”I’ve liked what I’ve seen out of Tampa Bay quarterback Josh Johnson in his first two NFL starts.
He’s shown a live arm, some running ability and some intangibles. He’s also shown signs of being a late-round draft pick who is still very early in his career development. In fact, I’ll go as far as to say the Bucs have found their backup quarterback of the future.
Yes, backup.
There have been no miracles since Johnson took over. The Bucs are still a bad team. They have no running game, receivers drop passes and the defense isn’t very good. Johnson’s been far from Tampa Bay’s biggest problem, but he’s not going to stay in the lineup much longer.
It’s just logical. The Bucs are 0-5 and there really haven’t been any signs of progress. Raheem Morris has some time because the Bucs don’t want to fire a coach they just hired. But 0-16 or 1-15 without any signs of hope is enough to get any coach fired.
Morris had a plan when he took this job and it’s got to start showing through just a little bit. The Bucs are a very young team and they’re going to get younger before too long. Morris started his regime by drafting quarterback Josh Freeman.
The Bucs want to bring the rookie along slowly, but that’s going to change. Johnson will keep starting for now, but the Bucs play New England in London on Oct. 25. They’ve got a bye week after that before hosting Green Bay on Nov. 8.
That seems like a logical time to start the Freeman era.”
Obviously, this dork is writing a blog for ESPN instead of being in a front office for a reason… but he’s made some valid points. I just don’t agree with him.
Josh Johnson has played admirably. He didn’t look anything like a 23 year-old starting in only his second game. He’s faced two of the heaviest blitzing teams in the league in his first two starts, and he’s shown the kind of poise and comfort in the pocket that a veteran would. He doesn’t play like Michael Vick (let’s not get into that big mess...), he looks for the pass first, and then the run. He’s a QB, not just an athlete playing the QB position.
The first thing that stands out to me is JJ’s accuracy. When he sets his feet and steps into the pass, he puts the ball right between the numbers. It’s pretty normal for him to want to throw off of his back foot because of the defensive pressure, but with more game-time experience he will get more comfortable with throwing into the pass - and usually - a defenders facemask.
Speaking of accuracy, the last I checked in today’s game, our receivers had 6 dropped passes. SIX DROPPED PASSES. Holy Santa Claus shit, that’s unacceptable. That’s almost taking away a touchdown per game, because many of those passes were for first downs. I can’t believe how bad our receivers were today. The only two guys who actually showed up were Kellen Winslow Jr. and the rookie Sammie Stroughter.
Michael Clayton: you flat out suck. You suck on such a massive scale that I can’t comprehend how you still have a job, let alone a $25M contract. Looking back, I would slap Mark Dominik (General Manager) right upside the head when he offered you that deal. Your job is to catch the ball, but it seems to always find the ground whenever it’s thrown your way. Your rookie season was fantastic, but you got a huge head after and you got really fat. You’re just another example of a great talent gone to waste by being lazy as shit. I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt, and put part of the blame on Jon Gruden for coaching the talent out of you (which he was pretty famous for doing), but no, you suck regardless of who’s coaching.
One thing that I’ve noticed being readily apparent is that the Bucs are really struggling without who I believe is the MVP of our team: Jeff Faine. That’s right; a center is our most valuable player. I’ve been watching football for quite some time, and I don’t think I have seen one player (outside of a QB) mean as much to a unit or team as Jeff Faine has. In our first game against the Cowboys, we had over 400 yards of total offense; 176 yards rushing between Cadillac and Derrick Ward. Since that game (he was injured in the second half), we haven’t broken 100 yards on the ground and our total offensive rankings have dropped to #26 in total yards.
Beer of the week:
Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA
http://mesohoppy.dogfish.com/files/120-minute-ipa.png
Dubbed “the strongest IPA in the world,” the Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA is an intimidating and complex brew. The “120 Minute” refers to the length of time in which the wort (leads to the fermenting of the yeast/sugar) is boiled during brewing. The hops are added continuously for 2 hours, leading to an extremely high International Bitter Unit (IBU) of 120. By comparison, a Bud/Miller/Coors Lite/Light is rated at only about 5-10 IBU. So this is one heavy son of a bitch. Did I mention that it has an ABV percentage of 18-21% (depending on the year it was brewed)? This is basically a cognac disguised in a 12 oz. beer bottle. And at $8.50 per bottle, it’s almost as expensive too.
The beer pours a dark amber orange with a good amount of head, especially considering the alcohol level. There’s a steady stream of bubbles, but the head dissipates pretty quickly and a thin foam layer is left at the top.
The smell of this beer gives an ominous foreboding of the potency within. It kicks you right in the nose, and your eyes will water if you take in too much. You can definitely tell that this beer is full of alcohol. If you spend a bit more time taking in the aroma, you can catch the generous amount of hops present (it’s amazing that you can barely smell the hops in a beer as strong as this; the alcohol is almost overpowering). Citrus notes are also present.
The taste is, to put it mildly, mind-blowing. At first your mouth is bombarded by the sweetness and the alcohol. If you let it warm in your mouth a bit, you notice the citrus and the generous amount of hops. This beer is so strong that it tastes more like liquor.
Mouthfeel: A beer that is this hopped-up would generally coat your mouth with the oils left from the hops. With this much alcohol, though, it masks the oils very well. However, this beer is thick. It is definitely the thickest beer I have ever drunk; it was a task to just swallow it.
Drinkability: This is NOT a sessionable beer. I repeat – You can not drink more than one bottle of this beer. I was drunk off my ass after a little more than half the 12 oz. bottle. Maybe I’m a lightweight (I’m a pretty big dude, maybe I’m just a wimp!) but this beer knocked me right off my ass. I started dancing around the kitchen and I’m now hungry as hell. So anyone looking for a light drink, steer clear of this one.
Overall, the Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA was one of the “Holy Grails” of my beer quest. I hold Sam Calagione (founder) and his company to a high standard, and they rarely leave me disappointed. Their beers are so complex, yet so drinkable, that I can’t get enough. I wouldn’t make the 120 a regular choice of mine (I can’t, because they’re only released about four times a year) and I can’t say it’s my favorite beer, but it was a fantastic experience and I appreciated all of the work that was put in to this tiny 12oz. bottle.
Cheers all!
I would disagree with you on one point: I don't think Josh Johnson has any hope of starting, long-term, for this team. So, I guess that's a pretty big point.
ReplyDeleteBut I agree that the Bucs should stick to the plan of bringing Freeman along slowly. Some quarterbacks come from major college programs with pro-style offenses NFL ready. We have seen a number of rookie successes lately that fit this mold: Stafford (Georgia), Sanchez (USC), and Ryan (BC). Flacco is a bit of an oddity, since Delaware isn't in the same league as those other schools). Given recent history, the Bucs might want to put Johnson out there.
But he is not ready--he has neither the professionalism or polish of those other QBs. Given him an entire year to learn how to be a pro: how to attend meetings, how to watch film, how to learn the playbook. Give him that foundation before you throw him on the field (with a rather bad offense).
And in the meantime, they really need to hire a real offensive coordinator.