Schiano Can’t Wait To “Ham And Egg It”
April 30th, 2012Leader 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
April 30th, 2012Columnist 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
April 30th, 2012Here’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
April 30th, 2012Podcast: Play in new window | Download | Embed
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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
April 30th, 2012Have more fun going to Rays games and save money.
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Rutgers Guard Desmond Wynn Coming To Bucs
April 30th, 2012The 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”
April 30th, 2012Joe’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
April 29th, 2012NFC 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
April 29th, 2012Two 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
April 29th, 2012One 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
April 29th, 2012Teams 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
April 28th, 2012Listed 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
April 28th, 2012Bucs 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
April 28th, 2012What 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.
Hook Mom Up For Mother’s Day
April 28th, 2012Shocking: Dunsmore Has Good Fundamentals
April 28th, 2012The theme for the first draft in the New Schiano Order for the Bucs seems to be discipline, guys who do the little things right.
That seems to be the case for Northwestern tight end Drake Dunsmore, who the Bucs chose with their final seventh-round draft selection tonight.
Reading a breakdown of Dunsmore on CBSSports.com, it seems he runs good routes and is more of a receiver than a blocker.
Given he’s a Northwestern guy, don’t expect Dunsmore to make too many stupid mistakes.
Also, throw in that his father, Pat Dunsmore, played two years at tight end for the Chicago Bears in 1983 and 1984.
Bucs Get A Smart Tight End To Complete Draft
April 28th, 2012Well, the final Bucs draft pick of 2012 ought to be able to learn a playbook and not run wrong routes in the final regular season game.
With the 233rd selection, the Bucs drafted Northwestern tight end Drake Dunsmore.
There’s not a lot of video on the guy, though some local diehards might remember him from a crazy Outback Bowl three years ago against Auburn.
Look For Another West Coast Guy
April 28th, 2012Mark Dominik just snatched Utah State running back Michael Smith in the seventh round, which doesn’t surprise Joe since part of the strategy in picking a seventh rounder is taking a guy you doubt would come across the country to sign with your team as an unrestricted free agent.
Take last year’s seventh-rounder Daniel Hardy. He was an Alaska native that played for Idaho. Erik Lorig was another example, a Stanford guy who grew up in California.
The theory is the West Coast kid won’t pick Florida if he has offers closer to home, so you draft who you like but think won’t come to you in free agency.
Joe will bet a few nickels the Bucs grab another Left Coast player with their final seventh-round pick.
Bucs May Have Found A Gem
April 28th, 2012Call him a poor man’s LaMichael James if you will, but it appears the Bucs first seventh round pick, Michael Smith out of Utah State, is a burner.
He ran a 4.3 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine and had a 40-inch vertical leap.
It seems NFL Films analyst Greg Cosell is smitten with Smith.
A back with exceptional upper-body strength, Smith made a living coming off the bench to spell Robert Turbin at Utah State. NFL.com’s Chad Reuter spoke of Smith’s outstanding pro day — he timed at 4.33 in the 40-yard dash with a 40 1/2-inch vertical jump — as part of an argument for Smith finding a home in the fourth or fifth round. Smith is overlooked because his touches were reduced as a senior, but he averaged more than seven yards per carry over his career. Smith possesses exceptional burst and exploded in December’s Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, with 157 yards on 12 carries, two for scores. (Are you telling us you didn’t watch the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl? Priorities, people.)
If some think this guy should have been chosen three rounds higher, than yeah, Joe thinks this guy is a value pick.
Look, there are lots of running backs who flew under the radar in college that did something in the NFL. why not Michael Smith?
To his credit, Smith was stuck in a logjam at running back playing behind Robert Turbin who was drafted in the fourth round by Seattle.
New Bucs Running Back Michael Smith
April 28th, 2012Here’s a quick breakdown of seventh round pick, Utah State running back Michael Smith.