SB Nation - Jeremy Trueblood

New York Jets Pass Defense vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers Pass Offense

John B — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 21:03:42 -0000

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Rookie quarterback melts down. That was the story last week for Tampa. We know how they feel. In his first four starts, though, Josh Freeman had looked pretty good for a rookie with a 7 to 5 touchdown to interception ratio. Accuracy had been something of an issue as it is with many rookies. However, Freeman offered a glimpse of what he may become two weeks ago with a 20 for 29 250 yard game against Atlanta. You may remember I was against taking Freeman in the Draft last April because he threw a ton of interceptions in college and seemed to have a high bust factor. He's given the Bucs room for cautious optimism this year.

I tend to think a second straight rough week is more likely than a bounce back this week. This is a really good Jets defense that will throw looks at him he has never seen. He's also going to have to do without his top wide receiver in any likely scenario. Our friends at Buc Em seem to think Antonio Bryant will be able to hold his own against Revis. I respectfully disagree with our friends. As they point out, Revis shut down Andre Johnson and Randy Moss. Is there anything Bryant can do that Moss or Johnson can't do better? I don't think so. I understand the pass rush does aid corners, but the reverse is also true. Part of the reasons the Jets have had so impressive rushing the passer has been that the coverage has held when blitzes have been picked up, which gives rushers extra time to get to the quarterback.

The Bucs will probably have Freeman focus on Kellen Winslow to make his throws safe. Winslow is Tampa's leading receiver with 58 receptions and 633 yards. This could be a game for Kerry Rhodes to reassert himself. I'm not sure I like the matchup between Winslow and Eric Smith. Winslow's way more athletic.

Beyond that, it's not clear what Tampa has in the passing game. Both Michael Clayton and Sammie Stroughter are battling injuries and quite possibly could miss the game, which would leave Maurice Stovall and his 18 receptions in the starting lineup. With Revis on Bryant, the Jets can scheme their coverage around Winslow because Lito Sheppard should be able to handle his assignment without much help.

Another problem will be protection. Tampa Bay's tackles, Jeremy Trueblood and Donald Penn, and center Jeff Faine are all in the top seven at their position in terms of pressures allowed. This could force the rookie to make a lot of mistakes. Guard Davin Joseph in in the top five while Jeremy Zuttah is in the top fifteen. It's a young line that is still a work in progress.

The 49ers RT: Niners Nation looking into the Future

Andrew Davidson — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 20:03:54 -0000

Quick Note: I wrote this article prior to this past weekend's heart breaking loss to the Titans. The fact that we are 3-5 doesn't mean we should give up on the season, and focus on the offseason, I just wanted to get some names out there that we can track through out the remainder of the season.

Things can't get much worse (at RT) in Ninerland with Tony Pashos being out for the season. While Pashos didn't get a lot of time to get comfortable in the offense, it leaves the 49ers with plenty of problems heading forward at the RT position. We get to see just how good Adam Snyder can be in an everyday role from here on out, without someone breathing down his neck for playing time. You can thank Joe Staley's injury for that, as Barry Sims is our starting LT. I'd be much happier discussing the notion of Sims and Snyder rotating at RT than having both guys as our starting OTs. The team may get a chance to see what Alex Boone has, but I think long term wise, Boone is depth at OL and not a future starter.

With two drafts picks in the 2010 first round, the 49ers will likely have a chance to land one of the better OTs in the class. On top of that, there are three potential free agents at RT that could interest the 49ers. It depends on how much of a splash the 49ers want to make, and how well the players will perform through out the remainder of the season. I'm going to take a look at those 3 free agent possibilities, and also run down the Top 6 OT prospects. Also, if you haven't checked out Drew K's fanpost, do so, because he's got the entire draft class ranked. While it may be too early for some to start thinking about next year's draft, it's never too early to track the talent of future 49ers.

I'll be following the three potential Free Agent RTs, as well as the top 6 OT prospects, but I encourage you to do the same. I'm also curious to know if Niners Nation would rather see the team draft the "Right Tackle Of The Future" or sign him via free agency. Again, we've got two first rounders, and I'd love to see an edge rusher come out of that round, but I'll never be unhappy when the team finally decides to spend a draft pick to bolster our LOLine. Spending money on a RT is risky, and there's only one guy I'd really love to see the team sign - in other words, if they don't get him, I'd rather they go address it in the draft.

After the jump Atlanta's Tyson Clabo, Tampa Bay's Jeremy Trueblood and Philadelphia's Winston Justice, followed by a rundown of some of the offensive tackle draft prospects...

Football Outsiders Note:

Adjusted Line Yards (ALY): Statistic which attempts to, even to a small extent, separate the ability of a running back from the ability of the offensive line. Adjusted Line Yards begin as a measure of average rushing yards per play by running backs only, adjusted in the following way:

0-4 yards: 100% strength

5-10 yards: 50% strength

11+ yards: not included

runs for a loss: 120% strength

Each play is also adjusted based on game situation as well as quality of opponents faced. Adjusted Line Yards can be listed as total or broken down by direction to attempt to isolate ability of specific linemen. [The full explanation is here at FO]

The Free Agent Right Tackles

1. Tyson Clabo, RT, Atlanta Falcons - I wasn't too vocal about it this past offseason, but I wanted Clabo to sign with the 49ers badly. Clabo was a Restricted Free Agent, and I would've been more than happy to see the 49ers give up a draft pick to get a beast RT like Clabo. In Atlanta's power run game offense, this guy is a mauling run blocker and started all 16 games in 2008. Clabo took the job over 5 games into the 2007 season and has 34 career starts at RT after Week 8. On to some rushing stats...

The Falcons run 24% of their run plays to the right side, in Clabo's direction (RT - 13%, RE - 11%). Atlanta's Adjusted Line Yards on the runs to the RT are 4.4 (12th in the NFL); the runs to the RE are 5.66 (4th in the NFL). On the left side of the line (which they run a total of 26%), the LT (15%) averages 3.52 (20th) while the LE (11%) averages 5.35 (7th). In english, The Falcons have greater success running at the right side despite the similar frequency in plays run compared to the left side. The success of runs to LE & RE are a testament to how well the Guards can pull, and how well the Tight Ends can block.

