Posted by  Patrick Dotson, Tampa,FL on 08/17  at  02:45 PM

WHY DOESNT EVERYBODY JUST SHUT THE HELL UP BOUT LAST YEAR,OR WHEN DUNGY WAS HERE AND ETC ETC….THE PAST IS THE PAST…THIS IS A NEW YEAR,NEW PLAYERS AND NEW COACHES…THE ORGANIZATION DID A GOOD JOB THIS OFF SEASON AND WE HAVE PLENTY OF DEPTH AT KEY POSITIONS….SO LETS JUST BE HAPPY THE SEASON IS HERE AND SUPPORT THE TEAM….AND THAN AT THE END OF SEASON IF WERE NOT IN THE PLAYOFFS EVERYBODY CAN B%^&*H THAN…..GO BUCS

Posted by  George L Hicks, Dallas, Texas on 08/16  at  03:23 PM

I THINK THAT EVERYONE SHOULD REALIZE THAT THE AVERAGE PLAYER THAT COMES INTO THE LEAGUE THERE AVG PLAYING IN THE LEAGUE IS LESS THAN 5 YEARS. I HAVE MADE THIS COMMENT BEFORE.  IF I WAS TAMPA BAY I WOULD DO THIS OPTION. REMEMBER THAT SIMMS WAS PICKED IN THE 3rd ROUND. GREAT EXPECTATIONS WAS AROUND SIMMS COMPARE HIM TO HIS DAD. i WOULD TALK TO SIMMS AND TELL HIM THAT WE ARE GOING TO PUT HIM ON IRL FOR 2007. aND HE WOULD COMPETE FOR A SPOT NEXT YEAR. tAMPA DOESN’T KNOW IF GARCIA GETS HURT, OR SOMEONE ELSE LEADS TAMPA BAY AT THE END OF THE SEASON. BUT I THINK THIS IS BEST THING TO DO IF HE CAN’T BE NO.2 QB RIGHT NOW.

Posted by  Skylar Zalamut, Tampa on 08/16  at  08:50 AM

Aaron, you’re obviously biased. You’re right about one thing though, Greise was 4-0 when Simms took over during the game against the Bears which he failed to win which actually makes his record 6-10 as a starter. He’s terrible…period. I don’t think Greise was great, but he was able to get this thing rolling in the right direction. Simms, turned it back around. Grad threw more 40+ yd passes in Bucs history in 11 games as a rookie. His numbers are the same as V Young last year, who won the Rookie of the Year award. What do you think about that? I realize that stats screw all of your hate up, but that’s the way it goes. Watch what a seasoned vet will do with basically the same line.

Posted by  aaron gerding,  on 08/16  at  06:54 AM

simms was able to make quick decisions,but              
as far as the o-line goes they sucked. the line is supposed to block the men in front of them AND keep their hands out of the passing lanes. did they do that? NO. the o-line is the reason simms has no spleen. so if you want to blame someone blame gruden or the o-line. ask caddy the real reason last year blew for him…there was no holes to run through! dont blame simms for last years troubles, put the blame where it deserves to be

Posted by  aaron,  on 08/16  at  06:52 AM

then you say he ruined our offense last year by rupturing his spleen. i dont think he did that on purpose. he didnt tell gruden to put grad in there. he was 3rd on the depth chart, behind rattay. simms didnt ruin last year, gruden did. he played grad instead of rattay. we saw rattay play a couple games at the end of the year and he looked nearly perfect compaired to what grad did. how is that simms fault?

Posted by  aaron,  on 08/16  at  06:50 AM

hey skylar, since when has greise been God. he was like .500 as a starter, 27td’s-19int & 88.5 passer rating. thats respectable, but come on. we were 4-1, not 5-0 that year chris came in. how did he ruin that year?

Posted by  Skylar Zalamut, Tampa on 08/15  at  10:40 PM

Simms is 6-9 as starter with dismal QB rating. We were 5-0 heading into another stellar year when he ruined our offense when we had #1 defense. Did it again last year to start and then we had a rookie take over. How come Greise didn’t have a problem making plays with the “terrible” offensive line. QB’s are supposed to make quick decisions in order to get the D to back off. No-one has done that since Greise. Hopefully the new stable of QB’s will be able to. Simms will be cut or practice squad soon.

