Blame Game II
November 3rd, 2019
Inactivity leads to unacceptable loss.
Joe understands the favorite hobby of many Bucs fans currently is #BlameJameis for everything from unrest in Hong Kong to the opioid crisis.
Actually, there are two people who should shoulder the blame for today’s loss.
That would be Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht and Bucs coach Bucco Bruce Arians.
Yes, the Bucs’ secondary is flat garbage. Who didn’t know that?
But Joe isn’t writing this post about the merits or demerits of the Bucs drafting seven defensive backs in the first three rounds in the past four years and how they have turned out or haven’t turned out. Joe is writing this post about the here and now.
Now if Arians/Licht knew this secondary was awful — if they didn’t, then the Bucs have significantly bigger problems that we all believed — why did they sit on their hands at the trade deadline?
Joe assumes that any one of 70 defensive backs in the NFL today, starting defensive backs, experienced defensive backs, could have helped out the Bucs. But, nope. The Bucs did nothing at the trade deadline.
“Nah, we’re spiraling to another 4-12 season, and giving up 300 passing yards a game, but we’re good, thanks.”
As Joe stated earlier, he was watching the Colts-Steelers game today and Minkah Fitzpatrick was a total animal, including a 96-yard interception return for touchdown.
Sure, Fitzpatrick cost a first-round pick. A young guy still. You telling Joe the Bucs couldn’t use Fitzpatrick? You telling Joe if Fitzpatrick re-entered the NFL draft in 2020 no NFL team would spend a first-round pick on him? Baloney!
And to add salt to the wound, Arians on the Buccaneers Radio Network, said all the traveling the Bucs have done the past six weeks finally caught up with them in Seattle today.
Hello! The schedule was released in April! Arians/Licht and the sports science people employed at One Buc Palace didn’t have the common sense to figure out that the worst position group on the team, largely manned by young players, wouldn’t need some reinforcements with all the traveling? Seriously?
But nope, the Bucs were just fine at the trade deadline. The worst secondary in the NFL did not need any help. That same secondary cost the Bucs a win today and at bare minimum another game earlier this season.
Yet when proven players were available via a trade, the Bucs just stared at their bottles of beer.
Joe knows at least two people with authority at One Buc Palace who should be apologizing to Team Glazer and the fans for their inaction.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:39 pm
I love this clown show
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:39 pm
Jason doesn’t know how to build a roster
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:40 pm
Clown at QB
Clown at HC
Clown at GM
Clown at owners
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:41 pm
Joe, you’re a writer. Not a coach or GM. Stay in your lane, bro.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:42 pm
No hope
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:42 pm
I don’t think we can let Todd Bowles off the hook…..just sayin’
And, where was Ryan Smith…..he plays better than Dean, VH3, Bunting….and maybe even Davis…..sad to say but I think he may be our best CB.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:42 pm
Malcom we miss you and your kids never deserved both franchise because both are a joke !!! Bruce is a joke, but we could have traded JPP, Suh, David, Brate, VH3, Shaq, and I hate to say Mike Evans who deserves to be on a winning team for a major haul of picks !! This retread thinks he had a winning team or that’s what they wanted us to believe, but hopefully Bucs fans aren’t idiots !! Just be honest and truly tell the fans we are rebuilding, but we will be competitive and just give us a chance to prove it in the next 2 years. Nope !!! We have this and sadly we are so many players away from breaking the 11 year curse if not winning
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:44 pm
How can you blame this coaching staff? You can’t squeeze blood out of a turnip. There’s a bunch of useless turnips on this team. The swamp needs to be drained. The GM is in charge of putting talent on this team. He didn’t. Time to fire him and move on. Technically that firing should happen sooner than later to give the new GM some time to see what he’s dealing with.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:45 pm
[Now, now. No need to hit below the belt. Joe shares your frustration but no need to go there. — Joe]
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:45 pm
Camera caught BA jawing with BL, that was a bad look, you either let the guy call the plays or take over play calling yourself.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:45 pm
It’s a try out year for the Licht-built roster. Had to find out who could actually play. Second half will be telling for the rookies. Unfortunately, most of the guys playing well are on short term deals and are ultimately not building blocks.
