Angelo Crowell Injured: Tampa Bay Bucs Take A Hit On Defense — Again

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ defense is going to be missing an important piece.

No, I’m not rehashing a story about Tanard Jackson or Aqib Talib. This time the Buc defender will be out because of something on the field.

Angelo Crowell will miss the 2009 season with a torn biceps muscle. He injured the arm on Saturday night in the Bucs’ 24-23 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In my opinion, this is the biggest development of this year’s training camp.

Yes, bigger than the indecisions at the quarterback position, positive urine tests or late night fight clubs in the back of a taxi.

The loss of the talented linebacker will leave a huge hole in the Bucs defense.

Admittedly, when the Bucs signed the former Buffalo Bill linebacker this offseason, they were banking on potential that may or may not have panned out.

However, Crowell provided results on the field in a few years in Buffalo. In his last season with the Bills, Crowell lead the team with 126 tackles, and he tallied two sacks, an interception and a forced fumble.

That year was 2007. Crowell missed last season with a knee injury. He also battled injuries in the 2006 season that included a torn triceps muscle that required surgery.

Had he been healthy, I think Crowell would have lead the Bucs in tackles this season. He has great athletic ability and football acumen.

As it is, Crowell will be out of football for two years, 29 years old next season and probably tagged with an “injury-prone” label. That is a tough assignment for a comeback.

This defense will be without a starting safety for four games, a starting linebacker for the year and, perhaps, a starting cornerback for a game or two.

Little-utilized Quincy Black will now move into the starting role at the strong linebacker position.

For a defense that faltered down the stretch last year, the losses in the offseason and now in training camp do not bode well at all.

Tampa faithful must hope that the switch in defensive systems can make up for a loss of talent and decline in productivity.

Stat Of The Weak: Tampa Bay QB Byron Leftwich’s Completion Percentage

Writer’s note: My column “Stat of the Weak” will be a weekly feature here at B/R during the season (unless it bombs).

The idea here is to take a look at one statistic from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ game of the week or the season at large. Statistics can certainly lie about performance, and this is where I want to show how that happens.

It’s a preseason game. It is the first preseason game. Stats are, admittedly, meaningless in these games.

But just as the players are warming up for the season, I, too, am warming up.

(That’s why this article is a bit late. But, hey, I got it out before the second game, right? That’s something?)

This week’s Stat of the Weak is Bucs’ quarterback Byron Leftwich’s completion percentage.

If a fan were to look at Leftwich’s 43 percent completion percentage from last week’s game on it’s own, he or she might assume that Leftwich is trailing in the race to win the starting quarterback role.

Last season the lowest completion percentage in the league among qualified passers belonged to Cleveland’s Derek Anderson. He completed 50.2 percent of his passes.

Last season’s leaders were Chad Pennington, Kurt Warner, and Peyton Manning—all above 66 percent.

Leftwich completed 43 percent of his passes.

The league’s rules say that to be a qualified passer the quarterback must average 14 pass attempts per game. Leftwich threw 14 attempts.

So Leftwich threw the lowest completion percentage on the Bucs’ roster in the game; it’s not what he did in those eight incompletions that is helping Leftwich’s close in on being named Tampa’s starter. It’s what he did in his six completions.

Leftwich averaged just more than 10 yards per completion and led a touchdown-scoring drive.

Luke McCown, the only other quarterback on the roster with an honest chance of starting on opening day, completed 50 percent of his passes for 19 yards—an average of just less than five yards per completion.

Leftwich also has been praised by this coaching staff—and St. Petersburg Times writer Rick Stroud—for his work in red zone drills in practice.

Experience and production are what you expect from a NFL starting quarterback, and that is what Leftwich brings to Raymond James.

Completion percentage can be an important stat, but it, like all stats, can lie about performance.

So what do you think? How important is completion percentage for a quarterback and an offense?

I promise the quality of this column will pick up when the stats actually count, I think!

Aqib Talib Arrested: Tampa Bay Buccaneers Take Another Hit on Defense

Tampa Bay’s starting cornerback Aqib Talib has been arrested on suspicion of simple battery and resisting arrest without violence.

Allegedly, Talib attacked a cab driver Wednesday night in St. Petersburg, FL. When state troopers arrived, Talib refused to get out of the taxi. It has been reported that Talib was drunk at the time.

This is a huge setback to the Buccaneers’ defense. After the four game suspension of safety Tanard Jackson earlier this week, Tampa is now missing two starters from a secondary that needs physical players like Jackson and Talib in the lineup.

