1) There are no glamour picks out there, boys and girls. There's no Bill Parcells to tempt and taunt our ownership this time. The biggest name in HC is Bill Cowher and he's staying put in his cushy commentator job (until the Jets or Cowboys job opens most likely). We're going to have to accept that whoever gets the Bucs' HC job is not the best-of-the-best-of-the-BEST.

2) Previous experience with Head Coaching hires is that the Big Name isn't always the best choice. Ray Perkins, anyone? Sam Wyche, fresh from coaching Cincy to a Super Bowl loss? It ended up being a respected long-time coordinator in Tony Dungy, about as unglamourous a pick as possible, who turned the ship around and made Tampa Bay playoff (and Super Bowl) contenders. This is where Jerry Gray, who HAS a few years of coordinator experience under his belt, might surprise...

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1) This has the feel of a post-apocalyptic world: the living envy the dead. It's a good thing Lee Roy wasn't here to witness this...

2) The season opened with such hopes: our secondary was supposed to be good, Talib wasn't in jail, our top rookie players looked impressive, our offense was supposed to be good for once, and we had an honest-to-God Franchise QB that didn't give us migraines. What the hell went wrong?

Coaching. When a good team falls off the map as fast and as painful as the 2011 Bucs did, you gotta look at the coaches first.

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1) The only good reason to watch the Bucs on television? The sideline shots of incredibly hot cheerleaders. I think we've got the best krewe of ladies in the league.

2) Meanwhile, our Secondary can't tackle, they can't cover, our linebackers are out of position, our offense went NOWHERE in the first half, Freeman is too scared to throw it downfield, our receivers are not playing for the ball, our coaches don't stick with a running threat in Blount, and our O-line is making too many mistakes and missing single blocks!

Other than that the night went well. For a humiliating loss that is...

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Other than all-new coaching at Head Coach, Offensive Coordinator, and Secondary Coaching. Seriously. This has been a baaaaaaad year.

Need listed by position from QB onward:

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1) After all, the USF Bulls are looking to have a better season than the Buccaneers right now... and the Bulls SUCKED this year... So if Tampa Bay doesn't qualify for Big East status they might as well try for the mid-major like Conference USA. And with UCF switching to Big East, there's an opening...

2) If anyone's thinking Raheem Morris is going to survive being the Head Coach into 2012, you are most likely clinging to just this one argument: that the Glazers are too cheap to buy out Morris' remaining contract and will just endure him until the contract ends next season.

We need to perform an Exorcism: the Demon Culverhouse Has Possessed This Stadium. Bring me an old priest and a young priest... THE POWER OF ROONEY COMPELS YOU! THE POWER OF ROONEY COMPELS YOU...!

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Considering the Big East Football program is looking to add a set of schools that aren't even east of the Mississippi River - Houston, Southern Methodist, San Diego St., Boise St. - the moniker of "Big East" becomes a mockery.

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1) Imagine you're Jimmie Giles. You're getting honored at this throwback uniform game for all the great work you've done as a 4-time Pro Bowler for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The current Bucs roster goes out on the field and lays an incredible stinker of a loss to a heated rival in the Carolina Panthers. As the team wanders like a wounded duck back to the locker rooms, you turn to your fellow retired Bucs players and say "A six-game losing streak? Pfft. Amateurs."

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1) Mostly because I bummed out all afternoon.  My NaNoWriMo writing is going nowhere, I was busy this morning helping my brother with a flooded condo, and... other problems.  Sorry

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1) I mean, seriously, the first play from scrimmage was Houston throwing an 80-yard touchdown pass.  Considering the Bucs' offense doesn't rev up until the Second Half, the odds were pretty good at that point that Houston would be up 35-3 before Halftime.  It's a miracle it turned out to be 16-3 at Halftime, but still...