Posted by  Roscoe Pecoe Train, Orlando on 08/15  at  09:43 PM

Ok; this is a nine year season tix holder. So let’s do a little history lesson. The Bucs won two playoff games with Dungy (the Lions in 97 and Skins in 99). Not like we were a dynasty there. I loved Dungy. The point some of us are making is true Bucs fans shouldn’t run Gruden out of town like they did Dungy. Gruden has won a couple of division titles and a SB. AT WORST THE SECOND BEST COACH IN FRANCHISE HISTORY. Let’s not act like this is Ray Perkins. Of course, he does need to finish 500 or better this year. But I’m willing to give him a chance to do it. In my mind, inheriting Manning/Harrison/Wayne is a ready made team.

Posted by  Chris Kostoff, Riverview, FL on 08/15  at  09:32 PM

I’m just as tired as everyone else in hearing Gruden and Simms. Simms is a good kid, but good doesn’t always cut it. Maybe there is more to Chris and his injury than we know about. Unless you hear it from someone in the locker room then it’s all just talk.

And yes, there have been some mess ups since Gruden and Allen have gotten together here, but hey we are out of Cap Hell and with open money they can go out and get the pieces that they need to build for the future.

My only issue with Gruden isn’t how he is treating Simms, it’s how some of the Vets were treated towards their last days here. Lynch and Sapp deserved to be treated better than what they got.

Posted by  Kurt Thoreson, Terra Ceia, FL on 08/15  at  07:35 PM

That last comment is bologna.  How can you criticize people by using a scenario that has not even happened and is likely improbable.  Do you know how bad Gruden’s reputation has become SINCE winning the super bowl.  He has overseen three, count em, three rebuildings in 5 years.  He decided to bring in Tim Brown, Charlie Garner, Derrick Deese, Todd Stinchcomb, and Jeff Garcia.  Gruden has constantly stated after each loss, “I take responsibility for the outcome.”  Of course he will, he knew nothing would happen.  But now its time to pay the piper.  We were accustomed to winning and playoffs with Dungy.  Now we’re thankful to score a touchdown and win at least once a month.  Quite a plummet Gruden has orchestrated

Posted by  jay blake, TAMPA on 08/15  at  05:25 PM

OK SO FIRE GRUDEN AND HE WILL BE COACHING IN NY NEXT YEAR WITH ELI MANNING AND WINING HIS SECOND SUPER BOWL!ALL OF YOU GUYS ARE SMALL MINDED WHEN GRUDEN TOOK OVER WE WERE IN CAP HELL NOW WERE NOT. THE TEAM IS GETTING BETTER,YOUNGER AND WE NOW HAVE AN O LINE THAT CAN RANK WITH ANY OFFENSE IN THE NFL.

Posted by  Jarrd Lancaster, Georgia on 08/15  at  05:14 PM

The problem is not nor was it Chris Simms. The problem was and still maybe that our offensive line couldn’t block period.Simms got his passes batted at the line because all the D had to do was take two steps back and jump..How hard is it to read where the pass is going and jump? That’s the play calling, not the QB . All of you loved him when he came in and led us to 11-5. The guy ruptured a spleen and played through it. It’s Ironic that now Gruden goes to the Shotgun to prevent batted balls when we have a scrambling QB in Garcia. We will never have a franchise QB because Coach doesn’t have the patience.

Posted by  Kyle Valdyke,  on 08/15  at  04:46 PM

It is fair to compare Dungy to Gruden!  Dungy won a bunch of playoff games here - Gruden played in two AFC championship games coaching the Raiders and nearly beat the Pats to go all the way.

By the way, Wyche is the coach who drafted Warren Sapp, John Lynch, and Derrick Brooks.

