Archive for the ‘Recent Posts’ Category

Durable Olson Gets Shot With Bucs

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Trevor Olson, not to be confused with the man obsessed with calling the heinous Benn’d around play, is another undrafted free agent body the Bucs have signed and expect at rookie minicamp, which will start soon.

And it’s a safe bet Olson will be there. The left tackle didn’t miss a start in four years at Northern Illinios, so a nice January feature story in the Chicago Sun-Times explained.

Battling future 2009 NFL first-round pick Larry English in practice every day for two seasons helped him get better, said Olson, who will see a lot of Arkansas State standout defensive end Brandon Joiner.

… Fellow linemates marvel at Olson and his streak.

“It’s amazing,” said senior center Scott Wedige, who has 27 starts. “All the injuries you go through, all the bumps and bruises and turned ankles. To work through all those things and never miss a start, heck, he never misses a snap. It’s miraculous to do that.”

Olson was one of two offensive tackles the Bucs added to their list of undrafted free agent signings today. The other is Rocky Weaver of Central Michigan.

Boy this is tough. Just when Joe felt like he wanted to pull for Olson to make the team, the Bucs had to go and sign a guy named “Rocky.” How cool would that be to have a Rocky on the roster. Maybe Bullwinkle can come in and play linebacker.

Joe always has a place in his heart for these undrafted guys chasing a dream. Brandon Carter was one guy Joe pulled for a couple of years ago and he made it. And Carter’s dad became a regular reader on these here pages. The Bucs will put these undrafted guys up in some local hotel room and feed them as they try and hit Lotto  to make the team and live their dreams.

The new offensive tackles have a tough go of it. Demar Dotson re-signed and the Bucs added young veteran tackle Jamon Meredith in free agency.

More High Marks For Bucs

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Yeah, it’s BSPN. So Joe’s not about to all of a sudden call this gospel, but at least it holds a little drama and is informative. Todd McShay’s outlines his top-5 winners in the NFL draft.

Dekoda Watson Good With New Schiano Order

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Virtually every Bucs fan has seen video of new Bucs coach Greg Schiano laying the law down on the very first moment of the very first voluntary workout when he screamed at his players the proper way to line up along the stripes for warm-ups.

Some would suggest that is a sign of attention to detail. Others would think that’s way over the top.

Whatever he may think of it, Bucs linebacker Dekoda Watson has no problem with the law and order ways of Schiano.

Watson, along with fellow Bucs linebacker Quincy Black, attended a ceremony yesterday in St. Petersburg where the Bucs presented a needy single mother ,who largely used public transportation to get around, a new car to help simplify her and her children’s lives.

Joe will have more about that later, but Joe did get in a few questions with Watson. Though tight-lipped about what is going on behind the fences at One Buc Palace, Watson isn’t bothered by the New Schiano Order.

“No,” Watson beamed when asked if Schiano’s ways were a bit over the top. “That all comes with discipline, I’m all right with that.”

The fact that Watson, who battled injuries last year, is considered a strong pass rusher, and with a new coaching staff and Geno Hayes’ departure leaving a hole in the starting lineup, Watson admitted this season brings new opportunities for him. But he would not elaborate.

“I’m very excited with the new opportunity,” Watson said. “There are a lot of things going on on the field for a lot of people. I hope all the hard work comes out this season. Only time will tell.”

Watson couldn’t compare Schiano’s voluntary workout practices to those of jettisoned coach Raheem Morris because Watson explained he never attended a voluntary workout practice with Morris.

Two years ago when Watson was drafted, the voluntary practice came before the draft. Last year there was no offseason thanks to the asinine lockout, which Watson said drove him nuts.

“To be honest with you, I never had a voluntary workout with Raheem,” Watson said. “I am happy for [attending this year’s]. I don’t like sitting around.”

Draft “Tea Leaves” Favor Talib

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

The incomparable and vivacious eye-RAH! Kaufman, NFL writer and Bucs beat writer of The Tampa Tribune, took to the WDAE-AM 620 airwaves yesterday to do what he calls “read the tea leaves” of the NFL Draft as they related to the Buccaneers.