O-line looks completely different with Cappa and Dotson.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:45 pm
They know they are losing JPP, Suh and Maybe barrett next year, They know their not goin to the playoffs either. Why mortgage the future when they know they have to rebuild(which they wont admit). And maybe selct a QB next draft, Let the young guys develop in the secondary.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:45 pm
I didn’t think that the game would be this competitive so I’m not complaining today…..
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:46 pm
I saw a few good plays from the kids…lots of bad ones.
Ditto for the Seahawks. Are you guys all telling me the Seahawks DB’s were any good?
I’m still seeing confusion at times on the offense and defense.
Perhaps it’s the youth…perhaps the coaching?
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:47 pm
I am proud of this team. BTW Joes: how many offensive/defensive holding calls were recorded in this game?
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:47 pm
Has anyone thought that the reason we didn’t make an trades was because the Glazer’s put the kibosh on trades knowing that they will be moving on after the season? Would you trust Jameis1of1 make a trade with this talent? Hell to the no!
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:48 pm
Jameis1of1 = Licht, out after the season
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:48 pm
Like zero.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:49 pm
….it’s coaching
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:50 pm
Fire Licht now. If Arians don’t like it tough sh*t. Let him quit.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:50 pm
I will not blame Jameis for today.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:51 pm
The decision not to trade for a an NFL corner should get licht fired. I say NFL corner because we have a roster full of XFL corners.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:55 pm
I hope the Glazers told Licht he was not authorized to trade any draft picks. That would mean that a new GM would be coming in and they want to preserve picks for the rebuild.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:56 pm
Glazers knew what hey had in Licht after 5 years and instead of firing his ass, they renewed him for another 5 yrs. That pretty much tells you what the owners think of the fans.
November 3rd, 2019 at 8:58 pm
Lots to blame……We still make too many mistakes but at least it was less today so maybe we’ll see us keep getting better.
But Dean has to take the brunt of the blame today. This one single DB was that utterly bad today. I never saw one player picked on so freaking badly. Was it 3 TDs and a 2pointer. And you could nearly consider it 4 or was it 5?
That was embarrassing. I also blame the coaches heavily for having nobody prepared to step in. They didn’t even try to fix the problem.
Very awful. And really sad when we had so much working today.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:00 pm
100% spot on Joe.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:03 pm
Love my Bucs but they stink.
The QB stinks, the GM stinks, the league’s largest coaching staff stinks, the ownership stinks, some of the players stink, and CONTINUALLY LOSING STINKS.
Time for the Glazers to blow this whole thing up and start all pver.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:06 pm
Joe you made a lot of great points in regards to our secondary and their struggles. Now when do we start to see ownership hold the GM and coaching staff accountable?
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:06 pm
YES, LET’S GIVE UP A #1 PICK WHEN WE NEED A NEW QB, THAT SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD PLAN!
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:14 pm
I’d offer a second round pick foe Akib Talib. At least he can teach the DB’s how to play in the NFL. I’dd also osser a third for Xavien “wehATEver” to the Dolphins, and send them Hartrash, if they’ll take him.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:17 pm
Looking towards AZ! They are NO JOKE!
Another loss, then the aints, another loss!!
We’re coming to get you Joe Burrow!
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:20 pm
Joe sure whines a lot
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:25 pm
Futile franchise provides ample firewood.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:26 pm
BucsBandit
Sounds like your prioritizing a new QB over new DBs? Hilarious.
Spend a 1st on someone not named Jamal Dean.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:38 pm
Joe likes to say he has been here since we last won the Super Bowl… we haven’t won a playoff game since the introduction of this site. Coincidence? Maybe maybe not…
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:41 pm
So the QB has cost us at least two wins and the Secondary cost us at least two wins, the difference is ones been in the NFL for 5 years…….
