Tap The Brakes
May 10th, 2017
Joe loves the excitement in the air, but some folks might want to tap the brakes.
Yes, significant folks believe the Bucs are a playoff team as a result of massively upgrading the receiving talent this offseason for America’s Quarterback, Pro Bowler Jameis Winston.
Playoffs? OK, Joe sees that, but given the decade of playoff-less football in these parts, Joe is cautious. Joe’s a burning bush kind of guy.
But Super Bowl? Hold up!
Bonnie Mott of USA Today thinks Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht upgraded the offense so well the Bucs have a Super Bowl talent now.
Maybe it’s just the nature of Joe to wait until the season at least starts to even dare infer the term “Super Bowl.” Or perhaps Joe is still suspicious of the running attack of the Bucs, fourth-worst in the NFL last year in yards per carry.
So a fifth-round running back will fix that? Sure, it could happen, but pardon Joe for being in wait-and-see mode.
May 10th, 2017 at 3:55 am
Sign LeGarrette Blount, Darrell Revis, and McCourty.
Then maybe we have a chance.
Imagine Darrell Revis or McCourty as our nickle back?
Just imagine that!!!!
Why not???
May 10th, 2017 at 3:59 am
Revis is almost done.
He wasn’t even that great when he was here before.
Time to move on from outdated dreams like that.
May 10th, 2017 at 4:13 am
teacherman777 Says
“Sign…Darrell Revis…”
Oh @#$# no!
May 10th, 2017 at 4:15 am
I said it after the draft…Licht had a draft that COULD have made us superbowl contenders and turned it into a playoff contender. That is why I was so ticked at the results. He passed on extremely talented players. No way did he go BPA after round 1. No way.
May 10th, 2017 at 4:17 am
As much as I like the Godwin pick…it was not BPA either. There were more talented players at positions of need on the board at the time.
And in a pinch, Travis Rudolph would have fixed the WR need later.
May 10th, 2017 at 4:37 am
Bucs have enough starting talent to compete for a Super Bowl in 2017. Not be favorites or any thing but legit contenders. I said starting talent. If injuries to multiple starters on either side of the ball occur – this team will likely struggle to even make the playoffs as our depth is still not good enough at multiple positions.
May 10th, 2017 at 4:41 am
What word in that post could have possibly triggered a moderation filter. Pretty ridiculous Joes.
May 10th, 2017 at 5:20 am
Super Bowl this quick is a bit extreme. I, unlike others, think that Licht is doing a pretty good job sans a pick here or there. It’s an incredibly complicated matrix of if, then situations. Every pick changes the next pick for every team. It is impossible to redraft based on who was available at said pick. I see that he did a pretty good job of prioritizing needs, analyzing the talent pool and balancing the risk/reward of every player and projecting the future of the roster. Are there holes, sure. Was it a perfect draft.. never will be.
He had to be shocked when Howard dropped to 19. That changed his entire board I imagine. I know everyone here says that was an “easy” lay up of a pick but at least 10 teams that could have used Howard passed. He also turned down the offers that I am sure came in for Howard on draft night. He believed that Howard was important enough to draft.
I do think it will take some time for the Offense to transition to a pass to open up the run from the run to set up the pass that it has been to this point. The Bucs have the core in place. They need to keep adding pieces. By my view, Licht opened the Buccaneer window wider.
May 10th, 2017 at 5:31 am
Yea Super Bowl expectations in the spring is a little extreme, but fans will be fans lol.
May 10th, 2017 at 6:03 am
Win the division first. Than fantasize after that.
May 10th, 2017 at 6:03 am
Yah. High expectations. Look at our schedule. It’s no cake walk. Let’s face it. Our division is tough. One team from NFC south has gone far in the playoffs the last several years. I would be happy with playoffs , but to win a playoff game would be amazing and show progression.
As far as running game goes. We added a true blocking tight end. Got an extra Olineman to put the best 5 on field. (Aware he sat out last year – injury). But more importantly we have weapons that will spread out on offense. Teams cannot double Evans and then stack the box to stop the run. That’s what happened. That’s why running backs had a hand on them as they were getting the ball. Teams thru extra guys to rush cause huff, martino etc etc could be single covered by a dang mannequin on the outside.
