Minor Special Teams Shake Up

The Bucs released punter Chris Bryan yesterday. It was a move that had to happen. With a young offense and a marginally older defense all of our special teams have to be strong for us so that we have the best opportunity to win. The last two weeks Bryan had squandered opportunities to pin teams inside the 20 several times and he also wasn't getting much hang time which gave returners more of an opportunity to return against us. Not sure who will replace him at this point but I'd put money on Brent Bowden coming back.

Also its being reported that the Bucs are looking to switch kickoff returners. I like Michael Spurlock a lot and he has a very inspiring story of perseverance. But so far this year he hasn't really hit the holes hard enough on kickoff returns. Me personally Id like to see Kareem Huggins given the opportunity. He seems to be more like the traditional kick off returners who have a lot of straight line speed and hit the holes hard without hesitation. I honestly couldn't understand why he wasn't returning kickoffs in the preseason. If he is going to be on our team we need to use him as a weapon otherwise what's the point?

Just my opinion of course.

Well Maybe That Explains It...

"When you get a bit older in this league, especially as a running back, you have to realize that you need to come into camp at a lighter weight, not heavier," Coach Raheem Morris said. "I still have a lot of confidence in Derrick Ward that he'll be ready and in shape to help us this season."

The Bucs list the 5-foot-11 Ward at 228 pounds, the same weight assigned to him since 2007, when he ran for 602 yards in spot duty with the Giants.

Ward was an infrequent participant in Tampa Bay's voluntary offseason workouts, but he reported to training camp on time July 30, saying he is approaching the upcoming year with a "new mentality."

According to General Manager Mark Dominik, the Bucs have not fined Ward this summer for failing to meet the club's weight requirements.

TBO

I don't know for sure if all of Derrick Ward's problems this preseason can be linked back to his weight, but I can tell you that he doesn't look explosive at all running the ball. Even though he didn't necessarily play well last year either, he was a lot quicker to and through the holes. This year it seems like his reaction time is really slow and when he makes a decision where he wants to go there is no change in gears.

I still don't think they will raise the white flag and cut him just a year after signing him to a big free agent deal, but Kareem Huggins surpassing him on the depth chart just got a lot more likely.