What Kaufman saw in his bag of Earl Grey was a vote of confidence for Aqib Talib.

Kaufman said it’s wise to project that the Bucs waiting until the sixth round to select a cornerback means the organization believes Aqib Talib will walk away from his felony assault with a deadly weapon trial in June with little or no punishment from Roger Goodell and the Texas penal system.

Now while Joe would be somewhat surprised if Talib is found guilty given the apparent flimsy evidence in the case, Joe doesn’t have a clue what’s in Goodell’s head. However, Team Glazer likely does.

The X-factor in all of this is that Talib’s alleged crime took place during the NFL’s asinine lockout. Does Goodell want the inevitable legal and public relations mess associated with suspending Talib for his transgressions when he wasn’t under contract?

Pressure Being Placed On Quincy Black

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012

Last year during the grotesque 10-game losing streak that led to then-coach Raheem Morris being jettisoned, the Bucs defense turned in a historic franchise low, topped by the ghastly performance at Atlanta where the Dixie Chicks nearly hung half-a-hundred on the Bucs … in the first half no less!

There were many holes and fingers to be pointed at the defense but the linebacker player was especially grim. It reached the point where no linebacker unit in the NFL was worse than the Bucs’.

A mulligan could be handed out to rookie Mason Foster, who was playing out of position at middle linebacker and expected to call the defensive plays, with no offseason to speak of. He was simply in a no-win situation.

The second of the three starters, outside linebacker Geno Hayes, recently signed with the Bears to be a backup.

That leaves Joe with the third starter at linebacker, outside linebacker Quincy Black. Now entering his fourth season as a starter, he has done little to justify the contract awarded him by Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik after the 2010 season, a contract that still puzzles people to this day.

Well, if one can read between the lines of an article typed by Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times, there were two shots across the bow in last weekend’s NFL draft that Black had best step up his game in a serious way this fall.

In breaking down who might seeing diminished playing time as a result of the draft, he suggested that both linebackers Lavonte David and Najee Goode could push Black to the sidelines if his game is not elevated.

Round 2/58 David Lavonte, LB, Nebraska: Mason Foster.

Lavonte is most effective as an outside linebacker, where he can run and hit. That might also be the best spot for Foster, but it’s more likely he will either remain at middle linebacker or move to strong side linebacker. The Bucs consider Lavonte the best linebacker in coverage in the draft, so he’ll also remain on the field in nickel passing situations. That means either Foster or Quincy Black will leave the field on third down.

Round 5/140 Najee Goode, LB, West Virginia: Quincy Black.

At 6-foot, 244-pounds, Goode is powerful enough to play inside but coverage is not his strong suit, meaning he’s a two-down linebacker. In the Bucs defense, that means he either plays the middle or strong side. Since you would prefer the middle linebacker to remain on the field on passing downs, look for Goode to get a shot to compete with Black, who did not live up to his 5-year, $29-million contract last season.

It appears the gauntlet has been thrown down by new Bucs coach Greg Schiano. Clearly he was horrified by the tapes of the Day-at-the-Races-like defense last season, when it only took a running back to turn the corner for a full-out jailbreak to occur.

At the Buccaneers draft party broadcast live last Thursday, defensive end Adrian Clayborn told Joe’s good friend, “The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig, that Schiano’s primary for his defense was to focus on stopping the run first and foremost since that was a lost art last season.

And a big reason for that was the linebacker play.

The Godfather Blesses Leonard Johnson

Monday, April 30th, 2012

A man rockstar general manager calls one of the great personnel men of all time, Gil Brandt, has weighed in with his top-10 undrafted free agents of 2012.

And the Bucs have one of them under contract, former Largo High star QB Leonard Johnson who turned into a cornerback at Iowa State.

Architect of the Cowboys teams from 1960 to 1989, Brandt, aka The Godfather, is now an NFL scouting guru for NFL.com and Sirius NFL Radio. (The guy’s a walking encyclopedia.) Brandt laid out his take on Johnson for NFL.com.

