Swaggy Weighs In

September 6th, 2017

Offered his take.

Roughly an hour before the NFL announced the Bucs would not play the Dolphins to open the season, and instead play the game Nov. 19, shy practice-hating, kicker-heckling, tree-grinding Swaggy Baker shared his thoughts on Twitter about the potential of not having a bye week.

Let’s just say Swaggy is miffed enough to try to enlist the help of the NFLPA in the matter.

Joe understands the plight of the players. No one wanted this outcome. Yeah, it sucks.

But Joe cannot empathize much with roughly 100 players being inconvenienced by losing out on a weekend off in November when potentially hundreds of thousands of folks could be left homeless and seeing their life’s dreams and priceless belongings scattered across the Everglades by this monster storm known as Hurricane Irma.

Not to mention the untold number of lives that could (will?) be lost if one of the strongest storms ever recorded hits the Sunshine State.

86 Responses to “Swaggy Weighs In”

  1. Casey Morgan Says:

    This is ridiculous. They could have easily moved the game to any number of NFL stadiums. 10-6 could easily turn into 8-8…

  2. Gencoimports Says:

    What would the NFL had done had the Bucs and Dolphins had different bye weeks? They would have had no choice to move the game or played it on Thursday/Friday, which is what they should have actually done.

    I just hope the Bucs can earn a week 18 bye.

  3. Etzel Says:

    2018 our year…..

  4. firethecannons Says:

    I’m wit Swaggy on this, worrying over people who dont give a shet is too politically correct. Game could be played anywhere in USA Could ba direct hite played tomorrow, Friday, Sat, Sunday, or Monday, wtf! Storm aint even a direct hit I am born n raised wpb,fl BS!!

  5. shouldhavedraftedeifert Says:

    Terrible start to the year, almost feels cursed already. Joe like your take that they’ll have plenty of tape on Chicago. That’s the only benefit I can see from this cluster fak and maybe so extra time for Kwon to heal that hammy.

  6. libucfan Says:

    Agree with Swaggy on this one, This is a $$$ decision by the NFL. There are many spots this game could have been played this weekend. Ridiculous!!

  7. TampaTown Says:

    NO ONE is diminishing the impact this Hurricane could have on people’s lives but that’s NOT what we’re talking about here. The game could be moved to Tampa, Orlando or Jacksonville. It really should be Thursday or Friday night. I want to strangle someone.

  8. A$$man Says:

    Anyone know how this affects Doug Martin’s 3 game suspension? Will he only miss 2 games now?

  9. Since76 Says:

    Genco –

    The Bucs have had far too many week 18 byes in recent years. And week 19, and…

  10. Bob in Valrico Says:

    While the health and welfare to everyone who is the eventual path of the hurricane’s
    path is the immediate concern.I can think of no good reason for 30 teams to get the unfair advantage of a bye and not our Fl. teams.Not Fair League made lame effort to work out a fair solution.

  11. Dusthty Rhothdes Says:

    Genco well stated and the NFL is thinking of families of the team’s families but I mean fly the families up to Philly or Pitt and play the game? Pretty easy choice, so a few ppl show up the NFL is currently having a team play every game in LA in front of 18,000 fans each game….i hear the the safety thing but this a multi billion dollar organization with deals with airlines and planes to fly families out of town and to safety, ridiculous and as stated in another post the NFL has moved games before due to collapsing roofs etc….

  12. TampaTown Says:

    How about starting in week 5 the entire NFL schedule gets moved up one week and no one gets a bye week? That’s not only fair but equally as stupid as not playing our game in the week it should be played. How about next year the Bucs and Dolphins get TWO bye weeks? If this affected the Patriots or Cowboys something would be done.

  13. J mone sec 147 Says:

    Bullspit!!!!!!!!! Fakkkkkk

  14. Rob Says:

    Sheesh Joe… Its’ not just about having a week off for the sake of having a free weekend. It’s about having an extra week to game plan for an opponent once a week. It’s about resting injured players. It’s about getting a mental and physical break late in the season before your (hopefully) playoff run.

    Meanwhile, every team will get that advantage except the Bucs and Dolphins.

    Any way you slice it, it’s a competitive disadvantage.

  15. Rob Says:

    * Once a year, didn’t mean to say once a week.

