Do you still hate how the offseason went?

[Doctor]

There were a lot of feelings during the offseason. Safe to say a lot of people did not like how it went for a variety of reasons.

A quarter of the season in, have your feelings changed?

[13F11B]

My response does not quite fit in your options. I was OK with Mayfield being signed on a one-year trial basis. I was happy with the draft picks though I would have been more happy with a few different picks (positional) were made. I thought the core of the team was solid. I predicted a 10-7 or 11-6 team. I still think that is where we are trending.

A wording I would give that. I was OK with what the team did, and I am still OK with what they did.

I am not willing to say I loved it.

[Doctor]

I mean if you thought we did what we needed to go from GOAT/restaff to 11 wins without a transition year then I'd say that's love but hey. We'll put you in the believer column.

[Bootz]

How could anyone hate how the offseason went? We literally didn't have any money. My only gripe was paying Dean and not using that money to help beef up the pass rush. Other than that we did what we could do given the circumstances.

[Miller4Prez64]

I still think that paying Dean was a bad idea. I think that money should have been saved for more deserving players for up for new deals and if we needed to spend some short term in the meantime we should have been more agressive with our OL and the run game than we were. I was always happy with Baker at the price.

[real bucs fan]

Licht looks like a genius. Found a QB and OC in the bargain bin and so far so good.

[BuccaNOLEer]

Licht looks like a genius. Found a QB and OC in the bargain bin and so far so good.

He looks like a genius in this draft. He looked like a moron the past two. Hopefully genius Licht sticks around.

[Bootz]

Licht looks like a genius. Found a QB and OC in the bargain bin and so far so good.

Still not ready to crown Canales. A lot, I'd say most of our offense is Baker improving and creating after plays breakdown. The run game and designs are very inconsistent and overall ineffective. The playcalling doesn't really much of a rhythm or reason to it either. It's not really fluid. He might get there but as of now I'd say it's more Baker than Canales.

[IchabodCrane84]

There's too many Dean haters here.

[Doctor]

Baker seems ready to crown him.

[Jonny]

I was excited based on all the moves from this off season, mainly the signing of Greg Gaines, Ryan Neal and our draft. Because it wasn't Brady's Bucs any longer, I felt that Bowles would have more liberty to run his team true to his principles. I think it has played out mostly as I envisioned. I have been pleasantly surprised by O-line play as well, and the moves to draft Mauch, sign Feiler and move Goedeke to play RT have been the right moves turning a substandard O-line grouping to be a middle of the road performing unit.

The one signing I wasn't excited about was Baker and he's won me over already with his playmaker mentality. Based on the off season moves, I thought this was a 7 win team and that was me being optimistic and excited. I now believe there is a chance we can sniff 10 wins. The most important thing I feel good about is our ability to win this division.

[Miller4Prez64]

There's too many Dean haters here.

I don’t hate Dean, he’s just not as good as other guys up for money like Evans, Winfield and Wirfs. Debatable with Devin White too. He and Carlton are just too injury prone too, it’s one thing when both were on their rookie deals but the pair of them have gotten expensive and the money is drying up. I think letting another team overpay him and collecting a 3rd round comp pick was the better move over making our cap situation trickier. Hopefully Dean gets healthy and helps us win the division this year and I will be happy. But if we lose key players because Dean is getting paid, I won’t be very happy.

[Cheb]

We had to shop at Dollar General this off-season and it's worked out thus far. I didn't think it would. I was specifically pessimistic on Baker and he's proved me wrong.

Has everything worked out, no of course not. But I like the general thrust of the team moving forward, and am excited about the rest of the season.

[acmillis]

Baker seems ready to crown him.

This is a fake quote, Mayfield never said that per Auman

[Doctor]

Luke Geodeke on this play

[Central_Buc]

Goedeke is developing just fine.

[Selmon Rules]

I figured him to be the weak link in an already questionable OL.... I, like pretty much everyone else here, have been proven wrong so far.

I checked "coming around" because I didn't have any real expectations for this team as it started the season. Happy to be surprised!!

[BuccaNOLEer]

I figured him to be the weak link in an already questionable OL.... I, like pretty much everyone else here, have been proven wrong so far.

I checked "coming around" because I didn't have any real expectations for this team as it started the season. Happy to be surprised!!

I figured as much as well, and I also didn't like the idea of Wirfs switching to LT. I was all for drafting a dominant LT and leaving Wirfs where he was and jettisoning Goedeke. I was proven wrong as well.

Hopefully Big Red Mauch can develop as a RG and we can find a strong C as an upgrade over Hainsey and possibly slide him out to LG where I think he would be better suited.

[Bootz]

Luke Geodeke on this play

This play is an example as to why I'm not ready to crown Baker and this offense yet. It was harder than it needed to be.

Freeze at the 2 second mark. Cotton has a walk in TD if Baker just let's it rip and leads him towards to pylon. Instead it took good protection, improvising, and a throw with a high degree of difficulty for the play to succeed.

That isn't how you build consistency.

[BucsNBills]

Luke Geodeke on this play

This play is an example as to why I'm not ready to crown Baker and this offense yet. It was harder than it needed to be.