Atlanta also has an 82% power success (3rd) and just a 17% stuffed rate (6th); they have a low 19% 10+ yards plays. This trend indicates that the Falcons rely on their Offensive Line to get the running game going, and don't depend on the RBs to break off bigs to help boster the rush attack. For example, the 49ers have a 37% 10+ yards rate proving that our LOLine is banking on Gore to rip off the runs. In conclusion, the Falcons have a dominant O-Line and the better part of that dominance is in Clabo's direction. While Atlanta is just 17th in the NFL in rush yards per game, it's not because the big RT isn't doing his job.

Bottom Line: Tyson Clabo is a beast and would be a great RTOTF for this franchise. Back a dump truck up to his house in the offseason and pay the guy. Atlanta would be wise to extend this player before the 2010 FA period begins, let's hope they do not. Age: 28, Height: 6'6, Weight: 314

2. Jeremy Trueblood, RT, Tampa Bay Buccaneers - What can I say about Trueblood, who seems to be an underrated RT on an otherwise terrible Buccaneers football team. The Tampa Bay big fella started all 16 games in both 2007 and 2008, and 13 in his 2006 rookie season. His total games started at RT after week 8 now sit at 52, and he's two years younger than Clabo. Trueblood is schedule to be an Unrestricted Free Agent should the Bucs not sign him before the FA period begins in 2010. Let's look at Trueblood's juicy stats...

Tampa runs 20% of their rush attempts to the right side in Trueblood's direction (10% RT, 10% RE). The Bucs have the 4th ranked ALY at RT averaging 5.18, while averaging 1.74 at RE (ranked 30th). To the left side of the line, Tampa Bay runs 19% (11% LT, 8% LE) and has the best ALY to LT at 5.78, but the 30th to LE at 2.69. Despite having the 24th ranked rush offense in yards per game, Tampa has great success running at the tackles, but also lacks the help of a solid blocking Tight End (see: Kellen Winslow).

The Buccaneers do not boast a high power success rate, sitting 22nd in the league at 60%. Their 20% rate of 10+ yard plays has them ranked 12th while a 24% stuffed rate is "good" for 28th in the league. There aren't exact numbers to back up this claim, but the fact that Tampa Bay has the 31st ALY (3.03) in the Middle/Guard direction leads me to believe most of the stuffs aren't coming at the RT or LT's expense. I'm concluding that the Buccaneers are solid at the tackle positions, but need improvement in the interior line (and Kellen Winslow stinks at blocking). In other words, Jeremy Trueblood is worth looking at come FA time in 2010, and certainly worth tracking the rest of way in 2009.

Bottom Line: If/when the Falcons re-up with Clabo, I would have no complaints about seeing Jeremy Trueblood join the 49ers O-Line in 2010. He's durable, he's reliable, and he's huge. I may actually endorse this signing more than Clabo based on contract value, but Clabo is such a mean, angry, mauling beast. Age: 25, Height: 6'8, Weight: 320

3. Winston Justice, RT, Philadelphia Eagles - Justice is on this list because of his smooth transition from LT to RT in 2009. For the better part of 2007 and 2008, Justice was an ineffective LT on the verge of being labelled a bust. The Eagles 2006 draft missed his entire rookie season and never got acclimated to the position as a pro. Enter 2009, where Justice has emerged as a pleasant surpise starting all 7 games at RT for the Eagles. By all appearances, Justice looks the part of an NFL-caliber starting RT. The reflection of Justice in statistics...

Perhaps Justice has been pleasing the Eagles because they only run plays to RT at 7%, but the team runs to RE at 21%; that's 28% that the Eagles team is running in Justice's direction. Comparatively, Philadelpha runs to the left side 28%, the difference being 14% at LT, and 14% at LE. In terms of Adjusted Line Yards, the Eagles are fairly mediocre with a 3.61 average running towards RT (26th), and 3.7 at RE (18th). Plays directed towars the LT are much more effective at 4.61, good for 5th in the league; Philly's LE rate is middle of the pack, averaging 4.08 (16th). Winston Justice isn't the best lineman on the team, but he's certainly not terrible.

The Eagles have the 14th ranked rushing attack in the NFL averaging 115.4 yards per game, quite impressive considering the nagging injury problems that plague Brian Westbrook. Even more impressive is Philadelphia's 83% power success (2nd in the league) combined with a 24% runs of 10+ yards (7th in the league). The Eagles also have the league's 2nd ranked stuffed percentage, which is pretty stellar 14%. While Justice's numbers aren't quite as impressive, it definitely shows that the team's O-Line is successful as whole, thanks in part to Justice's play at RT. If it came down to Justice being a targeted FA acquisition, it would mean both Clabo and Trueblood are off the market.

Bottom Line: If does come down to Justice as a FA target, I think I'd rather have the team address RT in the draft. Not that Justice's play isn't impressive, his 7 total starts at RT (and likely 16 by year's end) don't justify a big FA deal in my opinion. Age: 24, Height: 6'6, Weight: 320

Note: All RB % and ALY stats provided by FootballOutsiders.com; All games started data provided by PFR & CBS; All Team Rushing Date provided by TeamRankings.com; All stats are based on statistics prior to this past weekends games.

The Offensive Tackle Draft Prospects

Note: All due respect to the potential underclassmen, but for the purposes in this list, I'm going with strictly seniors who will be in the 2010 draft undoubtedly. My apologies to Bruce Campbell (Maryland), Bryan Bulaga (Iowa), and Anthony Davis (Rutgers). Click on Scouting Report to get a deeper look at each prospect.

1. Russell Okung, Oklahoma State, Scouting Report - Projected Pick*: Top 5, Projected 40yd Dash*: 5.22, Height*: 6'5 Weight*: 305

The Rundown: Starting LT for the OSU Cowboys, and arguably the top OT prospect in the draft. Some underclassmen could dethrone Okung, but it's likely that the first OL off the board in 2010 will be Okung. The Cowboys have rushed for 20 TDs this season, and QB Zac Robinson has been sacked just 5 times in 228 pass attempts (through 9 games). Texas fans may scream about Okung being a cheapshot artist, but check this video out and see him simply toss Freshman Alex Okafor to the turf (before he takes a crack at Keenan Robinson). Doesn't every lineman need a nasty streak? Yep. The 49ers will likely have to trade up in the draft to get Okung, and Staley would have to move back to RT in such a scenario. Since Okung has very few flaws in his game, the Niners would possibly have to acquire the Number 1 selection (and his talents are much deserving of that slot).