  16. BigDirk Says:

    To protest their lack of a bye, both Miami and the Bucs should agree to sit their starters for that game. Stick it back to the NFL.

  17. James Walker Says:

    16 weeks from now Irma will be gone and repairs will ongoing. 16 weeks from now the Bucs will have lost games because of injuries due to not having a break.

  18. BoJim Says:

    Sheesh people, Some of you are real dicks. It’s only a fricken game. Irma is not.

  19. Bucsalltheway Says:

    They should have moved it to London in the am like the redskins Bengals game last year at least I know it wouldn’t result in a tie. That was the worst thing to watch ever…but breakfast and bucs football sounds ideal.

  20. TampaTown Says:

    NO ONE is minimizing Irma or its impact. That’s not what we’re talking about here. Duh.

  21. Max Says:

    Neutral site would have been so easy. Greedy NFL owners and incompetent buffoons at the league office win again.

  22. TampaTown Says:

    Another location can still be done.

  23. Buccaneer Bonzai Says:

    Doesn’t surprise me that Baker is the first one to complain.

  24. Blake_bucsfan Says:

    @TampaTown

    Nope the verdict has already been made.

    And ANYONE who thinks that this decision is about anything thing other than the league/ Miami not wanting to refund tickets and lose revenue; You’re delusional.

  25. Lord Cornelius Says:

    Stop saying you can’t feel sorry for the players because of the hurricane.

    That’s like saying you can’t feel sorry for a guy who tore his ACL because 911 happened that same day.

    It’s not like the players want people to die from the hurricane and therefore deserve no sympathy for getting f*cked out of their only bye week for the season. Moving the game to a neutral stadium outside of FL doesn’t make FL less safe for this hurricane.

    It’d be one thing if people were saying “f*ck people’s safety I want football” but that isn’t the sentiment. Classic strawman

  26. Dlavid Says:

    Decision by the NFL is BS . Everyone talking about the tragedy to other people’s live has nothing at all to do with this . The hurricane will happen regardless of the NFL . Moving the game to another site was the best solution. The players have no problem leaving family etc. as this is common practice during the NFL season and family can travel to safety if needed . Shaggy finally gets one right and spoke his mind !

  27. BucYouUp Says:

    This has nothing to do with innocent lives and everything to do with the Dolphins missing out on the money they bring in from a home game… Player’s safety is never the concern and anything other than the owners bottom line will never dictate any of the decisions that the NFL makes.

  28. Louis Says:

    This game could have been played Thursday . still plenty of time to bug out afterwards

  29. AJ Says:

    Guess a bunch of you guys owe Rick Stroud an apology. He predicated this yesterday…

  30. steve from oregon Says:

    I normally do not comment; however, the incompetence by some posting should be addressed.

    The comment above…its so easy to move it to a neutral site? (SMH)

    Do you have any what type of a logistical nightmare that is? Not only do you have to handle the arrangements for your teams, the hosting stadium needs to assemble thousands of staff to put on a game.

    On top of that, players and staff may be personally affected by the potential harm of the impending HURRICANE and want to take care of and be there with their loved ones.

    I understand being disappointed about missing the game this Sunday, but check your priorities.

  31. Rod Munch Says:

    So let’s say you have a week 5 bye, then make it to the playoffs as a wild card, then you get to the SB – the Super Bowl is the 16th week of consecutive play, I guess you just don’t play the game because it’s not “safe”?

    Here’s a clue, if you want a “safe” job go work in a cubicle somewhere making $8/hour – that’s really safe.

  32. Buccaneer Bonzai Says:

    AJ Says
    “Guess a bunch of you guys owe Rick Stroud an apology. He predicated this yesterday…”

    Seems even a broken clock can be right twice each day.

  33. NewTampaChris Says:

    Whatever. I’m sure Fatso will create his own bye weeks with a few missed games due to “injuries.”

  34. ClodHopper Says:

    Dear Swaggy, You should be planning on 17-18 straight weeks!!

  35. GhostofSchiano Says:

    I think in all fairness that this at least counts towards Doug Martins suspension as he would have been back / available for week 4. Now he will not be available until week five. Fair is fair Goodell.

    I like the idea of moving the game to Doak Campbell stadium tomorrow or Friday.

