2013 Offseason: Grade The Finished Product, Not Just the Big Money Deals

Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

It seems as if every hour these days someone linked to the Buccaneers inks a contract with someone other than Tampa Bay. There have been multiple cornerbacks come off the market while the only rumors around here are vague reports on Darrelle Revis.  A number of high level DE’s have singed elsewhere while the Buccaneers let Michael Bennett and Roy Miller walk.

And with every move Bucs fans are getting angrier and angrier. But we all need to hold our horses. It’s only March 15th. The season does not begin until early September. The Buccaneers’ front office has a plan, and while it may not jive with what we here at The Pewter Plank expected, the fact is, every offseason since Mark Dominick has been here, he’s made this team better.

Rumors are just that, rumors. What we read is only the tip of the iceberg of what the guys behind the scenes are trying to do. Most of us look at everything around the NFL as winning and losing, but just because the Bucs haven’t gotten a lot of the players in free agency doesn’t necessarily mean they are losing. The idea that the Buccaneers need to spend a lot to get a lot is simply not always true. NFL.com recently posted an article showing that the team who spends the most money in the offseason, often doesn’t see the success during the regular season.

"“That’s the trouble with offseason titles: They create big expectations. Big disappointment usually follows.”"

The Bucs may still go out and make a big move. There’s still plenty of time to do so. But what’s more likely is that they grab a heap of lower dollar players that collectively make a bigger impact. This team isn’t that far away from being contenders, they don’t need to make three or four monster moves trying to make a “dream team.” How many times have you looked at another team’s roster and wondered, how can they be this good? Or have you taken a look at some of the big dollar spending teams, and wonder how they can be this bad?

We are fans, we react based on names and memories of what we’ve seen in the past. The people who are paid to make the team better reason based on players potential and price. There is a plan. It’s still really early. Hold your judgment until the end, just like you do every Sunday in the fall. It might look grim now, and might keep getting “worse”, but let’s wait until at least the draft before we put any grades on what has happened. The offseason is just beginning, not coming to a close like many people have expressed. Let the men work, then judge.