2. Charles Brown, Southern California, Scouting Report - Projected Pick: Top 20, Projected 40yd Dash: 5.06, Height: 6'6 Weight: 296

The Rundown: Another LT prospect, Brown is the starter for the USC Trojans. I think the idea that Brown is a Top 20 pick is certainly debatable, but not far-fetched either. He'll likely have to bulk up when he makes the transition to the pro game as he may be too "svelt" to be an NFL-caliber LT. The Trojans QBs have been sacked 11 times in 225 pass attempts, while the team has rushed for 18 TDs (through 8 games). I found this video on Youtube, that takes a glimpse into Brown's HS coach and the relationship they developed. To say the very least, Brown seems like a professional and off the field issues seem highly unlikely. I can definitely see the 49ers selecting Brown in the late teens, early twenties in the draft, and asking him to make the switch to RT at the next level.

3. Trent Williams, Oklahoma, Scouting Report - Projected Pick: Round 1-2, Projected 40yd Dash: 5.27, Height: 6'5 Weight: 315

The Rundown: While Williams is the starting LT for Oklahoma, it's very likely he'll be a RT for which ever NFL team drafts him. The Sooner had an extremely productive 2008 season, but opted to remain in college for his senior season. In 2008, Williams played RT, which will help him if he has to make the switch back in the pros. The Sooners on the season have rushed for 12 TDs and allowed 7 sacks in 298 pass attempts (through 8 games). One knock on Williams is that he doesn't have enough nastiness when run blocking, which hopefully can be addressed by pro coaches. It's likely that the 49ers would have to reach for Williams in round 1, and not be high enough in Round 2 to have a shot at him (well assuming the 49ers don't fudge the mattress the rest of the way).

4. Ciron Black, Lousiania State, Scouting Report - Projected Pick: Round 2, Projected 40yd Dash: 5.27, Height: 6'5, Weight: 320

The Rundown: Black is the starting LT for the LSU Tigers, but is another prospect that will likely end up as RT in the NFL. He also has the versatility to play guard, which will make him no worse than a second round draft choice in my opinion. Black is a powerful run blocker, but struggles in pass protection at times (sounds like he'll fit right in). The Tigers have allowed QB Jordan Jefferson to be sacked 23 times in 210 pass attempts, and have 12 Rush TDs in nine games thus far. After passing up on Phil Loadholt last year, I'll find it hard to agree with the 49ers passing on Black if he's available when the Niners are on the clock in Round 2. While I love the extra 2010 first rounder, it's time to address RT before the 2011 offseason.

5. Jason Fox, Miami, Scouting Report - Projected Pick: Round 2, Projected 40yd Dash: 5.10, Height: 6'6, Weight: 310

The Rundown: Ok, so the trend stops from being college LT = NFL RT in this case, as Fox is the starting LT for the Hurricanes, and projects as an NFL LT. In fact, Fox has been Miami's starting Left Tackle since his freshman season. Miami's QB Jacory Harris has been sacked 25 times in 264 pass attempts through nine games, and the team has rushed for 15 TDs. Since Fox is likely to be an NFL LT, it would be hard to see the 49ers take him. Should Black be off the board in Round 2, but Fox is ripe for the picking, it would be wise at that point for the 49ers to entertain trade offers. That is, unless the team was absolutely comfortable having Joe Staley move back to RT in order to shift a second round rookie in the starting LT role.

6. Selvish Capers, West Virginia, Scouting Report - Projected Pick: Round 3-4, Projected 40yd Dash: 4.91, Height: 6'6, Weight: 289

The Rundown: Capers is the Mountaineers starting RT, while some scouts envision him as a possible NFL LT. By the time he's drafted and ready to suit up, it's likely he'll remain in his natural position. However, should a team be able to land him in round 4, it's easily a possibility that an NFL team try and convert Capers to LT. The West Virginia spread offense has seen QBs sacked 12 times in 251 pass attempts, while plundering opponents with 21 rushing TDs (9 games). If the Niners haven't addressed offensive tackle by round 3, they'd jump on Capers if he's available, and not bank on him slipping to Round 4. I don't think I can stress enough how important it will be for the team to get a RTOTF before the start of the 2010 season. And for fun (since I couldn't find any other videos), Capers waves a pretty mean flag.

* - projected data provided by WalterFootball.com (as of Oct. 24, 2009); NCAA team stats courtesy of Yahoo!; NOTE: The USC and Oklahoma games were not completed while this article was written.

That wraps up my first take on the 2010 offseason prospects at Right Tackle. While I'd certainly be happy with Tyson Clabo or Jeremy Trueblood coming over via free agency, it could be wiser to have the team draft it's big grinder. I'm wondering what Niners Nation thinks, should we sign a RT or draft a RT? Certainly we need a RT for 2010, there's no denying that (unless your Kool-Aid has cyanide in it).

The Status of Aaron Kampman

Brandon — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:31:36 -0000

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I noted in the Green Bay Packers game recap that LB Aaron Kampman was bad in coverage on the TD pass to RB Derrick Ward in the 1st quarter. It was a surprise that he was ineffective against the Buccaneers. His main opponent was RT Jeremy Trueblood, who as far as I know is good but not heading to the Pro Bowl. But Kampman occasionally has a game when he doesn't make a big impact.

It turned out he suffered a concussion on the 4th play of the game, but he played until the middle of the 4th quarter. He might not play at all next Sunday against the Cowboys.

With only 2.5 sacks this season, the transition to the 3-4 hasn't been a huge success for him. Something he apparently was worried about when he didn't speak to the media back in May. But he has had many opportunities to lineup as a down lineman, and he hasn't often taken advantage of those opportunities either.

The big problem with his absence is that he'll be replaced by some combination of LB Jeremy Thompson and LB Brady Poppinga. Due to various injuries, Thompson has rarely played outside LB in a game this season or preseason. He's an unknown in some respects, although we've seen him play some at defensive end last season. I know what Poppinga can do, and he's a significant step down from Kampman, but the coaches seem to love him. Rookie LB Brad Jones is another option, but he's an unknown too.

There's not a lot of good options here if Kampman can't play. Who's the best one?

The Offensive Line Part 2: The Transition

John Morgan — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 17:58:30 -0000

This is the season Seattle lost Steve Hutchinson and the foundation of its offensive line began to crumble. Walter Jones was still among the very best at his position, but he was 32 and would turn 33 less than a week after Seattle was bumped out of the playoffs.

That run was paved in part by Tim Ruskell's first ever pick, Chris Spencer, replacing an effectively retired Robbie Tobeck, and rookie Rob Sims replacing the irreplaceable Hutchinson. When Spencer and Sims helped spring an already washed-up Shaun Alexander for 108 yards and two touchdowns against the sixth-ranked Bears rush defense, all was right, Ruskell was in good graces and the future of the Seattle Seahawks seemed bright.

