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Not many predicting Tampa Bay Buccaneers to take Division or make the Playoffs

ESPN Analyst predict DOOM for Buccaneers
Analyst Representation Prediction Reasoning
Jeffri Chadiha ESPN.com Finish 3rd Gruden can’t put together winning seasons back to back
John Clayton ESPN.com Finish 3rd Old Age at skill positions
Tim Graham ESPN.com Finish 2nd Need a Quarterback
Jeremy Green Scouts, Inc Finish 2rd No Caddy, Old QB, no Playoffs
Paul Kuharsky ESPN.com Finish 2nd Unit may be too old..
Matt Mosley ESPN.com Finish 2nd Talented Saints too much.
Mike Sando ESPN.com Finish 2nd Can the Bucs out run Father-Time?
Kevin Seifert ESPN.com Finish 2nd Saints take division, Bucs possible Wild Card
James Walker ESPN.com Finish 2nd Not enough upgrades during off-season, fall back mode
Seth Wickersham ESPN The Magazine Finish 3rd Age will catch up to Bucs
Bill Williamson ESPN.com Finish 2nd Likes their potential but not enough to take the division
Matt Williamson Scouts, Inc Finish 2nd Top 10 Defense, Good Enough Offense, no division crown however
Pat Yasinskas ESPN.com Finish 3rd Bucs have potential to crash and burn
There's much of the same this off-season in terms of Professional Analyst predicting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers future for the steadily approaching NFL Season. There isnt a single Analyst to the right that went out on a limb (and what a nimble limb that is) and took the Buccaneers to take the Division. As you can imagine everyone is picking the front running Saints.

The general consensus is that the team is old and getting older. Which is the truth at two key positions: QB and WR. Let's not go crazy here, Garcia is a year older yes, but he's also got a year under Gruden's system. Galloway is showing his age and we don't have a guy to put out there opposite of him, but we still succeeded last season with the same personnel (Maybe Antonio Bryant can remedy that). Derrick Brooks is old, but he's still producing at a pretty high clip. Ronde Barber is 33 years old and still plays like he's in his 20's so he's fine. The other positions on the team are riddled with depth, if anything we are in a better position to rebound should injuries arise and they will with this team.

Back to the analyst, ESPN took several guys this off-season and made them cover specific teams. Their coverage definitely felt forced and especially in Pat Yasinskas' case. The Bucs finishing third? Come on, how many games did the Panthers QB Jake Delhomme play in last season? Where did the Panthers upgrade? The Saints I can understand, but they still have a questionable Running back situation, is Deuce healthy? Pat did a great job covering the Bucs this off-season though and he deserves much credit for that even if his prediction is fairly weak.

How great is it to see these predictions? Regardless of their outcomes... Football is almost upon us and it couldnt get here quick enough

Hat tip to Rays Rule for the link

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Hmmmm.... I think the experts are trying to say something about the Bucs....

… maybe something about age…. I don’t know. Seriously, the Saints are not without some flaws themselves. We saw just how effective (or ineffective, I should say) the Saints rushing attack was last year without a healthy Deuce McAllister. Reggie Bush cannot tote the ball full time without getting dinged up and a stable of Pierre Thomas/Stecker/less-than-effective McAllister means the Saints will have an uneven offense and the passing attack will have to carry the load again. Vilma’s beastly and will provide a nasty presence in the front 7, but… heh… REMEMBER THAT SECONDARY FROM LAST YEAR??? Like last year, the back 4 can still be shredded. It’ll be up to the Fresh Prince of New Orleans and the rest of the front 4 to put enough pressure on opposing QB’s to mask that problem.

by Craig T on Aug 29, 2008 10:58 AM EDT reply actions   0 recs

BUCS RULE THE NFC SOUTH

Hey we are the defending NFS SOUTH Champs until taken down. And we looked pretty good in the pre-season. The defense was scarier then ever and BENNETT and DUNN are on the same page now. With JACKSON`s speed we will be killers this year! As always……………………………………………GO BUCS!!

by stixx692001 on Aug 29, 2008 8:48 PM EDT reply actions   0 recs

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