May 10th, 2017 at 6:26 am
8-8 or 9-7 might make playoffs, the OL has not been improved, the RB has not been improved and who is that edge rusher that is going to elevate the DL and thus not allow Matt Ryan and Drew Brees to throw for 400 and 4 tds?
May 10th, 2017 at 6:32 am
16-0 is always my offseason prediction. Ill tap the brakes as i come up on the sign holder, not just yet. Go bucs
May 10th, 2017 at 6:36 am
Taping Brakes….hmmmm….Maybe we shouldn’t under estimate our coaching and keep thinking there is a missing player(s).
With the players we have coaching may be the key element to go all the way.
I loved the defense’s improvement last year. Something tells me our offense might be a little different this year.
In Koetter and Smitty I Trust!!!
Go Bucs!!!
May 10th, 2017 at 6:52 am
Bonnie Mott of USA Today says we’re Super Bowl material? Hey, who are we to argue? (Joe, I won’t ask how many sources you had to dig through before you found one predicting the Bucs would be Super Bowl contenders this year).
And Pickgrin, I agree that Bucs have the starting talent to compete with anyone this year. Still leery of a couple of starting groups (LB & OLine) but both hold a lot of promise if things come together. Agree that depth is a significant issue right now, but season’s still a long ways away. Injuries to key players will be the key to our season IMO.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:11 am
Bonzai did you even watch Rudolph play? I love FSU and he is a great kid but he will be lucky to make a practice squad this year.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:14 am
If any of you guys thought the Falcons were SB contenders after week 1 last year are liars!!! Nuff said of the Bucs not having a chance… (I don’t think they will, but just saying š … )
May 10th, 2017 at 7:18 am
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May 10th, 2017 at 7:19 am
Pickgrin Says
“What word in that post could have possibly triggered a moderation filter. Pretty ridiculous Joes.”
As a blogger that uses the same platform, I can tell you the moderation is automated through a plugin. It flags posts for Joe to approve of not approve, and there isn’t a lot of control over it. Some of the plugins let you flag keywords, but they also randomly flag punctuation. Your hyphen may have set it off, being in the middle of the text instead of at the beginning like in a list.
OR…sometimes the things simply slow the system down and claim they are being moderated.
Not much Joe can do about it, unless he wants to open things up to all sorts of spammers.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:20 am
Easy enough to see once the season starts…….Bucs play Super Bowl champion New England once and runnerup Atlanta twice…….sooooooo, that will tell a great deal……
This is a very tough schedule and no one seems to accept that.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:22 am
Ndog Says
“Bonzai did you even watch Rudolph play? I love FSU and he is a great kid but he will be lucky to make a practice squad this year.”
As I said, in the later rounds. And he’ll make his team. If they place him on waivers, Licht would be a fool not to take him.
Roudolph is a slightly developmental WR…good enough this year to play in the 6th spot. But then, Godwin won’t be starting this year either.
Don’t get me wrong though…I love the fact that we have Godwin. HE was on my wishlist from the start. And in that round. But the way things played out in the draft, I would have completely gone a different route.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:30 am
Revis may be done as a number 1.
But he would be one of the best #3 CB’s in the league.
McCourty also would be one of the best #3 CB’s in the league.
Imagine both of them!
We could have one of the best dime packages in the NFL.
Dont get me wrong, Revis is a diva sometimes.
But if you filled his contract with incentives, he would ball out!
May 10th, 2017 at 7:30 am
Joe, you’re just going to have to get over not getting Dalvin cook. Martin will be fine for this year. Wait and see.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:30 am
As I watched the draft, in each round I had my own board, along with a list of needs. I made my own picks for the bucs as the draft progressed (sort of a wannabe GM).
Here were my picks:
Round 1
TE OJ Howard
Round 2
DE/OLB Jordan Willis
(would have solved our DE needs)
Round 3
RB James Conner
(One of two backs who is a better pass blocker than McNichols, a hard hitting, line pounding short yardage backā¦which is our need at RB (STILL))
Round 4
RT Julieān Davenport
(Would have fixed the true biggest weakness on the offensive line)
Round 5
S Xavier Woods
(Would have replaced the good Safety that we lost. Great tackler)
Round 6
C Kyle Fuller
(Able to play Guard and Centerā¦the perfect backup plan in case Sweezy doesnāt work out)
Round 7
WR Travis Rudolph
(Went undrafted but for the Bucs needs at WR very well. Watch and see how his career goes)
If Licht had picked like that…and he had the opportunity…it would have been a much more productive draft. No one would complain over that draft…well, except DallasBuc.
