Clashing Philosophies On Preparation
November 11th, 2022
Todd Bowles
The Seahawks left early for Germany and are treating the lead-up to Sunday’s game like a jacked up college bowl game trip. The Bucs’ goal — one Todd Bowles laid out for Joe and Ira Kaufman back in June — is business as usual and keeping a tight schedule.
No winner can be declared today. The proof is what shows up on the field Sunday morning.
Nearly the entire season, Seattle (6-3) has been playing a fiery brand of balanced football. The Bucs, too often, look stuck in the mud offensively.
The Seattle Times rolled out a feature on the mindset behind the Seahawks’ trip to face the Bucs. Here’s a snippet:
But coaxing buy-in from the players in a situation that could easily bring out negativity is Carroll’s bailiwick, and of course he mirrored the desired attitude. The 71-year-old coach was his usual fount of enthusiasm as he flung the football around during their brief walk-through, as well as during the news conference afterward. Carroll likened it to a college bowl trip and said players are excited about the opportunity to play in front of what they hope is a Seahawks-centric crowd.
“To me it’s really about the attitude — the attitude you put together, how you go about it, and that you don’t take it as a drag, a burden, ‘It’s hard,’ all that kind of stuff,” he said. “You turn it in the right direction, and then you try to make the very most of it. We are patterned very much like we were in London, and that worked out well for us.”
Asked about the team’s energy level, Carroll replied, “Did you watch practice? They went nuts out there today. … I don’t want to make light of this. It’s important, it’s fun, and our guys are jacked.”
Video surfaced Thursday of the Seahawks dancing in unison on the practice field in Munich with music blasting. The Bucs were still in Tampa. Today the Bucs looked a little like a team feeling the weather chill and easing into their surroundings.
Two different approaches. Which team made the better call?
German beer? Pffft.
We got Big Storm at home!
Watch Bucs-Seahawks Sunday @BigStormBrewing Clearwater taproom, 12707 49th St. N.
9 a.m. breakfast w/ Blood Brothers Bloody Mary bar.
Kickoff at 9:30.
And plenty of legendary beers.
Ira Kaufman, Joe & Bucs fans.
(Lunch at 11) 🙂 pic.twitter.com/2rn4WsucnM— JoeBucsFan (@JoeBucsFan) November 11, 2022
November 11th, 2022 at 2:14 pm
Meanwhile, Bowelswich and the Zombies are probably sleeping. Perfect time for someone to put ByeMoron in an Audi and have him driven into the Black Forest with a picnic basket, water, blanketing, and a beeper that will activate on Monday.
November 11th, 2022 at 2:22 pm
Joe … ‘Nearly the entire season, Seattle (6-3) has been playing a fiery brand of BALANCED FOOTBALL.’
I had a lot of trouble reading past that Joe. You finally acknowledged that there’s really such a thing as BALANCED FOOTBALL. Not really sure if the word BALANCED in there means the same to both of us, but I’d love to find out. Inquiring minds want to know.
November 11th, 2022 at 2:30 pm
Vote of 0 confidence in Mr butthole toilet bowl….I’d love to work for Todd bowels, it would be like earning a free paycheck lol…Bucs are going to get out coached and out played…The only way we win is if Tom ignores every single play from boron me throw.
November 11th, 2022 at 2:33 pm
@Defense_Rules
They’re top 10 unit on offense run/pass in terms of gaining yardage and scoring points, but mid tier in terms of attempts doing either, meaning their efficient run/pass.
November 11th, 2022 at 2:41 pm
Huge advantage for the Seahawks in coaching over the Bucs.
Leftwich should mimic George Castanza in the Seinfeld episode where George does the opposite of whatever his mind is telling him to do.
George goes from an unemployed single guy living at home with no prospects to an executive with the NY Yankees.
We are just asking for competency from Leftwich.
November 11th, 2022 at 2:42 pm
i think our D Line will pressure Gino Smith –but when he runs around ,thats when big plays happen with Lockett-who finds ways to get open ..our secondary has to be on him like a blanket
November 11th, 2022 at 2:43 pm
Attitude! Attitude! ATTITUDE!!!!!!!
That is what is lacking on this team. The Defense still has Some.
The Offense has Zero outside of Brady!
November 11th, 2022 at 2:45 pm
Tampa is going to get embarrassed. First a few injuries to Key veterans while the offense is trying to get started. Then a couple injuries on defense and the defense falls apart after the first quarter.
November 11th, 2022 at 2:53 pm
Losers lose.
November 11th, 2022 at 2:55 pm
Seattle will be more acclimated come game time. Another mistake by Tampa Bay.
November 11th, 2022 at 2:58 pm
Biz as usual….Bwaaahahaha!
November 11th, 2022 at 3:02 pm
Sluggo strikes again.
