Gerald McCoy Is No Badass, Says Ronde Barber

July 23rd, 2017

Dissed by former teammate.

Oh, boy.

Bucs icon Ronde Barber queued up the legions of Gerald McCoy haters — just in time for training camp week.

Why, Ronde? Why?

Barber talked to Tampa Bay Times columnist Martin Fennelly about what it’s like to be a badass player on a badass team. Seriously, that was the exact theme of the piece.

Barber is unimpressed by the 2017 Bucs when it comes to defining individuals, or the team as a whole, as “badass.”

“Nobody like that jumps out on today’s Bucs. They’re not there. I would say the quarterback (Jameis Winston) fits the mold. He is clearly that guy, the leader,” Barber said.

“But you see an attitude emerging, especially at linebacker. Those two guys, Lavonte (David) and Kwon (Alexander) have to be able to drive the bus, especially Kwon, because he has so much energy. If he can consistently be that guy, it will raise the defense. I love Gerald (McCoy), but for a defensive tackle to drive a team, he has to have a huge personality. I mean like the personality of (Warren) Sapp or a John Randle.

There’s more via the link above. Of course, the genesis of all this comes from Dirk Koetter’s words in April. He said he desires “a badass football team.”

Joe’s conflicted on Barber’s takes. Sure, McCoy isn’t a “badass” based on the vague definition. That’s somewhat obvious. But that doesn’t mean he’s not a great player. Why single him out, Ronde?  Barber went on to call Father Dungy a “badass,” which left Joe a bit confused.

It’s all a bunch of babble. Label Bucs players however you want. As Koetter says, “All that anyone gives a sh*t in this league about is wins.”

66 Responses to “Gerald McCoy Is No Badass, Says Ronde Barber”

  1. buc2 Says:

    That tagline is a lil misleading Joe. Still Ronde calling Dungy a badass might be proof he is smokin dope lol.
    Sorry, Barber lives locally, is very smart, knows all about McCoy and how he’s perceived, and knows how many people would read that.–Joe

  2. Dreambig Says:

    Doesn’t seem to be that big of a diss. Certainly not anything that we don’t already know. GMC is not the guy who is going to drive the team all by himself. Never has been, never will be. But he is still a damn good player. He just needs to be part of the heat not the only source. The better the players around him the better he will be. For years, before last year, our dline was made up entirely of late round picks except for GMC. Now we have better players and our dline is going to be just fine this year!

  3. Buccfan37 Says:

    You can have a touch of meekness and still be a badass football player depending on your personality. Tom Brady a badass, please not in my view. Ronde must be angry looking at his prospects to enter the HOF.

  4. Iamabuc Says:

    I like what Rhonde has done for our team, but ever since he left he has been nothing but a douche about our team. When he started to work the broadcast gig, all he have done is talking bad about the team and putting us down. WTF! Have you guys noticed that he is the only one of our former SB team, that hardly never come to OneBucPlace! Looks he got a itch in the ass with the Bucs. Well, you know, my take…..f…ck you, Barber! We are getting better, and no thanks to you, bitch!

  5. Fred E. Bucs Says:

    Anytime the former Bucs SB D team players talk, they talk like no one will ever be as good as they were. Maybe that’s true. Maybe not. But it’s time for them to give that notion up. Also, as Joe says, you don’t have to be a badass to be GREAT GREAT player…and I’ll add someone who can lead by example. I have three words to best illustrate it: Lee Roy Selmon.

  6. RayJameisStadium Says:

    5 more days….

  7. RayJameisStadium Says:

    Joe is Bad A$$!

  8. Joe Says:

    I like what Rhonde has done for our team

    Who???

    #PetPeeveOfJoe

  9. LouisFriend Says:

    I think you’re trying to stir an empty pot, whichever Joe this is. Ronde was talking about personalities and qualified his remark. There was no slam on McCoy, only truth. Sir. of course, “badass” is about personalities. Look, these are Barber’s quotes about guys with a winning demeanor and on-field personality, not Joe’s. Don’t shoot the messenger. Barber simply stated McCoy isn’t that guy. That’s a dis.–Joe

    McCoy is a very good player, but that’s separate from leadership ability. And there aren’t many McCoy haters, aside from the ones who huff paint and post replies on your posts.

