Keith Millard Talks To Joe
January 21st, 2012
Of course, Millard was fired along with the entire Bucs coaching staff nearly three weeks ago.
This week, Joe had an in-depth football discussion with Millard and found a man who has found a new job as D-line coach in the NFL (Joe can’t reveal where yet), but also a man who truly is dejected about losing the opportunity to work with the Bucs’ young defensive linemen, a group Millard thinks is an extraordinary collection of talented, high-character players that can become a standout unit in the NFL.
Joe talked to Millard about the Bucs’ defensive line and more — some on the record, some off — and below is Part I of the interview. Joe will publish more exerpts next week.
JoeBucsFan.com: Some fans and pundits call Gerald McCoy a bust based on his stats and injuries, which isn’t really fair. How do you evaluate McCoy and what did the team miss when he left?
Keith Millard: I’ll tell you this, from the time I got there and before I got there I evaluated him thoroughly because of all I heard about him, about him not really panning up to his draft status. I looked at the film and saw a lot of things that needed to be corrected. But the bottom line was the athleticsm and the want-to was there. He had the violence to him. He just needed to be cleaned up mentally and some technique things to play the game from that position, the 3-technique. This season, Gerald was making huge progress. He wasn’t where I knew he could be, but his developement was coming. You look at the [first] Atlanta game. He was disruptive making a huge impact, and causing a lot of problems for offenses at that part of the season. He was making other guys better. His stats aren’t great, but he looks great on film. He worked hard every single day. He was always in the film room with me. He even worked after practice. He understood his role. He answered the bell. He really did. When he got hurt, that’s when things really fell apart for us. We really had to find different ways to find that penetrating, getting-after-people defense. Against New Orleans the second time was a good example, they were chipping [Adrian] Clayborn and chipping [Michael] Bennett and there was nothing coming inside. We just couldn’t get any pressure the rest of the season. We lost the combination of Gerald and Price inside and the success off that. Like I said, Gerald was making those around him better. You see it on the film.
Joe: Regarding Brian Price, what were the challenges coaching a guy like that when you know he’s a long way from being healthy and you know he can’t do everything he needs to do to be successful?
Millard: Brian was a pleasure to coach. This is a guy that has big-time potential. He had to have the surgery and it set him back in many different ways. He couldn’t do any lower extremity exercises for four months [while recovering last year]. He put weight on. But when you look at a guy like Brian at 65 or 70 percent, he was still better than a lot of guys out there [around the league]. … You tried to get the most out of him and get him on a roll and confident. We couldn’t always do it. He played hurt most of the season from the major hips injury, and other injuries that we’re pretty sure came because of overcompensating from the hips. …He got better and better. He got his weight down, but it was a struggle week in and week out to keep him healthy and get him through practice. …I thought the trainer did a great job getting him on the field. I knew if we could get him through the best we could this year and get him through the year and some confidence, he’d be ready next year. And he will be. You’ll see the speed, quickness, strength and explosion that made him a high draft pick. He’s probably even more talented than we know, because we saw glimpses of that elite ability without him being healthy. It was exciting to coach him and coach Gerald. I felt we had two of the best young tackles in the league.
Joe: So what’s your take on Roy Miller? He came into opening day with a knee injury and battled other ailments during the season.
Millard: Roy Miller? Let me tell you something about Roy Miller. He’s a pit bull in there. He’s one of the toughest players I’ve been around. This guy played with a bad back, an ankle, a knee, never complained. If he had to take scout team reps, he took them like a man. Talk about a diamond in the rough. He was a blessing to have around this season.
Joe: That’s some pretty high praise for Miller’s toughness considering how many players you’ve been around through your career.
Millard: It is. I’m not just saying that. He’s also a role model with his work ethic and his attitude. He’s a guy who’s going to improve and be a valuable player in his role. And he’s another guy I wish I had an offseason with. Without that offseason most of the line was playing catch up all year on the things they needed to learn being so young. I just want to say if those guys stayed healthy and we could have stayed together, I really believe it would have been the best young D-line in football with a ton of potential in the future. That was a great young solid group to coach. I loved coming to coach those guys every single day. It was a just a shame.