But after getting Howard, he switched from BPA at position of need to solely position of need.
And I’m sorry, but it isn’t rocket science. It’s not hard.
I originally did not want a TE in round one, so being able to get Howard threw off my whole plan too. But he was BPA and Greatest Value and a Position of Need.
So I adjusted on the fly. Is Licht incapable of doing the same? I doubt it.
But he made mistakes in this draft that will cost the team. For example, Justin Evans. I realize hard hitting safeties are fun to watch, but its not fun seeing opposing teams getting first downs from the resulting penalties. And the NFL has instructed the refs to call more penalties on hard hits this year. It was a position of need, but NOT BPA.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:31 am
That said, what is done is done. All we can do now is root for our players and hope they turn into special players.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:32 am
The only need I would not have addressed in that draft is CB. Which Licht did not address anyway. And I still went BPA.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:39 am
Now…I’m going to throw a curve ball out there.
During Ira’s podcast, Joes and Ira pondered whether the bucs would keep 3 RBs and Martin on suspension, or keep 4 RBs and Martin on suspension.
Playing ‘wannabe GM’ again, here’s what I would do (as the roster stands atm):
Keep Quizz, Barber and Sims. Martin on Suspension.
Curveball: Keep Quayvon Hicks as a 5th RB for the year. 256 lbs. Short yardage back. Blocker. He’s not Conner, but he could develop, and we could use him a lot.
Bucs get into a lot of short yardage situations. We NEED a true short yardage back. He’s also a former Defensive player if I remember right.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:41 am
Of course, I would also keep both Folk and Aguayo even if Aguayo does well this off season. Never hurts to have insurance. Cut George Johnson to make room.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:42 am
We still have holes.
I don’t think the o line is as strong jason thinks it is.
Depth at db and the safety’s. Our backfield is not that good.
We don’t really have a de that can put pressure on.
I’m not saying we aren’t good.
But we aren’t great.
9-7
May 10th, 2017 at 8:08 am
Bonzai, you are out of your mind.
May 10th, 2017 at 8:27 am
Defense wins championships we need a defensive end
May 10th, 2017 at 8:30 am
Im cautiously optimistic. I think we have a great chance at winning the division. But I dont think we are super bowl bound just yet. But I sure as hell will root until its over though!
May 10th, 2017 at 8:47 am
If super bowl isn’t your expectation, what are you playing for exactly?
They have the talent on offense, and an improved defense which will have a much better understanding of the scheme in year 2. Remember, the same defense that looked dominant at times this past year.
Yes, SB.
May 10th, 2017 at 9:10 am
Bonzai, it’s easy to talk after the draft. How did Licht know Justin Saftey could still be there or better yet your WR Rudolph in 7th round.
May 10th, 2017 at 9:15 am
For a moment, I thought this article was a rebuttal to some of my posts (and others’) on here…
But I’m glad to hear there’s someone in the national media who also recognizes that we have a Superbowl-caliber-talent-laden roster.
C’mon, Joes. Have some perspective… We are stacked compared to other teams.
May 10th, 2017 at 9:19 am
When one see’s a Re-Draft post, one must face palm
Get over it, move forward.
May 10th, 2017 at 9:27 am
How many drafts have we seen where the BPAs are ALWAYS the guys that you have “heard of”? Known players bomb out too. The point I am making is this: Jason Licht gets paid to do his job, and the improvement in this team over the last 3 years shows that he is pretty good at it. I am so sick of you “couch GMs” thinking you know every #@$& thing!
May 10th, 2017 at 9:28 am
Just make the playoffs. After that it’s 1 game at a time. I’m pretty sure there are wild card teams that have won the Superbowl. Just sayin’
May 10th, 2017 at 9:32 am
i read all JBF articles in the joes little nerdy annoying voices
May 10th, 2017 at 9:47 am
@Bonzai
“If Licht had picked like thatā¦and he had the opportunityā¦it would have been a much more productive draft.”