November 11th, 2022 at 3:10 pm
Brady should do like a baseball pitcher does. Keep shaking off the call, till he gets one he likes, lol
November 11th, 2022 at 3:14 pm
I’d love to see toilet bowles get jacked up for something, anything. We’ll find out soon but I’m not buying into any progress from these clowns of a staff until I see it. Maybe leftnugget will call another double reverse flea flicker right after they finally get some chunk plays. Wooooo so excited to see this week’s offensive game plan from lefty. Said nobody
November 11th, 2022 at 3:16 pm
Dooley … I can think of any number of reasonable definitions of BALANCED FOOTBALL. For instance, our 2020 SB team ranked in the Top-10 in terms of Points Scored & Points Allowed. Reasonable offense-defense BALANCE? That same year our offense ranked #2 in Passing Yards (4626) but #28 in Rushing Yards. Was that poor BALANCED FOOTBALL? (Given the fact that we won the Super Bowl, did it even matter?).
Some would consider a run-pass percentage in the 40%-50% range to be reasonably BALANCED. And the year we won the 2002 Super Bowl that would’ve been true (we had 40.5% run-pass that year). And yet the year we won the 2020 Super Bowl we were considerably less than that (36.3% that year). Perhaps BALANCE is simply in the eye of the beholder, based on what works & what doesn’t work.
Right now for instance, our run-pass percentage sits at 30.8% . Clearly not working, so are we not playing BALANCED FOOTBALL? Or does it go way beyond that in terms of we’re just playing BAD FOOTBALL, and it has nothing to do with BALANCE at all.
November 11th, 2022 at 3:31 pm
If they don’t win on sunday someone needs to be fired already!! It’s time for this team to right the ship. This is ridiculous.
November 11th, 2022 at 3:40 pm
If the Bucs lose they will still be in first place thats why Bowles movement is not worried.
November 11th, 2022 at 3:42 pm
We are far more successful at passing than running, and that does not seem to change, or whatever reason. Certainly isn’t going to change in the next 3 days
November 11th, 2022 at 3:49 pm
It just seems to me that the team that is there the longest should have an advantage.
If you’ve traveled abroad, you know your first couple of days are rough…then you adjust….
November 11th, 2022 at 3:55 pm
Defense, no you don’t need to be a “balanced” team to win. In New England, Brady won several titles with average to below average running games. You at least have to have the threat of a running game though. Defenses are not at all concerned with the bucs run game. IMO if the passing game can get better, they should be able to find some cheap yards on the ground.
November 11th, 2022 at 4:02 pm
****************************************************
and the Bucs will be playing in Germany after flying there a day later than Seattle did.
*******************************************************
When will we learn?
Time zone acclimation is very important to physical performance.
If tourists complain about jet lag, just imagine the difference to athletic performance.
We should have flown there on Monday, and practiced all week in Germany.
[ From a previous post ]
November 11th, 2022 at 4:07 pm
nah, they’ll be fine. they slept the whole flight, who needs prep?
November 11th, 2022 at 4:21 pm
I think whether you get there early or late, it doesn’t make too much difference. The Bucs need to be mentally focused in the game and limit mistakes. If they can do that, they have a chance to win this one. Otherwise, it could be an ugly beat down loss.
November 11th, 2022 at 4:26 pm
Joe, has anyone asked Brady about his dramatic weight loss? It’s actually scary right now. He looks sickly
November 11th, 2022 at 4:27 pm
If Carroll coached the Bucs they could very well be 9-0 right now. Everybody is buying in who’s on that Seattle team.
No one is buying into what the Bucs dysfunctional organization has going on inside those walls.
November 11th, 2022 at 4:40 pm
Hard to buy into Bowles when he was a failed head coach.
But if the Seahawks think they will be cheered, they are wrong!
The German Fans came to see Tom Brady, not them.
Agree about Lockett making big plays when Geno Smith scrambles, and DK Metcalf can do the same.
Pete Carroll is a world class coach, and will have his guys ready for us.
It will take our A Game to beat the Seahawks, but it can be done!
November 11th, 2022 at 4:46 pm
It’s all about who shows up on game day. I don’t believe you can play music and dance while playing. If they win then arriving early was good. If not then no.
November 11th, 2022 at 4:54 pm
Same approach deja vu as 2019. That worked terribly for us but maybe that was because jameis turned it over like 7 times.
November 11th, 2022 at 4:58 pm
Seattle has take Advantage of a favorable schedule with teams struggling. Is geno. Rb Walker and Seahawks ready for a game this magnitude ? Brady and Bucs have been in the spotlight. You can be all jacked up and come Sunday you come out flat. Burned out energy from previous days excitement. So imo it’s either way. I’ll take the rest been our team has been dealing with injuries.
November 11th, 2022 at 5:15 pm
Actually the crowd will be pro Seahawk. It seems that’s Germany’s team.