  10. RJBucnut Says:

    Joe I love u but I’m gonna call u out. Ur totally on the fence when it comes to GMC. U hv never called him great since he’s always gonna b compared to #99. Stay consistent w ur take on him. He is definitely not great. Great is HOF material and he’s def not HOF material but I love who GMC us and we can all agree he’s very good. Top 5 DT in the league hands down. I would take him over #99 all day long cuz he’s a waaaaay better person and not that big of a drop off in talent. Had GMC been on supe bowl team he would hv excelled just like pot smoking Dbag#99.
    And why do you get to say “great” is Hall of Fame material like that’s the rule. That’s not fair. Logan Mankins was a great player who made six Pro Bowls. He won’t be in the Hall. Khalil Mack is a truly great player in the league through three years, and he’s got miles to go before he’s whispered in any Hall of Fame conversation. You don’t need to be a Hall of Famer to be great.–Joe

  11. stpetebucsfan Says:

    Hey I love Ronde as much as the next guy. But that’s a clear case of pot meet kettle.

    Ronde had some skill sets for sure…but he was far from a “badasss”. He didn’t light people up when he hit them…I give him props for courage but many times he just wrapped up and waited for the help to arrive. Many times when he blitzed larger QB’s he’d bounce off and have to simply tangle them up. I always gave him slack because of his size but he was never even close to a bad ass.

    Mel Blount of the old Steelers was bad ass Cornerback. I watched him once in a preseason game from the sidelines. He had the angle on a WR with the ball clearly trying to run out of bounds. He didn’t care about the game or down and distance…Blount clearly had one goal…send a message!!! And he DID! I never really saw Ronde sending any messages.

    Hines Ward was a guy who wasn’t that large who was a genuine”badass.”

    Sapp WAS a true badass…DB55 was respected and brought the wood…Simeon was a great athlete and DE but he didn’t crush that many either. Lynch of course was the ultimate head hunter…IF HE had made that statement it would have some credibility.

  12. Joe Says:

    RJ:

    Don’t put words in Joe’s mouth. Joe has never called GMC “great” because, as you suggest, that is Hall of Fame material, and Joe doesn’t believe he is that (yet). That doesn’t mean he’s a bum either just because he doesn’t drink blood and throw babies into campfires or knife people on the sidewalk or get two personal fouls a game for late-hitting a quarterback or stomping on a guy’s leg.

    GMC is a very good player, one of the best at his position currently in the NFL. Anyone who doesn’t believe that has a biased, closed-minded, knuckle-dragging agenda.

    Not sure why people that this unreal standard for GMC yet two guys who until last year were nothing but losers, Lavonte David and Doug Martin, were nothing but losers in the NFL.

    Hell, just coming from David’s own mouth, he’s not a mentally strong person. Martin? Yeah, despite his worst year in the NFL, the team overcame that and recorded its first winning season since he has been on the roster.

    Yet folks crucify GMC. Seems like a major double-standard.

  13. Defense Rules Says:

    I think that folks are throwing the word ‘badass’ around without recognizing that it’s just a slang word with lots of different meanings. For example, Webster defines it as ‘mean; ready to cause or get into trouble’. Don’t think any of our present Bucs qualify there, but who knows. Dictionary.com defines it as ‘mean-tempered; difficult to deal with; touchy’. Nah, not seeing any of our Bucs there either, but again, who knows. The Oxford dictionary defines it as a ‘tough, uncompromising, or intimidating person; formidably impressive’. Yup, like that puppy. And I hope that’s the definition Coach Koetter was thinking of when he said he wanted a badass team. And BTW, a lot of our current Bucs would qualify under that definition IMO … including GMC.

  14. LifeOfABucFan Says:

    @Joe…
    Pet peeve of mine too..

    Rhonde ..lol…who?

    and whoever here types “Quon” instead of Kwon…can’t remember who..

  15. godzilla13 Says:

    Robert Ayers is a BADASS.

  16. Buccaneer scotty Says:

    Joe is a chump

  17. stpetebucsfan Says:

    D.R.

    I’m just starting in my second career writing. I appreciate the meaning of words!

    Thanks for that exercise! Definitions are imperative if we wish to be sure we’re all talking about the same thing.

