LeGarrette Blount Not Every Down Back… Yet
September 9th, 2011
Joe has written this so many times, he can’t count that high.
The key to the Bucs success last year can be traced to one man: running back LeGarrette Blount.
Before Blount broke onto the scene, the Bucs had no running game to speak of and opponents knew it. Virtually every team early in the season dared the Bucs to run, and they couldn’t. Opponents simply defended the pass and the Bucs offense, to be polite, struggled.
Then came Blount. The shootout win over Arizona was proof of what Blount did for the Bucs offense. He gave the Bucs its first legitimate threat to take it to the house on each touch since Cadillac Williams was a rookie.
With a sudden explosive running games, teams had to adjust to the Bucs and focus more on the run, which opened up the passing game for Josh Freeman.
This preseason, the Bucs made a concerted effort to get Blount more involved in third down situations and from limited sample size, that effort seems to have paid off.
But all of this is not good enough for Dan Parr of ProFootballWeekly.com. In a post earlier today, he doesn’t believe Blount can be effective on every down.
We hear that the Buccaneers were hoping that LeGarrette Blount would have made more progress in becoming a better all-around back by the time the regular season started. Blount, one of the gems GM Mark Dominik plucked off waivers after roster cuts before last season, has improved as a blocker and receiver, but the lockout likely played a role in keeping him from making the kind of strides Tampa Bay wants to see. It’s not that he’s not interested in becoming a better blocker — sources say he has made it a goal to get better at it and play every down. It’s possible the Bucs will be ready to use him that way before this season is over. Earnest Graham is the third-down back for now, but the team would like to see Kregg Lumpkin fight for that job. If the Bucs are disappointed with anyone in the backfield, we hear it’s Lumpkin, who didn’t step up in the preseason.
Gee, what a shock, the Bucs were disappointed in Lumpkin. This is no surprise to Joe. Once again, the Packers were hardly loaded at running back last year and Packers backers would argue running back was their weakest position. Yet Packers general manager Ted Thompson let Lumpkin walk. That’s all Joe needed to know.
This preseason, Lumpkin, to hear Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik, was the anointed third-down back. And what did Lumpkin do with this gift? Drop it, figuratively of course.
You would think a guy given such an opportunity would have made the most of it. But before preseason was over, the Bucs turned to Earnest Graham to fill that role.
Look, Joe thinks the world of Dominik but we are all human. It appears Dominik may have been pennywise but pound foolish in letting Cadillac Williams walk.
September 9th, 2011 at 3:45 pm
“You would think a guy given such an opportunity would have made the most of it. But before preseason was over, the Bucs turned to Earnest Graham to fill that role.”
Joe, I think he gave it his all, he just came up short. I agree that they should havegassed up the Caddy for one more ride.
September 9th, 2011 at 4:00 pm
Dominik will take his Lumps-kin for not resigning Caddy!
September 9th, 2011 at 4:09 pm
@joe/admin
the advertise here blocks the title of the article, perhaps a hard return before the article title? for spacing?
September 9th, 2011 at 4:29 pm
Dan – same happened to me, I refreshed and it seems to be working as intended now.
Joe – if they were to let Caddy go, you would think they would have added a cheap replacement for depth and competition. Like Diles at LB. Or they could have spent some real cash on someone like Sproles, who can manage 250 yards of offense against the defending super bowl champions.
I only spout that last bit out because it makes Dan sweat. I really would have liked someone better than Lumpkin backing Graham though, since Graham is backing Lorig at FB, and Lorig won’t make it half the season- dude gets stuffed at the line.
September 9th, 2011 at 4:31 pm
Dan:
Thank you for the tip. Will get the IT people working on this. Appreciate the heads up!
September 9th, 2011 at 4:46 pm
Blount will be fine. I expect him to do a lot of 2 and 3 yard runs with the occasional 15-25 yarder. The problem is that with all those 2-3 yarders, we will have many 3rd and longs which will set up obvious passing situations…. which will suck for our OL….. which will suck for Free. I just hope they can hold it together for a few drives in the game long enough to score 24. That should win it. A couple INTs/FFs will help the offense a whole bunch.
September 9th, 2011 at 5:11 pm
Dan:
Refresh your browser and it should be fine.
(Right click and choose “Refresh.”)
September 9th, 2011 at 5:31 pm
@ deeb – blount avg was 5 yds per carry last year
September 9th, 2011 at 5:39 pm
“Look, Joe thinks the world of Dominik but we are all human. It appears Dominik may have been pennywise but pound foolish in letting Cadillac Williams walk.”
You saw what Sproles did last night, right?
September 9th, 2011 at 6:14 pm
You said it. Dominik jumped the shark hitching his wagon to this Lumpkin lump.
