This is a man who has blown relationships with local writers, national writers (all will name unmentioned) and supposedly got into a fistfight with a local (very big) writer for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and a respected member in the Tampa Bay community.  This is the same man who openly campaigned for the release of TE Jerramy Stevens due to his past transgressions, than subsequently was arrested weeks later for an alleged DUI, cue the “all people mentioned in this post charged with crimes are guilty until proven innocent” line.  HIS THIRD INVOLVEMENT WITH FREAKING DUI’S!  Duemig also was the same genius who broke the story about the Buccaneers being moved to Los Angeles in 2000, about Phil Mickelson’s alleged gambling debts, and in all of these scenarios, his “unnamed sources” always take the fall for his preposterous musings.  

There is one thing I’m sure of…he has had it out for Jon Gruden since the day he replaced Tony Dungy.  The only time in which this stance was not apparent was when interviewing Gruden, he would act like he liked him (coward), but with no Gruden around he made no bones about hating the man. No matter the results on the football field, the campaign remained strong…to run Jon Gruden out of town.  Well, apparently his venom finally got him his wish.  

It is being reported now from the St Pete Times, unabashed Gruden haters as well, that the Glazers not only sought the advice of a few players on the football team, but also sought the advice of the fans.  

“We talked to a lot of people, but we not only talked to the players, but (also) out in the community getting a feel for the team,” co-owner Bryan Glazer told the Times today at the Super Bowl media center in Tampa, Fla. “We get opinions and we mix them all together. We just took our time making that decision.”

“Our fans are our stockholders. They’re what we play for — the people in our stadium and the ones that watch on TV. That’s what it’s all about: winning and how they feel about the team. If they don’t feel good about the team, then there’s something wrong. . . I think you all know the sense that’s out there. It was time for a change.”

“I THINK YOU ALL KNOW THE SENSE THAT’S OUT THERE!” –   That is classic.  The funny thing to me, is I’ll give the man credit for the first time in my life.  Although he helped me personally propel a cause I had undertaken (the ouster of ex-Rays owner Vince Naimoli via Oust Naimoli) to a national stage, by allowing me to talk about Oust Naimoli on the air, I never liked the guy, and never will.   He did accomplish his goal though, Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen are gone, let’s see how long he gives the new regime before calling for their heads for 4 hours a day, 5 days a week.

Their main targets were former Cleveland Browns OC Rob Chudzinski, former Rams Head Coach Scott Linehan, and current QB Coach Greg Olsen.  Linehan signed on to be the Lions offensive coordinator on Friday, probably under the premise that he would have his choice of players with the first overall pick in the draft.  That is pure speculation on my part, but it would seemingly be the only logical reason (other than Calvin Johnson) to choose the Lions over the 49′ers (who were also interested in his services) and the Buccaneers.

I have a few friends/fans who I respect that thing Chudzinski would be a great choice for the Bucs, but I’m not so sold.  Not saying the guy couldn’t be successful here, but his two year stint with the Browns has me less than convinced.  The Cleveland offense ranked 30th in points, 31st in both total yard and pass yards, and 26th in rushing yards, with much more at his disposal as far as offensive weapons are concerned.  We lack the aforementioned offensive weapons that the Browns had, other than bringing back Antonio Bryant or augmenting our skill positions via free agency or the draft.

I was excited about the possibility of Linehan as the OC, but as I mentioned earlier, that is over with now.  He was successful as the OC in Minnesota and Miami, and although he had his struggles as the Head Coach of the Rams, he may have just not been suited to run the whole show.  There are plenty of succesful coordinators and coaches in the league who have had trouble in the top chair, but relish the opportunity to manage one unit or one side of the football, and I think Linehan would have been a great choice.

It’s hard for me to want to get behind Greg Olsen either, as our offenses have been quite pedestrian the last few years with him coaching the QB’s, although he had no control over play calling, and I’m of the belief that Jeff Garcia hindered our offense more than helped it.

The man I really wanted to look at Jeremey Bates, decided to go be the Offensive Coordinator for Pete Carroll at USC, and in retrospect, knowing now that we were hiring his father to be the defensive coordinator for our football team, I think he might have chose a different route had the Bucs shown interest.  He has ties to the organization and our Super Bowl team as an offensive quality control coach and as an assistant quarterbacks coach.  If I had to guess he will be one of the hot names in the NFL coaching ranks the next few years as far as offensive minded guys are concerned.

My main question now is do the Bucs continue to look at Chudzinski, Olsen and I’ve heard we’ve also had some interest in Chan Gailey (yikes) or to be we look outside the box and target a college coach who may be looking for his NFL break.  I still think Jeff Jagodzinski the former BC head coach who was fired for interviewing with the Jets, would be a perfect fit.  He had plenty of NFL experience as TE’s coach of the Packers for 4 seasons, two years as the Falcons Oline coach, and one year as the OC of the Packers in 2006.  He is still unemployed and would be a great fit for the team in my opinion.

“After any season ends, especially the way this one did, we wanted to be very careful not to make decisions based on pure emotion. We gave a lot of careful thought and consideration to the whole situation. And after looking at our franchise, where it is and where we want to do, after a lot of thought, we decided it was time for the Buccaneers to make a change.”