    For me there are some guys who literally enjoy hitting and hurting people. I’m OK with that as long as it’s legal and not dirty. For others here I feel they seem to respect players who are badasses OFF the field…and so Richie scumbag Incognito…Greg woman beating Hardy and Joe Mixon are attractive. Not for me.

  18. bucs_365 Says:

    From the quote above, it seems like all Ronde said was that McCoy didn’t have that huge personality like Warren Sapp. BFD!!! How many players do? You become badass by winning and being relentless. McCoy is already a relentless worker. They just gotta win. No story here.

  19. Nole on Sat- Bucc on Sun Says:

    What Pete said man. And Iam that mofo use to kill me when he did play by play for Bucs games. I use to be like “what the f@$! wrong wit this guy”. I mean it use to seem like he took pleasure in downing the Bucs. We didn’t have top notch football players so I didn’t understand the need for him go inn on the team the way he did. No disrespect to the old guard. But like Sapp said “if I had that QB I would have four or five rings” that’s the difference. We have a bonafide Ba@$$ QB now.

  20. Nole on Sat- Bucc on Sun Says:

    When you got one of those don’t take all that long for the rest to follow suit. Ask them folks in green bay. How many of they’re players would be notable in other places were it not for #12??? Matthews,Daniels,Micah Hide who else??? Nelson??? please..

  21. Iamabuc Says:

    Oooookk, Joe…….thanks for the “grammar” lesson. Ronde. But…you got the point, didn’t you? …after all, I’m just a puertorrican, who happens to be the number 1 Buc fan of my people. Sorry….

  22. CautiousOptimism Says:

    That Ronde is nothing but a “hater”, right Joe?

  23. Buc 4ever Says:

    What Ronde meant was Dungy’s defensive plan was a bad ass mentality. From each line of defense he wanted his players to cause pain, from Sapp to Brooks to Lynch. Not someone as McCoy to sack someone by their shoe laces and then help them up or say “sorry Mr. Bray can you slow down” as he is running a two-minute drill on you. This is McCoy’s last year to show some grit or move on. We need a BEAST in the middle, not a mild mannered Mr. NICE GUY.

  24. Kevin Nieto Says:

    The entire organization, fan base, media establishment, and extended Bucs community has to let the past go and move on. It’s nice that Fenelly can fill the need for a column in late July and all and I have nothing but respect for Barber – I even put him on my Bucs Mt. Rushmore- but this is nonsense. I loved that team but now, 15 years later, comparing that team to this team serves no purpose. It’s time to move on, honor and respect what came before, and embrace what lies ahead. Speak softly my friends.

  25. buc2 Says:

    Word up Joe. I loved your reply man. I am still disappointed to hear Barbers take on the Bucs here. Go G-I-Joe!!! U all bring it as usual my dude(s.)

    Thanks

  26. BigHogHaynes Says:

    GMC is Great …he will be in the HALL…F*ck Barber… Bye Rhonda!!

  27. BigMacAttack Says:

    Hopefully this will just drive the whole team to strive harder and reach the pinnacle of success. Sometimes guys need that. This is their best opportunity in some time and I can’t wait to get this party started!
    Go Bucs!!!

  28. BigMacAttack Says:

    Never above you, never below you, always beside you.

  29. mike10 Says:

    GMC is not a hall of famer, part of the problem is that we expect him to be.

    93 is a good player, not great. And for someone like Ayers to swoop in and be a leader in just 1 year speaks to 93s shortcomings.

  30. Jim Says:

    I think whether or not McCoy is a badass is best answered by the offensive lineman on the other 3 NFC South teams.

  31. Tampabaybucfan Says:

    Speaking for Pablo

    “Pablo is a badass…….don’t mess with Pablo…..Pablo made a pass one time on a Dale Mabry chica……after getting closer, Pablo noticed an Adam’s apple…..now that was some bad a$$.”

  32. macabee Says:

    According to Greg Auman, TBT, 6 Buc players have murals at Ray Jay. Mike Evans and D-Jax share one, Kwon and Lavonte share another and there are two solo murals. One is obviously our budding franchise QB Jameis Winston and occupying the northwest corner all by himself is the under-appreciated and debatable badass…..drum roll…….Gerald McCoy. I can see the late Paul Newman looking up and saying with amazement “somebody up there likes me”. Lol.