The line was crumbling though. Jones was approaching old, and the intolerance to pain medication that once stood as a testament to his greatness began to loom as a horrible "what if?" Sims could not replace Hutchinson. Chris Gray was 36. Without that insane left side to protect him, Sean Locklear could no longer be trumped up by contrived stats. Seattle was halfway between the collapse of an all-time great offensive line and a rebuilding effort that couldn't possibly be as successful.

Seattle did not invest much into rebuilding the line in 2006. The draft was a bit top heavy and talent poor. Seattle could have selected Guy Whimper with its Sims pick, Willie Colon, Chris Kuper or Jeromey Clary, but if Sims has maybe not been the most valuable lineman selected in the second day, he has been a good player for the pick and more successful than much of his class.

Seattle could have spent an earlier pick but didn't. It's almost impossible to argue that had Seattle kept spent its first or second round picks on offensive linemen, it would be a better team today. Its first round pick, Kelly Jennings, has busted, but so has Winston Justice, selected 39^th, and neither Deuce Latui, 41^st, nor Daryn Colledge, 47^th, strike me as significantly better players than Sims. It could have made a play at a tackle like Marcus McNeill, Andrew Whitworth, Jeremy Trueblood or Eric Winston, but it believed itself set at tackle, and it seemed to be.

Instead, Ruskell added Tom Ashworth. Ashworth was awful: Another body on the pile of winners and veterans that Ruskell has burdened the team with. But Ashworth was fourth string and therefore as likely to play as Kyle Williams. Sean Locklear had been healthy to that point. Ashworth was behind Jones, Locklear, Ray Willis and even Floyd Womack.

Injuries became a factor. Locklear missed five games. Willis missed 15 and was put on IR. Womack was starting at left guard. Locklear's injury forced Ashworth into action and he played like the fourth string tackle he was. The line did not play well and compared to 2005, it was awful.

The talent Ruskell had added was good. It was young and cheap and seemed promising. The line had declined from a peak it could not possibly reach again, but where it had been expensive, aged, but elite, it was now turning into cheap, young and serviceable.

With game 5 coming up, a look at some Top 5's.....

Niko Houllis — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 19:00:19 -0000

game 5

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Some Top 5 things from our 5th game of the season, at the Linc in Philadelphia!

5 BEST PLAYERS ON THE FIELD FOR THE BUCS-

The new 2009 Cadillac Williams looks BETTER than the 2005 model!
Tanard Jackson returns to help out at safety. Is he just sticking his thumb in the dyke?
Chris Hovan is becoming a vocal leader on the defense.
Geno Hayes and Quincy Black are quickly catching up to Barrett Ruud. Linebackers are becoming best unit on the team.
Ronde Barber's body is in a state of temporal flux. His body is in his 30's, while Barber's legs are in his 20s.

5 PLAYERS STRUGGLING TO KEEP THEIR JOBS BASED ON PERFORMANCE-

Gaines Adams received a stay of execution from the govonor last week, but one quarter does not a season make. He may not get a chance this week with an injury bug.
After week one, Michael Clayton had Raheem Morris and Steve Duemig daring anyone to call and ask why the Bucs resigned him. Both signed up for unlisted numbers this week.
Kellen Winslow has 5 catches for 35 yards over the last two games. Young Quarterbacks best friend my BEEP!
Jeremy Trueblood is supposed to be part of the strongest unit on the Bucs. Instead he is becoming the weakest link with 4 false starts in 4 games. This after leading the Bucs in penalties last year.
Josh Johnson may not exactly deserve to be on this list as he only has one start for the team, but this team has already got a QB that it expects to have to deal with growing pains for. Johnson looked sharp on his first pass, but looked every bit the roll of the young first start QB afterwards. Going against the Eagles defense will not be J.J.s fault, but a very poor outing could bring Leftwich back up to 1 on the depth chart; at least until Faine returns and/or the bye week when we could see Josh Freeman. more after the jump...

5 WAYS THE BUCS CAN WIN THIS SUNDAY-

Eagles veterans get 2002 NFC Championship flashbacks and drive to the Veterans Stadium location instead of the Linc.
Matt Bryant releases the Matt Bryant Day Curse and new kicker Shane Andrus makes all his kicks.
Josh Johnson is able to find K2 and Jeremy Stevens 7-10 yards downfield consistantly.
Our fully restored 2005 Cadillac Williams is featured by Morris in the run & short passing game.
Bucs defense continues to show improvement and faith buying into Jim Bates' system.

5 REASONS TO WATCH THE ENTIRE GAME-

Your a Bucs fan, die hard, and you dont miss a single game.
Your a glutton for punishment.
You were the one screaming for J.J. to start this preseason, and here he is.
You enjoy watching the 2 guys who make the most money on the team get overpaid to not do their job.
Your part of the 10% that does NOT root for the underdog, and will scream "NO MERCY" in the 4th Quarter.

and last but not least...

5 THINGS WERE TIRED OF HEARING FROM THE FOX BROADCASTING TEAM

How the Bucs don't have Derrick Brooks on the team anymore.
The fact that fantasy football players pick every opponent vs the Bucs to win.
Our 28th or 31st rankings in either catagory.
That Monte Kiffin isnt on the team anymore. And finally...
Anything from Tony Siragusa!

An incomplete effort, from top to bottom.

Buc Wild — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 05:00:16 -0000

It's always tough to try and remain objective when you're not only writing about your favorite team, but writing in a place where a few other folks will read it. I've done my best to remain impartial, and would like to think I'll continue to do so. This column is one of those from a disappointed fan. I've never been blindly optimistic or blatantly pessimistic instead trying to remain objective and as impartial as I can. I'm not sure how this will go over, whether it will look like whining after a loss or a quick look at some big issues with the team. Take it for what it's worth.

That being said, I was pretty fired up after the recent loss to the Bills. The Bills beat us, hats off to them. I can handle being out-manned, out-coached, out-schemed, but I can't handle sloppy play, blown assignments and undisciplined play. You all are probably sick of me using that word, undisciplined. It's not a buzz word, or one of those exciting football terms. It's something that we all have to have in our job, and it also falls in the realm of being an NFL player.

But I'm not an old timer calling out the team to play more like the olden days with leather helmets and no forward pass. A well coached, well disciplined team always shows well, win or loss. Like I said, I can handle losing, I can handle mistakes, but not when they come in bunches. And right now, I see a lot of sloppy play.

