Bucs Kicking Tires On Amobi Okoye?
March 15th, 2012
Just because Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik said the Bucs are about “at the tail end” of free agency, he didn’t say the Bucs would not sign more players.
Given the injuries and general subpar play of the Bucs’ defensive tackles, many Bucs fans believe this is a weakness. (Given how poor the Bucs back seven may be, Joe’s of the mind the Bucs defensive tackles are a strength.)
It seems Dominik may be inclined to agree with these same Bucs fans.
Adam Caplan, who writes for the Eagles’ official website and works for SiriusXM NFL Radio, Twittered this morning at the Bucs are one of a handful of teams trying to land Bears defensive tackle Amobi Okoye. Yes, the same supergenius who was drafted as a 19-year-old college senior back in 2007.
@caplannfl: Out of the 4-5 teams that have already expressed interest in DT Amobi Okoye, the Buccaneers are an interesting fit. … The adjustment in the Bucs defensive scheme this season will take advantage of a DT’s speed.
Now Joe’s not sure how this differs from the Raheem Morris defense, in that he also used quick defensive tackles like his mentor Monte Kiffin.
Oh, well. There’s only so much one can put into 140 characters.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:09 pm
Can I get a double order of Linebacker on the side with that? Please.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:10 pm
The kid is a real good 3-technique. Need a starting caliber back-up for injury prone McCoy.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:11 pm
I am hoping that the fact that no ILB has been signed and only one RB (Hillis to KC), means that the Bucs a shrewdly waiting in the wings for the asking price of guys like Lofton, Tulloch, Tolbert or Bush to drop, then swoop in and get a couple of those guys for a very good deal.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:15 pm
Okoye would be a good pick up….it’s interesting Loften has not signed with anybody….seems like his agent has made a mess of things by being greedy !
March 15th, 2012 at 12:15 pm
I think Tulloch is going back to Detroit after Megatron redoing his contract frees up a ton of cap space… so if the Bucs dont get Lofton the draft is it…. I’d love for Tulloch or Lofton to be the MLB and Okoye as part of the DLine rotation
March 15th, 2012 at 12:16 pm
Lofton and tolbert….Now Im done.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:17 pm
Two things on this guy:
a) Was he drafted/signed at age 19??? He’s 24 and has 5 years in the league! This guy is right now at college drafting age! lol
b) I think he might have more sacks than either of our starting DTs
This would be an interesting signing…and I like it. He’s still young and has experience (tons of it). I suspect this kid could be hot in Tampa…and he’ll likely come cheap.
Dominick needs to get him.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:17 pm
What T said. We must remember, that Dominik is engaged in a negotiation and all public comments will be scrutinized by players and agents as well as the fans. I believe Dom was simply posturing yesterday for the hopefully ongoing negotiations with Lofton.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:21 pm
Once Tulloch resigns in Detroit, the demand for Lofton will increase. His agent is playing it smart.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:24 pm
This would be a great acquisition.
Rah’s defensive scheme was: hcffdudiffyyccfufuuivviivkijvivffs!
March 15th, 2012 at 12:26 pm
Joe, Do you know when the first mini-camp starts? I thought I had heard first week in April but really not sure. Also, don’t we get extra OTAs due to a new coaching staff in place?
March 15th, 2012 at 12:34 pm
If Dom and/or Schiano have the savvy to add an athletic durable (mostly) DT to the rotation – so GMC and Price can take snaps off – it will make everyone better.
Also, McCoy’s strength, if he has one, is run game – Okoye’s is pass rush making him a perfect compliment.
I may actually have some for Dom and GMC if we add in another premium defensive front 7 player.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:34 pm
I just heard [bucs facebook] that MCcoy,Joseph and Koenen where trying to talk Loften back to Tampa. Rumour is he is wanting 3-4 million MORE than what teams want to pay him…
March 15th, 2012 at 12:39 pm
@ Scotty
Not that I’m Joe, but I happen to know the answers. Yes, the Bucs first OTA is early April, and that is the “extra” OTAs. Typically Teams don’t hold their OTAs until after the draft.
