Joe shares his thoughts on the 2014 NFL Combine and his days in Indianapolis.
This was Joe’s second year going to the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Man, Joe is just simply exhausted after five straight days there. He just got back his wind Tuesday night.
With the possible exception of Bucs training camp, it is the most work Joe does each year in such a short span of time. But it’s fun work because you are gathering so much information. [read more]
There was a lot of chatter at the NFL Scouting Combine last week about how running backs have been devalued in this age of throw-first, ask-questions-later NFL. Fullbacks? They are nearly obsolete.
Almost, that is. The Bucs currently have Erik Lorig as their fullback, but for how much longer? He’s a free agent and reading the words of Jason LaCanfora of CBSSports.com, the Bucs would be in for a fight to retain Lorig’s services. [read more]
Between chasing down NFL contacts for interviews and college prospects for information, Joe was able to snap smartphone photos of the goings-on at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis last week, hosted by the Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Are NFL teams trying to trade for Bucs CB Darrelle Revis?
The Bucs have had — to be polite — a shaky secondary since Ronde Barber last played cornerback. No matter how much rear-view mirror/revisionist history Bucs fans want to peddle, gun-totin,’ helmet-swinging, cabbie-slugging Aqib Talib was nothing more than an average corner with the Bucs. When he wasn’t hurt, even though some Bucs fans tried to make him out to be the second-coming of Night Train Lane, he wasn’t worth all his hassle and baggage and drama and nonsense. [read more]
49ers GM Trent Baalke explains, indirectly, why Doug Martin is Lovie Smith’s bellcow.
A cool thing about attending the NFL Scouting Combine is Joe got to listen to other top-notch general managers and kind of get a feel for their mindset and what makes their teams great. Joe could sit and listen to guys like Ted Thompson, the mastermind of the Packers, talk all day.
Now when Joe got a chance to have limited time with Bucs coach Lovie Smith, Joe was mildly surprised when Lovie said he wanted a bellcow running back and make no mistake about it, Doug Martin is that bellcow back. [read more]
Holy Flurckingschmidt! The NFL is starting to upload videos to YouTube. Welcome to the 21st Century NFL warden commissioner Roger Goodell! Joe referenced this clip last week but this is the Total Access segment on NFL Network where Bucs Hall of Fame defensive tackle Warren Sapp and current Bucs Pro Bowl defensive tackle Gerald McCoy discuss, among other things, new Bucs coach Lovie Smith.
Donald Penn is an average-to-above-average starting NFL left tackle, who is earning average starter’s money at his position. But a new report from Yahoo! Sports claims Tampa Bay is in pursuit of more bang for its bucks. [read more]
Bucs general manager Jason Licht shares a moment from the NFL Scouting Combine with Will Brinson. In this CBS Sports video, Licht talks about Darrelle Revis, what he would like to do with the No. 7 pick and, of course, every Bucs fan’s favorite subject, incumbent starting quarterback Mike Glennon.
NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport is often gifted the inside track on many breaking stories, and yesterday he pounced on buzz out of the unimpressive free-agent market for quarterbacks.
Rapoport Twittered the Bucs, Bears and Jets are hot in the pants for 35-year-old journeyman Josh McCown. [read more]
Bucs offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford admits he will be leaning on his fellow assistants while he learns the NFL.
There are all sorts of mysteries surrounding the Bucs right now. One of the biggest is the offense. Forget incumbent Mike Glennon and the quarterback position for the moment, what kind of system will offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford run? He has no NFL experience and in his past, he’s run everything from standard drop-back to a form of a spread. [read more]
When Joe fantasizes about what the Bucs should get from their No. 7 overall draft pick in 2014, Joe can’t help but note that the Bucs better do a heck of a lot better than they did with the No. 7 pick in 2012, safety Mark Barron. [read more]
Calling Mike Glennon possibly the worst in-the-pocket mover in the NFL, former Bucs guard Ian Beckles said today on WDAE-AM 620 he’s very down on the Bucs’ signal caller and is not surprised Lovie Smith and Jason Licht have failed to endorse Glennon as the 2014 starter — in words or implication. [read more]
Mike Mayock yesterday at his post-combine press conference.
Want to know why the NFL Network’s Mike Mayock is the best in the business at breaking down the draft? Here, courtesy of Joe’s good friends at WDAE-AM 620, is the audio of Mayock’s end-of-combine press conference.
The guy is an absolute machine. For a full 18-minutes Mayock fields questions about players better than Joe polishes off colds beers on a Friday night. It is impressive.
Back on the WDAE-AM 620 airwaves after spending time with Lovie Smith in Indianapolis last week, Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud was busy this morning defending the Tampa Bay Times’attack piece on Mike Williams and emphasized to Bucs fans that the Lovie regime is rather queasy about its current roster. [read more]
Not long ago, Joe mocked the mockers for suggesting the Bucs would draft an outside linebacker with the seventh overall pick. It frankly made no sense.
Then, the great Mike Mayock explained that a stud outside linebacker who is also a tremendous pass rusher could stay on the field at all times; playing outside linebacker on run plays and lining up at defensive end on pass plays. [read more]
The NFL Scouting Combine was a Who’s Who of NFL elite. Not just NFL coaches and general managers but some of the most intelligent football minds were wandering around.
Joe tried to interview as many as he could and as many who were willing to chat on the record. One of those intelligentsia is Greg Cosell of NFL Films. The guy breaks down tape and discusses it in such a smart way that Joe is jealous beyond words.
Joe got Cosell to talk about Lovie Smith, Adrian Clayborn and every Bucs fan’s favorite subject, Mike Glennon. [read more]
NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport is often gifted the inside track on many breaking stories, and yesterday he pounced on buzz out of the unimpressive free-agent market for quarterbacks.