In Part II and Part III of the Millard interview coming next week, Joe will serve up Millard’s takes on Albert Haynesworth and Michael Bennett, failures in the Bucs’ running game, what Bucs he thinks are legitimate future team leaders, thoughts on the Bucs and a 3-4 defense, and more.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:18 am
Good inside stuff Joe.keep up the top notch reporting.I think this is one coach we should’ve kept around.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:22 am
Keith Millard is one of the coaches most likely to be re-hired by the Bucs. I wouldn’t doubt his veracity, but he should not say anything demeaning about any player at this point, nor should he give anyone glowing praise until the sorting and gleaning process has taken place and that can’t happen until after the SuperBowl. Call Hue Jackson and ask him about speaking out before the dust has settled!
January 21st, 2012 at 11:29 am
I respect Millard.
All the sheep should accept this about GMC: “he had a lot that needed corrected; his stats are not great and this season he wasnt where Millard knew he could be.”. This is a statement you expect of a 3rd or 4th rounder, not your #3 overall, 60 million dollar franchise player.
I am glad Keith cleared that up. Now the question is: can he ever be the player that deserves the draft spot and money? Doubtful but I hope so.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:29 am
Joe here,
@Macabee – Joe wrote in the intro to this piece that Millard already has another NFL job. It’s not announced yet, so Joe is not free to reveal the team.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:29 am
Just put up the whole interview and come up with something else next week instead of dragging things out.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:35 am
Joe here,
@yar — uh, thanks for the editorial advice, but Joe’s got 1,000 words in this post and Joe strives to keep the reading pretty quick and easy for his readers. It surely doesn’t harm anyone to have to come back next week.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:38 am
Thanks, Joe, for getting this interview. Really looking forward to parts two and three.
It would make me very happy if they could find a way to keep this guy with the team.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:47 am
Sorry Joe, missed the fact that he has already accepted another job.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:01 pm
That sucks. I really hoped we would get him back.
#1 – JOE, these are the kinds of articles I love this website for. Top notch all the way!
#2 – The last few days have been very pleasant ones around here. Everyone got along. People were friendly and respectful. We all know the reason for that. It’s too bad it will end now.
#3 – ON GMC – I suspected he was better than he was being given credit for. I stick to my earlier comments that if he gets a full off season of teaching and being healthy, he’ll be an awesome force on this team.
#4 – ON PRICE – This actually surprised me. I did not know Price was not healthy all year long. I heard word occasionally that he had some injuries, but I didn’t know they lasted him a year.
#5 – ON MILLER – This did not surprise me. I’ve been saying all along that Miller is a good backup player. People tend to want players cut if they are not good starters…and then they complain we have no depth. Miller is perfect depth, and he might even be good enough to start if he ever gets fully healthy.
Health seems to be a major issue for the Bucs. I wonder if it is the conditioning or the hot environment? Do the Dolphins have the same issues?
January 21st, 2012 at 12:05 pm
Too bad he got another job, his defensive line will probably be A LOT better than Tampa’s D-line, hopefully it isn’t against a team we play.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:10 pm
I think maybe being injured and having the lockout delayed the development of GMC.
I suspect the lockout hurt the development of a lot of players. Yes, there are some who came through it alright…but not everyone had the same system in place for themselves during that time.
Gerald has only player in 19 games so far. That’s barely more than a season. Of course his development has been delayed. But it’s good to learn that he is trying his best every day.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:13 pm
@yar
Judging by the comments, Joe’s readers clearly struggle to read 1000 word posts.
I agree with you though, three parts to an interview is plebeian and disappointing. Everything is so spoon feed for us sheep nowadays on the web.
Yet, I’ll be back grazing the pastures of JoeBucsFan.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:19 pm
I can’t wait to read what he said about Bennett. Dude keeps getting better. This will be his first offseaon as a starting DE. He should come back and thoroughly dominate next year.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:25 pm
Wow – great interview and read. Very much looking forward to parts II and III.