There will be that OTA, then the Rookie Camp the weekend after the draft, one set of OTAs sometime in May, then another in early to mid-June. Take most of July off, then start Training Camp Late July/Early August.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:43 pm
No way the team is done signing guys yet. Dominik’s comments were basically saying “we’re not going to set the market price by overpaying for a LB too”. He’s probably banking on the the fact that playing in Tampa just got a lot more interesting to guys now that VJax, Nicks, and Wright are on board. One thing with FA is that as the days go by, the prices go lower. Not saying you won’t see the occasional overpay here and there, but you can bet the negotiating gets a lot more interesting after the first couple days. Curious to see who sets the market price for LB’s and RB’s.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:46 pm
First get-together is April 2nd, 2012.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:48 pm
Piece of cake Thomas on Rah’s defensive scheme. If you use a Modulus 11 decrytion algorithm it says – “kill the carrier, you’re on your own, and watch out for their version of the Bennd around”. lol
March 15th, 2012 at 12:49 pm
Okoye should’ve been drafted over Gaines Adams (RIP)
March 15th, 2012 at 12:51 pm
LB’s should be number 1 priority now. Love everything that has happened so far other than Dominik saying he still thinks Foster can be our MLB. Has he actually watched film. If he does I think we sign Lofton immediately. Not sure why team is ignoring to upgrade an obvious weakness on our team being all the linebackers.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:54 pm
I think this team needs a true space eating NT. Price should be a rotational player.
Bunkley, though smaller, would be a good candidate. Dude is strong as an ox and holds the point. Or guys like Ta’amu and Chapman in the draft.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:55 pm
I would really like this signing if it happens. I wanted Okoye coming out of college, obviously he hasn’t lived up to the hype that surrounded him at that time, but this would be a good signing for depth and rotation.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:56 pm
Well said @FLBoy84, well said.
As unsigned Free Agents remain, and days stretch on, they become more anxious, agents too. And Tampa, has added intrigue for sure.
We need a LB. Put Foster where he actually, works.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:57 pm
This would be a great singing for us this would give us some much needed depth at DT. And as i just said in a previous article if we draft Kuechly and move down to do it thatll give us at least another 2nd round pick and we could draft Lamar Miller with our first one and if we do make this deal maybe we could even get that LB from Nebraska to really sure up our front 7.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:57 pm
@ Brad
Dominik said that they think Foster can play MLB, not that they think he’ll stay there. They’re still looking for a MLB.
March 15th, 2012 at 12:59 pm
Its a simple fact of teams running out of Cap Space .. As the balloon loses its air, there is only so much left for these FAs to get !!
May even turn into some 1 year deals ..
I am hoping Tolbert and Lofton are Bucs soon .. though chances are low now.
March 15th, 2012 at 1:37 pm
@Brad…Dominik will say things just to try and help the agents of people like Lofton think that we may have moved on. I think they’re still looking at Lofton but not at 9 mil a year. If he comes down to around 5-6 then I think with Faine’s release we have the cap space to sign him. You’ll hear all sorts of stuff said around this time of year but a lot of it is just meant for smoke and mirrors.
March 15th, 2012 at 1:41 pm
@jvato24….I actually think the chances of Lofton becoming a Buc are increasing as time goes on. There only seems to be a couple of teams interested and we still have the most cap space but Dom’s not a fool. He’s not going to overpay for Lofton when he knows Lofton is not a complete MLB. He is weak against the pass but a beast against the run.
March 15th, 2012 at 2:23 pm
Bring in Amobi Okoye!
@ Brad I too hoped we drafted him out of college but he went to the Texans who play the 3-4 if I remember correctly, which I did not think fit Amobi Okoye skill set. He is a gamer that is for sure and @ 24 has several more years to be a play maker.