Freeze at the 2 second mark. Cotton has a walk in TD if Baker just let's it rip and leads him towards to pylon. Instead it took good protection, improvising, and a throw with a high degree of difficulty for the play to succeed.

That isn't how you build consistency.

Yet if Mahomes made the EXACT same play, it would just be "Mahomes doing Mahomes things".

All QBs miss reads, but Baker has the ability to improvise when he does and still pull a positive play from it.

That was a great play and it's one that needs to be made in the modern NFL.

[Doctor]

Yeah but Baker saw that DB creeping and envisioned a pick six. Ultimately can't knock the decision given it worked and we'll never know if any alternative would've.

[Bootz]

Yeah but Baker saw that DB creeping and envisioned a pick six. Ultimately can't knock the decision given it worked and we'll never know if any alternative would've.

In the NFL you gotta make those throws. Cotton is running away from the DB with at least 5 yards of cushion. If Baker leads him upfield towards the pylon that's 6. What's even more confusing is Otton was the primary read, he's open, Baker looks his way. The throw isn't risky, it's actually simple.

The play worked, so it's not a huge deal. But there will be times where Baker won't be able to improvise and turn it into 6 points.

[Grahamburn]

He couldn’t rip it to 88 there with Goedeke/HeyWard in front of him. He would have had to take something off and put it in pick 6 danger.

[Kona]

https://twitter.com/PFF_Buccaneers/stat ... -tackle%2F

Tristan currently PFF #3 Left Tackle in the league.

[Snake]

https://twitter.com/PFF_Buccaneers/stat ... -tackle%2F

Tristan currently PFF #3 Left Tackle in the league.

I’ll be honest, this is going better than I expected.

[Buc2]

https://twitter.com/PFF_Buccaneers/stat ... -tackle%2F

Tristan currently PFF #3 Left Tackle in the league.

I’ll be honest, this is going better than I expected.

At this point, it's going better than Tristan expected based on his comments over the offseason.

[Buc2]

There were a lot of feelings during the offseason. Safe to say a lot of people did not like how it went for a variety of reasons.

A quarter of the season in, have your feelings changed?

Since I never actually hated the Bucs offseason to begin with, I'd have to answer: None of the above.

I didn't hate their offseason because I knew they had no cap to work with and they were doing what little they could afford to. I also wasn't exactly a Baker hater, but I thought they'd be better served to start Trask and bring in a vet on a minimal contract...like $1.5M to $2.5M 'ish, take their beatings and look to a brighter future when they had some cap room to play with.

But, as we've seen, Baker is balling pretty damned well so far so that $4.5M for him is looking like a bargain at this point. All things considered, it was as successful of an offseason as anyone could have hoped for going in.

This is why I'm just a fan and not employed by an NFL team in any kind of decision-making capacity.

[Cheb]

https://twitter.com/PFF_Buccaneers/stat ... -tackle%2F

Tristan currently PFF #3 Left Tackle in the league.

I’ll be honest, this is going better than I expected.

I'd believe it. The man has played very, very well.

Both him and Antoine Winfield deserve mega contracts imo.

[Bootz]

I’ll be honest, this is going better than I expected.

I'd believe it. The man has played very, very well.

Both him and Antoine Winfield deserve mega contracts imo.

They do. Unfortunately I doubt we keep both of them. We almost certainly won't retain AWJ. We already have 2 DBs making at least $13mil APY and he stands to get much more than that.

Wirfs on the other hand, I'm gonna use the Andrew Thomas scale. He makes $23.5mil/year. Wirfs is over at LT now and will command LT money. There's no chance he plays 2024 on that option.

Next offseason is going to be interesting to say the least. Mike Evans, Devin White, Wirfs, AWJ, LVD, Baker (potential) will all need new deals or replacements. I could see us using the franchise tag on 1 of them.

[Pirate Life]

I was indifferent to the offseason for the most part, knew it would be a tough road with the handcuff of dead cap space. Glad with the results thus far, and as far as next offseason goes I'll reserve judgement. I do think folks don't give enough credit to Licht, we've had more than a few players sign back with us for less than they would have gotten elsewhere. There's a reason he's considered one of the best GMs to work with by agents and players. Hell, Evans and his agent praised Licht in the statement put out about his signing deadline.

[Obsolete]

Before the season started, i wasnt very optimistic about the near future. I had my doubts about Bowles(still do), the oline(better than i expected but we're still in need of at least a center), rbs(still do), and Baker.

Baker has been a pleasant surprise for the early part of the season. Do I think he can keep up this pace? Not sure, but I'm will let him prove me and his doubters wrong.

I really wish we didnt pay Dean what we did. Hes injured far too often and we have legit elite players that will be needing to be paid. I still feel this contract was very shortsighted and it will end up biting us in the ass unless Winfield or Wirfs agrees to a very team friendly deal.

I'm happy we're sitting atop the NFC South with a record over .500. However the season is long and anything can happen between now and then. I guess what I'm trying to say is that this nice start hasnt changed my feelings much, if we beat the Lions then maybe it'll move the needle a bit, that'll be 1 quality team we've managed to beat.