From the start of camp, you could just tell that Coach Millard had a special intensity about him. I’m disappointed that he’ll be moving on. I understand the concept of a clean sweep and it would be very difficult to retain a single coach. Millard’s tenure in Tampa is the definition of collateral damage.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:29 pm
@BKNY Joe caters to his audience as any good business man should. Joe’s core audience are plebes hence the plebeian format. Plus it facilitates revisits and that’s great for generating ad revenue.
Personally I enjoy the simplistic model. Instead of having it all right now and succumbing to boredom later, I can bide in anticipation.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:30 pm
I dont think bennet is the starter anymore, bowers has overtaken him. Bennet is a restricted free agent hope we bring him back great rotation guy can play anywhere along the line. As for health the 2012 season is a make or break year for Mccoy and Price, i think we already need to invest in some insurane dor them during the offseason another year on the dl, well lets just say we will be drafting dt again or signing big name free agents to that position.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:33 pm
@ Chris
“Too bad he got another job, his defensive line will probably be A LOT better than Tampa’s D-line, hopefully it isn’t against a team we play.”
I disagree Chris. Much like everything else about this franchise I think Millard’s coaching reputation is a bit overrated. What was our rank this year in sacks with all those 1st and 2nd round picks playing? 32nd. Down from 30th in 2010 and 26th in 2009.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:34 pm
Joe…I just want to say I like your interviews. You tend to ask questions that the followers here talk about most. Very nice.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:38 pm
@ BKNY & Pros
You guys ever try to read Pewter Report or Grantland on a daily basis? In the words of Mike Singletary, “Can’t do it.” I’m 27 with a 2 second attention span.
Keep fighting the good fight Joes!
January 21st, 2012 at 12:42 pm
This is one of your best contributions. Keep up the good work Joe.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:51 pm
weak…no juice…better luck next time..i guess..
January 21st, 2012 at 12:51 pm
Great Scoop Joe, I was totally and pleasantly surprised you were able to get this interview.
January 21st, 2012 at 12:51 pm
@ Thomas
C’mon brother you can’t just pick one little piece out of the quote and disregard the rest!
“When he got hurt, that’s when things really fell apart for us. We really had to find different ways to find that penetrating, getting-after-people defense. Against New Orleans the second time was a good example, they were chipping [Adrian] Clayborn and chipping [Michael] Bennett and there was nothing coming inside. We just couldn’t get any pressure the rest of the season. We lost the combination of Gerald and Price inside and the success off that. Like I said, Gerald was making those around him better. You see it on the film.”
January 21st, 2012 at 12:59 pm
If you watched the Bucs play and didn’t realize Price was hurt all year, you might have been watching the wrong channel. Price was hurt in most games and had to come out for at least a few series or longer. If he gets healthy next year, it’s going to be exciting to watch this line perform.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:00 pm
@SensibleBuc How sensible of you đź‰
January 21st, 2012 at 1:01 pm
The man was brought in without having even one off season in which to work with his line. How can you judge him in a situation such as that? That best oline man in the league could not have turned the line around in that situation, in that short a time.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:09 pm
The special unsapp like stance failed to have the desired results.
I found the guys remarks full of self serving excuses typical of the current culture at one buc place.
Hope rock brings in the right guy to change it.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:16 pm
@realbuc.. Why don’t you just comment on the article and throwing kisses joes way. Your constant remarks on everyone else’s blogs is quite annoying. How can you have the name of arealbucfan and not know that Price was fighting injuries all year. That dude cam off major surgery and was in pain the entire season.
Just form your own opinions instead of piggy backing off everyone else.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:19 pm
Millard was the one coach I really hoped they would have kept. He really didn’t have much of a chance to display his wares. Like some of the other mistakes Dominick has made with Cadi, etc., this was a mistake to let this guy go. I go from hot to cold, one day to the next, because I am excited for change and the draft, but they keep screwing things up. Attention to detail can never be underestimated, just like self discipline. I think it is often the little things that distinguish good teams from great teams, and I just don’t know if Dominick has the wherewithal himself to distinguish good moves from bad at times.
