Chip Carriers??
“If you ain’t pissed off for Greatness, then you’re okay with being mediocre”
The 2020 Buccaneers are likely to be one of the most favored, yet most pissed off team to take the field in entire NFL.
The roster is full of guys are taking out to prove themselves in so many different ways and so many doubters. This shouldn’t be anything new in the world of professional sports. But in Tampa’s case, it’s kind of unique to see the level of talent assembled and still have so many questions about the likelihood of success.
On the offensive side of the ball, I’ve looked at both HC Bruce Arians’ and OC Byron Leftwich’s motivations to prove themselves. But they’ve got some guys who are definitely on individual missions as well.
First off, there’s the rookie Ke’Shawn Vaughn. Being a rookie, there’s always something to prove going into the League. That’s just way it goes. However, being a rookie that was seen as an “overdraft” by many just adds a fuel to the fire. Admittedly, I’m one of the those that see him as an overdraft. And that’s not my saying he’s not a good running back. My opinion was all relative to my thoughts on team needs during the draft .
Vaughn has seen the naysayers and he’s taking it as straight disrespect. Apparently, he feels he’s seen it all before and he’s ready to prove doubters wrong again. It’s been reported that Vaughn is being looked at as a special running back that can play all three downs effectively and possibly unseat last year’s starter. He’s gonna have to wait a bit longer to get his train rolling as he’s been put on the Reserve/ Covid19 list by the NFL. This means he’s either tested positive for the virus or was in close contact to someone that has.
Unfortunately for Vaughn, once he does become available for training camp, he’s gonna be met by a hungry Ronald Jones who also will practicing and playing with a bit of a grudge. Ronald Jones, the most productive and explosive RB on the roster last season, isn’t out to just prove fans wrong. He’s out to prove his head coach and his GM wrong.
Both Jason Licht and Bruce Arians have complimented Jones in the past. But their actions have told a different story. Ronald Jones was either limited or benched on several occasions last season including the Week 13 matchup against the Jaguars. Jones missed a blitz pickup that resulted in a sack and he was sat down in favor of Peyton Barber who was let go in free agency. Jones was frequently taken off the field on 3rd downs for either Barber or Dare Ogunbowale. The latter was no better than Jones in pass protection, in my opinion. In April, Licht and Arians drafted the aforementioned Vaughn to be the pass protecting/pass catching threat that Jones seemingly isn’t in their eyes.
According to his trainer, Luke Neal, Jones has been working hard this off season to prove he can be an all around RB. Neal has video documentation of many of the drills they’ve been working on with Green Bay RB and former BYU standout Jamaal Williams. Expect to see Jones playing like his career depends on each rep this year.
At the TE position, we have the most embarrassing of riches. At least on paper, we do. There’s no fewer than 5 players that would vie for 1st or 2nd TE on pretty much every other roster in the League.
Of those players, O.J. Howard is one who’s out to prove the most this season. Much like Jones’ situation at RB, Howard, despite being the most physically talented of his group, had doubts cast about his abilities last season by the head coach. Howard was used in a way that limited his offensive production in 2019. He was often lined up to serve as an additional blocker next to the Right Tackle. This took him out of a lot of passing plays as a receiver.
Make no mistake about it, it’s his job to be good at whatever he’s asked to do. However, having one of the most explosive weapons on the field as a decoy and/or blocker too often would likely take quite a few players out of the game. He played 80% of the offensive snaps and was targeted 7% of the snaps. For reference, Mike Evans was in on 84% of the snaps and was targeted 15%. Howard appeared in just 1 more game than Evans did.
Even though he was the most productive of the TEs, Howard had been the subject of trade talks last season. By the end of the year, it was safe to say that Howard would need to come into this season with a fire lit under him. And that was before the Team traded a 4th Round Pick and gave up $10M for Gronkowski.
“We pay Larry (Fitzgerald) and those guys too much money to throw it to the tight ends,” Arians said. “They’re here to block.”
Now, the 4th year vet isn’t just playing for the opportunity to get a 5th year extension or a 2nd contract in Tampa. He’s fighting to become more than just an afterthought on the current roster of offensive #weapons. And this is just a year removed from being considered one of the Top 5 TEs in the NFL. He also has to face the fact that the head coach is now more than willing to change his alleged philosophy for a 1yr rental. That has to sting . Granted, Howard has been nothing short of professional and he knows he’s responsible for his play. Dating back to his collegiate days at Alabama, he’s been known as a quiet worker. He just goes out there and gets better. He may not outwardly show it on social media or in interviews, but he’s probably extremely motivated to prove his talent level and his worth to fans and the front office.
The player with the biggest chip on his his shoulder is the guy that has seen the most success.
6 Super Bowl Wins
3x MVP
3x All Pro
14x Pro Bowl
How can someone with that level of accomplishment possibly have something to prove? Well, it’s probably because somebody somewhere doubts him. And he takes that as both a personal challenge and disrespect. That’s the mark of greatness.
Many people are questioning his mobility, his arm strength, his accuracy, his choice of vitamins, his marketing tactics and his choice of relocation. All of these are sure to factor in his desire to prove himself right and his detractors wrong. A closer look at his slight decline in statistics last season may show that he wasn’t as far off as the raw numbers imply.
There’s a group of spectators and commentators that believe Brady is no more than a “system QB”. And there’s just a bit of history that may lend itself to that belief. The Patriots have had success with backup QBs in Brady’s absence. In 2008, Matt Cassel famously went 10-5 after Brady went down due a knee injury. Cassel got traded to the Chiefs the following season. And in the 9 seasons since that magical stint in New England, he went 26-40 as a starter.
While no other QB played nearly as long as Cassel did, a few did exhibit competence by staying on the roser. And that was good enough to entice teams to trade for them or sign them. This goes to show that the power of the New England system.
Tom Brady is out to prove that “system” narrative false. He’s out to show that he can be successful anywhere. And that would be more than enough for most .
But throw in the fact that he’s a 20 year veteran and at 41yrs old, he’s 4th oldest QB to be active in the game. He’s a long way from George Blanda’s 48, but it’s still something to marvel. They say Father Time is undefeated. Our QB is trying to put up a helluva fight in his last two rounds. And he’s got some weapons many other opponents didn’t have at their disposal. They’re carrying chips on their shoulders. And they’re pissed off for Greatness.
