week of prep time (prep time that was spent without his top two targets, by the way) than Cam could do yesterday. So let’s give the kid a break for what happened last week.

  24. Tony Says:

    @Bobby

    Thank you

  25. Oil Derrick Brooks Says:

    @Bobby – More great posts by you. I enjoy your logical thoughts.

    Glennon also completed 10 passes to the 3rd wr and the TE, in his first game. That’s more encouraging to me than almost anything else. That will eventually win games for you.

    Looks like Vick is out for Sunday.

  26. Bobby Says:

    @Adam L….

    “If you made an offense that takes years to learn you’re a jerk-off of an offensive coordinator.”

    ________________________________________________________________

    I don’t know if it’s ‘learning’ or ‘being comfortable’ in. From what I understand the receivers have options on every route they run depending on the coverage they see. The reason it takes years is because the QB and the receiver have to be on the same page. In other words the QB has to be able to read the coverage along with the receiver and anticipate what route the receiver is going to run. To me this seems like a good thing but ONLY if you have very smart receivers and a very intelligent QB. Not real sure we had either. Mike W and V-Jax are talented but rarely do I see them running free. I see it more from V-Jax than from Williams. As far as Freeman, I think that’s where a great deal of his indecision came from. He did not have the confidence to throw a receiver open before the receiver made his break. Too many times I saw him throw late, after the receiver made his break. That lead to a lot of pass breakups and picks. I’m hoping Glennon is a more cerebral QB than Freeman. Glennon has the big arm and if he can get on the same page as the receivers we could see some big numbers as things progress. I’m not a fan of this offensive scheme simply because it does require such great communication and that takes time to develop. When injuries happen to a receiver or a QB it’s a major setback, more so than in a system where the routes are pre-determined.

  27. Bobby Says:

    @Oil Derrick Brooks…

    “Glennon also completed 10 passes to the 3rd wr and the TE, in his first game. That’s more encouraging to me than almost anything else. That will eventually win games for you.

    Looks like Vick is out for Sunday.”

    _____________________________________________________________

    I agree with your thought there. I really believe our key to winning is to take what the defense gives us and if that is a 5 yard check down to a RB or 7 yards to a TE or whatever, great! These are high % passes that allow Glennon to get rid of the ball quickly and if we use play action to do it then it will get the running game going too because they can’t load the box. If they do, we just pick them apart like an Aaron Rogers does by throwing the underneath routes. Then when they they try to close in on those we take our shots down the field to keep them off balance. If we can get Demps involved, Owusu, Crabtree, Page, etc. that will be our key to victory. Our receivers have GOT to catch the ball in key situations though. They have killed a lot of drives this season with drops. With our defense we don’t have to score a lot of points but we do have to score TD’s instead of field goals.

  28. mvermulm Says:

    Bobby and ODB, the other reason Glennon hit those receivers so much was that he was more comfortable with them after having months to practice with those guys more than VJ and MW. His passes to Wright, Ogletree, and the others were on target and in stride, which was nice to see. If he can give VJ and MW passes on target and in a catchable spot (unlike Freeman), that will aid their ability to get yards after the catch, as well as make more catches since they’ll have more space. We’ll see.

  29. Adam L. Says:

    @bobby

    It took me 10 days of studying to pass my licensing exams for my job. That’s a 1,000 page book and dozens of practice exams. I got an 88.

    You know what should take years ? Med School

    But good distinction.

  30. Bobby Says:

    @Adam L…knowing the playbook and ‘executing’ the playbook are two different things. The learning part is the easier. When timing, throwing with people in your face, battling wind or rain, and other things are involved there is no substitute for experience. College experience is great, that’s why you get drafted but it takes time to get comfortable in any NFL system. I think Glennon looked remarkably poised for his first game.

  31. Bobby Says:

    What happened to White Tiger…..did he tap out?