Please don’t screw this up again.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:20 pm
Sensible:
Joe rarely frequents Grantland, mostly because it is boring. The subject matter for 98 percent of the stories is a yawner. For example, Joe doesn’t give a damn about the struggles of a lesbian Division II women’s college basketball coach in backwater North Carolina.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:21 pm
Oh btw, nice interview Joe.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:21 pm
Thanks for all the kind words guys.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:30 pm
Just to put GMC’s “his stats are not great” statement from Millard into context :
In Millard’s first 5 seasons in the NFL he had 51 sacks playing Right defensive tackle during an era when they passed less frequently;he had 3 double digit sack years in his first 5 seasons including as a rookie and 18 sacks as a 4th year player (yet he only made 2 pro bowls). After his 5th year he started to have injury problems which shortened his career.
You sheep who argue that defensive tackles arent capable of putting up stats – its just not true. Millard, Sapp, 2010 Suh, Ngata heck even Brad Culpepper put up double digit sack seasons when he was here. For the investment in GMC, he needs to produce more than jumping a gap a few times per game then missing the tackle.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:34 pm
GMC didn’t miss any tackles this year.
January 21st, 2012 at 1:56 pm
People come here for information about the Bucs. Not because they enjoy your writing style.
People go to Grantland because the writing is superior. Boring topics or not.
January 21st, 2012 at 2:01 pm
Good article Millard was ok but i want Jim Tomsula niners DLine coach
January 21st, 2012 at 2:22 pm
@ Joe
Ahahahaha! An a-hole comment Joe but a true one.
One of the first articles I read was Chuck Klosterman’s (who I really do enjoy by the way) blow-by-blow of a juco basketball game in North Dakota from the late 80s. Weird stuff but the story and the site works for a sports/tv/music junkie like me.
On the other hand, this site is pure perfection for my demographic. This site and ESPN.com get the most clicks out of me on a daily basis because it’s Buc-related, it’s easy to digest, and the personalities of the Joes and my fellow commenters are quite entertaining.
I’m not just blowing smoke man. Great idea and better execution on the site!
January 21st, 2012 at 2:41 pm
Total garbage that they canned him. Why would you fire a good coach?
I bet Dominik wets his pants when Millard talks from the diaphragm and he was getting a bad rash from it, so he had to go.
January 21st, 2012 at 2:44 pm
@ ARealFan
Here’s Millard’s resume. Looks like he’s just an average guy to me.
Denver Broncos – ?, 9th, 13th, 14th in sacks.
Oakland Raiders – 18th, 19th, 28th, 13th in sacks.
Tampa Bay Bucs – 32nd in sacks.
Offseason or not, as Rah always said, “We’re all on one-year contracts.” Can’t get any worse than last Pete.
January 21st, 2012 at 2:51 pm
The word “Grantland” is like the word “Lumpkin”, based on phonetics alone, I don’t want anything to do with it. Now anything with the word “Joe” in it has a nice ring, i.e JoeBucsFan, JoeCartoon, things of that nature I’m down with.
Superfy: “Oh my head, I’m so wasted”.
January 21st, 2012 at 3:00 pm
@ Thomas
“2010 Suh”
LMAO!
January 21st, 2012 at 3:15 pm
Suh had a down season due to being too emotional on the field – it cosmt him a suspension and the controversy got in his head. He will be fine and have a 100 sack career – I believe he has 14 sacks and 100 tackles in his first 2 seasons having missed zero games bc of injury. Very good numbers. GMC: 4 whopping sacks and 2 IR stints.
One correction for Millard: the bucs best defensive performance was agaibst the Saints and not shockingly GMC was out with an ankle injury.
January 21st, 2012 at 3:39 pm
This is great: Thomas bashes McCoy for his sack count…..The DL coach points out a the best DL performance of the season(Against the Falcons week 3 in which the team tallied 4 sacks which Millard attributed directly to McCoy’s disruption) and Thomas believed it necessary to correct THE DL COACH. Thomas then points out a game in which no one recorded a sack lmao
The attempts are becoming more and more pathetic.
