With a chance to finish at .500, Gruden says Bucs will keep regular lineup.
By RICK STROUD
Published December 22, 2003
TAMPA - Their playoff hopes may be history, but the Bucs aren't ready to take a closer look at the future.
So don't expect to see Chris Simms at quarterback, or many other rookies for that matter, when the world champions finish the regular season Sunday at Tennessee.
A victory over the Titans cannot bring the Bucs (7-8) a winning record. But coach Jon Gruden is concerned about avoiding the first losing one in Tampa Bay in seven seasons.
"Nobody wants to have a losing record," Gruden said. "That's all we can play for right now is an opportunity to avoid a losing record and show that we can compete with anybody in football.
"Obviously, we like the stakes, we'd like more chips on the table. You don't like to go play blackjack and play a dollar hand. You like to go in there and sit at the big table with the big boys and play for the big money. But unfortunately, we are where we are. Pride is about all we have to play for in this game. I expect that to be enough."
Brad Johnson, who was intercepted four times Saturday to bring his total to a career-high 18 this season, will start against the Titans. Gruden said Simms, who has been the inactive third quarterback in all 15 games, is not prepared to play.
"In fairness to Chris, he hasn't taken enough snaps in the last four or five months to really go out there against the Tennessee Titans and have an opportunity to kick his career off in a regular-season format," Gruden said. "Again, we're going to finish this game with the people we feel give us a chance to win, and right now Chris Simms is not included in that, although we think he is going to be a fine football player."
Gruden said, however, he will be keeping a close eye on the game to determine which players finish the season strong and can help the Bucs improve in 2004.
With no general manager, Gruden is the de facto head of player personnel and will have the biggest input on rebuilding the Bucs.
"That's always a big part of decision-making for the offseason, is how well a player performs during the regular season, particularly late in the year," Gruden said. "And that's just the way this business is. Coaches, players, general managers, we're all evaluated by our performance, and that will be no different here than anywhere else.
"I don't need to remind them of that. I believe they understand that we're playing for pride. There's a lot of other teams in similar straits that we're in. You've got to suck it up. You've got to go out there, and you've got to perform because you're a professional at the highest level that you can. And that's our intent."
That was the sentiment echoed in the locker room after Saturday's 30-28 loss to the Falcons.
"You come to finish," receiver Keenan McCardell said. "You come to be 8-8. You don't want a losing season."
Though he didn't specify, Gruden said he would like to evaluate some young players against Tennessee on Sunday.
"We're looking at everybody that we feel is ready to play," Gruden said. "We'd like to look at some of the (injured) starters, quite honestly, that we had slated at some of these positions. But we're going to continue to look at Thomas Jones, continue to look at men that give us an opportunity to win this game. There's a possibility we'll take a look at a couple other guys in this game."
For Gruden, a victory over Tennessee would be significant for another reason. Though he finished 8-8 in each of his first two seasons with the Raiders, Gruden never has had a losing record in his six-year coaching career. He called the 2003 season one of his most difficult.
"I'd say it ranks right up there. It ranks right up there at the top," Gruden said. "But I'm going to always find a silver lining, some things that I'm very encouraged by. You've got to be realistic also. We do have some things we need to get resolved, and that will be a goal of the offseason. And at the same time, we would like to finish this season strong with a very good outing on the road."