  36. stpetebucsfan Says:

    Man I’ve never heard such panty wetting!!! Player safety. Cmon. Either a player is ready to play or he is not!!! His safety is neither improved nor damaged by 16 straight weeks or the lack of a bye. If a player is hurt and there is no bye he still does not play!!! Concussion protocols in particular are NEVER voided these days.

    Now for some facts as to competitive disadvantage. We are freaking out far out of proportion to the actual advantage competitively after a bye.

    I’ve posted the links and stats to the facts on IRA’s thread.

    Bottom line…teams coming off a bye win at a 52-53% clip not exactly an overwhelming advantage. And in fact it varies with coaches as you can see in the links I provided. EG…Mike Shanahan and Andy Reid were wizards using that extra week…Mike Holmgren..not so much.

  37. Buc ball Says:

    There is no good reason why this game couldn’t have been moved to a neutral field.

    Profits have taken priority over player safety.

  38. GhostofSchiano Says:

    Hypothetically speaking here but –

    What if Tropical Storm Jose strengthens……Could we potentially be looking at week three as opening day? Just a thought.

    For the NFL being a multi-billon dollar organization they have zero contingency plans for things.

  39. GhostofSchiano Says:

    @ stpetebucsfan

    I agree with you to a point. I just wonder if the Bucs getting to watch the Bears play this Sunday will expose any weaknesses we can exploit?

  40. Rod Munch Says:

    Actually lets say the hurricane does directly hit Miami on Sunday – playing at a neutral site is a terrible idea because you could legit end up not being able to get back into Miami for days. I’m not on the panicky Pete train, but I do agree with the idea being that if you’re not playing it in Miami this weekend, don’t play it somewhere else.

  41. Buc ball Says:

    @ Rod Munch

    I can understand that view, but I genuinely don’t think the NFL would have postponed the game if Miami was the road team.

  42. bucster Says:

    Why do people keep insisting the game be moved to another location? What a one-two punch to the nads of the people of Miami if that happened – Hurricane Irma and lose a home game. If this were a Bucs home game, I don’t think near as many people would be clamoring for the game to be somewhere else.

  43. JonBuc Says:

    Baker doesn’t want to play 16 straight minutes let alone games…so take it for what it’s worth. It is what it is…get ready to host the Galloping Giraffe in 10 days and worry about Week 11 when it’s time.

  44. Richard Says:

    A neutral site game means players and staff possibly leaving family behind as a Category 4/5 hurricane bears down on them. And maybe not being able to get back home after the game if conditions are bad in the aftermath. It’s not as simple as “Hey, play where there’s not a hurricane.”

  45. Bobby B Says:

    Show of hands. How many of you would go off to work a job when a hurricane is bearing down on your home and family? While it’s not as big of a threat for the Tampa family, it is very real for those in Miami. Even if I did make that kind of money, I’m with my family.

  46. JabooBuc Says:

    Isn’t he the last guy that should be complaining about this? Didn’t he just take the last 4 weeks off?

  47. NFLNut Says:

    1. Bucs have to play 16 straight games, something 30 other teams don’t have to do

    2. Bucs lose ability for an extra week to prepare for division opponent and playoff competition (Falcons) but gain it for the lowly Bears

    3. Bucs lose the ability to play Doug Martin against a conference opponent and playoff competition (Giants) but get to play him against Miami

    ALL of the above is HORRIBLE news for the Bucs!

  48. darin Says:

    Dammmm I thought we were gona hear swaggys weight…swaggy weigbs in….at 386

  49. zwak Says:

    Richard Says:

    A neutral site game means players and staff possibly leaving family behind as a Category 4/5 hurricane bears down on them.

    Yea because flying their families out to be with them at a much safer location wont be an option?

    The Tampa Bay area is some how protected from hurricanes they never come here and this one wont either trust me..

  50. Rod Munch Says:

    Buc ball – I agree, if it was a road game then the game isn’t called off, but it’s the combo of moving the game unexpectedly, losing a home game AND all the other stuff. The two teams have a bye week on the same week, that is by far the most sensible thing to do for all involved, and that includes the Dolphins and their fans who already lose a game to playing in London.

  51. TampaTown Says:

    If the game was played on Thursday none of those variables would be an issue. Even at a neutral location I everyone would be home Thursday night.