January 21st, 2012 at 3:42 pm
Great article, like most of the articles on this site. Im pretty new to the site, but its already making me regret renewing my pewwterreport subscription.
January 21st, 2012 at 3:54 pm
Thomas ,i agree with you 100%.we have to have d lineman that put up double digit sacks.just like sapp and brad.
January 21st, 2012 at 3:55 pm
Wow Thomas2.2 correcting a Two time ALL PRO NFL that is National Football League not Nylon Fantasy Lust. Coach Millard has how many sacks and played and coached in how many games to base his assessment of the Bucs best defensive performance this season? Hey Thomas 2.2 how many games have you played in, coached in?
Feel free to list your qualifications for your correction of Coach Millard, we could all use a laugh..
January 21st, 2012 at 4:18 pm
Rusty: if you mean NFL games that I played or coached in that would be Zero.
It sounded to me as if Millard forgot that Mccoy missed some of those first 6 games (including the big Saints win – which didnt yield sacks but the D line played very well by stuffing the run). That was all I was correcting.
I commend Keith for trying to say something positive about his player – I would expect that – even doing so he echoed some of my opinions.
Keith would speak circles around me on how to teach and demonstrate D Line technique and play – no argument there. But making critical personnel and macro decisions arent done by assistant coaches/technicians.
January 21st, 2012 at 4:39 pm
So according to Thomas a #3 pick should have perfect technique. They should also peak with their ability by the beginning of their second season. They shouldn’t need any coaching and should immediately put up All-Pro stats. Otherwise they are only worthy of a 3rd of 4th round pick. Good to know. Of course we all know that if we just passed on GMC, he would have definitely been there in the fourth round. I mean, no other teams had him as a top 10 pick right? Keep on sipping that potion buddy.
Thomas, you never cease to amaze me how you can take an extremely positive evaluation of a player, then analyze and re-analyze it to find negativity. That is a true skill that I guess is some kind of sick, twisted way you should be proud of. I love how your ego is so big that you constantly pound your chest about what you were right about. Funny how I have never once heard you mention that you were wrong about anything. Apparently you have joined my wife and the only 2 perfect people in the world.
January 21st, 2012 at 4:40 pm
*should be “as” not “and” on the last sentence.
January 21st, 2012 at 4:51 pm
+1 Hawaiian
January 21st, 2012 at 5:04 pm
Hawaiian: I have made mistakes evaluating players before, as an example – I wanted the bucs to pass on Freeman in the first round – I admitted being wrong about that.
I also thought that Gaines Adams would be an effective pass rusher under Monte, I thought Mike Clayton was worth the value at 15 – wrong again (after looking correct initially).
When it comes to GMC (like Rah and most subjects) I am right on. I never said I expected “perfect technique” or “peaking” already. I expect a full 16 games worth of significant productivity for a 3rd overall and 60 million – we havent got 60 dollars worth of value on Sunday yet.
You guys twist my statements too often. I have always said that GMC will not be worth the investment (I havent said that other teams did not have him highly rated( they were wrong too) or that he will never be decent or is a bust).
I think that he will produce like 3rd round player that I valued him as based on College production. Yes he was a College All Anerican but his statistics were always lackluster (6 sacks, 30 tackles) against inferior opponents.
Then his combine was a disaster. He was projected to be faster than Suh but weaker – nope he was slower and MUCH weaker – sadly weak for a 300lb lineman.
The combination of those things and (my college game eval) caused me to rate him much lower than 3 overall. Rah and Dom were obsessed with a UT and saw only Mccoy’s athleticism and overlooked the obvious flaws.
January 21st, 2012 at 5:19 pm
Nice work, Joe. I look forward to the other parts of the interview.
January 21st, 2012 at 5:20 pm
Sounds like you are always right to me. Funny how you go back to when you weren’t on this board for when you were wrong. I guess you only became perfect once you joined Joe Bucs Fan. Congratulations.
January 21st, 2012 at 5:24 pm
Glazers and Dom need to move their asses and hire a coach. This is ridiculous. All the good ones are gonna get scooped up before we know it. I think we’ve interviewed enough candidates. Pick Marty or Zimmer. Hell, even a couple of other candidates are ok.
