Print

Email story

Comment

Email editor

Bucs

A penny for their thoughts

By JOHN ROMANO
Published February 25, 2005

Any day now, the quarterback could become available.

He's quite a bit younger than Brad Johnson, and far more accomplished than Chris Simms. He doesn't have the biggest of arms, but he's known to be smarter than most anyone playing the position.

He's in the prime of his career, and he had better numbers in 2004 than any of the free agent quarterbacks trolling for jobs.

Yup, he could be Tampa Bay's best bet for tomorrow.

If only the Bucs weren't pondering whether to dump him today.

Such is life for Brian Griese, whose greatest misfortune is residing in the used portion of Jon Gruden's toy box.

If you don't mind me asking, can anyone explain what the Bucs are thinking these days? Can the Bucs explain what they're thinking?

Wasn't it just a few days ago that Griese was looking like Gruden's soul mate?

Griese, you may remember, was injured going into the season finale. Didn't matter, Gruden wanted him to play. The Bucs were 5-10 going into that game. Didn't matter, Gruden wanted Griese to play. Simms still hadn't had a chance to prove himself. Didn't matter, Gruden wanted Griese to play.

As it turns out, Simms did play. And not terribly well. But the point is Gruden acted as if the futures of Tampa Bay and Griese were one and the same.

Yet, two months later, we're quarterback shopping again.

Oh, I know, money is a factor. Griese's contract for 2005 is too fat and must be restructured. Fine. Get it done. Word is, Griese is willing to take a pay cut from his scheduled $8-million salary. Perhaps by as much as half.

Maybe you would argue Griese isn't even worth that much. That, even though he set a Bucs record for quarterback rating, the offense was still awful.

It's a valid point. And a worthy argument. But I would suggest you look at alternatives before throwing away the NFC's third-highest rated QB of 2004.

Do you like Kurt Warner, and his 36 fumbles in the last 35 games? Do you like Jeff Garcia, who is 35 and has seen his numbers decline in four consecutive seasons? Do you like Jay Fiedler, who threw nearly as many interceptions (63) as touchdowns (66) in five years in Miami?

Of the quarterbacks likely available this offseason, Griese is younger and coming off a far better season than any other familiar names. Not to mention, he's already comfortable with Tampa Bay's offense and personnel.

Here's another way of looking at it:

Griese and Matt Hasselbeck both turn 30 this year. Both have one Pro Bowl appearance on their resume. Both are two games above .500 as starters. Griese has a career passing rating of 85.3, and Hasselbeck is at 83.7.

The big difference?

Seattle just came to terms with Hasselbeck on a $47-million deal with a $16-million signing bonus.

And Griese could be released because the Bucs don't appear willing to commit to more than one year at $4-million or so.

Again, you could argue Hasselbeck was grossly overpaid. You could argue that, despite identical resumes, Hasselbeck has more potential. You could argue one case has nothing to do with the other.

I would still say, if the Bucs allow Griese to walk away, they have screwed up somewhere along the line. Either they wasted valuable time playing Griese instead of Simms in '04, or they're making a mistake letting him go in '05.

It's got to be one or the other.

Which brings us to a much larger, and more fundamental, problem in the organization. At One Buc Place, today means everything and tomorrow is too far away to worry about. They have everyone working on the same page, but they forgot to put someone in charge of the next chapter.

This is what happens when one person is given too much power. Gruden, like most coaches, cares mostly about his next victory. Which means he's willing to sacrifice great chunks of the future for small gains in the present.

So he wouldn't play Simms for most of December because Griese gave him a better chance for victory. And he didn't worry about the shape of the salary cap because he was eager to chase veterans a year ago.

Look, I'm not saying it's Gruden's fault the Bucs were a disaster last season. That bill was overdue after years of trading draft picks and restructuring the contracts of Pro Bowl veterans.

But it will be Gruden's fault if the Bucs aren't closer to contention next season. Because, by wasting time on the lost cause of 2004, he has robbed the Bucs of some of their hope for 2005.

That's what makes the current quarterback situation so frustrating. And so unnecessary. Instead of using last season to figure out what direction to take, the Bucs went round and round and got nowhere.

Is Griese their No.1 quarterback today?

Don't know.

Is Simms their quarterback of the future?

Don't know.

As you move further away, a losing season is supposed to hurt less. In Tampa Bay's case, it's turning from a headache to a migraine.

What did the Bucs achieve last season? Well, it appears they failed to get a better grip on the most important position in the huddle. And they made the salary cap a little worse. Not to mention, the roster got noticeably older.

In other words, their suffering accomplished nothing.

Now I don't pretend to have even a fraction of the knowledge of the people making personnel decisions at One Buc Place. So if they think they need to look for a new quarterback, I'll bow to their expertise.

But, if I may, here's a suggestion:

Before searching for a quarterback, or a running back or a receiver or a safety, try looking for something a little more important.

A long-term plan.

[Last modified February 25, 2005, 00:52:18]