It should have been no surprise

John F · 01-09-2008, 02:44 PM

You know, the reaction locally tot he Bucs losing the game versus the Giants seems as if they (local journalists, local bloggers, some fans) bought intot he fact the Bucs were new and improved and goign to vie for so much this season. Hey, they were 9-7 going into the playoffs! That's better than 8-8!

The first question you have to ask yourself if you were surprised with the loss is how strong was the NFC South this season? It was arguably the weakest that it had been since the re-alginment of the NFL took place, with Atlanta being a push-over, the Panthers being disappointing and the Saints being marginal at best despite talent on the squad. The Bucs won the games they should have versus these likes (sans the loss to Carolina to end the regular season) and went 5-1 in the division.

Five wins and one loss in the South... And versus the rest of the league? 4-6.

The Seahawks and Colts are in another league compared to the Bucs... those two loses aside, the Bucs were 4-4... That's a very marginal team in itself. It lost to the Texans and Lions who are upstarts this year (no offense to Lee Marinelli in Detroit, whom I still hold high appreciation for his services here in TB; nor Kubiak in Houston who was long overdue to get his own coaching stint) as well as that loss to San Francisco... All three should be gauged as reasons why the Bucs weren't as great as they seemed. The Redskins were the only near-playoff team they beat, while drubbing the Rams and the Cardinals like everyone else on the block.

And yet we are shocked -- SHOCKED! -- the Bucs were dumped by the Giants?

I'm tired of the aimlessness of the Buccaneers, resting on their laurels as Super Bowl champions of 2003. I'm sick of the free pass Gruden gets because of that title (and not the subsequent mediocrity the Bucs have fallen into). The Bucs offense actually ranked HIGHER under Clyde Christensen and Les Steckel (on Tony Dungy's watch) than any Jon Gruden (offensive wunderkind!) team has ranked on offense. Tht includes the Jeff Garcia led Buccaneer offense of this year that had certain fans giddy.

Not all of them though.

And not just me in the doubting column. The Bucs struggled to sell out their playoff game versus the Giants as it was highlighted in the locals rags here in Tampa. "The game sold out, guaranteeing the game will not be blacked out" was such a throwback when I saw it. The only other time this was a regular occurence was back at the Sombrero while the Bucs wore their Creamsicle orange uniforms. This tells us that the locals are more weary of this team than the media spin presents it. Yes, times are getting tough but Tampa Bay loves the Buccaneers... Especially when they are a worthy investment.

From the spots of Giant Blue in the RayJay stands, I wouldn't call the Bucs that worthy of an investment right now... And the Glazers, being smart people and shrewd businessmen, better recognize this and right the ship (no pun intended).

John F · 01-11-2008, 10:56 AM

Got a poll up at Sticks of Fire where I help out asking about the direction of the Buccaneers. Are they headed in the right direction? Wrong direction?

01-09-2008, 02:44 PM	#1 (permalink)
John F Administrator Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Tampa Bay area, Florida Posts: 2,497	It should have been no surprise You know, the reaction locally tot he Bucs losing the game versus the Giants seems as if they (local journalists, local bloggers, some fans) bought intot he fact the Bucs were new and improved and goign to vie for so much this season. Hey, they were 9-7 going into the playoffs! That's better than 8-8! The first question you have to ask yourself if you were surprised with the loss is how strong was the NFC South this season? It was arguably the weakest that it had been since the re-alginment of the NFL took place, with Atlanta being a push-over, the Panthers being disappointing and the Saints being marginal at best despite talent on the squad. The Bucs won the games they should have versus these likes (sans the loss to Carolina to end the regular season) and went 5-1 in the division. Five wins and one loss in the South... And versus the rest of the league? 4-6. The Seahawks and Colts are in another league compared to the Bucs... those two loses aside, the Bucs were 4-4... That's a very marginal team in itself. It lost to the Texans and Lions who are upstarts this year (no offense to Lee Marinelli in Detroit, whom I still hold high appreciation for his services here in TB; nor Kubiak in Houston who was long overdue to get his own coaching stint) as well as that loss to San Francisco... All three should be gauged as reasons why the Bucs weren't as great as they seemed. The Redskins were the only near-playoff team they beat, while drubbing the Rams and the Cardinals like everyone else on the block. And yet we are shocked -- SHOCKED! -- the Bucs were dumped by the Giants? I'm tired of the aimlessness of the Buccaneers, resting on their laurels as Super Bowl champions of 2003. I'm sick of the free pass Gruden gets because of that title (and not the subsequent mediocrity the Bucs have fallen into). The Bucs offense actually ranked HIGHER under Clyde Christensen and Les Steckel (on Tony Dungy's watch) than any Jon Gruden (offensive wunderkind!) team has ranked on offense. Tht includes the Jeff Garcia led Buccaneer offense of this year that had certain fans giddy. Not all of them though. And not just me in the doubting column. The Bucs struggled to sell out their playoff game versus the Giants as it was highlighted in the locals rags here in Tampa. "The game sold out, guaranteeing the game will not be blacked out" was such a throwback when I saw it. The only other time this was a regular occurence was back at the Sombrero while the Bucs wore their Creamsicle orange uniforms. This tells us that the locals are more weary of this team than the media spin presents it. Yes, times are getting tough but Tampa Bay loves the Buccaneers... Especially when they are a worthy investment. From the spots of Giant Blue in the RayJay stands, I wouldn't call the Bucs that worthy of an investment right now... And the Glazers, being smart people and shrewd businessmen, better recognize this and right the ship (no pun intended). __________________ The more they over think the plumbing, the easier to stop up the drain.

01-11-2008, 10:56 AM	#2 (permalink)
John F Administrator Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Tampa Bay area, Florida Posts: 2,497	Got a poll up at Sticks of Fire where I help out asking about the direction of the Buccaneers. Are they headed in the right direction? Wrong direction? __________________ The more they over think the plumbing, the easier to stop up the drain.