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Finesse Out, Physical In For Bucs' Backfield

Tribune, Associated Press file photos

Earnest Graham and free agent signee Derrick Ward provide an imposing tandem at running back.

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By JOE HENDERSON

jhenderson@tampatrib.com

Published: March 3, 2009

TAMPA - Those who wondered about the plan at One Buc have their answer, at least on offense. When the Buccaneers get the ball, the basic approach will be to knock their opponents down and run over them.

It will be caveman football, with heavy doses of handing the ball to Earnest Graham and newly signed Derrick Ward, with maybe some Cadillac Williams thrown in if his knee heals quickly enough. The playbook could probably fit on a pamphlet. It is by design. Every move they've made so far this offseason has been aimed at putting some macho back in the offense.

Even the five-year contract given to receiver Michael Clayton, with nearly $11 million guaranteed, speaks of a commitment to being more physical. Clayton was brought back as much for his ability to block, which is considerable, as his hands.

"A lot of things that Clayton does, you don't see on TV unless you watch the tape. That's his tenacity, his competitiveness. I think every corner, and I feel a lot of safeties and a lot of linebackers, know who Michael Clayton is," General Manager Mark Dominik said.

Ward is that so-called splash signing fans have been correctly demanding. He is probably the biggest upgrade the Bucs could have reasonably gotten at his position.

He gained 1,025 rushing yards last season for the Giants, and he was versatile enough to catch 41 passes. He and the incumbent Graham will spend a lot of time in the same backfield as the Bucs move to a more power-based game. Like Clayton, Graham is a terrific blocker.

If some of this is beginning to sound familiar, it should. Carolina and Atlanta ranked second and third, respectively, in rushing among NFL teams, and not coincidentally they both ran over the Bucs during the December swoon.

"Every time you lined up against one of our division opponents, you got your dose of Michael Turner and Jerious Norwood. It was fun," Dominik said, eyes rolling. "We realized that we would like to let them deal with that also, our opponents. It was a big part of their rebuilding plan."

"Our thought with Derrick Ward is that he's a productive, downhill runner who can make the quick cut and make the quick decision and gain the positive yards. He did that consistently with the Giants."

The Bucs have had good backs before, but they have never had two guys in the same backfield with the potential for 1,000 or more yards. Three, if you count Caddy.

Maybe they still bring in a quarterback to either compete with Luke McCown or, if you believe the Jay Cutler scuttlebutt, to take his job outright. Maybe they bring in another receiver with speed to help with the load on Antonio Bryant, although new tight end Kellen Winslow certainly can have an impact as a receiver. And none of that begins to address the many needs on defense.

We see now, though, that there is a plan, and it seems pretty simple. Since the same approach worked well against the Bucs, playing copycat is not necessarily a bad thing.

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