Posted by  earl scott, b'ville on 08/15  at  04:28 PM

whether simms is part of this team is not our biggest concern. our biggest concern should be that gruden has lost the locker room, and he has no one to blame but himself. whether we had drafts picks or not, how you treat people will be a big factor on how the team as a whole plays for you. face it, gruden knows as much about people skills as i do about bionuclear medicine.

Posted by  Mike Lewis, Plant City on 08/15  at  03:36 PM

Time waits for no-one…it’s not going
to wait for Gruden, or Chris.

Posted by  Chelle P., Largo on 08/15  at  03:09 PM

I say any coach that consistently fires the veterens in favor of one year contracts and flash in the pan players is an idiot. And the Colts were not a ready made team and have been consistent since dungy took over. The Bucs won the super bowl and went back to being the same ol same ol. Fire Gruden and the GM or we are gonna have another Detroit on our hands! Wait the Glazers need money way more then the Fords so maybe not! Anyhow enjoy football season.

Posted by  James D. Horne, Clarksville, TN ... but always from Tampa on 08/15  at  02:59 PM

Don’t blame the media on this one. Wondering what’s going to happen to the guy that has been the starter is a fair question.

Maybe, there is something more wrong with Simms than we know about.

Maybe, the Bucs are going to cut him and cut their losses.

But please don’t compare Tony Dungy’s previous time here with Jon Gruden’s now.

Tony built the Bucs into something we never had - winners — and consistent winners at that.

Since our Super Bowl win with Gruden, we’re back to never knowing how good the Bucs will really be.

Posted by  Bobby Martin, Tampa Bay on 08/15  at  01:13 PM

I dont understand Tampa Fans or the Media.  Nobody wanted Chris Simms on the roster when we drafted him because he couldn’t “win the big game” in college.  Now that he is obviously overpaid and underperforming due to injury, everybody wants to know when he will play.  And of course it is all Grudens fault.  If and when the guy performs he will play, Gruden needs playmakers to add depth at all positions.

Posted by  wade krett, clermont on 08/15  at  01:07 PM

So now Greg Donoghue wants to get rid of Gruden. Probably wanted Dungy out a few years ago too. Gruden and Dungy both won Superbowls with teams that were ready made. One needed a little O (Dungy’s Buc team) and the other a little D (Mora’s Indy team). Only difference is the Bucs were getting old and salary cap constrained where Indy was not. Some of Gruden’s free agency moves (i.e. Garner etc.) were disasters but the Bucs were in decline the second after the Super Bowl win. Every team gets old and loses players. We are retooling. Ask yourself this: How good will Indy be when Peyton retires? Probably not very good. Don’t act like the Bucs’ didn’t have issues when Gruden took over. He’s a good coach.

Posted by  Garret Walker, Lake Mary, FL on 08/15  at  01:03 PM

Can’t blame Gruden on this one.  I’m tired of reading and hearing about Simms myself.  Doesn’t anyone remember 8 out of every 10 of his passes just being batted down at the line of scrimmage and the other 2 being overthrown by a mile??  He was horrific before the spleen rupturing hit and now we have a legitimate starter. AMEN!!

Posted by  Kyle Valdyke,  on 08/15  at  01:01 PM

Aaaw Poor Chris Simms. He is a nice guy, but being a nice guy doesn’t win games.  I think everybody is working their butts off to make this team. 

It has taken awhile to let go, and then rebuild from the Super Bowl years.  Tony Dungy was great, but remember all the great QBs from then- Trent Dilfer (already with team) and Shaun King (a Hall of Famer).  We never had a good offense- which we might have now.  The good old days had their problems too!

Posted by  Greg Donoghue, Bradenton on 08/15  at  12:28 PM

When is Tony Dungy’s contract up in Indy? Bring him back to Tampa! Oh yes, and get a new GM too.

Posted by  Thomas Brosinski, Tampa on 08/15  at  11:57 AM

Just read the “Gruden Tired Of Simms Questions”. It always seems reporters are looking for the next big scoop. Why fustrate the coach or players with dumb questions. If it happens they will hear it with everyone else.

Tommy B

Posted by  Nick Kosmitis, Oviedo, FL on 08/15  at  11:42 AM

blah blahh chris blah blah ....