I don't even want to dive into the Dallas game. The blown assignments there have been beaten to death. We know about Sabby and his exploits, Phillips and his ability to seemingly miss every other tackle. We know about the wide pass rush that leaves open cut back lanes and room for QB scrambles.

This week should have been different. Doesn't mean a win was on the way, but I thought for sure I'd see a better coached, better prepared, better disciplined team. And there were times were the Bucs looked as such. But the bitter taste that still resides was one of amateur hour.

I lost track of how many missed tackles there were. And it started on the first play when Flip tried to blow up T.O. rather than tackle him. Sure, that tackle won't get you on Sportscenter, or on Jacked Up, but it saves yards. Fundamentals guys, geez. That lone missed tackle was a microcosm of the entire day.

I saw Flip miss more tackles, I saw Sabby take poor routes to the ball and miss tackles. I saw Barrett Ruud get faked out of his jock strap. I watched Quincy Black give a tight end the edge, the list goes on. It was a pathetic showing. I wish i could blame it on old habits, but a lot of these guys are new starters. I wish I could blame it on regime, but Gruden and Allen are quietly collecting paychecks while unemployed.

We had over 100 yards in penalties (13 for 112 yards to be exact), including 4 facemask calls. That's ridiculous. We saw Gaines Adams yet again throw his hat in the ring for a few penalties. Jeremy Trueblood decided to re-visit late last year and get a few penalties called. Illegal touching, blocks in the back, you name it, the Bucs did it. Especially aggravating.

Blown assignments. I'm happy to say no one ran free down the middle of the field, at least, not that we saw or were beat by. But we saw pass rushers go up field with no idea where the play was, we saw underneath coverage break down and we saw a few over the top plays where other options were open.

Again, getting beat isn't what I want, but I can handle it. What I can't stand to see is this lack of effort. I'm not calling anyone lazy, but to see Fred Jackson continually turn up field and blast through our guys while they had given up on the play is ridiculous. It's just not understanding the play isn't over.

I'll get off the soapbox in just a second, but want to make something clear. I have no issue with another team or player being better than the Bucs. I just don't want to see guys standing there instead of wrapping up, or flying in trying to make the highlight reel and costing us 7-9 yards. If this were a movie, there would be a big locker room scene with the coach yelling at the players, and the players getting back to basics with tackling drills with some hit song in the background.

The blame is spread equally amongst coaches, players and front office. The players have to play and finish, the coaches have to hold them accountable and the front office has to deliver the message from the top down.

Hopefully, this is the last article I have to write on this topic. Teams that turn the ball over, commit excessive penalties, and don't stick to their assignments aren't successful. Fix it now Bucs.

Bills will have a job unbalancing Tampa on Sunday

Brian Galliford — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:30:17 -0000

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Prior to the start of the NFL's regular season, the Buffalo Bills were one of three teams to fire their offensive coordinator. Buffalo's opponent this week, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was one of the other teams to make this move, relieving Jeff Jagodzinski of his duties and promoting Greg Olson to the position of Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks. If Buffalo's offense scored a mild surprise with 276 yards, 17 points and relative efficiency in their Week 1 loss, then Tampa Bay's 450-yard, 21-point outburst was nothing short of shocking.

Blessed with one of the better young offensive lines in the league, a deep stable of running backs, and talent at tight end and receiver (when healthy), QB Byron Leftwich - a temporary starter until first-round pick Josh Freeman is ready to assume command of the offense - has found himself unexpectedly rich with surrounding talent. Considering Buffalo's mediocre second-half defensive performance in New England, defensive coordinator Perry Fewell has a large task in front of him trying to slow down Tampa's surprising offense.

Examining the Bucs' O-Line
At first blush, essentially the entirety of Tampa's starting offensive line - Donald Penn, Jeremy Zuttah, Sean Mahan, Davin Joseph and Jeremy Trueblood - well, let's just say these aren't names that jump off the page at you. Joseph, a 2006 first-round pick, is probably the best player of the group, and likely the most recognizable name as well. This line didn't come together in a traditional manner, but boy, are they talented.

Penn is one of the more athletic tackles in the league; the former 2006 undrafted free agent was a pinch starter under Jon Gruden and hasn't looked back. He's an outstanding pass protector, and while he isn't dominant against the run, the Bucs have clearly procured themselves a diamond-in-the-rough left tackle (something the Bills are currently trying to emulate for a second time). Zuttah ('08, third round), Joseph ('06, first round) and Trueblood ('06, second round) all represent significant draft pick investments in the line, and they've paid off.

The weak area, for now, is center, where starter Jeff Faine is missing with a triceps injury. Mahan - himself a 2003 fifth-round pick by the Bucs - was re-signed after Faine went down, and spoke earlier this week as if he'd start in Faine's stead. If he doesn't, rookie Jonathan Compas will get the call.

Even factoring in the change at center, Tampa's offensive line routinely flashes dominance. They weren't perfect in 2008, allowing 32 sacks and finishing a rather average No. 15 in the NFL in rush offense, but that looks to change this season. With two "new" runners in Cadillac Williams and Derrick Ward, the Bucs gouged a usually stout Cowboys defense on the ground to the tune of 160 yards and two scores on 26 carries. Yes, folks, that's over six yards per carry. To say that the running game is the lifeblood of Tampa's offense is a severe understatement.

Balance is crucial to Tampa's attack
With that running game leading the way, Leftwich's job was simple in Week 1: manage the game. He did it relatively well, getting passes to ten different receivers. The play-action pass, obviously, is a weapon for the Bucs when their run game is clicking, and Leftwich has a huge arm; it's quite enough to keep defenses honest.

The fact that the Bucs have two athletic, productive tight ends - Kellen Winslow, Jr. and Jerramy Stevens - doesn't make the job any easier for the Bills. Both of these players have size and can stretch a defense vertically. They'll play an even more important role on Sunday, as top receiver Antonio Bryant is expected to sit out with an ailing knee. You don't need me to tell you that the Bills struggled to defend tight ends in New England.

This offense still has a lot to prove - one game does not an offensive juggernaut make - but let's not pretend that they're going to be easy for the Bills to contain. It would help them tremendously, first and foremost, to get off the field; going up against a pretty solid Pats offense last week, Buffalo gave the Patriots too many chances to make plays by allowing conversions on 10 of 16 third-down situations. That's not going to cut it.

