2011 Tampa Bay Bucs thread (1 Viewer)

[Premier]

What a year. JOSH FREEMAN!

Well, looks like we have a franchise QB for a while. Can scratch that one off the draft lists for the next, oh, 10 years. Going into 2011, the WRs seem excellent, we have a nice TE group, and a starting RB in Blount. Also, 4/5 of an offensive line with Penn, Lee, Zuttah and Larsen in some grouping. I imagine they will bring back one of Faine and/or Joseph.

Defensively....well, that's another story.

Have the three DTs in McCoy (began playing like a stud the month he got hurt), Brian Price and Roy Miller. Need at least 2-3 DEs in the draft or free agency.

Cornerback is probably ok, if Ronde comes back. Talib is a beast, and Biggers/Myron Lewis played well, particularly Biggers. Safety could also be upgraded, but Cody Grimm was the find of the season.

Other than DE, the biggest upgrade needs to be at LB. They could all honestly be replaced, and hopefully Barrett Ruud's reign of terror is over. There's good depth with Dakota Watson and Adam Heyward. They could likely man the SLB spot, but the middle and weakside really were bad.

Offseason draft/free-agency priority list:

1) A pair of DEs

2) A new MLB

3) A new WLB. Geno Hayes just has not made enough plays. If they think he's about to come into his own, fine, but he's had two years now. I mean, the guy had games with 2-3 tackles. You just can't have that.

4) Safety. Grimm should be the starter at FS; Tanard Jackson is likely done. Sean Jones was ok, but nothing special. I imagine he will be back as well, but they need another safety to rotate in there. Corey Lynch is very average-ish.

5) Maybe another RB with speed. Caddy should be back as he's great at helping Freeman read the blitzes and pick up the pass protection (and third-down catches), but he probably doesn't have a lot of time left. This is a lower priority.

Really that's about it. There's a lot of good, young foundation in place. The offense could literally go almost untouched.

 

[beerbarron]

Bucs were a great suprise and a lot of fun to follow and watch them get better.. will be much different next year with a tougher schedule..

Freeman just needs to continue to grow and learn.. he could be a top 5/6 QB next year... fantasy wise almost was this year.. williams, benn and winslow... thats a nice core of pass catchers....

from a FF perspective.. get mike williams.... i got lucky and traded for freeman early this year.. picked up blount early but traded him for a high first round pick a few weeks ago.. i kinda miss the safety popping blount already..

 

[bucsbaby]

Agree that DEx2, WLB, MLB, SS and OL are the priorities. Would love to see the Bucs address these positions via draft and free agency. Bucs have spent very minimally the past couple of years, so if the owners ever start to shell out the $$$ they can afford to add FAs. All depends on the CBA, of course.

 

[Goldalene]

I think you've got the priorities right. I feel the team will improve in 2011, but the schedule will be harder, and am hopeful for a ten win season and maybe a WC spot.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Agree 100% on a new corp of LBs and also DEs...but I would not assume McCoy and Price are going to be studs. Suh was a major force and I think people wanted to make more out of McCoy than he was. He can be solid but I don't think he can live up to the 1.03 like Suh will live up to the 1.02...that's my take on it and has been since before the draft.

I like Mike Williams but let's see how Benn is after the knee injury...they could draft another stud WR if something fell to them. With Freeman you keep giving him weapons of mass destruction.

RB...Blount is a nice story but I wouldn't build it all around him. I would definitely put a speed back on a short priority list.

Good stuff Premier

 

[Premier]

but I would not assume McCoy and Price are going to be studs. Suh was a major force and I think people wanted to make more out of McCoy than he was. He can be solid but I don't think he can live up to the 1.03 like Suh will live up to the 1.02...that's my take on it and has been since before the draft.

He was living up to it the last 4-5 games before he got hurt. Guy was playing lights out and was being double-teamed almost every passing play. Will he be Suh? Who cares? The Bucs didn't have a chance to draft Suh.

I like Mike Williams but let's see how Benn is after the knee injury...they could draft another stud WR if something fell to them. With Freeman you keep giving him weapons of mass destruction.

I wouldn't have a problem with this, but Benn "should" be ok and Raheem is in love with Desmond Briscoe. His TD catch in the last Saints game showed a lot of talent. I imagine they go into next year with those guys as their top-3.

RB...Blount is a nice story but I wouldn't build it all around him. I would definitely put a speed back on a short priority list.

I wouldn't go for a speed back in the first 3 rounds. Too many other needs. In free-agency, or later in the draft...sure.

 

[Neil Beaufort Zod]

Bucs were a great suprise and a lot of fun to follow and watch them get better.. will be much different next year with a tougher schedule..