September 9th, 2011 at 6:33 pm
CreamsicleBananaHammock:
Bucs had no shot at Sproles. He wanted to go to the Saints because of a family issue. The Bucs could have doubled his salary and he probably wouldn’t have come here.
September 9th, 2011 at 6:40 pm
@ Joe but what about the draft? Look at Ahmad Black and the 5th rounder that could have been used on a RB with speed. You are right rock stars sometimes make bad records and boy did he FUBAR this need on the roster because it affects the entire offense. New Orleans would not have even been in the game of it weren’t for Sproles last night.
September 9th, 2011 at 7:40 pm
for those bitching about sproles, the guy has just as many games where he’s invisible as games like he had last night. regarding blount, the kid is in his sophmore year, of course he’s not a finished product yet.
September 9th, 2011 at 9:11 pm
I was wondering how long it would take the MSM to start bashing thee Bucs, but it is now in full swing, and the team thrives on it. Schein picked the Bucs on Sunday but he is the first one I have seen do so. Suh this, Suh that, Suh, Suh, Suh. You’d think they were all lawyers or something.
September 9th, 2011 at 9:21 pm
gotbbucs, No one is complaining about Blount. People are concerned over the selection of Lumpkin for this roster and as a 3rd down back. Go back and reread the posts…
September 9th, 2011 at 10:21 pm
Architek, I was refering to all the pundents that keep on saying that Blount isn’t ready to be a workhorse back and that he can’t be in there on 3rd down. I wasn’t aiming that at anyone’s post.
As fas as Lumpkin goes, I could care less if he ever sees the field. Since when do people get so concerned about our 2nd string 3rd down back? I understand everybody is terrified of Freeman getting hit, but I’m just a little more worried about what we do on 1st and 2nd down. Graham will be just fine as our 3rd down back, I’m not concerned about him doing his job in the least bit. Would I have prefered Caddy? Of course, but he’s gone now and the next guy needs to step up.
September 9th, 2011 at 10:22 pm
Joe for the long term wouldn’t it be better if Blount isn’t the 3rd down back? Seems like the every down backs have a lot shorter careers.
September 9th, 2011 at 10:32 pm
Good point TopDoggie but when a guy isn’t that well-rounded of a running back, an offense is sort of tipping its hand when he is not in there.
September 9th, 2011 at 10:41 pm
I think Mark Dominick made a mistake letting Caddy walk, and he may also have made a Big Boo Boo by replacing the O Line Coach of a 10 win Tampa Team. Who knows, maybe Lumpkin lights it up, and the O Line comes together. If not, and McCoy is the bust some ex Tampa Players see him as, the honeymoon may be over.
Where is Steve White, when we need him most ?
September 9th, 2011 at 10:54 pm
Dan has a great point, I would get RID of the advertise here quick! The first few lines of text are very important for SEO, and “Advertise Here” are hardly relevant to Tampa Football.
Any person who handles advertising for a company knows they can advertise here. In fact, your template right columns are a bit large. In fact, the advertising is starting to intrude on your content. We understand you work hard for us Joe, and it is your wonderful content that keeps us coming back. A rule I was taught is content first, advertising second, as far as space goes.
September 9th, 2011 at 11:30 pm
really apple roof, so if steve white tells you everything will be alright then you’ll feel better? form your own opinions people instead of suckling at the tit of all these damned so called experts. season hasnt even started yet and people are bitching
September 10th, 2011 at 12:50 am
LeGarrette Blount is gonna get worn out quickly because he has no help in the backfield
September 10th, 2011 at 1:50 am
Apple:
Without advertising, this place doesn’t exist.
September 10th, 2011 at 1:50 am
@Patrick If anything, he will get worn out quickly because there is no help in the forefield.
September 10th, 2011 at 1:53 am
“A rule I was taught is content first, advertising second, as far as space goes.”
Must be why you don’t get any ad rev from your site, Apple.
September 10th, 2011 at 8:16 am
It is ridiculous to think an NFL back can’t run less than 1/4 mile per game without getting worn out, with rest after each run. Injury odds increase with more carries but getting worn out, I don’t see it. The NFL has had workhorse backs for years. It’s a matter of staying healthy and avoiding freak hits. Think about it in terms of actual distance and it’s very minimal, hard sledding but not far.
The ads on this site or any other don’t bother me. It’s business and goes with the territory, unless you want pay per view. Changes the view a little bit when you have to open the wallet. Don’t like it, ignore it, turn down the volume, pretty simple. Some guys would complain if they had a cheerleader sitting on their face. Shut up and eat it, you moron.
September 10th, 2011 at 9:10 am
@Joe
I don’t know if you can do this…but maybe you can have a subscrition option…subscribe for a monthly fee of a Buc or two and see no advertising at all? A Premium subscription. And people would also get things like an avatar, better posting abilites, etc.