  33. RJBucnut Says:

    Joe in this article u called GMC a great player. R u high? It’s ok but in this article u say that even though he’s not a bad ass it doesn’t mean he’s not a great player insinuating he’s a great player just not a bad ass. Come on brotato chip!!
    He is a great player, easily in the top 5 in the NFL at his position.-Joe

  34. JonBuc Says:

    Ronde is honest…not sure we can say that @ his “evil” twin. McCoy was mentioned on Ballers playing on HBO ( signed up for it in time for Hard Knocks )…so McCoy has that going for him. And the richest pair of Buc contracts in history ( combined…and it ain’t even close.)

  35. NJBucsFan Says:

    Are we sure it’s not Tiki posing as Ronde

  36. Eric Says:

    63 never was a big talker.

  37. BigMacAttack Says:

    Good one Jersey. Zing!

  38. USFBUC Says:

    I think some WR getting hung up on the word great. GMC is a great DT among current players based on his role as a 3 technique, statistically (I believe) he has been a top five DT every year or nearly every year he has been in the NFL.

  39. DB55 Says:

    We were generally nice guys. But when it came to Sunday, we turned into (jerks). Mike T. (former Bucs secondary coach and Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin) said it best: ‘You’ve got to be an angry worker.’
    ————
    I just leave this here: 🎤💧

  40. NFLNut Says:

    The badass’ on this team are Jameis and Kwon and everyone else can follow their lead for the next decade …

  41. webster Says:

    Some of you should be embarrassed as socalled buc fans. Barber was speaking the truth. He is now part of the media and his job is not to blow smoke. Was barber suppose to say the bucs are a playoff team when they went 4-12 under schiano? Was he supposed to say the bucs will win 11 games when they went into a season with glennon and mccown as the qbs? Was barber suppose to predict superbowl coming off a 2-14 season? Do you see what happened to fisher when he battled with eric dickerson? Dickerson was right, the rams sucked and barber was right because the bucs sucked. Ronde is a top 5 buccaneer of all times. He is 2nd in tkls, 1st in ints, has 28 sacks and most consecutive games played. So yes, he was a badass. He has earned the right to speak his mind. He knows what a badass looks like being that he was one and he played with a few. He knows what it takes to win it all and unfortunately many on this team has not displayed that mentality the past few years. Some of you cant handle the truth so you prefer to be lied to and bash an all time great in order to make you feel better. Some of you guys do not deserve a barber because you bash them even when he is telling the truth. Here is a suggestion, instead of bashing ronde, demand more from these current players. You guys should be ashamed of yourselves.

  42. webster Says:

    Maybe some of you so called buc fans must have forgot that ronde is 4th on the all time list for non offensive touchdowns scored with 14. It must be because the bucs have not had a badass player in so long some of you forgot what that looked like. To the forgetful who are trying to critique his tackling, please remember one of the main reason he played nickle in the 3 wr sets is because he was like another linebacker and was so stout against the run. If mccoy and others over the past few years had a qtr of the badass as ronde, we could have been a lot better. I am at a lost with some of the garbage I am reading here. Again, you should be ashamed.

  43. Blake_bucsfan Says:

    Joe Says:
    July 23rd, 2017 at 5:45 pm
    RJ:

    Don’t put words in Joe’s mouth. Joe has never called GMC “great”

    ——————————————————————————

    July 23rd, 2017 at 8:45 pm

    …He is a great player, easily in the top 5 in the NFL at his position.-Joe

    Never change Joe.

  44. Buc4Lyfe79 Says:

    Barber “is very smart”
    Not when you vote for obama twice.

  45. Thespiritof1976 Says:

    That 2002 defense is starting to sound like a bunch of bitter old men .

    Hey Ronde: Was it badass when you blew a three touchdown lead with 4 minutes left on national TV ? Was it badass when you repeatedly folded against offenses in the closing minutes of games in 2003, thus costing the team a chance to defend its title ?

    Was it badass that your twin brother is an adulterous jerk ?

  46. Thespiritof1976 Says:

    @ Blake: Joe has become a stale hack.

    Give me PR or bucpower instead.

    This site has become garbage.

    Hey Joe – do.something about the bots that keep infiltrating peoples.computers from Abe’s place instead of.trying to.stir.up.junk.

