The 5 Things the Bucs need for a happy 2010

by Niko Houllis on Dec 3, 2009 4:50 PM EST Comment 9 comments

What the Bucs need to do to have a better 2010...

In no particular order, here are five things the Bucs need to do to insure a happy Buccaneers 2010 season; with an extra point after the jump.

Continue to show improvement in play- The Bucs have been blown out by double digits in 5 of the first 7 games. In the last four? The Bucs lost one big, but won one, and lost the other two by a combined 5 points!.... in the last minute of each game! Josh Freeman is outplaying the other two big named rookie quarterbacks, as Josh is now 69 out of 125 (55.2%) for 793 yards 7 TDs and 5 Ints. His 76.5 QB Rating is higher than the 62.4 for Stafford or 62.1 for Sanchez. Both of those QBs have thrown for less completion %, and have a higher interception rate too.
Maintain continuity- Many fans want to see Bill Cowher coach this Bucs team. Yet Cowher's success comes from his ownership giving him 15 plus years to run the team, and not let him go at the first sign of a poor record or poor showings. The Quick Pull that fans want to do with Raheem is exactly the thing that would have ruined Cowher. Redskins QB Campbell is a fine example of what happens to a QB who gets a new Coordinator each year. Closer to home Bucs Shawn King had a new coordinator each year, Shula in '99, Les Steckle, Clyde Christianson, Jon Gruden was no. 4 in 4 years. Keep Raheem Morris, Greg Olsen, and remove the Bates defensive coaches so everyone is on the same page. We are seeing this improvement we have been looking for all year. If it continues, this offseason isnt the time to do it.s
Import more defensive talent, starting with the Defensive Line- Now that its obvious the Bucs return to the Tampa Two is a little more long term, the restocking of the Bucs defense is now on a lesser scale. Before the season is over, the defensive coaches need to assess if anyone on the roster is capable of taking over the undertackle 3 technique. If not, then this is a critical position on the roster that must be addressed in the NFL Draft, and Nebraska's Ndamukong Suh is a popular choice for that particular need. The secondary will need some attention too, as Ronde Barber is not getting younger, and Sabby Piscitelli needs to be assessed if he is the man to take the free safety position for the Bucs.
Punting is fundamental- Its not FUN though for Bucs fans, watching Dirk Johnson punt that is. The Bucs 'for real' punter Josh Bidwell's condition must be assertained to determine if his season ending injury is going to hamper his efforts in 2010. The last thing a struggling defense needs is a poor punter. Connor Barth seems to be the real deal in the place kicking department. When he misses, he misses by feet, not stadiums. Matt Bryant was similar.
Find a franchise running back- Take a moment to get your breath back after reading this one...and tell everyone which of the three running backs is a real, bonafide franchise back, that can be relied upon in a pinch. Cadillac? Love the whole story, its a great one, but he is 90% of what he was. A franchise back can break a 45 yard TD. Which one of our Backs do you see doing that? Derrick Ward has been a disapointment, but will be given another chance next year. Earnest Graham may be the real deal, but we need an LT, a Bettis, an........Alstott, to go with our Freeman.

OK OK, Extra Point- It may not sound popular. But number 5 + 1; Re-sign Antonio Bryant- Forget the injury. They happen. Its not a career bug, but it was bad enough that it affected most of he season. Not really his fault. What did he do with it? Did he cause a disruption in the lockeroom? Wasnt that the worry after all about AB? Not that he could do the job, but that he wouldnt turn into a head case. Two seasons now, and the worse we have is Bryant saying throw the ball more please. Tell me he is wrong first before you let him go, because you can bet there will be a line at the Free Agency window if he is not given a long term contract. Also...start Sammy Stroughter and Maurice Stovall so 1) Sammy can show he is a serious #2 guy, or 3) Stovall can finally show us he is more than a special team star.

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great article

i agree with everything you said !

by the420bucsfan on Dec 4, 2009 1:09 AM EST reply actions

Agree with the whole resigning with AB, and i would love to sign a fran. RB but the 3 we have i think will do for 2010. We need to focus on the DLine, the secondary, and adding depth to Our Oline. Once those are taken care of, and the RB’s still don’t get it done, then in 2011 we can take a RB with our first pick, but with Lack, Ward, Graham…I feel good until the prove to me they can’t get it done

by shadowchicken on Dec 4, 2009 1:13 AM EST reply actions

Know what i heard?

I heard Tebow would make a good HB……. * Runs Away *

by ATL_BUC on Dec 4, 2009 8:38 AM EST reply actions

I think the RBs we have are fine.

We just need to decide on two, let the third go, and get a system that works for the starting two. Like I said before, as of now, we have 3 guys who all proven they are solid RBs given the chance. We have a 4th in Smith who could be something whenever he learns to secure the ball, and a 5th in Huggins who looked like he could develop into something in the preseason (granted against 3rd or 4th but still he played extremely well).

Yea, a LT, AD, or Chris Johnson would be nice but its difficult to finding guys like that who can stay healthy are extremely hard. Think we’d have an easier time finding a reliable receiver that can compliment AB if we resign him and he’s healthy next year.

by NewLogic on Dec 4, 2009 10:01 AM EST reply actions

I was doing some fantasy football research a few years back,

and i found this.

‘All though I agree theat there will likely be some platooning (that is just how Gruden is), I am left wondering why Graham still can’t get any respect. He ran for 898yds, caught another 324, and scored 10 TD’s. That is only over 10 games. Project that over a full season, and the man sits right up there with LT in all 3 catagories. In fact, he would have more receiving yds. Think about that for a minute. His numbers would have been more than Peterson’s & Westbrooks’. Yet he can’t even hope to get that same kind of respect. Let’s give the man his due.’

Now, i can’t find the person who said this, so i can’t cite it. So if you’re out there reading this, whoops lol. Pretty interesting though. To think we couldn’t use him like a Frank Gore.
He doesn’t have break away speed, but i think he is a very good running back. I thought him and Caddy (runs with great power) would be tearing it up this year.

I feel like i haven’t seen much of Derrick Ward..

by rjblitz02 on Dec 5, 2009 11:51 AM EST up reply actions

Kind of why I feel Ward will be the odd man out.

Graham and Caddy have history with us and have a good connection with both.

by NewLogic on Dec 5, 2009 8:59 PM EST up reply actions

I agree with everything…all 6 points, and bigtime on the AB point. If you read the entire interview on Pewter Report, he handled it pretty well. The TBO article did AB a injustice.

by McBuc on Dec 4, 2009 10:02 AM EST reply actions

I pretty much agree with your all of your points....

Except….I TOTALLY agree we should re-sign AB!!! I really think he can and will be a difference maker somewhere, I just hope it is here…

by RuudAwakening on Dec 4, 2009 10:53 AM EST reply actions

Shaun King wasn't a very good example

He took over in 99 after Dilfer went down, had a decent season the next year that ended in St Louis, was benched for Brad Johnson the next year and hardly played after that. I think getting a real OC in here will do more good for Freeman than the one we have now. I agree that if they were to go to a new one every singer year that would be bad, but he needs a good one, not the one we have now. I have more faith in Freeman that Olson does and it shows with the play calling.

by bucnut1 on Dec 4, 2009 5:06 PM EST reply actions