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ROGER MILLSBucs CB who struggled vs. Colts is tardy to meeting, apparently won't start.
TAMPA - Given his overall body of work during the first four games of the season, the Bucs were hesitant to bench left cornerback Tim Wansley after his struggles in the second half of Monday night's loss to the Colts.
But add to the mix his late arrival for a team meeting, and the decision became a lot easier.
Thursday the Bucs moved right cornerback Ronde Barber to the left side for a series of reps in practice and worked safety Dwight Smith at both corner positions, strongly indicating that Wansley will be benched.
The Bucs would not comment on Wansley's late arrival or on a final decision on who will start.
The coaching staff considered moving Barber to the left side during the second half of the Colts game when Wansley was struggling with All-Pro receiver Marvin Harrison. But Barber had not taken any reps on that side leading up to that game.
Now he has.
"Anything is possible," Barber said after practice. "We have contingency plans. We have to ... let's put it this way, we have a contingency plan that takes all considerations and some of them might involve me. I have taken a few snaps there."
The Bucs said no final decision has been made on which two of the three corners, Wansley, Barber or Smith, will start. But the Bucs have put in place the option to play Barber in Wansley's place, move safety Dwight Smith, a former corner, to Barber's spot and promote second-year free safety Jermaine Phillips to starter.
Wansley could not be reached for comment.
"When you have an opportunity to work (at that spot in practice), it definitely creates the potential for that other option," defensive backs coach Mike Tomlin said. "But I'm not going to answer that directly, right now."
Barber said switching sides has its challenges.
"It's a little different for me because there are different movements," Barber said. "In theory, the techniques are the same except you're moving from the left brain to the right brain. But, in practice it's a little harder.
"The thing about most offenses in the NFL is that they are right-handed offenses and you put the guy you can rely on the right side for that reason. We have Brian (Kelly) over there because I move around a lot at the other position."
Tomlin said the switch, should it be made, will be a challenge.
"There's a difference," Tomlin said. "Adjustments are always possible because you want to put yourself in a position to win. But sometimes you make adjustments to put guys in a position to be their best selves."
Wansley, a second-year player and a seventh-round pick out of Georgia, was elevated into primary duty Monday after Kelly, the starting cornerback, suffered a left pectoral sprain on the third play of the Bucs' first defensive series.
Wansley held his own against Harrison for the first half, holding the NFL's top receiver to four catches for 19 yards. But Harrison exploded in the second half, catching seven passes for 157 yards and two touchdowns and was a key figure in the Colts' 28-point fourth-quarter rally.
"What people probably didn't realize is how big one player in our secondary is," Barber said. "We saw that Monday night. It's not that easy to make the transition. The guy's a good player, hell of an athlete and has potential. But it's a whole different ballgame. If that play comes to fruition, so be it."
Restricted by injury and inexperience, the decision on what to do at corner is a delicate one for the Bucs this week. The Bucs travel to Washington Sunday and anticipate that Redskins coach Steve Spurrier's penchant for throwing the ball deep might be enhanced.
Bucs coach Jon Gruden said any coach would notice a weakness.
"We're all fishermen," Gruden said. "If there's fish in that hole, we're all going to throw our hooks in there, man. We're going to go fishing in that hole. We're going to find out where that boat went and we're going to go right there. And, if they are out, then we'll find another hole. That's the way it is.
"You're going to have to prove that you can stop those routes, stop those plays in those situations and until you do, you're going to continue to see them."
Members of the Bucs secondary have used this week's practice to help erase the sting of their performance against the Colts. And there is no respite. Redskins quarterback Patrick Ramsey leads the NFL in passing yards (1,307), with six touchdowns and four interceptions. And receiver Laveranues Coles (33 catches for 513 yards and one touchdown) has emerged as one of the game's most feared.
Safety John Lynch said the Bucs have something to prove.
"I think it's important that first of all we address what happened in the film room and be on top of our technique," Lynch said. "But, we have to re-establish that we're a dominant defense. We have to put that fear back in (offenses). That fear has been taken away. They are going to look at the film and say, "There are chinks in this armor!' It's our job to go re-establish that. We don't want to be average. We want to be the best. And we have to re-establish that."
Barber said he expects the Redskins to go after the secondary but said nothing is automatic.
"They still have to do it," Barber said. "It's still a mechanism for them. They still have to drop back and throw the ball. They still have to protect. We have to be out of position. They have to go through the same things that we have. ... So, the reality is they have to be licking their chops a little bit. We looked pretty susceptible out there, without Brian Kelly out there."