  52. Rod Munch Says:

    Playing 16 straight is not a huge disadvantage, it’s just not that big of a deal. If people are going to do the boo hoo game of whinning then I fully expect to hear from the Bears fans who will now say they’re at a disadvantage because the Bucs get an extra week half week to gameplan for them unexpectedly.

    People need to whine less. The team in most years lately has been stuck with early bye weeks which are worse than no bye week. Nothing like being 4 games into the season, all hyped up for football, only to get a week 5 bye. The difference between a week 1 and a week 5 bye just isn’t that big of deal. In fact in most years teams complain about having early byes saying they don’t do anything to help the team since everyone is healthy and it kills momentum.

  53. Rod Munch Says:

    zwak – You make a valid point about this area being shielded from hurricanes, we’ve had two direct hits in the last 170 years. NYC has had more direct hits than we have (actually a lot more).

    What it is – I think – is that MacDill has a hurricane deflector shield in place. I mean why would the US military put MacDill, the central command for the middle east, in an area where if you have an 18 inch storm surge it floods the entire base? It makes no sense.

    Alex Jones, get on it!

  54. dooshlarue Says:

    I just hope poor Swaggy can get his deposit back from Golden Corral. I think he had it reserved for a personal feast that weekend.
    I also hope Irma doesn’t uproot too many of his girlfriends/dancing partners.

    And once again to all of you freaking crybabies……
    This isn’t as big a deal as you’re making it out to be.
    If we’re a good team, this means nothing.

    Go BUCS!

  55. unbelievable Says:

    But Joe cannot empathize much with roughly 100 players being inconvenienced by losing out on a weekend off in November when potentially hundreds of thousands of folks could be left homeless and seeing their life’s dreams and priceless belongings scattered across the Everglades by this monster storm known as Hurricane Irma.

    Yea except the second part you mentioned can and will happen either way. So on top of the potential destruction, loss of property, lives, etc., the team and players ALSO get screwed out of a critical week of rest, late in the season.

    The situation sucks for everyone except the NFL, who literally doesn’t care at all because it’s not the pats, giants, cowboys, steelers or broncos who are being affected. So they did absolutely nothing to ensure competitive fairness amongst all 32 teams.

  56. TampaTown Says:

    Yes an early bye week sucks and for once we got the last bye week. Better have the last bye week next year. I’m pi$$ed off because the NFL is so effing clueless and ineffectual.

  57. TampaTown Says:

    @unbelievable:
    That’s what I said earlier. If it was one of those teams you bet your a$$ this game would be played, somehow, someway. Just like Ezekiel Elliott “somehow” made it past the deadline and OH! WHAT A SURPRISE! is playing Sunday night against the NY Giants. You think Robert Kraft or Jerry Jones would tolerate no bye week? No effing way.

  58. Rod Munch Says:

    For all the panicky Pete’s here’s an article from the Washington Post where they say the Tampa Bay region is actually due to be destroyed by a hurricane and it would do more damage than any other place in America.

    I always heard it was 2nd most, behind NYC, but here they say most, which makes sense since Pinellas County would be basically wiped out by a Katrina type storm with that type of storm surge. When I say wiped out, I mean wiped out, as almost the entire county would be feet underwater and all those old 1950s-1970s houses everywhere, they’d all be destroyed.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2017/health/environment/tampa-bay-climate-change/

    Anywho share this with anyone already freaking out, maybe if they read it they’ll move back up north where they came from and hopefully stay there.

  59. TampaTown Says:

    Amen. Welcome to Florida. Now go home.

  60. Alanbucsfan Says:

    If NFL eliminated 4th pre season game, they could add another bye week … oh wait, that would reduce revenues, never mind

  61. Rod Munch Says:

    Alanbucsfan – They have had 2 bye weeks in the past, and they wouldn’t actually be giving up anything, they’d be making more money since the NFL makes way more off TV deals than they do off ticket sales and they’d be adding a week to the TV schedule. I was a fan of the 2 bye weeks since it made the season longer but didn’t take the importance off each individual game. I believe it was the players that hated it because it made the season too long – which is funny because now they complain about not having bye weeks.

  62. Pat Says:

    Player safety has never been part of why there is a bye week in the NFL. This is a BS argument to begin with.

  63. cmurda Says:

    Let’s clear up a few things.