2) Thinking back to the beginning of the season, there were concerns that the Bucs' tough schedule would lead to a disappointing year.  But the hope was that the still-young offense would continue improving, that Freeman would still throw accurate effective passes to receivers with good hands and decent enough speed to get open and deep, that our running game with Blount would work and he'd see more time even in passing situations, that whatever questions about our poor defense from last season would work themselves out as the equally-young defense figured out how to shut down the run as well as force sacks and turnovers like before.

None of that has happened.  The offense has regressed - the biggest disappointment - while the defense has suffered key injuries and hasn't gelled.

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1) On the one hand, I'm perfectly content at this moment with having Josh Freeman as our franchise QB.  On the other hand, I know it's too late for the Bucs to go charging into the "Suck For Luck" campaign (although a high draft pick of some kind is a growing possibility for next April).  Let's just give it to Indy and be done with it.

Besides, Freeman's not the problem our team is having regarding the offense.  The problem seems to be matching personnel to the plays... and being a bit more creative and bold with plays in the First Half when the Bucs are more often than not failing to maintain drives and score TDs for early leads.

That I blame the coaches, both the Offensive Coordinator Olson and Head Coach Morris.  It's their job to motivate and plan.  And whatever they're doing for the First Half of games, it's not working...

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1) I've got a simple solution for the 0-2 woes the Bucs have when they play in London.

STOP PLAYING IN LONDON.

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1) True story.  Every time I had the radio on, the Bucs played lousy.  So I turned it off, took care of some stuff around the house, then checked the Internet for the score to find the Bucs up 20-7.  Then I turn on the radio and the Saints start driving downfield and I realize I'm jinxing the team by listening.  So I turn it off and did my best to ignore it.

Good thing the Bucs won.  Whew.

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1) So I get a call Monday morning, it's my brother who'd gotten tickets to the Colts game from a friend (hey, Denny!) and so I got a chance to witness first hand how a referee crew can nearly mess up a football game.

We got blown calls.  We got bad calls.  We got flags for every conceivable penalty.  We got flags for excessive flagging.  It was not pretty.  Seriously, I spotted at least three penalties that the refs shouldn't have called, and one penalty (illegal block to the back) they should have called on that second Garcon touchdown.  Terrible, terrible reffing.

And as for the rest of the game?

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1) Why did I keep hearing Lumpkin's name in singleback sets well into the Fourth Quarter?  I'm okay with Graham as a singleback to some extent because he can get first downs, is a reliable safety valve receiver, and is a viable running option to keep defenses wondering which play is coming.  But Lumpkin?  Lumpkin on the field practically screams "PASS PLAY".  If Blount was out there, you could still fake out defenses into thinking it's a run play or pass with more certainty.  But noooooooo, we kept playing Lumpkin out there.  /headdesk

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1) One of the big hopes coming into the 2011 season was that our team's offense would have a year of experience under their collective belt, and with that experience the Bucs' offense would be more aggressive and higher-scoring especially in the First Half of their games.

Instead we have a precarious situation two games in: the bad habit of starting slow in 2010 is still with us.  Against the Vikings, the Bucs were completely shut out and shut down offensively in the First Half.  Vikes led 17-0 going into the break.

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1) You know, the FAMU football team ought to be grateful that the university's marching band takes them everywhere.

2) I know, that's not fair.  I shouldn't snark.  FAMU came up to play football and it turned into a blowout.  You know good games are ones where both teams are in it, and outside of a 3-minute period when it was 28 - 14 and FAMU looked like they could score as needed, South Florida just poured too much power into their offense tonight.

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NOTE: Edited for some text correction and removal of freudian slips.

1) Yes.  I indulged in a ticket for today's game, pretty much the only game ticket I'll be able to afford all season long.  I went to honor Lee Roy Selmon.  I also left by halftime, not because of the terrible offensive performance but because I figured out the real reason why the game didn't sell out.