While it has not come down yet, I assure you that Talib will be suspended by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell for this most recent transgression.

For those that don’t remember, this isn’t Talib’s first time on the league’s radar. Last year at the rookie symposium, Talib got in a fight during a meeting.

With the change in Tampa from Monte Kiffin’s Tampa-2 defense to Jim Bates’ press coverage, the Bucs were relying on bigger, more physical players like Talib and Jackson in the secondary.

Talib was supposed to start all year and continue his development as a corner in the NFL. Last year, Talib had 23 tackles and four interceptions. His best games came in the first half of the year, and he needed to develop consistency. But the raw talent was there.

Ronde Barber is still the leader of this defense and the No. 1 corner on the team, but changes in defensive and drafting strategy have shown that the Bucs are moving away from their Super Bowl era.

Talib was an off-the-field question mark even before he was drafted. While at Kansas, it was reported that Talib tested positive for marijuana.There were also some questions about his character after the combine.

But Talib wasn’t the first questionable character that the Bucs drafted. In 1995, Tampa took Warren Sapp in the first round despite questions about his use of marijuana. Sapp fell down some draft boards.

That worked out all right for the Bucs, didn’t it?

Whatever the issue, the Bucs must hope that Talib will take his time off and learn from this. Especially this year, Tampa needs Talib on the field developing, not at home watching.

Tell me what you think. How much will the Bucs’ defense miss Talib should he be suspended? Are you worried about the character of this team? Is character more important or scrutinized if the team is losing?

‘Twas the Night Before Tampa Bay Buccaneers Training Camp

On this the eve of training camp reporting day for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, I have three fantastic pieces of news for Bucs fans.

First, as we speak, players are moving about this country in order to report to NFL training camps on Friday. The first practices are Saturday.

I hope you have your tickets to this weekend’s practices. If not, you are out of luck as the free tickets have all been distributed for all sessions until Tuesday. That is, of course, except for the night practice on Saturday at Raymond James.

That’s right, the Bucs are offering a no-ticket-required open practice “under the lights.” More importantly, they are giving the fans an opportunity to get in shape for the season as well. The parking lots are opening early, and you may tailgate before the practice.

There is clearly some buzz among the fans to see some football this weekend. Buzz to see the beginning of the quarterback battle; buzz to see Kellen Winslow in a pewter helmet; and buzz to witness the first Bucs defense to take the field in 13 years that won’t line up in the Tampa 2.

That unfortunately, may be the only buzz that the Bucs are receiving early this season. The prognosticators and NFL analysts are not predicting a happy year at One Buc Place.

I, for one, hope for a quiet training camp this summer. There are too many untied shoelaces in Bucs camp for the media to be on this dance floor.

A rookie head coach, a quarterback battle, a new defense and a historically volatile tight end could make this summer even hotter by the Bay. This is a topic that I will touch on this weekend in my next column, as the practices move forward.

But on to the second piece of great news. According to the Stephen Holder of the St. Petersburg Times, the Bucs and first-round pick Josh Freeman are close on a contract. Holder says he expects Freeman to be signed and report on time.

It is great to have all rookies in camp. As previously stated, this team cannot afford distractions this summer.

While I will not advocate Josh Freeman getting anywhere near the starting quarterback role this season, he does need to be in camp learning the system.

The best situation for the Bucs and the rookie is to let him go through this year on the third unit, try to get the most out of the two veterans and then compete in earnest next summer.

Since camp hasn’t actually started yet, there will be plenty of time to discuss Freeman’s progress as we approach exhibition games and the season opener.

Thirdly, and perhaps the best thing I have heard all week: Get your creamsicle gear out of the closet and have it dry-cleaned. Scrape off that old barbecue crust and prepare for November 8.

The team has announced that Tampa’s squad will be wearing their 1976 throwback jerseys against Green Bay after the Bucs get back from London and rest up during the bye.

My biggest question is this: Why do they have to announce them as the ’76 jerseys?

They wore these fantastic pieces of history until 1997, and yet they want to bring up the expansion year? Is the front office afraid that one 0-16 Lions team will make NFL fans forget the 33-year love affair with McKay’s 0-14 swashbucklers?

Anyway, I am very excited to see those uni’s on the field this year.

Be safe at the practices this weekend. We’ll talk soon.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ New Coordinator Brings Change after 12 Seasons

Derrick Brooks is no longer in Tampa; neither is Jon Gruden or Jeff Garcia. Of all the changes to the Buccaneers’ personnel and staff this offseason, however, none will have as much impact as the switch at defensive coordinator.

