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There’s a clear pattern to the impressive catches Mike Evans has made in practice. They all seem to be over the middle of the field.
But that’s new terrain for the Bucs’ first-round draft pick, who offered Joe a little detail yesterday. [read more]
The Bucs legitimately go four-deep at running back with Doug Martin, Charles Sims, Bobby Rainey and Mike James.
That’s a nice luxury, but it’s especially unnecessary when/if your offensive line can’t open a hole. [read more]
A former Bucs offensive lineman is appalled
A big voice on local sports radio is former Bucs guard Ian Beckles (1990-1996), who co-hosts the Ron and Ian show heard weekdays on WDAE-AM 620. And one might have guessed Beckles would have a harsh word or two for the Bucs’ offensive line performance on Friday in Jacksonville.
And Beckles did.
He took to the airwaves this morning and cautioned fans not to read much into any preseason opener, but that came with a giant “but,” as it related to the O-line debacle. [read more]
Some may not realize that players are graded by coaches after each game, even after practice.
But a preseason game grade means a lot. And Lovie Smith has a different grading style, one that stands out, even among Super Bowl head coaches. [read more]
Peter King of theMMQB.com offers his takes on Josh McCown and the Bucs’ 2014 fate. Photo courtesy of Buccaneers.com.
There is no way one could properly grade Bucs quarterback Josh McCown in Friday’s game. How could one when he was running for the hills at nearly every snap?
Now if we were judging McCown on his escapability or his ability to flee from would-be car jackers, well, Joe would have to give him a B+.
But it seems fight-instigating, barista-training, pedestrian-bumping, olive oil-lapping, popcorn-munching, coffee-slurping, fried-chicken-eating, oatmeal-loving, circle-jerking, beer-chugging, cricket-watching, scone-loathing, college football-naïve, baseball box score-reading Peter King, of theMMQB.com and NBC Sports fame, thinks much better of McCown. [read more]
Those trying to get inside Lovie Smith’s head to figure out where he stands on the eventual 53-man roster might want to take note of the head coach’s comments on SiriusXM NFL Radio yesterday.
Lovie sat down for an in-depth chat on all things Bucs and was asked to name some potentially off-the-radar standouts. [read more]
Bucs G Oneil Cousins talks about the trainwreck that was the offensive line play Friday night.
If there is one thing Joe has learned about professional athletes, it’s to go gentle immediately after a practice or a game (especially a loss). Generally, they are so worn out talking isn’t always what they want to do.
Hell, Joe was once cussed out by Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson after the then-60-something threw batting practice (Gibson later apologized to Joe because he said he was having an asthma attack and couldn’t talk at the time he left the field because he couldn’t breathe). [read more]
Cornerback Alterraun Verner, seen here guarding Chris Owusu in a previous practice, returned to full pads this afternoon. Photo courtesy of Buccaneers.com.
It got to the point that Bucs cornerback Alterraun Verner had missed so many practices (out since July 27) that his seemingly ever-present Bucs floppy hat was his uniform. Verner, who the Bucs grabbed to replace All-World corner Darrelle Revis, tweaked his hamstring since the underwear football days of training camp.
Since, Verner has been nothing but a spectator, yes, wearing his trademark floppy hat. About the best workout he got in was signing dozens of autographs after each and every practice. [read more]
Bucs rookie WR Robert Herron has made few catches like this in training camp. But after a good catch in the first preseason game, and several catches today, maybe Herron has cured himself of the dropsies? Photo courtesy of Buccaneers.com.
This spring, Bucs rookie wideout Robert Herron sure looked like a keeper. The guy was lethal in crossing patterns, catching balls and throwing it into Roadrunner overdrive, leaving defensive backs to eat his cinders.
Yes, that was underwear football. When the big boys decided to put on the pads in training camp, Herron couldn’t catch the measles. Balls bounced off his hands far more often than he could catch a pass. [read more]
The GM is focused on the trenches
Lovie Smith and general manager Jason Licht always talk about how they’re constantly trying to improve their football team and scouring other teams to do it.
But Licht emphasized a couple of specific areas during a chat on SiriusXM NFL Radio this afternoon. [read more]
Oneil Cousins is on the move.
The veteran Bucs newcomer, playing at right guard during Friday night’s debacle in Jacksonville, has a new job.
Hard work continued at One Buc Palace this afternoon, as fans and media watched your beloved Bucs run through a physical training camp practice from 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Joe’s got all kinds of notes, nuggets and need-to-knows: [read more]
Joe hears the roars from Bucs fans yearning to see Tampa Bay swing a trade for holdout 49ers guard Alex Boone.
It ain’t going to happen. [read more]
Joe really felt for Bucs quarterback Josh McCown Friday night. And, no, it wasn’t just the pain in McCown’s ribs and his head that Joe was feeling.
Whatever the Bucs were trying to do offensively in the first quarter, you may as well have taken the playbook and thrown it in the St. John’s River, after you threw down a six-pack at the underrated Bud Zone. [read more]
Bucs fans are getting up this morning, hoping their day-long bender made them think the Friday play of the Bucs’ offensive line was a mirage. Alas, once the hangover fog leaves, that nightmare was all too real.
Saturday online, whether it was this here corner of the Interwebs, or on Twitter, Bucs fans were freaking out, demanding a trade or even believing the impossible, that a man of morality and standards like Lovie Smith would actually stoop so low and go out and acquire that roided up piece of human debris known as Richie Incognito. [read more]
On that depth-chart thing the Bucs issued this week, the Tampa Bay starting cornerbacks are injured Alterraun Verner and Mike Jenkins.
They didn’t play last night, but Lovie Smith shared some love today for two of their fill-ins. [read more]
Bucs fans are supposed to be out-of-their-mind excited about their beloved football team that is striving to be “relevant,” the buzz word of new head coach Lovie Smith.
But fans are, you know, fans, which is short for fanatics. Heck, the Bucs even had their in-house reporter chronicle Lovie’s activities for his first 100 days and share 30,000 or so words about the experience. [read more]
Why are Lovie Smith’s words in support of Mike Glennon getting stronger? [read more]
There were many bright spots for your beloved Bucs in Jacksonville last night. Don’t let the skeptics ruin your Saturday.
One came from a guy Lovie Smith says is his “prototype” defensive end. And that performance threw an interesting wrinkle into the D-line competition. [read more]
Jaguars DE Chris Clemons celebrates putting Bucs QB Josh McCown on the ground Friday.
Since Lovie Smith began adding offensive pieces to the Bucs rebuilding puzzle, expectations if not mysteries were aroused. There was the Jeff Tedford offense that fans were told over and over again would be “up-tempo.”
Then there was the “Duncaneers,” where NBA-sized wide receivers would catch virtually any ball not intended for Andre the Giant and turn it into six points. Oh, and the running backs, the many, many, many quality running backs were too numerous to name. [read more]
Doug Martin had a scant eight yards of offense in his return from an injury-shortened season
As Joe tried to drink away last night’s memory of one of the most horrid NFL offensive line displays ever witnessed, Joe nearly wiped out the memory of the return the Muscle Hamster himself, stud running back Doug Martin.
Aside from the fact it was Martin’s first game back after a season-ending injury, when he lost half of 2013 with a ripped up shoulder, it was a forgettable night. The Bucs lost and Martin had but six yards on three carries and caught one pass for a paltry two yards. [read more]
