I just kind of want when I was watching the game and, you
know, I forgot the phrase you use there a little bit but like
I have the same thought when I watch them to. It's
it's almost like there's a
little bit of a lack of camaraderie. I feel like I was
watching the game in the word, that kept coming to mind in it
and
then my brain was Corporation. I feel like I'm watching bucks
Corporation where it's like, it's a bunch of individual,
contracts and contractors and
We got you here and we want to make it for the Super Bowl and
all that. But I don't, I don't know. I just don't feel
a togetherness with their football team, like I felt
the last few years either I don't I don't know what it is about it.
I don't know if I can really explain it the right way to the
viewers and you hear on TV
but there's just some elements of their team that
just missed to me this year. And that's where I guess I
know. I know they're dangerous and it's Brady, but I guess
I fight back against that notion of them being too dangerous.
And it's Brady. And I'm scared about the playoffs and all that
stuff.
Like a bunch of Freelancers is a little bit. Yeah right. But
but here's the thing, here's the thing, they can come
together at some point, even if it's temporary now is this when
enough to propel them
to go to San Francisco. And when
all right, they do have Brock Brock / d, right? Yeah. Right.
But they've got the Bengals after that. I mean there and
it's not I didn't Brady understands you know what?
We're kind of
clearly in the driver's seat to win this division. Yeah, even
if they are laying next to write, even if they lose
the next two right there, the team that's most likely to win that
division.
So
the final weeks of the season for them,
it's kind of like let's just work toward being ready to go
and being all on the same page when we get to the start of
the real season, the single elimination round. Now
look, they don't have it clenched yet.
Yet, but it's looking pretty good right now for
the Buccaneers. When you look at the rest of the division after
last night, especially I thought the Panthers were
the team that
you may have to worry about if the Buccaneers it ended up
losing last night, so they win that division. They punch that
ticket. That's when the season really starts. And that's where
Tom Brady has, what Chris more experience that anyone's ever
had,
it will be
that game.
In mid-January at home
against the Cowboys, presumably
will be the 48, playoff game. Yeah, it's amazing. Tom Brady's
career. Yeah, 48 old hat
48. He's been there. He's done that. He knows what to say in
the locker room. Forget about the regular season. It doesn't
matter. Forget about the preseason. Good. About all
the stuff that went on this year. We all went through some stuff
this year, me included,
but you know what? We got one month. We got four games,
here we are. Let's go do it. We know what we're capable of. We
seen flashes of it, we're going to go do it each and every
week, No One Believes In This, he can finally say,
truthfully, No One Believes In us
and and pull those Freelancers together, pull those
independent contractors together and make them at least
short-term employees and get them on that. That's
when you see what happened to final five minutes of the game.
Last night, that's why I believe it can still happen
and yes, one of the ingredients is the other team needs to
screw itself,
but you know, that's one of the things Brady talks about in
the NFL. It's
it's hard to win a game.
But games are lost more than their one.
You do things, you shouldn't do and you hurt yourself. If you
just take care of your business and don't screw up, you're more
likely to win because there's a good chance. The other team is
going to do something that causes it to lose. Like
you saw the Saints do last night. Yeah, no II. Get you
there. I get you there, but Tampa screws up a lot, they do
and they screwed up last night. They just found a team that
screwed up a little bit more than that,
you know? So that's hey, hey,
I know it's got the fewest screw up. That's what we're
going to talk about scrub. I get you I mean I get you but
yeah I mean you know they lost the turnover battle to 20
and it's that that's where
it's hard to get behind it. If I'm me and I understand it,
I mean I'm the same way. I've said some of the same things
man, Brady in the playoffs. That could be scary, I get it.
But
you know I guess there's a reality part of my brain that
goes wait dad there's that and I understand that and it's
never going to go away and it's kind of annoying because we're
going to have to talk about it all the way
up until he loses. The
Playoff game. We're going to all gosh that's Brady in the tampon
we got a lot of. It's all you ever going to hear
it is but you know that's that's okay
but but at the same time yeah there's just too many
little inklings of the other direction of just going. Oh
they're sloppy and he's not playing good and they can't
pass protect well and they can't run the ball. So that's
that's where it's just going to be interesting and maybe this
is the moment that kind of
brings it all together,
maybe it is
but but like I said, I feel like I've said that it quite
a few times. Times here but but maybe this is the thing with
a guy like Brady he can kind of galvanized or not galvanized or
bring the locker room together and get them to start believing
a little bit
question. Yeah. Late in the game right before Tom. Brady
got the car started. Yeah.
