Long Live The Jockocracy

Bucky Brooks continues to prove that Howard Cosell was right all along with his latest piece on CNNSI.com where he looks at the NFC South and lists the three major challenges each team faces. Let's take a quick look at his analysis of the Buccaneers:

Challenge No. 1: Build the offense around Jeff Garcia's strengths.

Garcia's success last season prompted Jon Gruden and the Buccaneers to doggedly pursue him during free agency. But given that Garcia failed miserably in his stints in Cleveland and Detroit, Gruden must be careful to make sure that doesn't happen in Tampa.

First off, Gruden has been after Garcia for several years. Gruden didn't suddenly notice him after his success with the Eagles. Second, it's not a challenge to build Gruden's offense around Garcia's strengths; it's already done. It would have been a challenge to build Gruden's offense around Chris Simms's strengths because they run counter to the goals of his scheme. Gruden doesn't exactly have to go back to the drawing board to come up with plays that suit a West Coast quarterback.

Challenge No. 2: Get wide receiver Michael Clayton back on track.

Really? This is the second most important challenge for the team? I'm not convinced that Michael Clayton at his best is any better than David Boston or Maurice Stovall at their best. If Clayton doesn't improve, he will be replaced and the games will continue to be played. Just because the guy had a good rookie season doesn't mean he needs to be an ongoing reclamation project. Most of the success of that season has to do with the fact that both Keenan McCardell and Joe Jurevicius were unexpectedly out of the lineup and the other choices were Charles Lee, Bill Schroeder and Tim Brown.

Challenge No. 3: Do a better job of pressuring the quarterback.

So, the defense needs to do a better job of what the defense does. Very good. And his following paragraph seems to indicate that only defensive ends can pressure the quarterback. No mention of the linchpin under tackle position being such a question mark. No mention of the 500 linebackers that the Bucs currently employ and who among them would be best suited to apply pressure. Just, you know... do a better job.

Currently, the center position is among the weakest on the team. John Wade is running on vapors and Dan Buenning is just learning the position. Maybe the only position on the team guaranteed to touch the ball on every offensive play would be a good one to look at, Bucky? Booger McFarland was traded midseason in 2006, leaving the under tackle spot to the newly-arrived 33-year old Kevin Carter and a bunch of guys no one knows. Seems important, don't you think? How about all the big plays the Bucs gave up last year and the fact that they still brought back the two starting safeties to compete with two rookies. That might be a challenge. Seriously, there are school teachers who post to Buccaneer message boards during their lunch who are more qualified to dissect Tampa Bay's team needs than Bucky Brooks.

But those aren't even the most generic suggestions Brooks has. What does he identify as a challenge for the Falcons' defense?

Challenge No. 3: Improve the defense, which will feature several young starters.

Improve the defense! Why didn't they think of that? It all seems so easy now. Jim Mora might not have been fired if he'd just had Bucky Brooks on his coaching squad. Just kidding... Mora was awful.

I don't know how much Brooks was paid for this article and I'm glad for that because if I knew I would surely sob uncontrollably. Absolutely nothing qualifies Brooks to write this article except for the fact that he was, at one time, employed by an NFL team. Yet there are professional sports writers out there right now with journalism degrees and everything who can't find work who would love... LOVE to expound on the Buccaneers for three or four hundred words. I know I rag on Peter King a lot, but at least he is truly a professional writer with a degree and several years experience at the local level. I may not care for his style but I understand why he is employed. But a failed NFL cornerback currently has the lead story on one of the leading sports site in the country. Stay in school, kids. It's totally worth it.