How can anybody compare draft classes based on productivity when the rookies havent even put pads on yet lmao.
And I don’t get it. You say Derel Walker will be more productive than DeSean Jackson this year and then make it sound like Godwin wont have any impact at all. I really dont understand your logic.
May 10th, 2017 at 9:53 am
Will bump this after we win it š
Seriously tho I’m happier with our draft than the Bonzai proposal. I prefer mcnichols in 5th over Connor in 3rd. Jordan Willis in 3rd maybe but I love Godwin about equally. Willis honestly looked pretty stiff and disappeared a lot in the film I watched and I wasn’t that impressed … for his athletic measurables he sure went late for whatever reason
Davenport is a project OT I thought not a plug and play guy. We will see on the C panning out. Rudolph is meh and I’m an FSU fan. Seemed like just another guy out there,
May 10th, 2017 at 10:02 am
IJS, Pats won the SB with an I drafted free agent at RB, so why can’t a fifth round back do it, who the heck ran the ball for the Broncos the previous year. I get Pats had Brady and Bellicheat, but the Broncos had a washed up P. Manning (of course a great defense)
May 10th, 2017 at 10:08 am
@Joe
I enjoy your site immensely however, I could not disagree more with your caution based on your column above.
First, why can’t the Bucs make it to the Super Bowl? Was Atlanta a unanimous favorite to be in the big dance? Answer…No.
Second, let’s look at the rushing attack at least on paper. Atlanta had Devonta Freeman carrying the load right? Well he was only a 4th round pick and is also a small RB at 5’8″ 206 lbs.
Third, he only had 2 100+ yard games and that was against the 49ers and Saints. Not exactly the best defenses in the league by any stretch of the imagination.
4th, He only barely broke 1000 yards on the season with a 4.8 YPC avg however if you drill down into his high Avg YPC in his 2 games versus the Saints and the 49er game, that inflated his numbers. All of this with teams having to respect the Falcons passing game. In game 1 in fact against our Bucs, he only gained 20 yards on 11 carries for a 1.8 YPC avg.
If the Falcons could make it to the Super Bowl based on the above, then give me a concrete reason why the Bucs can not. Just because we have missed the playoffs for so long has no bearing on this season. Besides as you know, we lost out on a playoff spot due to a lousy tie breaker and if we had a real kicker last year we probably would have been a playoff team.
Let the debate begin. š
May 10th, 2017 at 10:40 am
I would not trade a single one of our draft picks for anyone else who was available at those times.
May 10th, 2017 at 10:48 am
As usual I find myself agreeing with Pickgrin and D.R. It’s all about the injuries.’
We have the starting talent but depth is not only a question but in some areas a real concern! We are not yet N.E. or Pitt or G.B. capable of surviving injuries.
Otherwise…the hell with tapping the brakes…I say stand on the freaking accelerator…Minny or Bust!!!
May 10th, 2017 at 11:30 am
Buc1987 Says:
March 26th, 2015 at 6:18 pm
Stpetebucsfanā¦some of these posters might remember my proclamation from 2 months ago.
āJameis Winston will win a Super Bowl within the first 3 years of entering the NFL, whether it be with Bucs or another team.ā
“Nothingās changed on my end since I typed thatā¦.so bring on the Super Bowl.”
Dear God let me be right!
May 10th, 2017 at 11:33 am
Anyone talking Super Bowl doesn’t understand the grind to get there.
One.
Game.
At.
A.
Time.
Winning the SB requires four things:
1) Talent
2) Coaching
3) Health
4) Luck
Teams only control 2 of those 4.
May 10th, 2017 at 1:17 pm
Football hope springs eternal despite a long wait for kickoff. The Bucs show every indication of improving and continuing the climb to the playoffs despite a tougher schedule than last year. The waiting is the hardest part.
May 10th, 2017 at 2:33 pm
Some of you guys need to quit your jobs and go apply for an NFL general manager position because you seem to know better than Jason Licht. Always 2nd guessing who they sign or don’t sign. How is it the games you watch on tv give you more insight than the coaches film and countless hours they spend scouting these players?