    1) Doug Martin was suspended for 4 GAMES. 4 GAMES. 4 GAMES. 1 of which he served last year. He was suspended 4 GAMES, not weeks. Do you follow me here?

    2) The NFL royally screwed the Phins and Bucs due to Mother Nature. There is no spinning this Joe. You can’t compare past generations that didn’t have a bye week to generations that are much more brutal, stronger and faster. The bye week is an opportunity for these men to heal and refresh.

    3) Did I say the NFL screwed the pooch?

    That should help clear up some questions and concerns.

  64. TampaTown Says:

    I want to fly to New York, bust into Roger Goodell’s office, kick his door down, then use his face as a speed bag. For 1). Not having a contingency plan in place and 2). Scheduling a home game in Miami the first week of September. Who’s with me?

  65. Pat Says:

    @cmurda

    You said:

    You can’t compare past generations that didn’t have a bye week to generations that are much more brutal, stronger and faster. The bye week is an opportunity for these men to heal and refresh.

    If this is true – and I believe it is – then having only one bye week in the NFL season is not enough.

  66. Mike Johnson Says:

    CRAPOLA!! Don’t matter. Good teams will win regardless of thy..My..or Bye!!!.
    If you want to be the best? You gotta beat the best. No excuses Bucs. Get her done..period!!!!

  67. Pickgrin Says:

    “having only one bye week in the NFL season is not enough.”

    True statement. This year we have NONE.

    Time to lose the 3rd and 4th preseason games and add 2 extra bye weeks for all teams to the season for a total of 3 byes for each team with a 16 game season played over 19 weeks. Win-win-win for players, paying fans and owners

  68. Rod Munch Says:

    cmurda – LOL! The NFL messed up because they can’t control what the state does in case of a CAT5 hurricane? Wow. People are just insane with what they think is controllable and what isn’t. The only thing the NFL did wrong was cancel the game too early in the process, they should have waited until today or tomorrow just to make sure the forecast was going to verify.

    Also yes, you can compare things between now and in the past. In the past players practiced much harder, much more often and had less gear and less safe rules.

    When the bye week was introduced, as I wrote above, it was done to give TV networks an extra week of broadcasting – it had nothing to do with player safety. In fact the players complained that it made the NFL season longer and they were against it.

    People need to stop whinning and wanting to be victims of everything. So they have to play on a week they didn’t think they’d play – and they get off a week they didn’t think they’d get off. Deal with it.

  69. dooshlarue Says:

    Brutal, stronger and faster = Dick Butkus, Mean Joe Greene and Cliff Branch.

    Stop buying into the Extreme Generation BS.
    You know those Gatorade and Nike commercials aren’t real right?
    Also seems to me that back in the old days a lot of NFL players would play offense AND defense.

    They also didn’t seem to get hurt as often.

    Why do you think that is?

    You crybabies make me laugh.
    Man up already, will ya?

  70. GhostofSchiano Says:

    cmurda Says:

    September 6th, 2017 at 2:06 pm

    Let’s clear up a few things.

    1) Doug Martin was suspended for 4 GAMES. 4 GAMES. 4 GAMES. 1 of which he served last year. He was suspended 4 GAMES, not weeks. Do you follow me here?

    That is very clear. The point is the game is now CANCELED, the GAME should count towards his suspension. If Martin was injured and could not play, the game would still count, would it not. Hey, I’m reaching for any silver lining I can find in this. Disappointed like everyone else here.

  71. Bucamania Says:

    I guess some of you guys don’t remember when there were no byes. Teams played 16 games straight.

    16 games. No byes. No problem.

  72. Dreambig Says:

    Surprise surprise, the fat guy who doesn’t like to practice is complaining about a management decision to deal with a cat 5 hurricane. At least his character is consistent.

  73. Dreambig Says:

    Ghost, Joe cleared this up multiple times yesterday. DM is suspended for a # of games, not weeks.

  74. Bucsfan951 Says:

    You mean to tell me if this was the cowboys, steelers, or any other popular team, they wouldn’t move the game up? Come on now. I say the government drops a nuke into the eye of the storm, blow it up and the problem is solved 😉 hell, maybe it would scare that Kim Jong d bag kid into stopping his nuke program haha

  75. TampaTown Says:

    My God. This isn’t about broadcasting or crybabies or what it was or wasn’t like back in the day. It’s about this never should have been allowed to happen in the first place. Of course it is what it is and everybody has to deal with it period. Supposedly there’s a master plan in place in case God forbid a NFL team is in a plane crash. But no plan in case of a hurricane in Florida in September? I can’t take the ineptitude. Roger Goodell needs to get his head out of his London arse.