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:42 pm
Let’s be clear: Fans shouldn’t buy tickets to the games. They should buy merch etc until Licht is fired and the Glazer Babies admit once and for all they are absolutely clueless and one of the worst ownership groups in sports.
The Glazer Babies don’t care about what the fans think because many of us identified Licht as a problem for the past 2.5 years. But they extended him. So make them pay (in the pocketbook).
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:44 pm
JP
Well the GM that keeps sending this DBs out there has been here for 6 years.
Jameis played great today and everyone’s in denial it’s hilarious.
Jameis Haters… Look at the real issue for once and Stop having an agenda and get your heads out of your you know what’s.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:46 pm
Agree Tom S
Jason Licht still being here is a sign of a larger management problem. If the Glazers had a spine they would fire Licht tonight.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:49 pm
2-14. MAYBE they’ll beat Atlanta once.
November 3rd, 2019 at 9:54 pm
Tbbucs3, I agree Winston played well today and that’s why I believe he should play out the year. If he can play like he did today the rest of the season then I’d give him a 1 year 15 million dollar contract and still draft another QB. Also that same GM is still sending out the same qb so there’s that too (don’t get me wrong I think the secondary is awful, at least they still have the “young excuse” minus vhgIII).
November 3rd, 2019 at 10:08 pm
Thatr sounds great bogiedr. However, in the real world teams don’t accept those trades for good players. I suppose possibly Talib but why? Talib is 33 and he would just be collecting a paycheck. No thanks. No way in the world would the Fins part with Xavier for a bag of chips like that. Come on.
P.S. Tom S. I wish that would hit them in the pocketbook but the attendance and concessions is just a fraction of the Glazers’ income from the Bucs.
November 3rd, 2019 at 10:19 pm
OJ Howard was a great pick, but NOT for this team. Vita Vea was a reach, RJones was a reach only because Cook was available like 1-2 spots before him. Hargreaves is a 3rd round talent–on days he actually comes to play. Aguayo? Wasted a 2nd rounder + extra pick for him. Why let a talented player like Kwon go to settle for a less capable player (maybe better in the future, but not yet) in White and waste the 5th overall pick on that? The list goes on and on.
Outside of a couple good guesses here and there (and with likely outside help on those), LICHT has been terrible.
November 3rd, 2019 at 10:24 pm
The hell you talking about joes!!! the bucs should haven given up a first round pick for another safety? A safety csnt cover every slot receiver tight end and receiver on the field by himself. If you wanted to put Fitzpatrick at corner? that still leaves 2 receivers and a tight end or running back out of the backfield that can hurt us
Call the entire secondary garbage but dont make dumb arguments saying we should give up a first round pick for yet another safety especially with all the other issues with this roster
November 3rd, 2019 at 10:43 pm
Joe, I won’t blame Jameis for this one. However one QB won the game for his team, that would be Wilson, and one didn’t, that would be Jameis. Yes Licht is to blame for most of the bad that has gone on the last five years, and I’d include picking Jameis with the first over all pick in the 2015 draft. Can’t blame Jameis for today, but you can blame him for having the most turnovers in the last five years, that’s an inescapable fact.
November 3rd, 2019 at 10:44 pm
I just find it hard to believe all these highly drafted corners are all garbage. I’m starting to feel like it’s scheme… again…but this time it’s the opposite. Todd Bowles seems to be a one trick pony. He plays straight up man to man with pressure 90% of the time. Accurate QBs will pick that apart all day. Now I’m not asking for Mike Smith again, but I’d like to see some more creativity. Disguise some stuff. Roll some coverage. Play a little cover 3 every now and then. With Smith it was the simple posts… Bowles gets shredded with the simple clear and crosser.
This defense would be amazing with three guys named Revis. I think Carlton Davis is a good player. I think Jordan Whitehead is a really good player. Hell VH3 has some select skills. Apparently they are not doing what they’ve been coached to do. Are they being coached to do the impossible? Or even the improbable? I’m no football genius but imo the Bucs defense has become predictable
November 3rd, 2019 at 10:49 pm
Cook and Rojo came out in different drafts
November 3rd, 2019 at 10:53 pm
Getting closer to the real issue Joe: the Glazers are incompetent and the number one reason this franchise wreaks. Just say it!
