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Bucs Will Finally Win Big - In 2009

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 2, 2007

TAMPA - A lot of football 'experts' are predicting another season of doom and gloom for the Bucs in 2007. Many see them winning no more than six or seven games, and most have them missing the playoffs again, which means a front-office and roster shakeup.

That being the case, we've decided to skip past 2007 and 2008, and look instead at a team that is favored to win big. Here then is a somewhat quizzical look at who will be running and playing for the Bucs in 2009.

General Manager: Bill Parcells. He's left them standing at the altar twice, but when the Bucs offer him the chance to get out of the TV studio and away from Keyshawn Johnson, it's a proposal the Big Tuna can't turn down.

Head coach: Jon Gruden. After a lengthy discussion with the Glazers following the 2007 season, Gruden gives up total control of the football operation for a new contract that calls for him to be head coach for life.

Offensive coordinator: Jeff Garcia. In Gruden's world, Garcia is the equivalent of the girl you always wanted to date in high school but didn't get until you hooked up at the 20-year reunion. And now that he's got him, he won't let go.

Quarterback: John David Booty. Now entering his second season as the Bucs' starter, the former USC standout appears primed to carry the Bucs deep into the playoffs and maybe even to the Super Bowl.

Running back: Cadillac Williams. Ever since he called the Hall of Fame and got back the magic shoes he wore during his first three games as a rookie, Williams has been running like Gale Sayers before the knee injury.

Fullback: Mike Alstott. After Gruden promises to give him more than the five touches he had in 2008, the A-Train agrees to quit the Tampa mayoral race, put off retirement yet again and sign on for a 14th year.

Wide Receiver: Joey Galloway. Galloway will turn 38 this year, but turning his home into a 2,400-square-foot hyperbaric chamber that he leaves only on game day has him feeling like he's 22 again.

Wide Receiver: Michael Clayton. He caught just 33 passes last year and never reached the end zone, but the Bucs are convinced he can regain the 95-catch form that landed him a Pro Bowl roster spot during his 2007 comeback season.

Tight end: Alex Smith. Now a five-time champion of the Madden Bowl tournament, Smith has yet to join the class of the league's elite tight ends, but his red zone presence has made him a keeper.

Left tackle: Todd Steussie. Now in the second year of his new deal with the Bucs, the result of Bruce Allen's last move as GM, Steussie looks strong thanks to cryogenic freezing and the transplant of cells he began storing in 1999.

Left guard: Arron Sears. Now known to all Bucs fans as the Sears Tower, this former second-round pick out of Tennessee appears to be on his way to a second straight Pro Bowl appearance.

Center: Dan Buenning. Buenning has been an immovable force in the middle of the Bucs line since he regained full strength in his surgically repaired right knee and unseated John Wade as the starter late in 2007.

Right guard: Davin Joseph. The other half of the Bucs' Twin Tower guards, Joseph's dreadlocks are so long now they completely cover the number on the back of his uniform shirt. Not that it matters. Everyone knows who Joseph is.

Right tackle: Jeremy Trueblood. He took a year off to pursue a career in the NBA, forcing the Bucs to put Kenyatta Walker back in their starting lineup. But he's back now and looking better than ever.

Defensive coordinator: Monte Kiffin. The addition of assistant coaches John Lynch, Warren Sapp and Shelton Quarles has Kiffin feeling and acting like a kid again. Wait, Monte always acts like a kid.

Left defensive end: Julian Jenkins. It took him a while, but this former fifth-round draft pick has finally won a starting job and made Kevin Carter and Greg Spires expendable.

Under tackle: Greg Peterson. Not since Warren Sapp have the Bucs had an under tackle get to the passer as often as Peterson does. A project in 2007, he came on by recording 14 sacks in 2008.

Nose tackle: Jovan Haye. Adequate as an under tackle, Haye has really found his niche playing the nose. He'll share time here with Chris Hovan, who quit the NFL and became a UFC fighter following the 2008 season.

Right defensive end: Gaines Adams. The Bucs still can't get this guy to make a play in practice, but he's a stud when the lights go on. Should easily make it to the Pro Bowl for a third straight season.

Weakside linebacker: Derrick Brooks. Some things never change. After opening up his third charter school in as many years and taking the Brooks Bunch to China, the face of the defense rolls on for a 15th season.

Middle linebacker: Barrett Ruud. A Pro Bowler in 2008, Ruud almost has made Bucs fans forget that Hardy Nickerson, Jamie Duncan and Shelton Quarles patrolled the middle of this defense before him.

Strongside linebacker: Cato June, Ryan Nece, Jamie Winborn, Adam Hayward, Quincy Black, Antoine Cash. Unable to find a player who really fits the strong side, the Bucs have decided to go with a Sam-linebacker-by-committee.

Left cornerback: Brian Kelly. Kelly still isn't happy with the new contract the Bucs gave him midway through the 2007 season, but at 33, he's still the best the Bucs have on the left side.

Right cornerback: Ronde Barber. The twin brother of Barack Obama's 2008 presidential running mate, Tiki Barber, Ronde has lost a step but remains the best nickel corner in the league.

Strong safety: Sabby Piscitelli. It turns out that all those comparisons to Lynch weren't out of line after all. Now in his second year as the starter, Piscitelli seems Pro Bowl-bound.

Free Safety: Tanard Jackson. It was close, but Jackson eventually won the job by intercepting five passes in the preseason and beating out incumbent starter Will Allen.

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