10. Leonard Johnson, CB, Iowa State — Johnson didn’t run well at the combine, but he ran extremely well at his pro day. He was a high school quarterback. When Iowa State stunned then-No. 2-ranked Oklahoma State in November, Johnson did a very good job defending Justin Blackmon (the first-round pick of the Jaguars). Johnson could be a great special teams player because of his toughness and probably is best suited for a team that runs a Cover-2 scheme. 

“Toughness?” Again that word surfaces with another new member of the New Schiano World Order. 

Hook Mom Up For Mother’s Day

Monday, April 30th, 2012

Click through the limo to learn more about the best in the Bay area.

Schiano Can’t Wait To “Ham And Egg It”

Monday, April 30th, 2012

Leader of the New Schiano World Order got the call to join the national Jim Rome Show on WDAE-AM 620 today. The coach delivered more of his scouting on Doug Martin, in addition to saying he would have taken Mark Barron higher, and more. Schiano talks about drilling the running game — “ham and egg it” with Martin and LeGarrette Blount. Listen below.

Bucs Draft Grade

Monday, April 30th, 2012

Columnist Peter Schrager and popular sports radio personality Adam Schein break down the Bucs draft this past weekend in this FoxSports.com video. Trent Richardson fans may want to brace themselves.

14 Undrafted Free Agents Sign With Bucs

Monday, April 30th, 2012
LSU linebacker Ryan Baker was one of the undrafted free agents the Bucs signed over the weekend.

Here’s the lastest official word from the Buccaneers. Barring school conflicts, these guys will be heading to One Buc Palace this week along with invitees for rookie minicamp.

WR Luther Ambrose, Louisiana-Monroe
LB Ryan Baker, LSU
QB Zach Collaros, Cincinnati
C Chaz Hine, South Florida
FB Cody Johnson, exas
CB Leonard Johnson, Iowa State
DT Donte’e Nicholls, Tennessee State
WR Tyler Shoemaker, Boise State
T Bradley Sowell, Mississippi
S Tramain Thomas, Arkansas
TE Tyler Urban, West Virginia
G Michael VanDerMeulen, Toledo
CB Quenton Washington, South Florida
T Desmond Wynn, Rutgers

Mark Dominik Goes Deep On Day 1 Moves

Monday, April 30th, 2012

Rockstar general manager Mark Dominik did an extended chat with Justin “The Commish” Pawlowski on Friday following Day 1 of the draft.

Joe found this nugget telling on the evolution of thieving Doug Martin from the New York Giants.

On flipping fourth-round picks to get back into 1st round after Vikings gave up their 4th to do same:  When we got around 22, 23, I started calling all the clubs at the back of the round. And I realized that there must be one team trying to trade up because [I kept hearing,] ‘I got better than that. I got better than that.’  Well, as soon as the Vikings moved [up], I knew that offer wasn’t going to sit around for the clubs behind us anymore. And so that’s when I went in and offered a lot less than what the Vikings did because I felt like those teams don’t have that [offer] anymore. And I found a team in the Denver Broncos that were willing to move out of the first round and flip in the fourth, and I thought that was great value for us to sneak in there and get the guy we really wanted.

Lots of great stuff here, so listen below. Great question by The Commish asking Dominik whether the talk of Ronde Barber playing safety was just smokescreen to help keep Mark Barron available. And catch The Commish live on WQYK-AM 1010 from noon to 3 p.m.

Roundtrip Luxury Bus To The Trop — Only $9.95

Monday, April 30th, 2012

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Rutgers Guard Desmond Wynn Coming To Bucs

Monday, April 30th, 2012

The Bucs didn’t draft an offensive lineman, but now it seems they have scored a left guard prospect in undrafted free agency.

Rutgers G Desmond Wynn has Twittered that he is “reuniting again with Coach Schiano.” Joe acknowledges this Tweet could mean the two will meet for a casual corned beef sandwich in South Tampa this week, but Joe suspects it means Wynn is among the bodies signed for the Bucs’ rookie minicamp that starts this week.

Wynn has a looong list of injuries during his college career and hasn’t played a ton of games but did play all of last season. He’s 6-6, 300 pounds.

