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Glazer: 'We Are Doing What We Believe In'

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By IRA KAUFMAN

ikaufman@tampatrib.com

Published: March 25, 2009

DANA POINT, Calif. - For 30 minutes Tuesday, co-chairman Joel Glazer sounded off on the state of the Buccaneers, ranging from ownership's commitment to the franchise and its new brain trust to an assessment of Jon Gruden's coaching tenure.

Here are some highlights from Glazer's chat with Tampa Tribune NFL writer Ira Kaufman:

How do you react to the perception that the Glazers are in a financial strait-jacket?

Absolutely not. When we work on something, there has to be a plan and you follow that plan. You don't just sign people for the sake of signing people. History shows the successful teams have to draft well, develop those players and keep those players. No team has consistently won by putting a patchwork group of players on the field. We're doing what we want to do - and nothing is preventing us from doing that.

Going beyond free agency, some people look at bringing training camp back to Tampa as a sign the organization is in financial distress.

It's frustrating to hear those things sometimes, but every move we make is with the long-term success of the team in mind. We had a great experience at Disney for seven years, but we felt it was time to bring camp back to Tampa and make it more accessible to our hometown fans. I also laugh because we left Disney to come back to our $40 million training facility that we built. That was a large investment and it's the finest facility in the NFL.

In general, does ownership feel any crushing financial burden going forward?

Absolutely not. We are doing what we believe in and what at the end of the day will provide long, sustainable success. If we feel a player is going to help this team, we will pursue that player, but it has to be done in an intelligent fashion.

What do you say to people who predict Raheem Morris and Mark Dominik will last only one season and you will pursue a big-name head coach in 2010?

We went with people we know very, very well. We were 9-7 last year, not 2-14, and we have a core group of young players that we believe in. These guys are with us for the long haul. This is our head coach, this is our general manager and we feel great about our situation.

How would you characterize the 7-year tenure of Jon Gruden?

A lot of great things happened in Tampa under Jon Gruden. He left this team in great position to go forward. We won a Super Bowl and three division titles with Jon. Nobody worked harder or wanted to win more than Jon Gruden.

What's your comfort level with the current quarterback group?

We're very comfortable. With Luke McCown, we have a young quarterback with a lot of talent. He has had the ability to sit and watch the game from the sidelines, kind of the way things used to be. There will be competition. The best person will end up on the field. There's no question we need stability at the quarterback position. That's something we haven't had for one reason or another.

How has the offseason gone?

I'm very happy. I think we've shown discipline, we've stuck to a plan. And one of the keys in this league is continuity. Anybody we wanted to keep, we have kept. Sometimes, the pieces that are added aren't the headline-grabbing pieces. Signing Antonio Bryant didn't get the headlines when it happened, but I challenge somebody to find a better free-agent acquisition last year than Antonio Bryant.

Any intentions to sell the franchise?

I'm going to give you the same answer every year - no. It's not even something that's contemplated. I don't even like talking about it. We love being part of the National Football League. We love what the NFL stands for. The losses still hurt as much as they did on Day One and the wins are still as great. My enthusiasm for football goes back 41 years. When the draft rolls around, I'm still excited.

Has the popularity of the Bucs waned in the community?

There's no question the economy has had an effect on sports and we've seen it with the Buccaneers. Things are tough right now and a lot of families have been affected. Our season-ticket base has been affected. It's an unfortunate set of circumstances, but the end result may be more people being able to get access to tickets.

Where are the 2009 Bucs in terms of the cycle of every NFL franchise?

We're starting to move along the path. We're not at the absolute starting line, but we're not a finished product, either. There's still work to be done and we're going to be consistent and disciplined with the plan. We want something that can be sustained and that fans can build a connection to and stay connected for years and years to come.

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