The cowboys game is the most important game tampa will play in years.

[cheveliar]

Look, I'm a GA fan dude. But Wilks with less snaps did more with the time he had. Clearly Gaines is too light in the drawers in years past to generate little more than an elliptical trip around the pocket. I mean if he had a simple spin move or had enough arm strength to do a swim move he'd have double digit sacks. I'm not calling the guy a bust, but if we were playing hangman he'd have a "BU" already...

Mentally he's gotta control his first step and stop giving up the 5 yarders and develop at least one but I'd like to see two new moves so that the value of the 4th pick overall comes through...Not taking anything from him, but don't act like he's the stud we thought he was going to be...

i dont think you read a single thing i wrote. i never called him a stud. i said he was solid. and i mentioned evaluating him on his production, not on his draft status.

Bottomline, he's got a lot to prove performance wise and you can't forget his draft status.  That's why the system is what it is.  He's got to come up big this year. Anything less would be a dissappointment.

[GameTime]

the whole back and forth about the Off/Def reminds me of the golf thread in the cove.  mickelson shoots a 63 yet misses a short gimme putt late...did he choke?

[Biggs3535]

The biggest difference was one QB got his team in the End Zone and the other didn't.  The QB that did won the game.

This doesn't have jack squat to do with Garcia.  Any QB who throws the ball over 40 times and can't get the ball in the End Zone will (and should) be the criticized party.

The Buccaneers had 6 drives in Dallas territory, only coming away with 3 FG's.  That's horrendous.

i dont think anyone honestly knows what our weak links will be.

The fans may end up being our team's weakest link this season.

This...   until we win a game. 

I agree that this is an important game.  We have an advantage
in that they won't know too much about how we'll attack them.

[s0uthFLbucfan]

As we all know, a new era is starting in tampa. A completely new era of bucs football, with almost no pieces left over from the dungy era that shoved us into the national spotlight. Some of those pieces remained with gruden for a few seasons, but hes gone also, along with the former face of our franchise derrick brooks. No more tampa two. No more west coast offense.

Theres a new identity coming to tampa. Raheem has the chance to kickstart his bucs coaching record with a win over americas team. I know its only one game, but in a season with so many questions, and such a tough list of teams to play, a convincing win over dallas is going to go a looong way. Im really pumped for this game, and i just have a feeling we are going to win it, and i hope for the sake of buccaner nation out boys pull it out, so we can finally feel a LITTLE bit of comfort lol.

[tatmanfish]

i think tampa beats dallas and wade phillips is out of a job by the end of the season after the boys finish 7-9.

[CyberDilemma]

I think this game a major impact on how we are viewed by the national media for the rest of the year.

[Tampa Bay Todd]

The game reminds me a lot of the 1997(?) opener with the 49ers where the Bucs pulled off a shocker and beat SF. It signaled the start of the Bucs as a good team and the demise of the "Yucks" sending Bucco Bruce to a watery grave.

[Morgan]

I'll be there for that game - first game for me since leaving the military. Looking forward to it, no matter how much of a sweatbox RJS will be.

[bucs1]

I'll be there for that game - first game for me since leaving the military. Looking forward to it, no matter how much of a sweatbox RJS will be.

Morgan - That game will be played at the Cowboys' new stadium, not RJS.

Edit: Sorry Morgan, I had our schedule confused for a moment. You are right.

[Biggs3535]

The Cowboy game is at Ray Jay, Talib 25.

[Biggs3535]

The Cowboys open their new stadium Week 2 vs. the Giants on Sunday Night Football.

[bucs1]

The Cowboy game is at Ray Jay, Talib 25.

Damn, I can't believe I confused that one. Thanks for the correction Biggs. It does make more sense that the NFL wants the Cowboys to open up their new stadium in a primetime environment against a division rival.

[dalbuc]

Dallas will be an interesting test. They will want to run the ball a lot this year since their WR corps is weak. That attacks our weakest link but then again the DAL OL didn't blow a lot of folks off the line to close out the year so what they want to do and what they can do are 2 different things.

Their D will be vastly different if the oft hurt Newman can stay on the field. He'll erase Bryant pretty well and none of our other WR's matter so a lot will fall on Winslow. DAL was awful vs the TE last year so they have a weakness that can be exploited at that spot.

[GameTime]

i dont think anyone honestly knows what our weak links will be.