Beat Tampa at their own game?
An early lead is crucial, as is containing - note the lack of the term "stopping" - the run and limiting allowed third-down conversions defensively. Tampa's defense is extremely vulnerable, so the Bills would do well to try beating the Bucs at their own game - running the ball, taking shots down field, and controlling the clock.

Those are the easiest ways to force the ball into Leftwich's hands more often. That theory, by leaps and bounds, represents Buffalo's best chance at scoring a victory in their home opener. If they can't find a way to take balance out of the equation, however, this is a Bucs offense that could really put the hurt on Fewell's unit. Buffalo needs to be careful, and they'll need to stay sharp offensively if things don't go well in this area.

Cannon Shots: Wednesday's practice and a surprising injury

Buc Wild — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:13:52 -0000

Only one practice today for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tomorrow has two practices scheduled with the second of the two being closed and being at Raymond James Stadium. Tomorrow marks a month until the first regular season game, so time is running short.

Let's take a spin around camp at some stories and some not so good news on the injury front.

- Well, first things first. We have another injury that may cause a player to miss the 2009 season. Reported by TBO and Pewter Report, Josh Bidwell will miss the Titans game with a degenerative hip issue. It's a condition he has had for years, but it has never surfaced in this manner. The Bucs will bring in several other punters to give a look at on Thursday. Tests are being conducted to see how long he will need to miss.

- Other not so serious injuries. Bryant (Matt), Clayton and Faine continue to nurse minor injuries with Clifton Smith and Jeremy Trueblood hitting the field. We're starting to trade minor injuries for major ones, not good.

- Josh Johnson got alot of time with the first team today. Not sure what to read into that other than they want to give him a good hard look over the next few weeks. I guess it's not entirely far fetched for Morris to either keep 4 QB's (pass) or to keep Johnson on over the Leftwich/McCown loser.

- Raheem Morris said he wants to see Clifton on Saturday, but not as a returner, as a running back. Again, gotta see what you have.

- Looks like alot of the newbies ran the 2 minute drill today. They will most likely be the ones on the field at the end of the game, and regardless of the score, coaches love to run that drill to see how players respond in a game.

- It's expected that a punter will be signed by tomorrow morning's practice. Not exactly a marquee signing, but keep an eye on whoever it is. They may be here awhile.

Cannon Shots is done for the day. Just a few days left until it's game time.

How does the Tampa Bay Buccaneer's Offensive Line stack up?

Buc Wild — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:15:08 -0000

How did this group do in 2008? While highly touted, the numbers tell a different story.

View full size photo »

Grading out offensive lines is a difficult task. Other than sacks allowed, there are no commonly used metrics that can distinguish a good offensive line from a bad offensive line. We can try and judge by the naked eye and make claims like "Man, he gets beat a lot" (Robert Gallery at tackle) or "Wow he sucks, he has so many penalties" (Good afternoon Kenyatta Walker). We can try and listen to the talking heads about how one guy uses his hands as weapons, while the other doesn't swivel his hips enough.

But that doesn't really let us evaluate the offensive line. An offensive lineman's performance can be affected by the scheme run, the opponent played, and even if the team is protecting a lead or trying to mount a comeback. Other issues are the quality of players around you, specifically the running back. The best offensive lines can be made to look dismal with a below average running back while a bad line can be made to look good with a great back.

But how have they performed as a group? There are a few more advanced metrics that attempt to value the offensive line based on several different factors. I'll introduce those metrics, define them both in the technical terms as well as an easier to understand version, and then we'll look at how the Bucs fared in those categories.

Hit the jump for a look inside the numbers.

I was motivated to do this look at offensive lines based on Tomahawk Nation's excellent look at the FSU OL. The available statistics between the college game and professional game vary, but there are still some telling statistics to be looked at.

Let me be the first to say that I was/am very high on the Bucs offensive line. As a unit they have all the makings of a strong, aggressive unit. Davin Joseph, Jeremy Trueblood, Jeff Faine, Arron Sears, Jeremy Zuttah and Donald Penn all fit into the mold of what you want in an offensive lineman. We've heard for a year or two how some of these guys are future Pro Bowlers, and I have no doubt that as individuals, some of these players will take home some awards.

Let's take a look at 2008 numbers on the offensive line, which are provided FootballOutsiders.

To get you comfortable with some of the statistics/metrics that will be used, let's look at the explanations on FootballOutsiders (or FO).

Adjusted Line Yards:

Teams are ranked according to Adjusted Line Yards. Based on regression analysis, the Adjusted Line Yards formula takes all running back carries and assigns responsibility to the offensive line based on the following percentages:

Losses: 120% value

0-4 Yards: 100% value

5-10 Yards: 50% value

11+ Yards: 0% value

These numbers are then adjusted based on down, distance, situation, opponent, and the difference in rushing average between shotgun compared to standard formations. Finally, we normalize the numbers so that the league average for Adjusted Line Yards per carry is the same as the league average for RB yards per carry, (which is 4.08 yards)

In language that us regular folks might understand, each running play has a specific value for the offensive line. If a running back gains 4 yards, the OL is credited with 100% of that, or 4 yards. If the back is hit for a loss of 2 yards, the OL gets credit for -2.4 yards.

It also mentions it "adjust" the numbers based on down, distance etc. What this refers to is 5 yard gains are not created equally. A 5 yard gain on 3rd and 15 is not as valuable as a 5 yard gain on 3rd and 4. Additionally a 5 yard run from the opponent's 5 yard line is worth more than a 5 yard run from midfield.

Using Adjusted Line yards (or ALY), let's see how the Bucs fared in 2008.

Rank	Team	Adj Line Yards	RB Yards
22	TB	4.04	4.09
NFL	Avg	X	4.25

I can already hear you asking, "so what does this mean?" Remember that in Adjusted Line Yards, 4.08 was the league average. The Bucs OL was very slightly below average in this category, coming in at an ALY of 4.04 yards per carry. Additionally, the running backs averaged 4.09 yards per carry (this is in the standard metric we are used to seeing). To put it all together, on a given carry, we can expect a run of 4.09 yards, with 4.04 yards of credit going to the OL and .05 yards going to the running back. Our running backs are basically going only as far as our line will take them and were below average in 2008.