Monte Kiffin is gone, following his son to the University of Tennessee, and he took his “Tampa 2” defense with him.

The “Tampa 2”, which began with the Bucs hiring Tony Dungy in 1996, has been a tweaked version of the basic cover two defense since Kiffin was brought in as defensive coordinator in 1998.

The “Tampa 2” was an aggressive cover two defense that relied on undersized, speedy linebackers that created pressure and covered the middle.

Undersized defensive backs with an explosive first step covered specific zones down field; specifically, the defense got its name from the two safeties that each covered half of the deepest part of the field.

The opportunistic and talented backs like Ronde Barber were counted on to cover their zone and step in and break up or intercept passes.

Kiffin and the “Tampa 2” relied on strong, rushing defensive tackles, such as Warren Sapp, to create pressure in the backfield up the middle, while the fast linebackers, like Derrick Brooks and Shelton Quarles, created pressure and containment on the outside edges.

This system produced seven top-five defenses since 1998 and, most importantly, one Vince Lombardi Trophy.

Now, Jim Bates has taken over for the departed Kiffin, and he brings a new defensive style with him that relies on speed and pressure to create turnovers and stop offenses.

While it may sound very similar, the differences are in the details.

Bates’ system relies heavily on larger, but exceptionally fast cornerbacks and safeties that will play bump-and-run coverage.

Quarterback pressure in Bates’ system comes from the defensive ends on the outside and some blitzing linebackers up the middle.

Bates’ resumé includes some highly rated defenses, especially passing defenses, during his stints in Miami, Green Bay, and Denver.

Bates is a fiery coach that demands perfection and has led some great NFL talent to Pro Bowl seasons. He’s coached Patrick Surtain, Jason Taylor, Zach Thomas, Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila, Champ Bailey, and John Lynch.

With the change in defensive philosophy will come a change in personnel.

The Bucs have already seen this first hand with the departure of long time fan favorite Derrick Brooks, as well as starters Philip Buchanon and Cato June.

These losses can be attributed to declining production and salary cap consideration, however, the switch to a bump-and-run coverage might hasten the departure of another fan favorite, Ronde Barber, as soon as next season.

However, for the 2009 season, barring any pick-ups after the June 1 cuts, the defensive roster will look very similar, save for the two new outside linebackers.

One of those outside linebackers will certainly be Angelo Crowell, who tallied 126 tackles in Buffalo in 2007 before missing the ’08 season because of injury.

Crowell is a fast, aggressive linebacker who will fill in nicely in Brooks’ spot in the lineup, even if not the fans’ hearts and minds.

In the secondary, 2008 first-round draft pick Aqib Talib will likely flourish in the new bump-and-run defense; while at Kansas Talib was a feared “shut-down” corner.

He has a large frame and incredible anticipation of the ball. In his first year, Talib led all rookies with four interceptions on the season.

However, Talib will have to grow emotionally before the Bucs can rely on him week-to-week to lead the secondary.

Recently, Talib was involved in a fight at practice with tackle Donald Penn, in which Talib swung his helmet as a weapon, striking fellow corner Torrie Cox.

Cox needed stitches to close his facial wounds.

This is not the first time that Talib was involved in an off-the-field incident. He was first reprimanded for a fight with the Denver Broncos’ running back Cory Boyd at a rookie orientation event last year.

While aggression and fire can be positive on the playing field, they can also lead to pass interference calls that hurt the team if not controlled.

The Bucs must get Talib under control or risk him washing out, like another Bates corner, 2005 Packers’ first rounder Ahmad Carroll.

Off the field incidences and an abundance of pass interference calls have severely limited his once-promising career.

Luckily for both Talib and the Bucs, Barber can prove to be a positive influence on Talib if he desires.

The last member of the Bucs’ defense that should see changes to his role is defensive end Gaines Adams.

As previously stated, Bates’ system will rely heavily on pressure coming from the end position; think about the sack totals of Taylor, Gbaja-Biamila, and Adewale Ogunleye.

This is the type of presence that the Bucs defense needs from Adams. The former first round pick has totaled a respectable six sacks in each of his first two seasons, but his performances always left the fans and coaching staff expecting more.

With a new, more aggressive role in the defense, expect Adams to as much as double his previous season’s total.

Bates’ previous stops in the NFL have been very successful, producing some of the best defenses in the league. The Bucs should not expect any drop off from the defensive side of the ball with the departure of Kiffin.

With a clock-eating running game and this aggressive defense, expect this year’s Bucs to exceed some of the experts’ low expectations.

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