Freeman just needs to continue to grow and learn.. he could be a top 5/6 QB next year... fantasy wise almost was this year.. williams, benn and winslow... thats a nice core of pass catchers....

from a FF perspective.. get mike williams.... i got lucky and traded for freeman early this year.. picked up blount early but traded him for a high first round pick a few weeks ago.. i kinda miss the safety popping blount already..

Is a third-place schedule going to be that much tougher?

 

[Sinrman]

I have said it before, and I'll say it again. I was completely wrong about the Bucs. I was completely wrong about Raheem Morris. I will give kudos where kudos are due.

I bet my wife this year that my Lions would win more games than her Bucs, and after the first 6 or so games, I already knew it was over. They looked really good and they

have quite the young nucleus. I think the balance of Blount stepping up and giving them a running game again and Mike Williams catching a lot really helped Freeman mature

and is turning out to be the QB they always hoped he would be. I agree with the OP that the defense should be the main focus in the draft/free agency. They are turning

things around there too, but do need more of a threat on the ends and in the secondary. Despite winning 10, they still have an uphill to climb with the Saints and Falcons in their

division. But they are already on their way back up...

 

[TheWheel]

The Bucs got the NFC West this year. They are going to have to greatly improve to just maintain. Everybody is going to make strides in their games for expectations to be met. The offense is pretty good. I would be happy if Cadillac stook around to backup Blount. He should take a huge paycut no matter where he goes. Defensively, they're best bets are to increase depth at the DLine and add some competition to the LB core. Expect a strong play for Asomugha. With Talib, both sides of the Cover 2 are set. Ronde Barber has lasted and I still think he can ball.

If Raheem Morris is a good coach, the team, generally will get better. This team could be really good next year if they age properly. Mike Williams needs to locked in a cage though. Guy can't stay outta trouble and he could undermine everything if he doesn't get his #### straight.

 

[Premier]

The Bucs got the NFC West this year. They are going to have to greatly improve to just maintain. Everybody is going to make strides in their games for expectations to be met. The offense is pretty good. I would be happy if Cadillac stook around to backup Blount. He should take a huge paycut no matter where he goes. Defensively, they're best bets are to increase depth at the DLine and add some competition to the LB core. Expect a strong play for Asomugha. With Talib, both sides of the Cover 2 are set. Ronde Barber has lasted and I still think he can ball. If Raheem Morris is a good coach, the team, generally will get better. This team could be really good next year if they age properly. Mike Williams needs to locked in a cage though. Guy can't stay outta trouble and he could undermine everything if he doesn't get his #### straight.

What? Mike was a model citizen this year. They already dropped his DUI charges and people in the front office can't stop talking about how good a guy he's been.

 

[Premier]

The Bucs got the NFC West this year. They are going to have to greatly improve to just maintain. Everybody is going to make strides in their games for expectations to be met. The offense is pretty good. I would be happy if Cadillac stook around to backup Blount. He should take a huge paycut no matter where he goes. Defensively, they're best bets are to increase depth at the DLine and add some competition to the LB core. Expect a strong play for Asomugha. With Talib, both sides of the Cover 2 are set. Ronde Barber has lasted and I still think he can ball. If Raheem Morris is a good coach, the team, generally will get better. This team could be really good next year if they age properly. Mike Williams needs to locked in a cage though. Guy can't stay outta trouble and he could undermine everything if he doesn't get his #### straight.

Completely agree the NFC West made things easier, but 10-6 in the NFL is 10-6. I think you could tell at the end of the year they were pretty legit. I would love Asomugha. I don't totally buy into the whole Glazers cheap thing; they've spent money before and hey all said they wanted to re-build this through the draft. Now that's done, adding a free agent or two to help out would be excellent.

 

[TheWheel]

Look, after Mike Williams troubles in college, he shouldn't have even been in that situation to have anything dropped.

 

[drfeelgood]

Look, after Mike Williams troubles in college, he shouldn't have even been in that situation to have anything dropped.

His "situation" wasn't that dramatic.

 

[Premier]

Look, after Mike Williams troubles in college, he shouldn't have even been in that situation to have anything dropped.

The situation was basically two beers. The guy isn't allowed to drink a beer?

 

[TheWheel]

You don't know how much he drank. He could have been loaded and sat around for couple of hours.

Either way I'm happy everything turned out for him okay.

 

[nxmehta]

I CANNOT BELIEVE that Josh Freeman looked so good this year. With him and M Williams you guys have a bright future.

Your schedule next year will not be easy though.

Who do you guys think should be your #1 target in free agency?