November 11th, 2022 at 6:00 pm
Didn’t see any Germans giving gifts to any of the seachickens at there press conference
November 11th, 2022 at 6:39 pm
How is this guy a HC? Arriving late is a huge mistake.
November 11th, 2022 at 6:41 pm
Richard Sherman will give the Seahawks our playbook. I have a bad feeling.
November 11th, 2022 at 6:45 pm
Bucsfan13 … ‘has anyone asked Brady about his dramatic weight loss? It’s actually scary right now. He looks sickly’.
Totally agree. Saw a picture of TB12 on the Bucs site yesterday leaving for Germany and I almost didn’t recognize him. He normally was listed at 6’4″ & 225 lbs but I’d be surprised if he weighs over 200 right now. Really looks gaunt. Whatever’s going on with him physically, have to wonder if that’s affecting his performance on the field.
November 11th, 2022 at 7:05 pm
Brady looks like an skinny alley cat. That’s the one remnant from his former, troubled marriage. Many people when stressed lose their appetites, while others eat their problems away. Brady is in the former camp.
November 11th, 2022 at 7:08 pm
OK on to preparation: Advantage Bucs. Barely.
Pete Carroll is too loosey goosey with discipline, though he’s a million miles ahead of Bowles as a motivator and cheerleader. I would like to believe (notice the modifying word “like”) that the offense will be more disciplined with Brady. I suspect a Pete Carroll team will be distracted by being in Germany, but we’ll soon see if my hunch is on target.
November 11th, 2022 at 7:23 pm
@DR. He probably feels every hit. He’s usually a health nut, so this is weird. I saw him carrying a bag of PDQ chicken so that’s a good start. I don’t think it’s stress from the divorce. He looks like he dropped a full 20 pounds! It’s insane that no reporter has asked about his dramatic weight loss. Maybe stop asking so many questions about his personal life.
November 11th, 2022 at 7:27 pm
Line up the German groupies for the newly single Tommy boy. These groupies know where these athletes hotels are located.
November 11th, 2022 at 7:54 pm
They need to go there to adapt the jet lag and get familiar with the ground. I am surprised the Bucs are still in Tampa.
November 11th, 2022 at 9:16 pm
Yep, Brady looks like he could use a few cheeseburgers, to put some meat on is bones.
November 11th, 2022 at 9:17 pm
How this guy can still be head coach? Are the owners on a safari or still at Burning Man?
November 11th, 2022 at 9:26 pm
Again, all the plays on coach names is 2nd grade. Go Bucs!
November 11th, 2022 at 9:36 pm
Bowels is trying to make the team in his own way and it’s not working. I wanted him to make it but it’s not happening.
November 12th, 2022 at 5:03 am
We are in Munich and there are a ton of Seattle fans here.
November 12th, 2022 at 6:25 am
But they gave the team blue blocker reading glasses to help them sleep on the plane. Someone gets a star for that. Smh
November 12th, 2022 at 6:55 am
Bowles is not getting fired in his first season. Give it up. It is what it is. Up to the players now.
November 12th, 2022 at 7:03 am
#FreeBruce
November 12th, 2022 at 7:18 am
Joe must be awash in sausage and beer for the whole day over there, no posts for half a day. 1:18 pm local time right now…you alright buddy? Lol
November 12th, 2022 at 7:26 am
he could be doing the munich munch…
#WhatHappensInMunichStraysInMunich 🙂
November 12th, 2022 at 7:30 am
Gunter Gleiben Glauchen Globen…
a bronx cheer in german lingo…………..by Def Leppard
November 12th, 2022 at 7:37 am
I would like to see the Defense make this a statement game.
November 12th, 2022 at 10:17 am
As someone who has traveled and lived in several countries and continents, I think the Bucs made a big mistake!! Getting your internal clock set and time is critical! I’m afraid they come out tired and FLAT!
November 12th, 2022 at 3:36 pm
The Defense and Special Teams are excited, and ready to play. The big question is TB12. What’s all this about a rapid weight loss with him? That’s not good when he’s 45 y.o. He is scared to get hit and plays like it. It’s not all the OLine and coaches’ fault. The team carried him on their shoulders last week. Bet they do it this week, too. Gonna be great to see what Camarda does against Seattle. Carroll better be ready for him. Go Tampa Bay!!
November 12th, 2022 at 4:47 pm
I think the prep was fine. They get in the plane and sleep. They get up the next morning and practice. They still have Saturday as a normal day and then a regular game time Sunday. THIS will not be a reason (IMO) if they lose. AND the Birds are dancing all around while we seem more serious and focused. We shall see. I am looking forward to the game and getting up 2 hours early to watch it. Hope I still remember how to set an alarm clock. GO BUCS!
November 12th, 2022 at 6:24 pm
Oralbuc and others, he lost the weight to look invisible like the left side of his line. Oral, good one, best chuckle ever, the team carried him on their backs. A stand up career awaits you.