  47. LongSeason Says:

    Gerald is too sophisticated and such a nice guy (one of the nicest guys to ever play football). I don’t know if he can be a bad ass. It is possible, thought. Lee Roy Selmon was a super nice guy and is the other nicest player in NFL history. He was a bad ass on the football field. There were games he took over where he would use a swim move to beat a triple team with two offensives linemen and a running back (swim under left/swim over right at the same time) and then mow down a running back to get to the Quarterback. Now that is bad ass. Then he would help the Quarterback up he just plastered.

    McCoy starts busting up triple teams like that then he gets the label bad ass.

  48. The Buc Realist Says:

    Rhonde Barber is Great, and will soon be in the Hall of Fame!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  49. BigHogHaynes Says:

    ^^^^Rhonda Barber is a freakin “turncoat” Bye Rhonda!!

  50. Dlavid Says:

    Ronde is right . McCoy is not a leader . Give all the reasons or excuses you want but the results remain the same . This D has been to passive in attitude for to long .

  51. Jdr Says:

    #writer #drama queen s&^+ stirring headline #word_twisting to get people to read an article…. and to use a Buc all time great. Bad journalism.
    Joe will allow this dart since it’s so far off the mark it’s entertaining. Sorry, sir or ma’am, Joe is not going to ignore an all-time great weighing in on Gerald McCoy with a negative slant — to a big-name columnist he’s known for years. –Joe

  52. Bucsfanman Says:

    Who cares if he’s a “leader” or not?! He’s easily the 2nd best DT this team has ever had and consistently one of the best DTs in the NFL.
    You guys forget how void of talent this roster has been during the time he’s been here. Not to mention how some think that being a loud-mouth has something to do with leadership.
    What Ronde says is 100% correct. Nobody WAS afraid of this defense. GMC doesn’t have the reputation or size of Suh. With the additions around him, it’s no longer needed for him to be the perceived “leader” of the defense. Anyway, since when was a DT the leader on D? That wasn’t the case when Sapp was here. So, why would we expect it from GMC.
    This topic remains one of the dumbest “conversations” on JBF. GMC is a good football player. PERIOD, end of story.

  53. BucTrooper Says:

    Ronde is right. McCoy isn’t scary.

    SUH is scary. After he sacks the QB he goes after his family.

  54. webster Says:

    Voting for obama twice was smart. Majority of the country thought so too and it proved to be right. Sorry you too alt-right to see it

  55. webster Says:

    @ bucsfanman

    I could agree if hardy nickerson didnt come before gerald. You want to see a team devoid of talent, look no further than those teams pre brooks and sapp. No one ever questioned whether or not hardy was a badass. His nickname was hardware!!!! It doesnt get more badass than that. Btw…not having so-called talent around you is no excuse for not being a badass yourself.

  56. Bucsfanman Says:

    No disagreement there webster. Being a ‘bad-ass’ and being a good player are two different things. To my knowledge, GMC has never been labeled a “bad-ass”.
    To your last sentence on talent, above you mentioned:
    “If mccoy and others over the past few years had a qtr of the badass as ronde, we could have been a lot better.”
    I disagree. Having “bad-asses” does not always equate to wins. Hardy was on awful teams as was Ronde. Their presence alone did not elevate those teams to wins.

  57. stpetebucsfan Says:

    Wow. So some have said Ronde was a “badarse” because of his stats.

    He had incredible longevity which added greatly to those career numbers.

    But he NEVER was a feared hitter. He just is not physical badasss…he made his bones using his brain not smashing people.

    And so if GMC is able to play another five six years on really good teams thereby helping his stats and he ends up with the greatest number of sacks of any Bucs player will that make him a badass? I’ve NEVER equated stats with being a badass….the two are not related…”some” not all great players were badasses….”some” bad asses were great players….putting up big numbers….being great is simply not the same as being a badass.

    Again…watch Mel Blount play corner back and watch Ronde and it’s night and day in terms of physicality. I simply do not see how you can be a bad ass when your game is totally lacking in physicality.

  58. webster Says:

    @ bucsfanman

    Badass get the most out of yourself and others. So a 2-14 team could actually be 6-10 if they embrace that type of mentality. The bucs do not go 6-10 without winston his rookie year. Rmember winston’s epic post game speech at the end of the season? “He said some of these guys have to learn the why’s. Why do we play this game. Trust me things will change in this lockerroom.” You dont have to tell a badass why he plays the game because they already. I dont know if joe will write about it, but its a great article with sapp talking about badasses and everyone he points out has a different mentality on the field than many of our bucs.