November 3rd, 2019 at 11:08 pm
This really wasn’t a game the Bucs should have won on paper. Seattle is a better built team at home. Russell Wilson can be magical like he was today and destroyed the Bucs. Three previous games the Bucs should have won. The talk of losing Suh, JPP, and Barrett and those are 3 guys you almost have to keep. There are 30 players you can let go that won’t make a difference. After 15 years of no d line they finally have a decent one.
November 3rd, 2019 at 11:24 pm
Just look at the size “Trash” Licht’s stomach
November 3rd, 2019 at 11:40 pm
What other issues? If the secondary was just average, this team would be in a playoff hunt. There is no bigger issue on this team than the secondary. Fitzpatrick has proven he can play. He was an 11th overall pick two years ago.
If you don’t think Fitzpatrick would help the Bucs considerably, you need to change your drinking habits.
November 4th, 2019 at 4:14 am
This was a fun thread to read. JBFers get very emotional immediately after losses (practice makes perfect?) but soon thereafter start zeroing in on the REAL PROBLEMS. And it’s not just one; there are several unfortunately.
Agree with cmurda that you can’t squeeze blood out of a turnip, and yes, there are some useless turnips on this team. THAT’S on our illustrious GM. This defense’s Achilles Heel is the Secondary as we’ve seen, but none of us really know how good OR bad they are because they’re so inexperienced. Today was Jamel Dean’s baptism by fire, and Wilson burned him bad. One of the top QBs in the NFL ate him alive. Surprise, surprise. But in all fairness to him, he was just the scapegoat … he shouldn’t have been out there. With Carlton Davis hurt, I just can’t understand why they didn’t play Ryan Smith. That might be a good question to ask at the next press conference Joe? But what I REALLY can’t understand is WHY we never picked up a quality veteran corner to provide LEADERSHIP for these youngsters.
Beyond that though, it looked like Russell Wilson took every snap from the shotgun, and that effectively negated our pass rush & 78% blitzes. Blitzing that much is fine IF you get to the QB. IF NOT, the LBs & Secondary are set up for failure. And Wilson ate them alive through the use of quick, short passes & through scrambling to buy time for longer passes.
For its part, I thought the offense played exceptionally well in the 1st qtr, but was spotty for much of the 2nd & 3rd qtrs. Bucs had 2 TDs in the 1st qtr, 1 TD (plus 1 missed FG) in the 2nd qtr, 1 FG in the 3rd qtr, then a FG & TD in the 4th qtr. And when they played spotty, play-calling was the culprit IMO … too many wasted plays resulted in 3rd-and-longs that are tough to convert. And I love the way that Gay & TJ Logan are playing right now. S/Ts is the best I’ve seen in quite awhile.
November 4th, 2019 at 4:17 am
Oh and Joe, agree totally about Fitzpatrick. And he’s not just a Safety; he was a pretty decent CB in college too. Kinda like a Swiss Army knife. We could’ve used him. But there were a number of other defenders who we could’ve also gotten to help this group of youngsters. Jason Lichtweight’s still asleep at the wheel.
November 4th, 2019 at 7:16 am
at this point, i have concerns about both Dean’s speed and and toughness. he took bad angles and needs to break down and make tackles. HE needs to throw that big body in their when there is a crowd not try to parry them with his hands.
November 4th, 2019 at 7:16 am
Idiot BA is screaming at Leftwich on national TV when the problem is Bowles and his lousy secondary. Hes yelling at the wrong person. You give up 40 points and your yelling at the offense. I guess he is scared of Bowles.
November 4th, 2019 at 8:53 am
We just got beat. Simple as that. I thought we played well. I definitely don’t like losing but somehow or another i wasn’t mad at that loss.
What i do get mad at is that Jameis can have a 1,000 yard game, throw 10 TDS and a lineman miss their assignment and the brunt of a loss is on him