 

[cdwood]

Here are their opponents:

2010 Divisional opponents, Washington, Detroit, NFC West, AFC North

2011 Divisional opponents, Dallas, San Francisco, NFC North, AFC South

I wouldn't expect much change in the competitiveness of their division rivals, I would expect Dallas to be a better team next year than Washington was this season, the same could probably be said for SF vs Detroit. I would have to think playing the NFC North would be tougher than playing the NFC West. I think it mainly comes down to how well they do vs the AFC South. The AFC North might have a tough reputation, but its really 2 tough teams in Pittsburgh and Baltimore and 2 patsies in Cincinatti and Cleveland. Tampa Bay went 2-2 vs the AFC North. I see the AFC South as a division on the way down but the 4 teams in the division are much closer to one another than the AFC North is to each other.

Despite the fact that they're playing a 3rd place schedule next season, I think Tampa Bay will have a tougher 2011 schedule and should consider it a successful season if they just hold steady at 10-6.

 

[Premier]

Too early to worry about schedules. We all know 10,000 things will change between now and September. If the Bucs end up being a good team, they'll win plenty of games.

 

[Cleat Spike]

but I would not assume McCoy and Price are going to be studs. Suh was a major force and I think people wanted to make more out of McCoy than he was. He can be solid but I don't think he can live up to the 1.03 like Suh will live up to the 1.02...that's my take on it and has been since before the draft.

He was living up to it the last 4-5 games before he got hurt. Guy was playing lights out and was being double-teamed almost every passing play. Will he be Suh? Who cares? The Bucs didn't have a chance to draft Suh.

I like Mike Williams but let's see how Benn is after the knee injury...they could draft another stud WR if something fell to them. With Freeman you keep giving him weapons of mass destruction.

I wouldn't have a problem with this, but Benn "should" be ok and Raheem is in love with Desmond Briscoe. His TD catch in the last Saints game showed a lot of talent. I imagine they go into next year with those guys as their top-3.

RB...Blount is a nice story but I wouldn't build it all around him. I would definitely put a speed back on a short priority list.

I wouldn't go for a speed back in the first 3 rounds. Too many other needs. In free-agency, or later in the draft...sure.

Briscoe is a guy I've been scooping up off the wire in the post season. I don't think Benn will be a full go by the first game like he thinks so someone is going to reap the benefits of having Williams on the other side. Had Briscoe on my NCAA fantasy team and the guy was an auto start type every week WR without having to think about it. I think he got pretty overlooked in that Cinci mess last season and Tampa has hit on something worth keeping around. He didn't get much scouting love due to his speed, but sometimes it doesn't matter. With a little polish he might be a great compliment with Freeman and Williams looking real good. With what could be "a wash" type season for Benn, now is the time on Briscoe I'm guessing.

 

[Premier]

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfcsouth/post/_/id...buc-starts-here

Great video on Rah.

 

[Quez]

Cap hit the head on the nail with the needs. DE & LB will be the focus of the draft. They should bring back Joseph but Faine may be worth letting go at this point. His durability is becoming questionable and we have depth.

It's amazing WR & QB are actually strengths of our team for the first time in the history of the franchise. CB has also become less of a priority now that the young guys did a great job filling in.

I really would like to see Caddy come back to ease the load off of Blount. He has really improved his pass catching and is great in every area on passing plays.

I don't expect any moves in FAand for the first time I'm not really upset or concerned. This regime has changed my perspective on building a team and realizing almost everyone in the NFL has the ability to excel.

I really wish they could have found a way to keep Bassacia and the ST will miss him.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

This regime has changed my perspective on building a team and realizing almost everyone in the NFL has the ability to excel.

:( Everyone?

 

[Quez]

This regime has changed my perspective on building a team and realizing almost everyone in the NFL has the ability to excel.

Everyone?

Not everyone, but my point is the Bucs were pulling guys out of thin air this season. I now feel that rebuilding through the draft and harvesting practice squad players is the way to go.

 

[gump]

Ruud a FA?

What's the deal on Hayes....did he take a step back?

 

[Quez]

Ruud a FA?What's the deal on Hayes....did he take a step back?

These guys have caught quite a bit of criticism but I personally think they could both excel with an improved defensive line.

 

[Hobbes]

I think the Bucs are hitting a point where they will be drafting to add competition to specific positions rather than specifically trying to replace a player who is under performing. I think the areas that they would like to add some competition would be DE, OL (all positions) and LB...and then to a lesser extent S, CB, and RB. I would not put it past them to draft anyone at any position that they think is a value and can help them build depth...which is important not only for injuries (see: this year) but also to offset losses to FA. I would not count out some of the guys that would not traditionally fit into their system. I think they would crap themselves if Von Miller fell to 20...I think they would take Akers too...we played a LOT of defensive downs last year in formations other than the 4-3.