January 21st, 2012 at 5:57 pm
I would’ve liked to see Millard another year under a good DC and have an off season to see what might’ve been…
Great interview, Joe! It sucks Millard’s going to a different team and it sucks having to wait for part 2 and 3 but I understand why you’re doing it.
January 21st, 2012 at 5:59 pm
How many years did it take James Harrison to become a dominant rusher???
January 21st, 2012 at 6:09 pm
I’m starting to agree with you Patrick.
January 21st, 2012 at 6:30 pm
Listen, you wanna be, poor excuse Thomas, I post on only 2 blogs. 2. And you have been more wrong than anyone else on this website, so you have zero room to talk. I notice you shut your mouth while Thomas was suspended, but as soon as he came back, you were all smarty again…grow a pair and a brain to use them. You want a war, I’m tired of trying to make nice with you.
Keep pushing me. You know my real name…look me up on the net and make contact…or hide behind an alias like the wuss you are. But if you can’t be a man, shut your mouth.
I already gave the ball-less wonder the offer, and he was afraid to even make himself known. Stop hiding behind a fake name and words. Get your ass kicked like a man.
(I’ll take whatever punishment you deem worthy, Joe…it is worth it)
January 21st, 2012 at 6:32 pm
I wonder if the Glazer Boys are waiting to offer 2-1’s & 2-2″s for Bill Belichick.
I agree they need to s#!t or get off the pot with a hire already. I still like Brian Billick and wish they at least interview Rich Bissacia. I love the Tampa Bay area but I wouldn’t want to work for those guys either.
I had a friend that did a small job for one of the G brothers that ended up in a big mess where they wanted more for less and wouldn’t take his recommendation in the first place. Had to do it their way, didn’t quite work out and he should have never taken the job to begin with. It’s unfortunate to have more money than brains, very dangerous combo. We’re so skrewd.
January 21st, 2012 at 6:40 pm
Guys: Geno adkins a 4th round pick dt from georgia out of the same draft as “gives marginal contribution” had 7.5 sacks and 63 tackles, and now has 10.5 in the 2 years after not starting originally.
Solid numbers and a 4th round pick.
January 21st, 2012 at 7:27 pm
Yup, Hawaiian is up 2-0 on Thomas this round.
He’s so dead wrong on McCoy, even he knows it, but I’m still glad Thomas is back!
January 21st, 2012 at 7:46 pm
@arealbuc. Really what have I been wrong about? Your a complete moron and just about everyone on this site agrees. I have nothing to do with Thomas and him and I have had many debates and I have mostly been annoyed with his negativity but your the complete opposite. Your constantly bashing ever persons opinions and 9 times out of 10 your wrong and have been proven wrong. I’m a season ticket holder and I tailgate every game right across the street from the stadium where 1010 broadcasts. Meet me there for any home game. If you can’t find me ask for Scott Brantley then ask him to locate Brad Davis. I don’t know every person there so if your a real fan I figured you might know who Scott is.. And to think Thomas got banned. You should be for being a dumbarse..
January 21st, 2012 at 7:48 pm
McCoy and Prices health issues have really concerned me. No way on earth we should give up on them, but we need to sign the best veteran DT in free agency for insurance.
Remember last offseason when y’all were pumped about how dominant our d line was gonna be once we got McCoy and Price back healthy? No…..same thing again this year. Therefore, I’m not gonna get my hopes up on the d line. Bottomline, our defense was completely horrendous this year. Hasn’t been good since Monte left.
Our d line can be good IF they stay healthy but that’s a big if. Hope they do!
January 21st, 2012 at 7:53 pm
Ok Tim:
The bengals paid Geno Adkins 405,000 for 16 games, 7.5 sacks and 60+ tackles.
The Bucs paid GMC 12,800,000 for 4 games, 1 sack and 10+ tackles. In GMC’s career he has been paid approx 20 million and his career stats equal about 1/2 of Geno Adkins 2011 season at a cost of 405kl
Who got the better deal?
