Tampa, Florida					Monday, September 06, 2010

Nothing Funny, Nothing Cute About a 5-11 Season—Nothing
Sunday, January 2, 2005
TAMPA—There was absolutely nothing amusing, nothing satisfying, nothing promising, nothing rewarding, nothing encouraging for the Buccaneers about that 12-7 loss at Arizona Sunday in the finale of the two awful NFL teams that started the NFL closer with equally rancid 5-10 records, and in which the Cardinals could present only a good-enough defense and four (of five) field goals by Neil Rackers. The Cardinals get an A for their somehow win before a tiny crowd and finish 6-10 to the Bucs’s 5-11. Not sure which is better because the Buckos get a higher college draft spot and clearly need all the help they can get. Oh, in this last one of a near-lost season, Buc rookie quarterback son-of-Phil, Chris Sims, was decent, will be fine in the long run. He probably deserved better Sunday at Phoenix, but did fumble, did throw interceptions—one key, late that stopped a comeback movement. Now, the Bucs have two quarterbacks in young Sims and slightly older son of Bob, Brian Griese, who was injured and that gave Sims his full, final game effort. He learned plenty for he was sacked repeatedly by the strong Arizona defense rushing over the inept Buc offensive front. That group had a terrible game and may well be the off-season Tampa priority. Now, in this final game when the Bucs managed only one field goal, once more the Tampa team was awful mentally, making repeated mistakes. How about twelve men on the field in the 20th game of the season? How about taunting by one time Super Bowl MVP Dexter Jackson? Silly. How about two illegal procedure penalties in the first four plays of the game, by veteran Mike Stinchcomb? How about running back Michael Pittman, who arrived at Tampa under a cloud, fumbling late in the game, again. The television commentator working the game noted Pittman led the league in fumbles by running backs, with six. Guess, if hired, a tattoo artist would ink that onto the muscles of the running back not likely to be a Buc next year, many think. Incredibly, after this long, daunting, wretched season, the Buc effort seemed lackluster and unimaginative against a truly bad team that except for a couple of defensive players is not so talented as Tampa. No one, no one, could have, would have predicted	this Buc team would finish 5-11. Halfway through the season, after a rotten start, Tampa seemed at the very least on its way to a playoff spot. Then came the fourth quarter meltdowns, the inability to hold a fourth quarter lead, then to catch up after relenting it. The offensive line, running back, and frankly, linebacking that looks good on paper, was disappointing. This team may never have looked like a Super Bowl team—not did it at the start when it was—but it did not look like the inept team it became, until the last four games of the season. Lately there has been some grumbling about the head coach, Jon Gruden, and his players. Yet, one so said that first, defensive lineman Simeon Rice, has not played with all-pro style since he made that observation, after his best game of the year. Gruden has been tough from the start, inside the locker room and outside of it, on the sidelines, with friends. That is his style, rough talking, tough talking, aggressive, but to me, always with a tongue in cheek. I don’t think he’s tough. I think he’s honest. Now, I do not know if he is a good—a great—coach, and would not judge that. But, the owners will. Remember, this sellout circumstance at Raymond James Stadium was built on comfort and winning. The comfort remains. Not much fun out there at The Stadium these Buc days. Needs badly to improve. We know the Coach will do what he thinks it will take. Got a chance now. Got lots of time—not being in the playoffs now, and having all his draft picks and a considerate owning family in the Malcolm Glazer Family—or was, prior the Black Sunday in Phoenix. There was not much right about the Buckos at Phoenix . Oh, the rookie QB was OK, and will be just fine, but, well, it is over and the Bucs of 2004 are 5-11 and there is nothing funny, nor fun, nor profitable about that. Playoffs mean more games, more return on investment, for us all, the owners, the season ticket holders, a government that has been so helpful and favorable these years. Hey, when the Bucs were 0-13, a season ticket-holder fan, Thom Stork, got the campaign going—Go For O. It was fun and it ended up O, 0-14. That was fun. That was O.K. Five and Eleven is no fun. It’s sorry. ##
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