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NFL Mock Draft 2009 Draft of 2009 Lacks Star Power NFL Draft 2009: Getting Started Super Bowl Well Worth Tuning In For
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Prospects On Center Stage NBA Preview 2008/09: Final Call
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Gruden: Offensive Guru Or Goofball? By Ron Jumper When Chris Simms went down with an injury and the Bucs decided to turn to a rookie quarterback out of Toledo, one would assume that head coach Jon Gruden would lean more heavily on Carnell Williams. One would also assume that because of the fact they are starting two rookies on the offensive line they would try to stay as far away from 3rd and long as possible. That makes sense, right? I haven’t just totally lost it have I?  However, Jon Gruden came out slinging balls all over the place. Gruden, who is known as an offensive genius by some people, didn’t seem to catch on to one of the simplest concepts in football before it was time to start wondering whom they are going to draft next year. About the most exciting thing the Bucs have to talk about is “what top 10 prospect are we going to take in the draft this year? I hope we can get Troy Smith, did you see the game Saturday?” Bruce Gradkowski hasn’t been bad at all and has exceeded expectations for the most part. Don’t think for a second I am saying this guy can’t get it done in the National Football League. This guy has shown me some impressive tools, as well as something not measured by statistics- heart. With defenses free to tee off and blitz seemingly at will, Gradkowski has only thrown 3 interceptions. Which doesn’t sound any alarms but, when you’ve faced the Eagles, Giants, Panthers, and Redskins, it sounds quite impressive. Take into account that he is in the top 5 in the NFL in INT rate at only 1.4% and you might even be curious if they are better off with him than Chris Simms, who was sitting at a drastically higher 6.6% INT rate. The problem in all this is simple though, Gruden didn’t give his best weapon the ball the proper amount times under the circumstances. The magic number is 19 for “Cadillac” which can be seen clearly in the stats. The Bucs record when he gets 19 carries or more is 3-2, and those losses were by a total of 5 points. When he has less than 19 carries, the Bucs are 0-5 and lost by a total of 83 points! How am I the only person seeing this? Are Tampa Bay fans so enamored with the Tampa 2 defense that they don’t even recognize the obvious facts right in front of their faces? The Bucs have had hands down the best defense over the last decade. If you want to argue that with me, I can go all day. I’m talking Derrick Brooks, Ronde Barber, Simeon Rice, Warren Sapp, John Lynch, Brian Kelly, Anthony McFarland, and defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin running the show. Kiffin has stayed at defensive coordinator for Tampa Bay through everything, knowing he could be a head coach somewhere if he so desired. And yes, I do have a point in all of this… What are the two main components of building championship football? It sure isn’t who can have the most formations and shifts in your playbook, I can tell you that. It is about playing great defense and being able to run the football. The Bucs have always had one component, but the other just always seems to be out of reach.  November 19, 2006 |
| NCAA Football | |
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Be Careful What You Wish For
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| NCAA Basketball | |
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Jumpology: My Bracket Jumpology: Scouting The Heavyweights Jumpology: Reviewing The Bracket
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