The bengals by a hundred fold!!! easily. To act like this investment has made any sense at all is just plain foolish.
I remember you guys telling me how wrong I was wrong. Where is he at? D Backs coach somewhere.
January 21st, 2012 at 7:54 pm
… Wrong I was about RahRah
January 21st, 2012 at 7:59 pm
As far as D line. I really think we will be in great shape once we add some depth. I think the D line is much better when McCoy is in there and I believe if he can (I think he will) stay healthy we are going to be good. Price if he gets to 100% will be the best player on the line. I also think Bowers and Clayborn will be solid. Once these guys are coached up and learn to play the run will be the best unit on the D side of the ball. If we can add a couple solid veteran linebackers and add a solid guy in the secondary with the draft we should be able to improve greatly. Hell it can’t get worse… Can it?
January 21st, 2012 at 8:02 pm
I will say this. McCoy has to stay healthy and be productive this year or we will all be eating crow again and Thomas will be pounding his chest.
January 21st, 2012 at 8:03 pm
Henry Melton: a 2009 4th round DT draft pick for the Bears:
480k for 7 sacks in 15 games.
Karl Klug: rookie DT 5th round draft pick titans – 7 sacks 2 forced fumbles.
Marcel Dareus, rookie DT 1st round pick of the Bills 43 tackles and 5.5 sacks.
All putting up solid numbers and there are more examples if you want me to share them.
The research makes McCoy look worse.
January 21st, 2012 at 8:12 pm
Thomas.. What players do those other guys have around them. Sapp made everyone else around him better due from the double teams. I’m not saying McCoy is a bust or not. But having a D line with rookies and 1-2 year players makes it hard to evaluate any of the guys. If Dominick changes his plan and uses FA to add some veteran players, we will better able to evaluate each persons play. And a good coach to teach them. You can’t blast Raheem for being a bad coach then attack those players he coached. Now if we get a solid D coordinator and his production doesn’t improve then you can blast GMC all you want. I say we wait till the end of next year to make that determination.
January 21st, 2012 at 8:34 pm
Thom-ass is pathetic. First of all, Millard clearly stated it was the SECOND time the Saints played the Bucs where they were chipping Clayborn and Bennett. Secondly, all you had to do was open your eyes and watch the games to know how badly we fell apart after McCoy was injured. I’ve never seen someone cling so desperately to being wrong…..
January 21st, 2012 at 8:36 pm
Thomas can pound his chest all he wants…he has a padded bra.
January 21st, 2012 at 8:41 pm
@Bobby. I laughed out loud.
January 21st, 2012 at 9:00 pm
@Bobby ROFL that is just awesome
January 21st, 2012 at 9:36 pm
Presenting with you facts, about the production of other players that dwarfs that of your prized 60 million dollar 4sack 2 IR princess – isn’t pounding your chest.
All you sheep do is make excuses like: his coaches sucked, his line mates were young and not very good, he passes the eye test even though his stats suck and bla bla bla.
Facts are facts, stats aren’t for losers ask the Rays they build a winner year after based on statistical analysis – if you haven’t figured it out – I take a similar approach to football evaluation.
The eye test will usually fail you – you grade football players on productivity relative to position – by that grade – gmc has been a failure.
January 21st, 2012 at 9:41 pm
RODOKC:
Thanks for the kind words. Hope you are not a stranger.
January 21st, 2012 at 9:42 pm
LOLOL!!
January 21st, 2012 at 9:46 pm
Winner, winner, chicken dinner.
January 21st, 2012 at 9:51 pm
SMH joe, i dont know if you heard this yet but rick stroud tweeted that the YUCS had a second interview scheduled with joe philbin. Thats what happens when your front office is slower than a box of rocks. THIS TEAM SUCKS AND WE WILL NEVER WIN ANOTHER SB AS LONG AS THE GLAZERS ARE OWNERS.
January 21st, 2012 at 9:58 pm
Careful clay burn, that kind of criticism can get you in trouble. You mean Philbin picked the Fish over us? Even with the great 4 sack gmc! Lol.
