FAB 2. What Gruden Would Bring (Back) To The Bucs

“I have this feeling in football,” former Bucs head coach Jon Gruden said at the closing of his Bucs Ring of Honor induction press conference. “You never stay the same. You either get better or worse.”

So what version of Gruden would the Glazers and the Buccaneers be getting in 2018 if he did replace Dirk Koetter as head coach – the better version or the worse version?

Former Bucs head coach Jon Gruden – Photo by: Mark Cook/PR

Gruden always says you have to live in your hopes and not your fears, so let’s examine both, starting with the hope he would bring the Bucs organization.

Gruden has been out of coaching for nine years, but he’s had plenty of time to reflect on his seven-year coaching career in Tampa Bay that resulted in a 57-55 regular season record (.509) with four winning seasons and three playoff appearances, and three losing seasons. There were three division titles and two years with double-digit losses on Gruden’s tumultuous watch.

He’s had time to examine what went right, what went wrong, and by virtue of him staying close to the game through his work for ESPN’s Monday Night Football and the network’s draft coverage, Gruden has had time to stay on top of the current trends and keep up with how the game has changed since he last coached during the 2008 season.

First, let’s look at what Gruden can bring to Tampa Bay in a second stint should the Glazers decide to pursue him as a replacement for head coach Dirk Koetter, who currently has a 12-13 record with the Bucs.

Experience and a Relentless Pursuit of Excellence
When Gruden is your head coach it’s a roller coaster ride, so you better be prepared to buckle up. There are going to be some highs and there are going to be some lows, but what the Bucs will get is a tireless work ethic, a non-stop drive to be the best and some “juice” that infects the whole building at One Buccaneer Place and all of Raymond James Stadium.

“As a head coach, and in life, Jon is always driven to be the best,” said Bucs co-chairman Bryan Glazer at Gruden’s press conference on August 2. “His 4:00 a.m. arrival in the office everyday was legendary, and he provided a steady leadership and instilled a never-give-up attitude to our players. Seeing Jon in this room today brings back a lot of great memories. After a trade that shook the entire NFL, Jon joined the Buccaneers in 2002. And he made the changes he felt necessary to deliver us a championship.

“He reshaped our team by bringing in 25 new players and a 200-pound rock of granite – an actual 200-pound rock of granite. That granite – which sits in our lobby – became an integral part of our championship philosophy and journey. ‘Pound the rock’ was something he used to motivate the players and emphasize that if they battled through adversity and hardship, eventually they would break through. It was a simple three-word phrase, but it inspired our team and became a rallying cry and a call to action for our entire organization that year. By the time we had reached the playoffs that season, the entire team had completely bought into John’s vision. And the rock traveled with us in the locker room before our biggest games. It came to Philadelphia with us and came all the way to San Diego for our Super Bowl victory.”

The Bucs could use a little “Pound the Rock” right now.

Former Bucs head coach Jon Gruden – Photo by: Getty Images

Gruden is a guy that has taken two teams – Oakland and Tampa Bay – deep into the playoffs. He’s a proven winner and a coach that is so loyal to the Buccaneers that he hasn’t taken a single coaching job anywhere but Carrollwood Day School as a part-time assistant in Tampa despite numerous offers throughout the years.

“At heart, I am always going to be a Buccaneer,” said Gruden, who still rises before dawn every day to watch film every morning at his office in the Fired Football Coaches Association headquarters.

After hiring three men without NFL head coaching experience since Gruden’s departure in 2008 in Raheem Morris, Greg Schiano and Koetter, the Glazers may decide to go with proven experience once again, albeit with someone who brings more fire and juice to the table than Lovie Smith did during his sleepy, underwhelming tenure in Tampa Bay.

Juice, Drive and Motivation
Say what you want about Gruden, but he typically squeezed every ounce of talent out of his players by inspiring them and demanding excellence. Gruden took a 34-year old Brad Johnson and turned him into a Super Bowl champion. Heck, the 2002 Bucs had several players in the twilight of their careers, such as center Jeff Christy, tight end Ken Dilger, left tackle Roman Oben and wide receiver Keenan McCardell.

Defensive tackle Chris Hovan was thought to be a bust as a first-round pick in Minnesota, but Gruden and defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin got him off the scrap heap and he helped stuff the run for Tampa Bay’s top-ranked defense in 2005.

He turned Joey Galloway into a 1,000-yard receiver for three straight years from age 34-36, and Gruden resuscitated Antonio Bryant’s career during the 2008 in which he led the Bucs in receiving yards with 1,248 on 83 catches.

Gruden coaches with such an intensity that players can’t help but follow his lead. He shared one such motivational story before the 2002 NFC Championship Game where his Bucs team was preparing to travel into the hostile environment of Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia – a place Tampa Bay had lost three straight games, including two playoff contests in 2000 and 2001.

Former Bucs head coach Jon Gruden and WRs Keenan McCardell & Keyshawn Johnson – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“I just tried to loosen them up because these guys want this game bad,” Gruden said. “Philadelphia had our number. I remember telling the guys when I coached in Philadelphia, our fans used to call me foul names. So I said, ‘Keyshawn (Johnson), cuss me out.’ I had all the players just kind of cuss me out. I said, ‘Is this the problem?’