On why last year he was given a contract extension but this year a pink slip?
“Any time you have this situation, you have to evaluate the totality of the situation. It’s not one thing here or one thing there. Every year we say we owe it to ourselves and our fans to step back and try to be as objective as you can, to look at the franchise knowing where we want to go and what what we want to accomplish and ask ourselves are we on course or does a change help us effectuate where we want to go. And I think after  a lot of careful consideration, letting emotion die down, we just felt that it was time for a change.”

On emotion at the end of the year and if it matched that of the fans
“We were extremely frustrated. The losses are as hard today as they were 14 years ago and the way the season ended obviously was terribly disappointing. But you know, it’s not just one thing. It’s four losses at the end of the season. It’s look at our franchise and see where we are and where we want to go.”

On what he doesn’t see that he wishes to see:
“Our ultimate goal every year is to win a championship. And that’s always been our goal and it will remain our goal and we’re going to go about things to attain the goals we believe in. And we have core fundamental beliefs that we’ve had since the day we got here. And we thought it was important for our core fundamental beliefs that we make a change.”

On the criticisms that have been thrown at the organization – not enough nurturing of young players, too many misses in the draft, no development of a young quarterback, and apparent unwillingness to spend as much in free agency as has happened at one point – and how much of that reflects on the Glazers and how much on the GM and head coach.

“I know this much. I know from our standpoint that we’re committed as we’ve ever been to doing what it takes to win and we stand ready, willing and able at any time if there are players out there who we think can help us win a championship to open up the checkbook and do it. And it would have to fit within a plan. We’ve also seen how teams can get in trouble just wildly spending money without a plan. We’ve got to have some young guys. Gotta build a team and add the players we think are going to push you over the top.”

On how the day unfolded as to when Gruden was brought in.
“Bruce and Jon are consummate professionals. I want to respect what was discussed between us and them. But we had discussions today and they’ve done a lot of great things for this franchise. And this is never something that’s easy. These are very difficult decisions and very difficult times because you see how hard people work”

On whether the Glazers have learned as owners, compared the last situation, which was messy – and whether they have matured as far as how to handle things.
“You always live and learn. I live and learn and many years have passed and every year I’ve learned something new. So I’m never above saying that you learn things along the way. You always hope you’re going to learn and always try to take a step back and listen to people and make sure you’re keeping your ears open and eyes open.”

On whether the replacement is already in hand
“After a lot of careful consideration – a lot of thought went into this – and in our mind there’s a plan where we want to head with this whole thing. And we’ll keep you up on that as things unfold.”

On whether the canvas is not blank as of today.
“We’ve been well thought out in our mind where we want to take this franchise.”

On whether the candidate they have perhaps in mind part of the decision – and if that candidate is not there is the decision made.
“I think you separate the whole situation. I think the totality of the situation – I keep saying where we were, where we are, where we want to go – there’s been a lot of time evaluating all of that. Don’t make a rash decision. And once you come to that decision, then you think about the future.”

On what the Glazers were hearing from fans when it came starting to sell tickets and whether people were asking for refunds, and whether they were sensing dissatisfaction.
“What I’ve been sensing is – we’ve been feeling that the passion in this community to win and there’s a disappointment when we’re not winning. And the one thing I’m pretty proud of in this community is many years ago we used to get frustrated that we didn’t feel people’s expectations were the same as our expectations: 8-8 maybe was great because of the history of this franchise and we would get a little frustrated. One thing I’m happy about is that we’re on the same page. Fans expect a championship and we expect a championship. And we’re going to do everything we can to meet their expectations.”

On what kind of time table they may be looking at and would they look for a GM first or a coach first, or is it the same person
“We have a plan in our mind and again, that will all unfold.”

On whether he has any problem with a coach who functions as a GM
“We’ve been pretty happy with the setup we’ve had here. We’ve always been very comfortable with a coach and a general manager. It’s one of our fundamental beliefs.”

On whether the trade for Gruden was worth it in retrospect
“You know, we won a Super Bowl. And that’s the ultimate prize in the National Football League. Jon has poured his heart and soul into this franchise. And we are very thankful to him for everything he’s done for this franchise. He will always have a special place in this franchise’s history. And we wish him nothing but the best in the future.”

On whether this was one decision or two decisions
“Two decisions. It was looking at the franchise as a whole, looking at two different decisions and then making a decision that was in the best interest of the franchise hopefully.”

On whether he has a feel about how soon the team can be competitive again
“I don’t want to set any immediate targets or anything like that. We want this franchise to be on a path for longevity of success, to compete year after year and have a chance for a championship year in and year out. And we don’t mind being patient to put ourselves on that plateau, whether it’s one year, the next year. There’s no exact timetable here. It’s getting it right, building it right and having a plan and a path to go forward.”

On the difference between this time and the last time they made a coaching change – last time they had made the playoffs, so is it fair to say that just making the playoffs this year might not have changed what happened today?
“Again, we look at the totality of the situation. This isn’t one game, one play. You had to win one more game. It was looking at the whole situation and making a decision.”

On the fact that it’s quite a change from last year (when Gruden received an extension) and whether they some some specific things they were unhappy with.
“You look at where your team is today and you look at a lot of the decisions that have to made in the offseason and where we want to go with things. And then you kind of think things through: Well, keep going – what happens? And building a championship team, heaven knows it’s not easy. There’s a time and a place to make certain decisions and we just felt this was one of those times.”