Plus we might get to see his father a few times a season, someone who reminds me of our own Nightmare running back. Thinking back to that time period of Marty ball in KC wasn’t Dominik there during that time frame as well? Maybe he has had contact with Christian Okoye.
March 15th, 2012 at 2:24 pm
I would LOVE that pickup. Price is a question mark every snap, Okam doesn’t seem to have hit his potential, McCoy needs a fire lit under him, and Miller is pretty much a non-entity.
March 15th, 2012 at 2:28 pm
Dom is being smart IMO. This is a typical free agency period whereas most big names sign first(usually in the first couple of days) because teams are eager to have them and usually overpay. Then the second tier players start signing around the second week because they are waiting on the market to be set. One thing Dom did say was “We are just about at the tail end of chasing players” which means they are not going to overpay. They have their price range in mind and I’m sure the agents have theirs. Let’s just wait abd let this play out.
March 15th, 2012 at 3:21 pm
@ Rusty Rhino
when Okoye was drafted by the Texans they played a 4-3, the system he played the first 4 years of his career in. when they switched to the 3-4 this past season, they let him go because he isn’t a good fit. so he signed with the Bears for a year.
and he has NO relation whatsoever to Christian Okoye. just because they share the same name doesn’t mean they are related, look it up.
it never ceases to amaze me how uninformed some of u people are.
March 15th, 2012 at 3:45 pm
It never ceases to amaze me how insulting some of u people are.
A correction is fine. That last line wasn’t.
March 15th, 2012 at 3:49 pm
fair enough. it’s just frustrating to read so much baseless stuff on here
March 15th, 2012 at 4:32 pm
@Thomas 2.2
I think you mean ‘complement.’
March 15th, 2012 at 4:32 pm
Faine was cut, now cut Black and sign Lofton.
March 15th, 2012 at 4:49 pm
Letz hey witout syn cost hte firts rok.
March 15th, 2012 at 5:13 pm
Maybe it would help McCoy and Price if they were more backup/rotational guys for a while, given the way their health has been for the past two seasons. This might make them a lot better.
I think signing a good backup DT is more important than we think.
March 15th, 2012 at 6:23 pm
I’m with Patrick. We won’t be stacked with top-shelf DB’s any time soon. Improve them with pressure and run-stuffing. And we are always a snap away from total mediocrity with these DT’s we have.
March 15th, 2012 at 7:06 pm
Dropped the ball not signing Bennett and getting rid of K2. At 2.5 mil that was reasonable.
March 15th, 2012 at 7:21 pm
Anybody who considers Okoye a “premium player” is a complete and total moron. He could be a quality starter as he is still very young, but he was a complete bust in Houston and was a good rotational player in Chicago.
He would be a good backup with upside.
Also, Trevor Laws of Philadelphia would be a solid addition to the DT rotation with a similar skill set as Okoye.
I like that the Bucs haven’t signed Lofton… frankly, he just isn’t that good. Some people just want him signed because he plays MLB. In case you guys haven’t noticed, the Falcons defense has been terrible when it counted. In a division where the forward pass is an “in thing”, having a MLB that struggles in coverage is just plain dumb.
I hope the Bucs talking about keeping Foster in the middle is a big smokescreen setting up the possibility of the Bucs moving down and selecting their QB of the defense for the next 10-15 years in Luke Kuechly.
March 15th, 2012 at 11:44 pm
ALOT of us, including me, were calling for the Bucs to make a run at Okoye in that draft. He has never panned out.
That said, he is a young DT with experience and is just getting into his prime over the next 2 years.
He would be a good pickup for a decent price because he will be a sub who gets a lot of playing time rotating on the line
March 16th, 2012 at 12:12 am
Brandon, agree with that last, all the way. Kuechly had high marks to start with and then shined at the combine. The guy looks to be the real deal.