“We were all laughing because they’re all calling me you-know-whats. When we went out there in pregame the next day, I could hear the fans cussing out (Warren) Sapp and Keyshawn, and I could just see them smiling.”

Much more often than not, Gruden had his teams well prepared to play and unafraid of their opponents, but also having a healthy fear of losing. Veterans wanted to play for Gruden and that became an asset in free agency.

After his press conference back in August, Gruden spent the day at One Buccaneer Place, watched practice and even addressed the team. Not that Koetter can’t command attention in a meeting room, but according to one player, every Buccaneer sat up in his seat when Gruden spoke, and they were drawn in to what he was saying like a tractor beam.

Excitement and Ticket Sales
Bringing Gruden back would create just as much buzz around Tampa Bay and the NFL as it did when the Glazers made that daring trade for him in 2002.

If you think all the attention and adoration that came the Bucs’ way by “winning the offseason” with the signing of wide receiver DeSean Jackson and defensive tackle Chris Baker in free agency, the drafting tight end O.J. Howard, and the team’s appearance on HBO’s Hard Knocks, imagine that times 10 if Gruden returns.

Like most, Gruden was optimistic about the Bucs’ 2017 season back in training camp.

“Well, high expectations,” Gruden said. “They’re a team on the rise. I’m sure Coach Koetter and Jason [Licht] are feeling the same thing. We’ve done a great job building this thing. We’re improving every year. We’re on the rise. We’ve got Hard Knocks here. We’ve got a chance to see behind the scenes what’s going on here. But, that doesn’t mean anything.

Bucs head coach Dirk Koetter – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

“We’re going to get what we deserve. I say ‘we’ because I feel a part of the Bucs still. We’ve got a lot to prove. A lot of things have to go right, but I think this team has to do the same thing we did, that any championship team does. You’ve got to work your butt off and underestimate nobody. With Jameis Winston and the leadership of the coaching staff here, I think you’re going to see some very exciting things this fall. I’m going to try and get some tickets.”

There hasn’t been much excitement during the team’s 3-6 start, and it appears as if the Bucs did underestimate a lot of their opponents and overestimated themselves at the same time. Expectations haven’t been as high as they were before the start of the 2017 season in quite some time. What’s next are an expected let down in enthusiasm and a wait-and-see attitude from a fickle fan base who are tired of believing the hype from the media (PewterReport.com included) and the team’s marketing.

Unless Gruden comes back to the Bucs – and then the buzz will be right back this offseason and Raymond James Stadium will be full once again to see Chucky in action.

A Great Coaching Staff
Not only do players want to play for Gruden, coaches want to coach for him, too.

While he inherited offensive line coach and offensive coordinator Bill Muir, defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin, defensive line coach Rod Marinelli and linebackers coach Joe Barry and defensive backs coach Mike Tomlin, both of whom were in their second season in the NFL, Gruden assembled quite a collection of coaches in Tampa Bay.

Morris’ first year in the NFL was with the Bucs on Gruden’s initial staff in 2002. Morris was poised to become Gruden’s defensive coordinator, replacing Kiffin, had he not been fired after the 2008 season. Instead, Morris replaced Gruden as head coach.

Morris was not the only assistant coach that became an NFL head coach after playing under Gruden. Marinelli left to coach Detroit. Tomlin left to coach in Pittsburgh after one year as Minnesota’s defensive coordinator. Gus Bradley, the Bucs linebackers coach from 2006-08, became Jacksonville’s head coach.

On the offensive side of the ball, Marc Trestman, who was Gruden’s former offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach with the Raiders in 2001, eventually became Chicago’s head coach. Aaron Kromer, an assistant offensive line coach in Tampa Bay with Muir and Gruden, became the interim head coach in New Orleans during Sean Payton’s suspension a few years ago.

Former Bucs head coach Jon Gruden and special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia – Photo by: Cliff Welch/PR

Jay Gruden, Jon’s brother, is now the head coach in Washington after starting his NFL career in Tampa Bay as an offensive assistant from 2002-08. New Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay was Jon’s offensive assistant in 2008 before joining Jay’s coaching staff with the Redskins in 2010. New San Francisco head coach Kyle Shanahan was Jon’s offensive quality control coach from 2004-05 before joining Jay’s Redskins staff also in 2010.

Special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia rose to prominence in the NFL under Gruden, and serves in that capacity and assistant head coach in Dallas, as did defensive line coach Todd Wash, who is now the defensive coordinator in Jacksonville.

If Gruden were to come to Tampa Bay, I have no idea who would join his staff as a lot of the coaches mentioned above are under contract on other teams, but he certainly wouldn’t have a problem finding quality candidates, and it’s a safe bet that he would have a star-studded staff given his knack for finding great coaches. Gruden’s job working Monday Night Football for ESPN allows him to meet with the head coaches around the league and some of the top coordinators who can give him insight on some of the up-and-coming assistant coaches – coaches he may employ in the future.