January 21st, 2012 at 10:02 pm
Lol thomas I dont have quite the track record you do so i dont have to worry but as a life long buc fan, i am tired of this second rate team. We are being run by AMATEURS!!
January 21st, 2012 at 10:30 pm
By the way, why aren’t we interviewing Monte Kiffin for head Coach? He still lives in Tampa, was enormously successful, and is beloved by Buc fans.
He could fix these mess
January 21st, 2012 at 10:43 pm
@Capt.Tim
Why didn’t Monte ever get a coaching job in the NFL? He was so successful with us, very surprising.
But Monte is gonna be 72 this year, that’s pretty old. If we did bring him here, we need to get him a great assistant coach/great coordinators that can take over when he retires for good.
January 21st, 2012 at 10:43 pm
second interview with philbin
oooops
cant believe anyone would turn down even the slightest chance to work shoulder to shoulder with a bonafide rockstar
January 21st, 2012 at 11:19 pm
IMO it’s a shame we lost Keith Millard to another team.
I understand a new HC wanting to hire his own assistants and am becoming concerned the pool of available assistants is becoming more and more limited as time goes on.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:32 pm
Monte has never wanted to be a head coach.
January 21st, 2012 at 11:39 pm
Monte stated he did not want a HC job many times, let the Kiffin dream die.
Thomas, did you pick all those guys to do as well as they have? WOW, you should work for an NFL team…Oh, you did not, well, I guess it is back to the fry vat for you. Your eval of GMC college carreer is better than the 32 GMs working in the NFL, wow, I am impressed. Remember, Sapp was just as week at the combine, had a bad forst year and a half stat wise, Suh may have only missed time due to penalties, but missing time is missingf time. Also, he showed he has little to no character or he is just a big man child. His stats dropped before the suspension. He will be back and awesome for sure, but for you to be so blind is insane. You hate GMC, great, since you hate most things Bucs that is fine.
Why was this jack ass suspended, I have been away on business and missed something?
January 22nd, 2012 at 7:37 am
@McBuc The question should be, “why was this jag readmitted?”
@Patrick Monte had been sought after for years. He refused multiple offers for a HC position. Not his thing. Dude made a killing as a DC. Made enough to drop the NFL altogether. He just wanted to be close to his son. Helluva dad.
January 22nd, 2012 at 10:20 am
Article at WalterFootball states that Kiffin does indeed have ambition to be a head Coach. Also states that he didn’t want to leave NFL, only did so to help stabilize Lane’s career. Monte turned down offers, because he was loyal to this team, and wanted to finish what he started with a championship!
He’s not much older than Marty and Sherman. Plus he’s blessed with amazing vitality.
Lane is established now
I consider Monte a viable option. Heck, couldn’t hurt to talk to him! I like him better than most of our remaining options.
January 22nd, 2012 at 5:27 pm
Good interview. Appreciate the effort, Joe.
January 23rd, 2012 at 12:50 am
Thomas 2.2 Says:
January 21st, 2012 at 3:15 pm
Suh had a down season due to being too emotional on the field – it cosmt him a suspension and the controversy got in his head. He will be fine and have a 100 sack career – I believe he has 14 sacks and 100 tackles in his first 2 seasons having missed zero games bc of injury. Very good numbers. GMC: 4 whopping sacks and 2 IR stints.
Thomas do you actually ever watch Suh play? Your big deal about McCoy
ever getting pressure was he would just rush right at the qb and the guard would let him so the rb could run rght by him… ding ding ding you just described Suh, the Lions are awful against the run and usually opposing teams run right at Suh. Btw he plays with who on that line? Troy Aikman this season said that most offensive coordinators game plan for Willams the DT right next to him not Suh. Looking up stats for opposing teams and their pay is good but again who else plays next to those players? probably not other 1st or 2nd year players I’m guessing. Tom Jackson said he needs to learn how to play the run to be considered a great d-lineman as well.
Bucs need to get more sacks, pressure, better play from everyone movind forward. This needs to be addressed in the draft but more importantly in free agency..
Joe, great job on this site with this interview, the McCoy interview, and the Kelly intel!