If nothing else, Wynn is sure to set a shining example of how to practice in the New Schiano World Order. He wouldn’t be here if he wasn’t an exemplary worker.

“You Better Be Tough”

Monday, April 30th, 2012

Joe’s seen all the draft grades, heard all the pundit chatter, and read all the wrap-ups. The consensus gives the Bucs and rockstar general manager Mark Dominik excellent marks for the 2012 draft. Average it out, from BSPN to NFL Network to draft geeks like Walter Football to national writers, and the Bucs probably get somewhere between an A- and a B+.

So what does it mean? Well, not much until the team hits the field and the players perform.

However, Joe found a couple of interesting takes out there.

First, Charles Davis of NFL Network detailed how this was an extraordinarily skill-specific draft with teams across the league maneuvering and angling to draft for need. On that front, Davis, part of the Man Channel draft guru team, was very high on the Bucs’ moves to address their needs. Davis (and seemingly everyone in the free world) sees Mark Barron as a can’t-miss player, and he liked the patient Dominik plays to get in position for Doug Martin and Lavonte David, who Davis said is a not only a sideline-sideline linebacker but a goaline-to-goaline player in pass coverage.

Second, Joe found the praise of Mike Lombardi, also of NFL Network, intriguing.

Lombardi rambled on yesterday about how the Greg Schiano stamp is found in this draft with a bunch of tough-guy players that will help erase the bad mentality in place last year. Schiano sent a message that “you better be tough” if you want to play for the Bucs, explained Lombardi.

Lombardi had blasted the Raheem Morris way during last year’s preseason, and then again ruthlessly in November, (which led to Raheem telling a story about how he beat the crap out of a kid that made fun of his grandma’s running style). Lombardi believes the Bucs 2012 picks are the kind of self-motivated, football-loving tough guys that will infect the entire roster.

It doesn’t take a genius to know some of these picks will be busts, but Joe likes Lombardi’s line of thinking. Even those who don’t pan out from this draft will enhance the New Schiano World Order, which seems to be the right direction for all things Bucs.

Be Careful With Ronde

Sunday, April 29th, 2012

NFC South blogger Pat Yasinskas suggests the Bucs need to be careful about playing Ronde Barber at safety in this ESPN video. This was recorded prior to this weekend’s draft.

A Great Draft For Myron Lewis, E.J. Biggers

Sunday, April 29th, 2012

Two guys Joe figured would be chugging Tums during and after the NFL Draft were Myron Lewis and E.J. Biggers.

With a strong likelihood entering the draft that Morris Claiborne would be snatched and placed in a starting job and rockstar general manager Mark Dominik would take a later-round cornerback, Joe figured Biggers and Lewis expected a fierce flame would be soon cranked up under them.

But it didn’t play out that way.

The Bucs added sixth-round-pick cornerback Keith Tandy, plus Eric Wright in free agency. So with Elbert Mack gone and Aqib Talib a question mark, Biggers and Lewis emerged yesterday with about as much job security as they could have hoped for at this point.

One would think Lewis, as a high third-round pick in 2010, called the deepest draft in NFL history by many, would get every opportunity to prove he belongs this preseason. And Biggers, whose effort has always been there, at least has some experience and success on his resume. (One could also speculate the Bucs waited until the sixth round to select a cornerback because they have faith in these guys.)

Regardless, two Buccaneers many fans wanted to become trivia questions have a darn good shot to be a part of the New Schiano World Order come September.

Dominik Fielded Trade Offer For Michael Smith

Sunday, April 29th, 2012

One of the more intriguing nuggets to come from rockstar general manager Mark Dominik’s post-draft news conference Saturday was a trade offer Dominik received for backup Utah State running back/speedster Michael Smith, who was drafted by the Bucs in the seventh round.

Dominik said after he snagged Smith another team offered the Bucs a sixth-round pick in 2013 in exchange for Smith. Dominik passed on the deal and said it was the first time in his career he had experienced that kind of offer for a player right after he was drafted.

Joe hopes Smith can flourish with the Bucs, but Joe’s got to wonder whether Dominik should have taken that deal to give the Bucs more trade-up ammunition in next year’s draft.