[Cheb]

I'd believe it. The man has played very, very well.

Both him and Antoine Winfield deserve mega contracts imo.

They do. Unfortunately I doubt we keep both of them. We almost certainly won't retain AWJ. We already have 2 DBs making at least $13mil APY and he stands to get much more than that.

Wirfs on the other hand, I'm gonna use the Andrew Thomas scale. He makes $23.5mil/year. Wirfs is over at LT now and will command LT money. There's no chance he plays 2024 on that option.

Next offseason is going to be interesting to say the least. Mike Evans, Devin White, Wirfs, AWJ, LVD, Baker (potential) will all need new deals or replacements. I could see us using the franchise tag on 1 of them.

AWJ is debatably the defensive MVP of our team, a view I certainly hold through four games. I think the likelihood of him leaving via free agency is near 0 percent. Even if Antoine refuses an extension (which I doubt), the Bucs could franchise him for about $14 million, which they absolutely should in that case.

The good thing about Wirfs from a contract perspective is that he's still signed through next season. He's due to make $18 million. Even if we paid Wirfs so that he's tied with Tunsil for the highest LT salary in the league, that would only cost an additional $7 million, which for elite LT play is worth it.

I agree that it'll be interesting to see how we allocate our free agency dollars. And Licht has plenty of tools in his box with restructures and extensions to make even more space.

At this juncture, I'm not worried.

[Snake]

If I were to guess: they let white walk, they re-sign Winfield, start Dennis at ILB.

Maybe LVD re-signs. Maybe he retires.

[Bootz]

They do. Unfortunately I doubt we keep both of them. We almost certainly won't retain AWJ. We already have 2 DBs making at least $13mil APY and he stands to get much more than that.

Wirfs on the other hand, I'm gonna use the Andrew Thomas scale. He makes $23.5mil/year. Wirfs is over at LT now and will command LT money. There's no chance he plays 2024 on that option.

Next offseason is going to be interesting to say the least. Mike Evans, Devin White, Wirfs, AWJ, LVD, Baker (potential) will all need new deals or replacements. I could see us using the franchise tag on 1 of them.

AWJ is debatably the defensive MVP of our team, a view I certainly hold through four games. I think the likelihood of him leaving via free agency is near 0 percent. Even if Antoine refuses an extension (which I doubt), the Bucs could franchise him for about $14 million, which they absolutely should in that case.

The good thing about Wirfs from a contract perspective is that he's still signed through next season. He's due to make $18 million. Even if we paid Wirfs so that he's tied with Tunsil for the highest LT salary in the league, that would only cost an additional $7 million, which for elite LT play is worth it.

I agree that it'll be interesting to see how we allocate our free agency dollars. And Licht has plenty of tools in his box with restructures and extensions to make even more space.

At this juncture, I'm not worried.

That's part of navigating and running an NFL team. Tough decisions have to be made. The league isn't designed for you hang on to every single player who's "an MVP" 1 season. You have to know when that players value on the field no long exceeds the cost to keep him.

IMO we have failed that test numerous times. Carlton Davis. Ryan Jensen. Jamel Dean. Chris Godwin to a certain degree. Since these players have signed their extensions, their level of play hasn't matched what they did prior. Davis, Dean and Godwin had pretty extensive injury histories before getting extended. All 3 have missed time due to injury subsequently. Jensen hasn't and likely won't play a down on his new deal.

Now this isn't directed at AWJ. I think he's amazing and will earn a large extension. But I hope Licht and company get a bit more decisive and rational in decisions regarding bringing players back.

[Jonny]

Luke Geodeke on this play

This play is an example as to why I'm not ready to crown Baker and this offense yet. It was harder than it needed to be.

Freeze at the 2 second mark. Cotton has a walk in TD if Baker just let's it rip and leads him towards to pylon. Instead it took good protection, improvising, and a throw with a high degree of difficulty for the play to succeed.

That isn't how you build consistency.

I agree with you on this. I am still willing to give slight benefit of the doubt that Baker is getting more comfortable with this offense with every game. But that doesn't explain why he has a tendency to not pull the trigger even after he manages to locate receivers about to get wide open or are already wide open. Besides Otton, Baker also looks at Rachaad White right as he becomes wide open near the goal line. The window closes two seconds later, but right when Baker's eyes read Rachaad, the TD is there if you simply throw the ball.

There's also the play where Baker runs for a few yards on 3rd and long to give the Bucs a shot at a 50 yd FG. On that play Baker clearly locates Deven Thompkins getting wide open for a deep shot in the middle, which could have been a TD. Instead Baker decides to hold back.

There were plays last year where Brady would occasionally miss wide open Mike Evans for a check down because of Brady's hesitation to hold the ball slightly longer behind a O-line he stopped trusting. But that is a totally different reason and an understandable reason for an old man finally realizing his time is done. Baker's hesitation seems to be not trusting in what his eyes see or in his arm to get the ball with accuracy and timing.

This offense can be ultra productive if Baker stepped in up a notch. The Canales fanboys will have orgasms.