You see, I thought as I have regarding the lack of turnout for Rays games that the Bucs are having problems selling out home games this month because of the terrible economy and that parking and game tickets are too expensive.  But after ten five minutes of sitting in the stands I realized the truth: people don't buy tickets for the home games in September BECAUSE IT'S FREAKING HOT OUT THERE.

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1) Big hello to the USF / Manchester England fan base that we got started tonight in Sect 239!

2) There was talk about how much Notre Dame paid out USF for their game last week.  Which was, by the by, totally worth it.  But how much did we pay Ball State to come to Tampa for their scheduled drubbing?

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This is an idea that's been bugging me the last two days, and not knowing anywhere else to post this I brought it here.

With all the conference shuffling in college football going on at the moment, it reminded me of talk earlier this year about the baseball leagues getting rid of their divisions, putting all AL teams in one AL basket and all NL teams in one NL basket as it were, shuffling one NL team back to the AL to balance out both leagues, and then have the top 4 teams in each league earn playoff spots... and with that system, maybe even expand each league's postseason lineups to 6 or 8 teams each.

While it may sound a bit questionable for baseball - since they have so many regular season games to weed out good teams from bad, they don't have to worry about figuring out who makes the postseason - a couple of nights ago I realized it makes much more sense for the NFL to do this.

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Let's just see how off the mark I get...

Week 1 vs. Detroit:

The Lions are coming off of perhaps their most positive season in years.  Yes, they went 6-10, but the second half of their season was downright scary to play against them as SUH! became the feared DT sacking machine that scouts knew he was.

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Florida has Georgia.

Florida State and Miami have each other.

Auburn has Alabama.

Army vs. Navy.

Ohio State vs. Michigan.  Texas vs. Oklahoma.  Oregon vs. Oregon State.  Notre Dame vs. Expectations USC

Great football programs have great rivalries.  So does the University of South Florida, relative newcomer to the exalted heights of Division 1-A football, have yet a rivalry on which to hang their collective fan hats?

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And see who salutes:

In the United States, Flag Day is celebrated on June 14. It commemorates the adoption of the flag of the United States, which happened that day by resolution of the Second Continental Congress in 1777.[1]The June 14 date is also when Congress adopted "the American continental army" after reaching a consensus position in The Committee of the Whole.[2] [3]

In 1916, President Woodrow Wilson issued a proclamation that officially established June 14 as Flag Day; in August 1949, National Flag Day was established by an Act of Congress.

Flag Day is not an official federal holiday, though on June 14, 1937, Pennsylvania became the first (and only) U.S. state to celebrate Flag Day as a state holiday, beginning in the town of Rennerdale.[1] Title 36 of the United States Code, Subtitle I, Part A, CHAPTER 1, § 110[4] is the official statute on Flag Day; however, it is at the President's discretion to proclaim officially the observance.

Yeah, I stopped doing this on my own HTML-based website when I realized I can confirm annoying people here with my assessments.

My rules:  1) Does the Pick Fill A Need  then 2) Does the Player Make The Team (this is in short-term: anything goes once they hit Free Agency).  At the end, I assess the draft's best moves, the worst moves, and give an overall grade for this year.  Whether or not any of this actually comes to pass is entirely out of my hands, and my opinions can be ridiculed ten different ways to Sunday.  Which happens to be in about 55 minutes of writing this.  Anyway.

Starting with First Round: 20) Adrian Clayborn, DE Iowa

I have to admit, he wasn't my preference.  I had my hopes on Ryan Kerrigan, who I saw as a more capable pass-rusher.  Of course, Kerrigan got taken earlier, so...  I had heard about Clayborn's palsy and that also gave me concerns.  Even with the assurances posted by Landlubber which did calm most of my fears, I still feel Clayborn's just not going to be as dominant a pass-rusher as I'd like to see in a DE.  His 2009 performance was impressive: but his 2010 season was not.  That's been blamed on his coaches changing their defensive schemes.  So it's now a question of how the Bucs' schemes will use him.