Stunning, Unreal Offers At Ed Morse Auto Plaza

Sunday, April 29th, 2012

Teams are trading up in the NFL Draft, and you can join them!!

Ed Morse Auto Plaza has truly stunning offers right now at the Suzuki, Buick, Mazda and GMC dealerships at 10133 U.S. 19 in Port Richey. The Buick Verano deal below is only one of the incredible offers.

Also, Joe has learned Ed Morse Auto Plaza is selling two brand NEW 2011 Suzukis at a stunningly inexpensive price AND throwing in FREE GAS for an entire year. Don’t hesitate to call manager Craig Blacklidge NOW and get the details. Joe can promise you these are truly unreal offers!

Leonard Johnson Reportedly Signs With Bucs

Saturday, April 28th, 2012

Listed as the top-rated cornerback not to be drafted this weekend, Joe has learned that Iowa State cornerback Leonard Johnson is expected to sign a free agent contract with the Bucs.

Bobby La Gesse, the sports editor of the Ames (Iowa) Tribune, Twittered tonight that Johnson and the Bucs have come to terms.

‏@BobbyLaGesse: Leonard Johnson signed a free agent contract with Tampa Bay. He’ll play for Greg Schiano, the coach he faced in the Pinstripe Bowl in Dec.

There’s another player that played against Schiano. That’s three today by Joe’s count.

Why is Joe posting an article on Johnson? He’s sort of a local prep legend. In his junior and senior years, Johnson quarterbacked his high school team, the Largo Packers, to the state semifinals only to lose each time to national powerhouse Fort Lauderdale St. Thomas Aquinas.

Dan Persa To Work Out For Bucs

Saturday, April 28th, 2012

Bucs newly drafted tight Drake Dunsmore may have an advantage when he reports to Bucs rookie minicamp, tentatively scheduled for next weekend.

That’s because his stud college quarterback, Dan Persa, will be joining him.

Though the Bucs have not signed Persa (yet), he told the Chicago Tribune that he plans to work out for the Bucs next weekend and hopes to impress Greg Schiano enough to warrant a free agent contract, reports Teddy Greenstein.

@TeddyGreenstein: Dan Persa tells me he will head down to Tampa Bay next weekend. He is unsigned but hopes that will change after his workout.

Personally, Joe is geeked about this. Persa was one of Joe’s favorite quarterbacks to watch. Sort of a modern day Doug Flutie, Persa was dangerous both with his feet and his arm.

The old cliche about how scouts can’t measure heart perfectly describes Persa. It’s a shame that Persa went down with an Achilles injury at the end of the 2010 season as he rallied Northwestern to a major upset over Iowa in the snow at Evanston.

Persa never seemed to recover from that injury last year and was hobbled all through the 2011 campaign.

If Persa has (finally) recovered from his Achilles injury, Joe’s confident he could make a run at making the Bucs final roster as a No. 3 quarterback.

NFL Players Rank Donald Penn 97th Best

Saturday, April 28th, 2012

What a great opportunity for Joe to smack all the Bucs fans that emerged from their caves to smack Donald Penn around when they realized the Bucs might have a shot at drafting Matt Kalil.

Sure, Joe was on board with a potential Kalil pick. He would have looked great at right tackle as the left-tackle-in-waiting for two or three seasons. But many Bucs fans were eager to draft Kalil and kick Penn to the curb completely via trade.

This is and was mind-boggling to Joe, and clearly mind-boggling to NFL players, who voted Penn the 97th best football player in the league.

The Top-100 of 2012 countdown show on NFL Network (the real man channel not viewed at home by men whose ladies own the remote control) began tonight with Nos. 91-100 unveiled. Those honored are voted in by NFL players.

Joe can’t understand why some fans are quick to blast Penn. The man has started 76 consecutive games and played damn well. So what if he mows down the doughnuts. At worst, Penn is a Top-13 left tackle. When he’s playing well, he’s elite.

Joe expects another Pro Bowl season from Penn in 2012. Clearly his peers do as well.