  76. C. Alaka Says:

    Joe, in all due respect nobody is comparing the lives of ppl potentially devastated by this storm & NFL players. Just looking at the NFL & their players as a single thing it’s very unfair x contradict the mindset of the NFL. There’s NO WAY you can talk about player safety but have a team or teams playing 16 weeks straight. That’s crazy, really crazy & senseless.

    Is this gonna hurt the team, only time will tell. I just think it’s very unfair that 30 other teams have a typical schedule & we don’t. That is the definition of a competitive disadvantage. GO BUCS #Jaboo

  77. Rod Munch Says:

    TampaTown – The NFL did have a plan, both the Bucs and the Dolphins have the same bye week. Don’t tell me you were also outraged in 2005 when the NFL didn’t have a plan for New Orleans that involves the stadium being destroyed after it was used as a shelter. Right? The NFL also didn’t plan for 45 inches of rain in Houston – how dare they!

    Get a hold of yourself people – not everything needs a plan, sometimes you just react to what’s happening. That’s called life.

  78. Dreambig Says:

    You guys complaining about fairness need to take a step back and think about what is happening in the state of Florida. Cat 4/5 hurricane facing Miami and possibly Tampa as well. You cant accurately forecast it until Thursday/Friday and serious life consequential planning has to be done. Coaches, players, event staff, media, and fans have to take care of their families and property. It doesnt matter if they move the game. Those human factors don’t change. NFL did the only reasonable thing to allow those people to take care of the #1 priorities in life. Life is not fair, and the NFL doesn’t give participation trophies because these two teams didn’t get a buy week. If they are good this year, they will suck it up and be fine.

  79. Buc4Lyfe79 Says:

    @Joe
    What do u think, is there any real possibility of the players from both teams refusing to play the game during their bye week in protest? If not one player shows up to play, how can there be a winner or loser? It’s not like the coaches can play, and what can the NFL actually do about it if the players refuse to play or show up in protest?

  80. TampaTown Says:

    @Rodmunch:
    Actually that’s exactly what I’m talking about. There should be a contingency plan for unforeseen circumstances. Yeah, $hit happens. That’s why there should be a plan. I don’t understand what you don’t understand.

  81. TampaTown Says:

    We are talking about the entire NFL complex here, not a rain out at your backyard BBQ.

  82. PanthersSuck! Says:

    NFL would have done it differently if was the Cowboys or Patriots.

  83. Dave Pear Says:

    Rod Munch Says:
    September 5th, 2017 at 3:27 pm

    stpetebucsfan – I know more about weather than anyone in this area, heck on earth, and will put my track record of accurate storm predictions up against these local hack weatherman anytime. It’s God, then me, when it comes to knowledge of the weather.
    ————————————————Rod Munch Says:
    September 6th, 2017 at 12:09 pm

    Actually lets say the hurricane does directly hit Miami on Sunday – playing at a neutral site is a terrible idea because you could legit end up not being able to get back into Miami for days. I’m not on the panicky Pete train, but I do agree with the idea being that if you’re not playing it in Miami this weekend, don’t play it somewhere else.
    ——————————————————
    Hey Rod,

    With your knowledge of weather, how come you did not predict any of these scenarios.
    Are you slipping in your old age or just plain crazy?

  84. TampaTown Says:

    It shouldn’t be played on Sunday. Thursday night.

  85. Rod Munch Says:

    Dave – I did correctly predict this so far, when the NHC had the storm going south of Florida yesterday, then turning north and hitting Tampa I said that wasn’t happening, it would turn north before hitting Florida, which is exactly what is expected to happen. Now how close it gets to Florida, that’s still in debate, and in any case I said we won’t actually know until Thursday – which is tomorrow.

    As always I’m right, it’s in my blood.

  86. Anthony Says:

    Joe,
    What does playing 16 weeks straight have to do with the people being displaced? Swaggy is merely suggesting a solution that doesn’t require 16 weeks straight of play. What the solution is, we don’t know but just asking for more creative thinking. Not sure it warrants this post.