Does He Fill A Need: YES.  The Bucs had serious problems with a D-line producing little pressure on QBs and having problems shutting down running backs.  Any DE that can upgrade the talent at that position definitely fills the need.  As long as he's good in containing the run, that's a good thing.

Does He Make The Team: YES.  He's a First-Rounder.  It's practically a given.  Unless he's a total Ryan Leaf/Brian Bosworth, in which case... just cut the line and don't look back...  Okay, seriously.  Clayborn has a solid college record and there's little doubt he's motivated to prove his palsy won't stop him.  But that's got to limit the number of moves a DE's going to need against the top OTs he's going to face at the pro level, so I see him working the side of the line designed to stop the run (the LDE, right?)

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The values I assign to the picks are completely arbitrary and are in no way based on reality, facts, or future potential.  So there.  Read on...

1.  Panthers - Cam Newton, QB Auburn

While this draft opened as one of the widest in years - would Carolina trade down?  would they go with CB or DT first to fix that horrid defense? - in hindsight this isn't so shocking.  When in doubt, always draft a marquee QB.  Now, will Cam Newton pan out?  (I had Gabbert going here) Depends entirely on the coaching and patience they're going to need to give this guy.  GRADE: B-

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After the handful of mock drafts I've done, and that some of you have done, now is the time to go to a sports bar and mock the draft altogether.

And what better place to do it than Selmons off of Boy Scout Blvd at the Lois Ave. intersection?

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This is not rocket science.  It's actually quantum physics.  Because everything can change before, during AND after you observe the event.  Schrodinger's Cat... AIN'T GOT NOTHING... ON ME!

Do not consider this Mock Draft the best possible draft option out there.  Unless you're willing to pay me.  I take unmarked bills, twentys and fiftys.  Plain paper bag, behind the broken popcorn machine on the third floor.  Go.  Go now!

One other thing about the quantum nature of NFL drafting: trades are always a serious option, and there's a few teams in good position to trade down (Buffalo, Dallas, Jacksonville, Miami come to mind) and teams hoping to trade up (Tampa Bay, Baltimore maybe).  Nothing is certain except death and taxes.  Except for the fact that corporations never pay taxes and CEOs are planning to buy cloning technology to live forever... Sigh.

So, if you wanna see what I dread to see in this year's draft:

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Is there an opportunity to call together the fans here on Bucs Nation to a sports bar to watch the Thursday evening NFL draft on Apr. 28th this year?

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I'll make it a good 'un, Captain!  (jumps to his death)

(Hmm.  Embedding the video isn't showing in previews.  Darn)

So, who wants to read a half-crazed, poorly-thought-out Mock Draft for the Bucs this coming Apri 28th-30th?  Anyone?  Anyone? 

Alright, here goes:

First Round (20th pick) - The Bucs choose:

Ryan Kerrigan, DE, Purdue

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You know, it's a good thing I divided up my Draft Needs into two parts - offense and now defense - here on BN, simply because if I had posted a full list of needs before Aliq Talib went gun crazy on his sister's a-hole boyfriend, I'd be spending this time revising my list of needs on the Bucs' D.  Thanks, Aliq.  Thanks a load.

The rules are the same: two men enter one man leaves.  After that, there are no rules.  Okay, I will post the position, evaluate current talent, and make a suggestion on how high a need the draft should go.  Here we go:

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Normally I'd be putting this up on my html website, the section dedicated every year to the Bucs' NFL draft.  But this year I decided, Forget It.  I've got you wonderful people to annoy here on bucs nation and I figure I can get more readership this way.  >:-)

Well, that and I got a new computer and decided to not reinstall my old copy of Dreamweaver 4 onto it.  Just not in the mood to mess with it for the moment...

So.  How this works: I list the position (Offense, then Defense).  I then determine how the current talent is, and if there is a need for either talent or depth / development.  I also guess at which round the possible draft pick gets taken.  So, beginning with the QB:

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