 

[gump]

Talib a 'person of interest'...which apparently means he (and maybe his mother) shot at someone:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/03/28/aqib-talib-person-of-interest-shooting_n_841423.html

According to a GPD initial report about the incident and two sources familiar with the case Talib allegedly attempted to pistol-whip his sister Saran's boyfriend, Shannon Billings, and then, after a struggle, used his mother Okolo's pistol and fired several shots at Billings as he fled the scene on foot.According to the report, the 25-year-old could be "arrested and charged with anything from discharging a firearm within a municipality to aggravated assault with a deadly weapon."

 

[gump]

A warrant has been issued for Talib's arrest...charge is Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon. Supposedly a 2-year min prison sentence.

 

[gump]

Nnamdi anyone?

 

[Sweet Love]

A warrant has been issued for Talib's arrest...charge is Aggravated Assault with a Deadly Weapon. Supposedly a 2-year min prison sentence.

I love how these "upport groups" get their golden goose involved in these kind of things. If my family member (who was taking care of everything financially for me), was with me on a daily basis, I would be massaging his calves with goat's milk and feeding him bison bon-bons...why even have him exposed to his sister's d-bag boyfriend.Good news for Rhonde Barber...he now has job security for the next 3-4 years if he wants to take advantage of it...

 

[gump]

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will hold a visit with University of Nebraska CB Prince Amukamara before the 2011 NFL Draft, according to NFL Network's Jason La Canfora.

Source: NFL Network - Jason La Canfora

I doubt the Bucs trade up to the Top 10...but maybe they see Prince falling to the teens.

 

[gump]

MARCH 30, 2011

Talib preparing vigorous defense as he surrenders to police

Bucs cornerback Aqib Talib has been busy preparing a vigorous defense of charges that he fired gun shots at his sister’s boyfriend but finally surrendered to Texas police Tuesday morning on felony arrest warrant.

Talib, 25, has retained law firms from two states and hired a Dallas private investigator who has questioned neighbors that witnessed the March 21 shooting that rattled the quiet subdivision of Charleston Commons.

He posted $25,000 bail and was released after spending about two hours being booked in the Garland jail.

Talib and his mother, Okolo, are charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after police say they took turns firing gun shots at Shannon Billings, 40, who describes himself as the common-law husband of Talib’s sister, Saran.

Talib has retained noted Pittsburgh sports attorney Jay Reisinger, a member of the legal teams that represented Alex Rodriguez, Sammy Sosa and Andy Pettitte. He also has hired Dallas criminal attorney Frank Perez and H. David Lozano, a private investigator of Drake Security Patrol.

Although Talib’s attorneys declined comment Wednesday, privately he’s been adamant that he did not fire a weapon during the domestic disturbance. Talib told Clint Bowen, a co-defensive coordinator during his career at the University of Kansas, that only his mom pulled the trigger.

“I talked to Aqib two days ago," Bowen said. "I told him, 'I just read something about you firing a gun.' He said, 'Man, I didn't do a thing. It'll all come out soon.' He just kept saying that...He said, 'I didn't do that. That was my mom. It's all going to come out.'''

Posted by Rick Stroud at 9:40:10 pm on March 30, 2011

 

[Grahamburn]

Obviously he was there. It's hard to imagine Talib stood by the wayside while his mother fired a handgun at this guy.

Either way, he's continuing to prove that he's a knucklehead. Ronde is on the downside of his career. What was a promising position now looks like a weakness if Talib is out for an extended period of time.

 

[Premier]

Bowers-Price-McCoy-Clayborne

Wow!!

This team is starting to look scary good.

 

[Vrana]

Bowers-Price-McCoy-ClayborneWow!!This team is starting to look scary good.

Really like the draft so far.Maybe Bowers will work out for a few years, maybe he won't, but there is no way you can pass on a top 5 talent at the 51st pick when DE is such a big need. Foster is a tackling machine and should be a big help against the run. Grabbing a backup TE (who is supposed to be an excellent blocker) is a good move because of Winslows health issues and so they can run an effect 2 TE set.With our recent success in these later rounds, I'm really excited about what Ra and Dominik can find.

 

[BassNBrew]

Bowers-Price-McCoy-ClayborneWow!!This team is starting to look scary good.

You guys crushed it over the last several days. About the only position we have you covered is clipboard holder if we can even sign the #1 overall.

 

[Balco]

Bowers-Price-McCoy-ClayborneWow!!This team is starting to look scary good.

Bowers and Clayborne are scary two way bookends. The NFL is a violent league, any career can be shortened with one play. It is amazing to me that Bowers fell so far because of his knee.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Bowers-Price-McCoy-ClayborneWow!!This team is starting to look scary good.

Another strong draft. They got the offense moving last year, now they switch the focus to the defense and bring in a couple more pieces of the DL. That DL is young, doesn't have a lot of depth but the primary guys that will be starting should be solid. The Bucs are getting closer to being a top 10 team.

 

[Grahamburn]