Bucs Resist Silly Signings

[michael89156]

Bucs Resist Silly Signings
Sunday, July 31, 2011 5:57 PM







One of the most crazy, active transfers of talent in National Football League history has finally crested. Teams are slowing down the wheeling and dealing after making moves to garner talent from their opposition in hopes of not only improving their own squads but damaging the hopes of the other team.

So what did the Tampa Bay Buccaneers do during this period of massive unrestricted free agent moves? They signed a punter. That's it.

Of course, that's not really fair. The Buccaneers have been as active as any team in the league -– but the focus hasn’t been on players on other teams. It's been on their own -– their own UFA’s they couldn’t bare to lose, their own draft picks, their RFAs and the undrafted rookie free agents they were focused on bringing in.

Tampa Bay has a love affair with its own –- and it showed in the early days of free agency. The biggest moves thus far of this off-season for the Bucs were the re-signing of starting offensive linemen Davin Joseph and Jeremy Trueblood along with starting linebacker Quincy Black.

Nearly all the Buccaneers draftees were signed sealed and delivered before camp began (sixth-round running back Allen Bradford inexplicably had a one-day hold out).

 Restricted free agents OT Demar Dotson, DE Michael Bennett, QB Rudy Carpenter, K Connor Barth, DT Frank Okam, WR Micheal Spurlock, OT James Lee, FS Corey Lynch and CB Elbert Mack all signed their deals.

The fans aren;t too thrilled. Visit Buccaneer message boards, Twitter and blogs, and you see some calling the Glazers (the Buccaneers owners) cheap -– nicknaming them "The Glazerhouses," an obvious correlation with the current regime and the previous one, run by the miserly penny pinching Hugh Culverhouse.

Others say Bucs GM Mark Dominik lacks the fortitude to take a chance in signing veteran free agents from other squads.

They want to see the Bucs hot and heavy after the Nnamdi Asomugha's and Tyson Clabo's of the free agency world.

In Dom’s defense, though, he told you this was the way it was going to be from day one.

The way the Bucs are doing it is the same way the Steelers have turned themselves into a multiple Super Bowl champion. It's the way the Patriots used to do it (since New England has become "players" in free agency – the Pats haven’t won the Super Bowl). It’s the way Green Bay and Indianapolis do it.

Sure, when you see the other teams in your division making moves to improve themselves, you get a little concerned (although it appears the Falcons and Panthers are focused on their own as well while the Saints are simply moving chess pieces –- out goes Reggie Bush, in comes Darren Sproles).

Yet consider -– the Eagles have never won the Super Bowl, despite several years of making big splashes in free agency. We all know the story of Daniel Snyder and the Redskins. Dallas has always been a player in free agency but hasn’t sniffed a Super Bowl since Aikman was under center.

"The important thing for me, the important thing for Coach Morris and, really, for ownership, is to try to keep the continuity together,” Dominik told reporters, "It's what we all fell in love with back in the '90s, that group of guys. We'd like to do that again. When you see the contracts that are going around the National Football League right now, you know you've got to budget accordingly today to make sure you can take care of your team tomorrow. That's what we're doing."

The Bucs will add more veteran free agents from other teams (other than punter Michael Koenen), but they’re not going to get involved in the silly season. They’ll let the market settle and then analyze who fits best in what they’re trying to do.

It's not a sexy way to do business for the fans –- but you can’t argue with their results (and those of the teams they are emulating) thus far.



For Buccaneers news on Twitter, follow @Buccaneers_Live.

-- JC DE LA TORRE

[MiltonMack21]

They made the silliest signing of them all, Davin Joseph.

[Boid Fink]

They made the silliest signing of them all, Davin Joseph.

I think the signing of QB trumps your Davin, still laughing at that one.

There are times when Davin looks good, and times when I shake my head (mostly in goal line or in and 1 or 2 yard situations).  I remember his presser, saying he hopes Carnell gets ready to run through some huge holes...

I hope he decides to become a really imposing force on the O-line.  A consistent one.

[bradentonian]

I never thought we'd really even consider Scrabble, but there were a handful of players that I think fit "the plan"...  guys that are young, very talented, and good character.  Doug Free, Marshal Yanda, Eric Weddle, Josh Wilson or maybe Jonathan Joseph.  Outside of those guys I'm not surprised we weren't in the market for much else.  I'm more surprised at how we overpaid Black and Joseph.  Hopefully the contract details will clear some of that up.  Glad we got an upgrade at punter, though.

[dbucfan]

I never thought we'd really even consider Scrabble, but there were a handful of players that I think fit "the plan"...  guys that are young, very talented, and good character.  Doug Free, Marshal Yanda, Eric Weddle, Josh Wilson or maybe Jonathan Joseph.  Outside of those guys I'm not surprised we weren't in the market for much else.  I'm more surprised at how we overpaid Black and Joseph.  Hopefully the contract details will clear some of that up.  Glad we got an upgrade at punter, though.

+1

[JavaRay]

-- JC DE LA TORRE

My God.   Now michael is quoting blogs by JasonoftheTower?     LOL!

[dalbuc]

In all seriousness if you can find me three players who were worse contracts than Davin, Black and Koenen relative to their value and the value of other players let me know. The Bucs didn't resist silly signings they committed three of the silliest.

[Boid Fink]

In all seriousness if you can find me three players who were worse contracts than Davin, Black and Koenen relative to their value and the value of other players let me know. The Bucs didn't resist silly signings they committed three of the silliest.

[ufojoe]

Silly signings? Is that what Aso, Joseph or some of the others would have been? Give me a break.

I'm not boycotting the Glazers and I'm still very excited about the team but I wanted a few of those guys who are now with other teams.

And I love what Philly did.

[The Anti-Java]

-- JC DE LA TORRE

My God.   Now michael is quoting blogs by JasonoftheTower?     LOL!

Hey, they are contributing.        You?   Not so much.   I guess your good if someone comes up with a trivia question.

[JavaRay]

If you want Buc trivia, here's the thread for it.

http://www.pewterreport.com/Boards/index.php/topic,1282611.0.html


I had no idea what the answer was because I don't keep track of trivia.   I only know the games, players and memories from attending and watching those games from 76 through 2008.


I get the impression that you don't even understand the difference between trivia and the games themselves.

[Feel Real Good]

I'd say giving a player who was a Pro Bowl alternate three years ago the second highest contract ever signed by a guard the silliest signing of all.

[Captain Hindsight]

I agree. The title of this thread should be, "Bucs Insist On Silly Re-signings".

[cylobuc]

Those silly Eagles

[Skull and Bones]

you call yourselves fans?  Dom can do no wrong. He's given us the best young talent in the league.  He's following the plan.  Avoiding cap hell and all that.