The broadcast showed an image of Bruce Arians. And there was
a suggestion by one or both of the guys on the broadcast.
Yeah. Remember who that
they miss Bruce Arians
they could use the influence of Bruce Arians. Now he's still in
the building. He's still around and I think he's still involved
to a certain extent.
Is that
when you get to the playoffs,
you know, is that part of Brady's plea
like
we need to get Bruce more involved in this and Brady's
the one who goes to Todd Bowles and tries to manage the Egos.
And because balls was asked about more involvement from
Aaron's at one point and you got the old standoffish.
I'm the coach he's not and I
know you don't want to send mixed messages to your locker
room. Yeah. But when you get to the point where we're doing
everything we can to try to win games, and the guy that took us
to the top of the mountain, two years ago is still available to
us. We've got to embrace him and even though
you know health reasons or whatever, he's not working full
time. He's not locked in this. Chase for
the championship.
Let's let's use this guy. Let's take full advantage. One Last
Ride for bucko Bruce.
We got this, this sports car that tends to break down
rolling. Let's let him drive it with a cigar in one hand and a,
you know, in a smile on the other. I mean, diaper,
I don't know. All right? Yeah, listen, I'm with you. My
I mean, first off, they do miss Bruce Arians, that's something.
I feel comfortable saying he had to be brought an edge to
that football team and he
pushed the right buttons. I think it a lot of ways. I think
it's a little bit. What I was talking about with bucks
Corporation. I didn't feel like that with Bruce Arians, I feel
like Bruce Arians got everybody in the Foxhole together. It was
like they hate
us. Everybody wants us to
lose and die. Let's go out there and kick some butt and
they all rallied together around that. It's not Todd
Bowles now, it's not a personality. That's what I,
that's, that's what I mean. I think there's, there's
something there.
And
he's one of the creative most creative offense of Minds.
We've seen, I wouldn't be mad or I wouldn't be. Even if I was
Brady or Byron Leftwich,
you know, getting ready for a playoff matchup. Okay, wait,
it's week 17, we're not even playing the game yet. Hey,
Bruce, here's the two teams. We might play to open it up.
No dot dive into some film here, a little bit. Give us
some ideas, some things you think that might help
the attack. I don't think there's anything wrong with that. That
would be the kind of thing I would want from Bruce. It was
and Tampa
just to bring back a story here and this is what I love about
Bruce. He's so emotionally I invested he was really like,
this is right after Mark, Ingram not running for
the first down. This is when they were making the comment zactly.
Look like they
weren't going to pull it out, right? When they're like, oh,
but they really could use this guy right now. No question it.
But I will say, is far as like, what you're talking about
Consulting. And, you know, Tampa,
that's one thing I learned when they beat the Chiefs in
the Super Bowl, they picked a lot of ex-players and people's
brains about how they should defend Kansas City and Patrick
Mahomes avoid that Super Bowl.
And I think that's
That's why Todd Bowles play in a different way.
I think he had enough people of
X Tampa Bay players, who were kind of involved in
the organization and some old coaches and they call and
everybody kind of, hey, no, no, you can't Blitz and do what you
did and
the, you know, so what's so different about this this time
around? You know, I don't think there's anything wrong with
that. They need anything, they can get right now,
that's what I guess, what we're saying here, because they just
have not shown one phase of their team that's dominant. Or
Elite at this moment and I don't think the offense is
capable of being Elite the demons maybe.
But yeah, then I wouldn't be mad at that Mike and I thought
of you know Consulting Bruce a little bit and that that area
but it does take on that all hands on deck Vibe and then
some get everyone you can to help the guys there and there's
a way to take advantage of his skills and abilities without
undermining
the head coach and that's something Todd Bowles needs to
come to terms with. And I know think about how difficult that
would be. You become
the boss, but the old boss is still there
and the old boss.
