Fabian Davis might be claimed if the Bucs try to put him on waivers.
By RICK STROUD
Published July 27, 2003
LAKE BUENA VISTA - Other than a defense that might assign a player to spy on a running quarterback, espionage is overrated in pro football. That's because there are no secrets in the NFL.
Scouting, videotape and Mel Kiper have put the sleuths and gumshoes out of business.
But the Bucs have a player they wish was a master of disguise.
Just between us, he is Fabian Davis.
A 5-foot-11, 180-pound undrafted free agent, he played running back, receiver and returned kickoffs and punts for Wake Forest.
And almost every day, he does something that gets noticed by coach Jon Gruden.
"He shows up on the practice field every day," Gruden said. "The one thing about this guy is he's a quick study. He knows how to play football, and that's a winning edge for him right now. He'll get a good look in the preseason."
Davis, 24, has outstanding speed, something lacking in the receiving corps. But finding a place for him on the roster might be difficult.
The Bucs would like to sneak him through waivers and re-sign him to the practice squad. But if he makes plays during preseason games, they won't have that luxury.
Fabulous Fabian. Shhh. That's just between us.
OPPOSITES ATTRACT: The only thing wrong with playing rookie Chris Simms at quarterback is the plays don't seem quite right.
Simms, the University of Texas star, is left-handed. That means Gruden must adapt his offense to move in the opposite direction on rollouts and other plays.
"It's a lot different," Gruden said. "It's really doubled the learning for everyone. We practice play-passes generally to the right because of the right-handed quarterbacks. Now you have to practice them to the left because of a left-handed quarterback.
"Specialty plays you set up, gimmicks, trickery, whatever it may be for a one-way performance with a left-handed quarterback. We've had to do double duty a little bit, and it hasn't been easy. We've had some breakdowns because of it."
HURTS SO GOOD: Knock on wood. Do that before reading this note. The Bucs are the first team I can remember to make it through the first five days of two-a-days without an injury causing a player to miss practice time.
No hamstring pulls, strained knees or sprained ankles. Nothing.
"I think you give that to the strength coach, the offseason conditioning and tweak it with some luck," general manager Rich McKay said. "Every year, I've seen the shape of the players get better; not just on our team. I think that's the entire league. Guys have figured out how to train in the offseason and so forth."
READY TO GO: Corey Ivy, the Bucs' special teams MVP last season with 23 stops, is winning the job at nickel back.
"He's a bulldog," Gruden said. "That's one tough guy. You could call him at his room at Celebration at 11:30 and tell him you're having live tackling drills in the lobby, and he'll be down there."