I figure in order for us to be Super Bowl contenders we have to be able to beat the teams we shiuld beat ala the Rams and win games we should win ala Raiders. Each year we seem to have these games in our schedule but last year was a great sign of the things to come…….we beat teams we were given no chance to beat. Even though Lambs were our Achilles heel things are looking good.
Every since we drafted Fameis this team has gotten better even as we stumbled. In his rookie season though it ended up being a losing one we had one of the most explosive offenses in the league with one of the best rushing attacks in the league behind a dominant o line. Fameis broke all kinds of passing records and Dougie led the league in 20+yd runs. In his 2nd year Fameis upped his yardage, tds and completion % with only one good receiver but the o line struggled giving up 12 more sacks and struggled in opening good holes(yes Joe they did!) and the backs struggled. The defense struggled the first half but once it turned itself around the offense decided to struggle putting up points. All this adversity yet we missed the playoffs by the slimmest of margins AND we finally had a winning season. Now we’re in in that magical season of Fameis devolpment. If he’s been able to do the things he’s done while struggling and learning I think every Bucs fan has the right to believe the playoffs are the next step. Though he’s made mistakes Licht has made some very good moves to build us set for the future.
May 10th, 2017 at 2:48 pm
^^^^87,
I have never hoped you would be so right about something as much as that!
May 10th, 2017 at 3:12 pm
16 and 0 baby! ’73 Dolphins be damned!
May 10th, 2017 at 3:19 pm
Cobraboy
Great post. And you are absolutely right.
I dont care how talented your team is- you lose your starting QB/DE/LT/or Cb,
And your odds just got worse. Losing your QB? Might as well start tanking for high draft picks immediately, cause you arent going anywhere.
The 5th item, that I might add to your list- is Experience.
Most teams go to the playiffs a time or Two- before they start a serious playoff challenge.
And when has a team excelled in the playoffs- that didnt have a dominant DE?
Or Rushing Lb in a 3-4?
Everyone talks about holes in the lineup, but most ignore the most gaping hole
DE.
Spence- small, coming off surgery
Ayers. Love him- but old and small.
Jaq smith- always in the Tub
Gholsten- only a run stopper. Never has been more.
Dont know what anyone can be looking at, but thise DEs arent getting you out of round one
If they can get there
Todays NFL=
Get a great QB
Pressure opponents QB
Go to playoffs
We are half way there.
May 10th, 2017 at 3:24 pm
^ Um … the Pats dumped Chandler Jones AND Jamie Collins and still won the SB last year … their DE’S weren’t scaring anyone.
May 10th, 2017 at 7:30 pm
Trey Flowers,Chris Long and Jabal Sheperd.
I’d trade ours for theirs.
May 11th, 2017 at 9:52 am
Pawel Says
“Bonzai, itās easy to talk after the draft. How did Licht know Justin Saftey could still be there or better yet your WR Rudolph in 7th round.”
As I said…I made those picks as the Bucs picked in each round. Therefore, he WOULD have known.
May 11th, 2017 at 9:57 am
Joeypoppems Says
@Bonzai
ā…I donāt get it. You say Derel Walker will be more productive than DeSean Jackson this year and then make it sound like Godwin wont have any impact at all. I really dont understand your logic.”
It’s not hard to get at all.
Godwin will be lower on the depth chart and will be backing up Jackson. Assuming Jackson stays healthy, that means Godwin will get fewer touches.
Walker will be playing slot with Humphries, and they rotate the slot more often.
IF Jackson is injured, then the odds are good Walker will get more playing time than him, and therefore, more yards.
But in the end, you don’t really have to understand. Just wait and see.
May 11th, 2017 at 10:00 am
Buc1987 Says
March 26th, 2015 at 6:18 pm
Stpetebucsfanā¦some of these posters might remember my proclamation from 2 months ago.
āJameis Winston will win a Super Bowl within the first 3 years of entering the NFL…”
Ironically, it was St Pete and I who also said a Superbowl this year…making hte three of us a ‘click’!
May 11th, 2017 at 10:01 am
2017 Superbowl Club Members since 2014:
Buc1987
St. Pete
Buccaneer Bonzai