If you give him an opening, is going to kick the door, open
potential and come in and try to take over. So what do you
do? You try to keep them on the other side of that door? Maybe
there's a way you can let him in the room
and he defers and he understands, I mean,
you know, if we are to believe the way this all happened and
I still don't frankly, that Bruce, Arians specifically
decided to do this,
as in part a favor to Todd Bowles and to Give
an opportunity to coach a team with Tom Brady is
the quarterback and not Blaine Gabbert
at some level
we have access to this guy. Let's use this guy. Let's take
full advantage of
this one, month window.
Not the whole season, not training, camp, not anything,
but middle of January to middle of February 1 game, another
game, another get. Now all that said, Chris I kind of had
a vision of what the future will be for
the Buccaneers. I wouldn't be surprised if they beat
the Cowboys, if that's who they end up playing the wild.
Around. But if they would then go to Philadelphia assuming
that it holds it the 2 seed and 3 seed also win the Wild Card
round and they're the lowest seed left out the six of
the seven floating
around and they would go to Philadelphia
Philadelphia would not shoot themselves in the foot
Philadelphia, would not let it be 2:44 with five minutes left.
Philadelphia would be the team that would be completely
dismantling. The Buccaneers
before, Tom Brady had a chance
to get his cleats tie. I feel like we're yeah, that's where
it would end. I Believe II feel like it would end the week
before. I don't think they're in the same class as the Dallas
Cowboys right now, and we're seeing them Dallas team. That's
very
capable of putting their foot on your throat and saying see
you later. They got the Killer Instinct. I mean,
I can't and the NFL to win
54 to 19 and then two weeks before that to have 142 three
against one of the, they got the step on the throat
capability. But in between, what do they do? They screwed
around with the giant. I always teams have the
So On Any Given Sunday, Saturday Monday, Thursday.
Whenever I say play the game. Yeah to lose that's that's what
makes the single elimination round
so exciting.
I could rely I hear you there. I don't care how many teams you
blew out. It's 00. We got 60 Minutes of football. Let's go.
I hear you the, I hear you but at
the same time we got to take in the evidence of what we've seen.
You know, we do got to get a little bit over of like, hey,
two of the last three
playoff appearances, from Tom Brady, I've seen them do Jack
did. Ali, squat. So, that's got to hold some water too. And he
tried to piss down his leg in the NFC championship game. They
won the Super Bowl to,
so that's where again, Brady, the man, the myth, the legend
is scary,
but I don't know if it is in reality, this team with Brady
that scary, it's just the thought of it. And I think
that's what you're describing to let alone. Listen,
I understand that there's going to people that it is real
scary, but
man, I just I don't see Tampa Bay. In the same class
as Philadelphia, San Francisco, Dallas,
not even in the same class.
You know, you talk about the team's, like,
you know, Seattle and the Giants.
Certainly, I'm I put them in that class. That's where I kind
of see them, you know. But
I don't think they're
even up there with your Minnesota Vikings. I think they
can make the game as close as your crappy defense. But not
with Philly San Fran and Dallas. Chris, here's
the reality. We could go through
playoff fields So
over the years and say
that team wasn't in the class with the others and that team
got to the Super Bowl
II mean, I don't think so Mike. I don't I wouldn't I wouldn't
agree with that comment. I would not. What about? Let's
go. I mean the first one that comes to mind. Yes. What comes
to mind right now? The Cardinals in 2008. Sure, nine
and seven,
right? We're in the same class as the best teams in
the conference and they won every game and got well. They started
Madeline early in the year. They had a lot of dumb crap.
They did, you know they put they wasn't, that wasn't
That wasn't a way
that was 06 with liner. I don't was gone by 08. Okay. All
right. Wait 08, they were nine and seven. Sure, they got blown
off the field by the Philadelphia Eagles on
Thanksgiving night. Yeah, I do remember that the fee. Right.
Right.
And then they came across them again in the NFC championship
and beat them. Yeah, my point is
all that stuff is is it's
it's ancient history. When you get to
the Winner's go home phase and where Brady has the edge that
no one else has
it'll be game number 48. Where he has lived it. He's breathed
it the whole game. He's in that mindset that he's in the last 5
minutes where he transformed.
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