NFC South Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Finished 2004 season 5-11, last place in the NFC South
Key returning starters:
Brian Griese – QB
Michael Clayton – WR
Simeon Rice – DE
Derrick Brooks – LB
Ronde Barber - CB
The Bucs are going to face another tough season – strapped tight by the NFL’s spending cap, the Bucs lost Ian Gold which gave the Bucs one of the best LB corps in the league. Their offense has shown great potential, especially with 2nd year pro Clayton who had an absolutely fabulous rookie campaign. Can their draft choice of Carnell “Cadillac” Williams step in and beat Pittman for the starting role to give that offense some balance?
2004 Stats:
Ranked 22nd overall in offense, #10 ranked in NFC
Ranked 5th overall in defense, #2 ranked in NFC
Your thoughts on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers this upcoming 2005 season...strengths/weaknesses and your prediction on where they will finish in the division.
posted by Steve at 7:36 AM
3 Comments:
I actually think this could be a surprise team in the NFC this season. If their offense can have some balance, it will compliment that stellar defense.
Brian Griese, no matter how badly people talk about him, is actually a great fit for this offense. Griese, a complete system QB, is put into an offense that requires short accurate passes and that is what Griese brings to the table. This team won't beat you deep (though Clayton is a deep threat) because Griese lacks the arm strength and accuracy for the deep ball. But now with Cadillac in the backfield, this could provide much needed depth to to this offense.
Griese only started 11 games last season, still had 20 TD and 2600+ yards passing. In fact, he had atleast 1 TD toss in every game he started in last season with a QB rating of 97.5% - seriously, Griese is a great fit into this offense.
The question is will this team maintain their balance throughout the entire season? My prediction is no - they will miss the playoffs again with a record of 7-9, but don't be surprised to see this team make me eat my own prediction and make the playoffs as a viable contender.
Another one of the many NFC mediocre's, unlike the AFC who is loaded with potential Superbowl contenders, the NFC is loaded with 7-9 and 8-8 clubs. Tampa can join the barely .500 club with Saints, Seahawks, Rams, Cards, G-Men, Skins, Detroit and Green Bay.
A team like Jacksonville who may mis the playoffs in the AFC would be a favorite in most divisions in the NFC.
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