  59. webster Says:

    @ st.pete

    You make my point for me. Some of you guys do not even know what bad ass mean and you are one st. Pete. Go read the article with sapp explaining bad ass. He mentions deion sanders. Deion is not physical but he made plays at all times. Barber made plays his entire career. He was always around the ball causing fumbles and recovering fumbles. His preparation during the week allowed him to compile stats. That is badass. His toughness to play with a club on his hands when the doctors told him he would miss 5 weeks and his reponse was you have 4 days. That equals badass. I am sorry you do not know the definition. You think it has to do with physicallity. It has everything to do with having that dawg in you and there were not any player that brought more dawg than ronde. Played way bigger than his size. You are wrong on so many levels that it aint funny. Like winston says, real recognize real and ask sapp how he views ronde and vice versa.

  60. Bucsfanman Says:

    webster- You can’t squeeze blood from a turnip! (Where the heck did they get this saying?!).
    How does GMC get more out of “Ghost” Johnson, for instance? There’s nothing there! I get your point that you need swagger. I would argue that it’s better to have team swagger than individual players though. A lot of people forget about Brian Kelly who played opposite Ronde. Kelly was as much ‘bad-ass’ as Ronde during his time here but people forget about him. I think it’s because of the TEAM mindset more so than individual’s.
    You can tell that this team’s mindset is changing. When we start winning consistently, the swagger will come with it.

  61. webster Says:

    @ bucfann

    I can care less about swagger. Im talking being a badass. Reggie white did not play with swagger but he was a badass on the field. I can care less if mccoy can get anything out of ghost johnson. Where is mccoy’s badass play? I will take him worrying about himself before anyone else. Fyi….we do see jameis squeezing blood out of turnips. The lounge singer or canadian stampeder? Jameis threw for 4000 yards and 2000 went to evans, brate and humphries. Where did the other 2000 yards come from? The turnips.

  62. Bucsfanman Says:

    webster- He’s top 5. That’s pretty good play. I’m not sure what you expect from him. I mean he is clearly not a Jameis or Kwon. Why would you expect more? Therein lies the rub. We expect something that’s not there. He’s a good player, why shouldn’t that be enough? It’s a team game.
    You SHOULD care about swagger! It’s those ‘bad-ass’ teams that have swagger.

  63. webster Says:

    @ bucsfan

    I never said that gmc just being a good player is not enough. He is who he is. That is why i was defending barber because that is exactly what he said yet posters are bashing ronde. Yes jameis is a badass as is kwon but mccoy is not. You made my point. And the fact that he was not a bad ass slowed down the winning mentality culture. As barber and sapp said, your bad ass is jameis. We finally agree bucfan.

  64. Bucsfanman Says:

    Yea, I wasn’t sure of the point you were trying to make. That said, I do think that lack of talent does play a small role in obtaining a ‘winning culture.’
    I think that there are two schools when it comes to GMC and people on either side have polar opposite opinions sometimes. Ronde’s comments probably fueled this “spat”!

  65. webster Says:

    Im glad we are on the same page. I will say that brady is a bad ass. Up until about 07, everybody would ask who is brady’s wide receivers. They were nobodies but he made them better. To just simply say mccoy did not play with anybody is not holding him accountable. He is great individually but not great as a talent elevator. We have already seen jameis elevate subpar talent. That is the difference.

  66. Buc4Lyfe79 Says:

    @Webster says: “Voting for obama twice was smart. Majority of the country thought so too and it proved to be right. Sorry you too alt-right to see it”

    So I guess it makes me “alt-right” to point out how even though obama stated that he was going to and was having “the most transparent administration ever,”
    he turned around and ordered his presidential records sealed.

    “Most transparent administration ever.” Yeah, if you accept that every decision he made was to cripple the country, everything he did then becomes very transparent and makes total sense. I’ll be a non-political blinders wearing common sense loving hard working GOD fearing “alt-right” American any day, over a moronic dumbass saul alinsky’s playbook loving socialist socialite “Webster.”
    #TRUTH