Another way of looking at this is our running backs are extremely dependent on the offensive line on any given running play. For comparison's sake, the Giants were at the top with an ALY of 4.62 and a YPC of 5.28, while the Bengals were at the bottom with an ALY of 3.31 and a YPC of 3.22 (their running backs actually gained less than what the OL provided)

This is somewhat of a shocking number for all the accolades our line received from staff, media, and fans alike. They were average, ranked 22nd in the NFL in adjusted line yards in 2008. Had you asked me before viewing these numbers, I would've guessed top 12. The ALY does vary based on where the run goes (off tackle and to which side), but we'll cover that later. On to the next metric

Power Success

Percentage of runs on third or fourth down, two yards or less to go, that achieved a first down or touchdown. Also includes runs on first-and-goal or second-and-goal from the two-yard line or closer. This is the only statistic on this page that includes quarterbacks.

You might call this the "smash mouth football" look as it looks as running plays on short to gain situations. Goal line runs, 3rd and 1, 4th and 1 etc. With big nasties like Trueblood and Joseph, we had to fare pretty well in this category, right? Let's look at the 2008 numbers and see.

Rank	Team	Power Success	League Avg
17	TB	65%	67%

Again, mildly disappointing. Just below league averaged and in the bottom half of the league. We converted 65% of our "power success" opportunities, good for 17th in the league (bottom half) and slightly below league average. The tops and bottoms of the league were Carolina at 79% (I think we contributed to that number) and San Francisco at 52%.

With an undersized "power back" in Earnest Graham, and injuries at fullback, this might help explain some of the lack of success. This has to change this year if we are going to a run-based offense. We'll have more than our fair share of 3rd and short and I would put a 70-72% range as a reasonable benchmark to be successful.

Now that we've looked at the short yardage situations, let's look at long or breakaway runs.

10+ Yards

Percentage of a team's rushing yards more than 10 yards past the line of scrimmage. Represents yardage not reflected in Adjusted Line Yards stat.

This seems easy enough. Look at all the yards that are more than 10 yards past the line of scrimmage. Then take them as a percentage of the total yards.

The thinking here is, once a running back gets 10 yards past the line of scrimmage, the offensive line has done their part. This yardage is fully dependent on a running back making people miss or breaking tackles. This is a measure of the breakaway ability or big gain potential of a team. Any yards gained on a running play after the initial 10 yards is not counted towards the offensive line for those reasons. How did the Bucs fare?

Rank	Team	10+ Yards	League Avg
13	TB	18%	19%

Alright, our first ranking in the top 50% of the league! It comes in a category that I wouldn't have expected. While Earnest Graham is a good back, I certainly don't classify him as a breakaway threat. But with him being the primary ball carrier, we achieved a ranking in the top half of the league. While still a bit below league average, we can see that 18% of the Bucs yardage in the running game came from beyond 10 yards outside the line of scrimmage. To put it in context, the top team in 10+ Yards was Carolina with 27% and the lowest was Indianapolis with 9%. Those seem about right.

I'd expect that number to be a bit higher next year. With a dedication to the running game that we didn't see under Gruden, it should wear down defenses and allow for bigger gains. Most of Graham's long runs last year came in the 4th quarter and with Derrick Ward and Cadillac pitching in, the defense should be dead tired come the end of the game.

Let's get to the first metric where a lower number is better.

Stuffed

Percentage of runs where the running back is tackled at or behind the line of scrimmage.

Carries for a loss are never a good thing. A running back falling forward, or getting back the LOS can sometimes be a great play, taking a 3 yard loss and turning it into a short gain. The "Stuffed" percentage is one you want to be low, or be at zero.

Rank	Team	Stuffed	League Avg
12	TB	17%	18%

Another good ranking for the Bucs. Opinion time. This would seem to be based on both the line's ability to at least get a hat on their guy, but also the decisiveness of Graham. As a one cut runner, he doesn't do a lot of dancing in the backfield, which (in theory) would diminish his chances for being hit in the backfield. The Bucs OL ranked in the top half of the league and even came in a bit better than league average. It's an interesting contract to the Power Success numbers. So while we aren't getting hit for a loss that often (in comparison to league average), we aren't converting the league average of short yardage situations.

Sack Rank

Sack Rate represents sacks divided by pass plays, which include passes, sacks, and aborted snaps. It is a better measure of pass blocking than total sacks because it takes into account how often an offense passes the ball. Adjusted Sack Rate adds adjustments for opponent quality, as well as down and distance (sacks are more common on third down, especially third-and-long). Sacks are just what you think, total number of sacks given up.

I'll do my best to translate here. The Sack Rank percentage will give us the adjusted percentage as to how often a sack occurs. To help better define this, let's look at an example. We'll look at Team A who passes more than normal (think Colts) and Team B who runs more than normal (think Ravens). Both teams give up 40 sacks. Sounds like it's pretty equal, right? Well, what if we add in that Team A had 600 drop backs (got sacked 6.6%) and the Team B only had 400 drop backs (sacked at a rate of 10%). I'd say that leads to a compelling conclusion that although the same number of sacks were given up, Team A's OL performed much better. That's just one of the factors that plays in, but you can see that number of sacks is not a truly defining measure.

Rank	Team	Sacks	Adj Sack Rank	NFL Sack Avg	NFL Adj Sack Avg
22	TB	36	7%	32	6.20%

A pretty disappointing number. Ranked 22nd in the league, the Bucs gave up 36 sacks compared to a league average of 32. "But I thought you said total sacks isn't a good measure of an OL?". You're right. Our Adjusted Sack Rate was 7%, meaning on 7% of drop backs we can expect a sack (based on a 30 drop back game, that equates to 2.1 sacks a game). The league average was 6.2%, so again, we were worse than average.

The highs and lows were as follows. High and Low total sacks given up goes to Giants/Pats with 12 and the Lions with 55. As far as Adjusted Sack Rate, the Broncos were tops at 2.8% with the Bengals last at 9.7%. Based on a 30 drop back day, that's a difference of 2 sacks a game. Pretty remarkable.

Alright, so we've looked at a variety of new stats that measure the offensive line. I'd say the numbers were a bit startling. How can our offensive line that is so young and so good (according to media) perform this poorly? Well, there are a couple of potential causes. Offensive scheme, play calling, injuries. Gruden was never much a running game guy and often abandoned it early. In 2008 we didn't have a great blocking fullback, our running back (Graham) while good is still not one of the elite runners, he was injured giving way to Warrick Dunn who definitely slowed down as the year went on and we weren't able to convert short yardage situations.

While this may lead you to want to jump off a bridge, you may want to hold up. The zone blocking scheme can be a great catalyst for our offensive line. The backs we have fit that system (one cut and go), we do have talented players on the offensive line, and we have now added another 1.5 backs to the stable (Ward and a Caddy/Clifton split). All things being equal, we should improve upon these numbers if Jagz and company stick to the gameplan.

