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Too much is invested to punt now on Simms

Buccaneer nation needs to show more patience before throwing in towel on quarterback.

By GARY SHELTON
Published August 14, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [AP photo] Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Chris Simms throws passes during football training camp.

There was something familiar about the kid's face. You might swear you had seen him hanging around the field before.

Who was that quarterback? You know the one I mean, the one who spent most of Friday night loitering by the Bucs' bench.

He's a tall kid, lanky. He has this surfer-blond hair. Someone said he was left-handed, but I don't know how anyone could tell for sure.

Yeah, him.

The kid who looks like Chris Simms used to look.

The kid who looks like the future used to look.

Every day, he becomes more of a stranger. Every play, he becomes more of a face in the crowd. Remember the disappearing photo of the time-travel movies? Simms is like that. Every practice, a little more of him vanishes.

What has become of Simms? Better question: What will become of Simms? In the summer's biggest mystery, a team and a quarterback are running out of time.

Something is wrong. That much is obvious from watching him throw. Over the years, some of us questioned Simms' decisions or his delivery, but no one ever doubted his ability to throw the ball. Until now.

How does this end? From here, there appear to be three choices:

One: The Bucs can give Simms more time and hope his situation improves enough for him to make a run at the second or third spots on the roster. This should be everyone's preferred option. Simms salvaged one season when the starter was injured, and he still seems like a better bet than Luke McCown or Bruce Gradkowski to do so again.

Two: If the Bucs doubt Simms can catch up this season, they should place him on injured reserve. That way, they will keep his rights even though they lose him for the year.

Three: They can release him. This should be the least attractive option for everyone. Why throw away a 26-year-old quarterback with the best arm on the team? Yes, the team could save some money, but not as much as you might think (reportedly, some $5-million of Simms' new contract is guaranteed). Besides, if the Bucs cut him, doesn't it suggest they needed better advice before re-signing a player with a stomach scar the length of third and 1?

In other words, there have been easier times to say this, but yes, the Bucs should hang onto Simms.

There is a sadness here, watching Simms throw with the awkwardness of a man with a transplanted arm. Also, there is confusion. No one seems to be able to agree on the source of Simms' problem.

The Times has reported that Simms is suffering from irregular proprioception due to having his spleen removed last season. Bruce Allen says Simms doesn't have a problem with his health. Simms has said he is having problems with his coordination. Jon Gruden has said Simms has a sore elbow.

Meanwhile, the season is less than a month away, and Gruden's impatience is showing.

"He has to play better," Gruden said after Friday night's preseason game. "We can all talk about the elbow and the arm, but he isn't playing very well right now. When he starts playing better, he'll get a chance to play."

The more the Bucs downplay Simms' physical problems, the more you wonder if they suspect something else is wrong. Do they think that Simms has a problem similar to those of Steve Blass or Rick Ankiel? Certainly, they cannot question the toughness of a player who played while bleeding from a major organ last year, can they?

Losing a spleen is an unusual injury, and this is an unusual recovery. All of which makes it hard to see the future.

Then again, with Simms, sometimes it seems as if it is hard to see the past.

Go back to the end of the 2005 season. That was the last time it was possible to feel good about this team, and Simms was much of the reason why. In those days, Simms looked like a quarterback on the brink.

He had come off the bench, and after a wobbly beginning, he led the Bucs to a 5-1 record in the NFC South. He was Kid Comeback, taking over games in the fourth quarter, and with him in the huddle, you could feel the possibilities.

Do you remember? Does Gruden? Friday night, after McCown's impressive performance, he said McCown would have started "without any question" if he had played the same way last year instead of being injured. Last fall, he said the same thing about Gradkowski.

Oh, come on. Nothing against either McCown or Gradkowski, but there was no way they were going to beat out a quarterback who had led his team to the playoffs. Nor should they have.

Such talk demonstrates how Gruden views quarterbacks. He likes whichever guy can help him win next. After all, the NFL isn't a place for rearview mirrors. And, true, a lot of the luster of Simms wore off in the first three games last year.

Still, there was a reason the Bucs offered Simms a contract extension. They viewed him as a commodity. They thought his potential was worth an investment.

Even now, that's worth remembering.

Gary Shelton can be reached at (727) 893-8805.

[Last modified August 14, 2007, 00:07:19]