Caddy Is “Somewhat Replaceable In The Draft”
January 24th, 2011
Is it possible that the man charged with keeping Josh Freeman’s uniform clean and being the Bucs’ Mr. Everything on third down could be cast aside for a rookie?
Bucs beat writer Stephen Holder thinks the Bucs could do just that. Holder called soon-to-be-free-agent Cadillac Williams “somewhat replaceable in the draft,” during an interview Saturday on WDAE-AM 620 with Justin Pawlowski.
On the surface, Joe finds this ridiculous. In 2010, Cadillac caught 46 balls, blocked like a champ, protected the football, and rushed for a whopping 6.4 yards per carry in the second half of the season (33 carries for 212 yards) when the Bucs put him in the third-down back role that suits him. The Bucs can’t realistically expect to duplicate that production from a draft pick next season.
But Holder’s comment is not out in left field, especially if you’re in the camp that believes the Bucs can afford to wait on crafting a team to make a deep run in the playoffs.
Hey, if you’re not thinking Super Bowl for next season after a 10-6 record, then sure, Cadillac is replaceable in the draft.
Joe doesn’t fall into that camp of Bucs fans; Joe sees Cadillac as a critical piece of the puzzle to win big in 2011.
Joe would hardly complain if the Bucs drafted a lightning fast, change-of-pace back outside the first round. But regardless, Cadillac has proven to be durable — imagine that — and valuable.
Mark Dominik surely can work miracles, but why risk it if you want to make a deep playoff run? The price tag on Cadillac can’t be that high.
January 24th, 2011 at 11:25 am
He’s an average back that knows the protection schemes. If you can find a rookie (or Blount) to learn or understands blitz protections – then caddy is VERY replaceable.
I like Caddy be he is 1 smart RB away from being released.
January 24th, 2011 at 11:33 am
My guess is that they bring back Caddy for a year to see:
(1) If Blount can pick up the protection schemes and improve his pass catching and
(2) To see what they have with Lumpkin and Huggins.
It seems that Morris and Dominik are somewhat on the Caddy bandwagon anyway.
Regardless, it’s hard to see a place on this team for much longer than another 1-2 years.
January 24th, 2011 at 11:56 am
Keep Caddy on the roster, he is a good solid rb, knows they system, and the new player may get hurt or suck. RB is a good position to have experienced depth.
That is, if they are serious about making a run in 2011.
January 24th, 2011 at 11:57 am
Remember, it’s not like Caddy is going to fetch anything on the market. He’ll be fairly cheap to retain.
January 24th, 2011 at 12:12 pm
Everyone on the team except Freeman, and posibly Blount and M. Williams is replaceable if you find the right replacement.
January 24th, 2011 at 12:45 pm
Josh Freeman on ESPN radio (Colin Cowheard’s show, “The Herd”), I heard Colin say the funniest thing. “Up next is Josh Freeman, I’ve heard nothing but good things about him, hes as good as Mark Sanchez, and the other young QB’s.
Really Mark Sanchez? Sanchez ask’s Josh to sniff his jock at this point. He is in the Joe Flacco/Matt Ryan class. The future young elites.
Lol, Mark Sanchez….
January 24th, 2011 at 3:24 pm
I ‘somewhat’ agree.
January 24th, 2011 at 3:25 pm
@Travis
Mark ‘Sanchize’ < Trent Dilfer
January 24th, 2011 at 3:26 pm
Lol- Mark Sanchez! I think the Jets aren’t happy with him. With a better QB( like Josh!), the Jets would be Deadly.I think Caddy’s experience makes him valuable. While developing some young backs is a priority, I don’t wanna see Caddy leave yet!
January 24th, 2011 at 4:14 pm
MVPFreeman,
I said the same thing yesterday. Sanchez is Dilfer in Jets clothing.
January 24th, 2011 at 4:25 pm
Calling Sanchez another Dilfer is pretty damning.
I’m not that down on Sanchez yet. Right now, he looks to Joe to be nothing more than a younger, west coast version of Chad Pennington.
Joe doesn’t ever remember Dilfer bringing a team from behind on the road against a superior opponent, and Joe is pretty confident Dilfer never did that in the playoffs. Sanchez already has a couple of times.
January 24th, 2011 at 5:31 pm
Joe
Do you really believe that the Bucs are capable of ‘making a push’ next year? I sometimes get the impression that you are trying to encourage unrealistic expectations – possibly to be able to cry failure if they aren’t met. From my perspective it’s hard to expect so much until the O-line is a bit more settled (and that’s not to mention the D-line). A winning record and the playoffs I can buy. Much more is likely to be a couple of years out.
January 24th, 2011 at 7:35 pm
football in the long run comes down to 2 things….
RUNNING the BALL
&
STOPPING the RUN….
Blount saved everybodys ass last year…
The Bucs NEED a 1st or 2nd round pick at that position
STFU
about finding one of anything in the later rounds…
the is no single positional player ready to step on the field in the NFL as a rookie and make a difference…
January 24th, 2011 at 8:02 pm
@ Ravelston, I’m not sure I agree with you after watching that NFC Championship game. I think a healthy Buccaneers could give either of those teams a run for their money. In today’s NFL, I don’ think the Bucs are that far away.
January 25th, 2011 at 5:56 am
The NFL is a QB driven league. If you have an elite QB, You have a chance.
January 25th, 2011 at 5:04 pm
were not paying over 2 milli for a 3rd down back. Expect Huggy Bear and Lumpkins 2 get time on tha field. They kno tha system and are cheaper 2 keep than Caddy’s contract combined