Speaking of game plans, how did the Buc's offensive line do when running the ball in certain directions? This will all be based on ALY (explained up towards the top). We'll look at how they did running left or right, and end versus off tackle versus up the middle. We'll also take look into how often we ran in what direction.

We'll look at each split individually in terms of ALY and how often we ran that direction. First up, runs off left end.

Team	ALY	Rank	% of Runs
TB	2.16	30	7%
NFL	4.16	x	11%

Ugh. Running off left end was not kind to the Bucs offensive line. This would be in Donald Penn's direction and you can see, we not only ranked 30th in the league, we are a full 2 yards below average. The good news? We only ran off left end 7% of the time, far below league average. Maybe a sample size issue, but nonetheless, our runs off left end didn't end well.

Let's take a look at off tackle runs to the left side.

Team	ALY	Rank	% of Runs
TB	3.54	28	9%
NFL	4.18	x	14%

Again, well below average. Apparently running to the left wasn't a strong suit in 2008. We're about half a yard below average, though again, we ran to the left significantly less than the league average. It's tough to blame individuals based on these metrics as you don't know the outcome, but its safe to say Penn's side of the ball didn't hold up in the running game. I wonder if we ran less that way due to poor performance, or had poor performance due to running that way less. The chicken or the egg argument I suppose. Let's leave the left side and get to the runs off guard and to the middle. For clarification purposes, and per FootballOutsiders

research so far shows no statistically significant difference between how well a team performs on runs listed middle, left guard, and right guard

This just means that off guard runs are counted as runs up the middle for statistical purposes. Here are the numbers for "up the middle" runs.

Team	ALY	Rank	% of Runs
TB	4.35	9	66%
NFL	4.14	x	50%

Now we're talking. These runs would have been over Arron Sears, Jeff Faine, Jeremy Zuttah and Davin Joseph. The Adjusted Line Yards here show the line providing 4.35 yards per carry. Above league average, but it looks like this is where the majority of the runs took place. Can't say I see an issue with that. We hammered the ball up the middle and succeeded. The perception of those 3-4 players is that they are the strongest (or most skilled/complete players) on the offensive line, and their ALY does nothing to deter from that statement.

Well, we've seen success up the middle and we've seen some horrific numbers on the left side, how did the right side fare? Let's venture into Jeremy Trueblood's territory.

Team	ALY	Rank	% of Runs
TB	3.91	26	11%
NFL	4.1	x	14%

Back to being below average. It was a nice run while it lasted (bad pun intended). Going off right tackle, the line is averaging 3.91 yards per carry, about .2 yards below league average. At the bottom of the pack, again. We were close to league average in terms of number of runs off right tackle, but again, not quite evenly distributed with the league average. Any predictions on the right end runs?

Let's see if the pattern continues with runs to either direction not performing.


Team	ALY	Rank	% of Runs
TB	3.9	20	7%
NFL	3.9	x	10%

We hit the league average square on the nose, but still are in the bottom half. And again, we ran outside less than average. While not quite as bad as the left side, the runs to the right side were still below average and under that magical average of 4.08 ALY or YPC.

With virtually the same offensive line coming back and same backfield with more depth, this should be a good tool for the new offensive coordinator, Jeff Jagodzinski to look at. We will be going with a different blocking scheme (zone vs man), but the data seems to indicate that the strength of the line in the running game is up the middle.

So what did we learn? We definitely picked up some non-common metrics that can help us evaluate an offensive line's performance. On a team-centric basis, we see that in the passing game, we're giving up a sack about 7% of the time based on our offense (again, 2008 numbers). We saw that while the gross number of sacks was about in line with the NFL average, we were still giving up about 2.1 sacks a game based on offense, opponent, and other factors.

The running game, specifically the OL were a bit of a disappointment. The ALY was a touch below average, as was the power success rate, a number I fully expected to be in our favor. The Stuffed numbers showed that the Bucs OL and running game were better than average at getting hit in the backfield (in a good way) and the running backs, while capable of ripping off 10+ yard runs, still showed to be more of a ground and pound type system.

With a new scheme, new OC, new coach, a great addition in the backfield, and a healthy (crosses fingers) backfield and line, I expect us to improve in each category, across the board. The 2009 season is here, we'll keep an eye on these new metrics to see what changes are made and how they affect the team.

Cannon Shots: Tuesday practice - injuries, drills, battles

Buc Wild — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 17:52:45 -0000

Tuesday morning practice has concluded, with another practice to begin around 5 PM. The morning practice included some field goal kicking, some live hitting, goal drills and 9 on 7 drills.

Hit the jump for the details

- Here we go with the injury updates. Antonio Bryant had his surgery this morning. It was considered a success and he should be back in 3 weeks. He might be available for the last preseason game, but all indications are he'll sit until Dallas. We'll take a look at his injury here on Buc 'Em later this week.

- Michael Clayton is still out. He should be back any day, but still may sit out the first preseason game. Angelo Crowell, Kelly Campbell, Jeremy Trueblood and Sean Mahan are all out still. Outside of Bryant, nothing serious here.

- Raheem Morris announced that Thursday night's practice will be closed and held at the stadium. He wants to simulate the game environment and get the team ready for their first preseason game.

- In kicker battles, both Nugent and Bryant went 3 for 3 in the kicking game (Still 0-2 in Bryants favor). But Bryant did seem concerned with his hamstring with it flaring up again. Also, apparently Bryant made a field goal but the ball missed the net and hit a little kid in the face. Ouch! Morris found the kid and gave him a game ball.

- McCown started to get acquainted with Kellen Winslow, hitting him for a TD in the red zone. He better get to know him well. With no AB or Clayton, Winslow is McCown's best friend if he wants to earn the starting job.

- Morris did say that Josh Freeman is still in the hunt for the job and will see the bulk of the playing time on Saturday. This tells me two things. One is that Josh Johnson is all but gone. Two is that Freeman has played ok in camp, but not well enough to really earn the job. Morris has to dangle the job to keep Freeman working hard. I don't think he has any shot unless he just wows us in the preseason.

- Morris (and Buccaneers.com) are really hyping Stroughter saying he is in the mix for the slot position. Only problem? He's towards the bottom of the depth chart thus far. Could be a motivational tool, just seems if he was that close to winning the job, he'd be higher.

That takes care of the AM practice, we'll recap the PM practice after it happens.