I don’t think McCoy is a bust at all.He’s only played one full year…and his performance in that year turned out to be very slightly better than Sapps as far as stats. I think people need to be a bit more patient.
If you watch him play, you can tell he’s getting better. With no coaching in the off season, his development might be a little delayed, but that’s okay because we have a some rookies that need to develop as well.
And I think Okam is going to be the main guy next to him. Price and Miller are going to be backups before long. Okam gives the bucs an element of power the line hasn’t had in a very long time (I just hope he doesn’t have heart problems because of his size).
So far as letting Caddy go…I think it was the right move. He’s getting up there in years and he had no chance of becoming a starter here. By leaving, he can maybe prove himself on the field and get a good contract next year.
But either way…it was time for him to leave here. As much talk as there is about two-back systems…it’s clear the real plan is to rely on Blount…because they really haven’t gone after anyone else. I think Bradford can be developed into something though, but its a project. My main concern is injury. If Blount goes down, who do we have to replace him? Grahamm may have been Mr. August, but he was never really any good. He’s a relief guy and will never be a starter.
And as far as Lumpkin…I’m inclined to believe people are right about him, but the truth is we don’t know. He hasn’t even played a regular season game and he could improve from game-to-game. Or maybe Morris is wanting to get him experience now because he knows he’s going after a big time Full Back in the next draft.
September 10th, 2011 at 9:20 am
I think the style of back plays a role. Some guys just slide between tacklers like they are greased up…Blount is the type of guy that uses power to pound through…to make his own holes.
That might change if our offensive line ever plays well, but I think that’s a ways off. I hope Dominick addresses the oline in hte next draft.
Imagine though, if Alstott would have had more carries. Would his career have lasted as long as it did?
So far as the advertising, I understand the need for it. The only thing I hate about it are the autoplay videos, sometimes in multiple places on a page. I don’t have display issues so far as the ads go though.
And, Joe, I have worked in SEO for a long while…the “Advertise Here” will not affect your rankings at all, so long as you use things like Google Tools and such. The main thing is to use keywords for each post that are words that are actually used within the post. For example, a couple from the above article might be:
“LeGarrette Blount, Lumpkin, Buccaneers, Dan Parr, ProFootballWeekly, JoeBucsFan”
September 10th, 2011 at 9:30 am
I hope Blount can prove to be a third down option, because no other RB has flashed any talent at all. I think Graham’s injuries have broken him down. Lumpkin has yet to prove he deserves to be here, and the rookie looked confused- even for a rookie.
If Blount’s not in the backfield, we better be passing.
September 10th, 2011 at 10:26 am
If week one goes bad. Then here comes Tiki. 🙂
September 10th, 2011 at 1:51 pm
@BigMacAttack “It is ridiculous to think an NFL back can’t run less than 1/4 mile per game ” I think you miss the point. We are talking accumulated impacts not distance ran. I sure he could run 10 miles a day.
As for Joe’s point of tipping our hand that’s a valid observation.
September 10th, 2011 at 2:07 pm
Dew- I hope you’re talking about a Tiki torch- meaning we are having a memorial polenesian Lau. If you’re talking about that ” other” kinda Tiki, then we are in deeper trouble than I want to believe!!!
September 10th, 2011 at 2:55 pm
I hear you Capt Tim. But Dom put us in this position with his Draft only mentality. I heard Brother Glazer say last night he is expecting us to make the playoffs this year. If Dom was listening he may want to adjust his thinking a little. Say what you want about Tiki but stats say he was the best 3rd down back in the league the last three years he played. And signing him after week one means his contract isn’t guaranteed so they can fire him anytime they like with no compensation. I’ll be at the game tomorrow and hope I’m wrong.
September 10th, 2011 at 4:27 pm
Dew- exactly! I was surprised they didn’t make any moves to improve either!
Buuut, as my friend McBuc told me- time to stop whining! Mark Dominick has improved this team so quickly, that he’s earned our trust. And that’s the truth, Truth!!
So while I’m like you, thinking we should have done some things differently, I’m not gonna say anything was a mistake until I see how the season turns out! If they go 13-3, and get in the playoffs, the Dom is a genius, and I’ll be glad I bit my tongue! Lol. And believe me – that’s what we all want to happen!!
But if they go 6-10, then I’ll think they should have listened to us.
Either way, I hope you’re as excited about seeing the Bucs play tomorrow as I am- GO BUCS!
September 10th, 2011 at 4:31 pm
Oh, yeah, I agree about Tiki being a great back! And he left healthy, so I’m sure he still has talent left. But that’s a long time to be away from getting the hits and collisions! Sometimes, that’s the part that seems to be hard to re-adust to.
But, as they say. During a bad storm, any port is home port! If we are in a bad way, might be someone to consider!
September 10th, 2011 at 4:48 pm
Can’t wait.