Hayes' arrest shows Bucs' lack of professionalism

Around 2 a.m. Monday, shortly after he had been tasered, Buccaneers linebacker Geno Hayes was informed by a Tampa police officer that he had the right to remain silent.

If Hayes had followed that advice a few minutes before, this column would have been about something else - the Bucs' 17-16 win at Washington on Sunday, for starters. Instead, police said Hayes got confrontational and let an incident at the Blue Martini nightclub escalate to the point where he wound up in the back of a squad car.

By the way, according to the police account, Hayes was tackled to the ground by one of the arresting officers, a fellow about 6 feet tall and 200 pounds. I suggest signing him immediately, but that's another matter.

There apparently were many points where Hayes could have walked away, just let it go, and behave like what General Manager Mark Dominik called "a professional."

Instead, we have the third Bucs player arrested since this season began, and that's on top of Tanard Jackson's suspension for violating the NFL's drug policy.

"You've got to talk about a walking-away policy, all those things," Bucs coach Raheem Morris said. "You get into a situation where you can't be right. Anybody who lives this life has to understand that. As young men, they have to grow.

"It's about having the awareness in dealing with normal people, so to speak. These guys have to realize they're under a microscope at all times."

But it still keeps happening. This is not the "Race to 10" Morris had in mind.

And if you're wondering just what kind of operation they're running at One Buc, you probably aren't alone. This has been going on a while out there, back when Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen were in charge (remember David Boston?)

Who can forget Aqib Talib and the cab driver? Or Jerramy Stevens driving to a team meeting with so much pot in his car that cops charged him with a felony?

I'm not trying to be unfair here or wag my finger like some accusing nanny. People make mistakes. Young pro athletes with money, fame and a sense of entitlement are particularly vulnerable. At some point though - and I think we're there - this has to stop. But how?

"I'm certainly frustrated," Dominik said. "The worst part for me is that we've got this young team, 8-5, hit by injuries but still making a playoff run, and we have to talk about this ."

We talk about this because of what it could be the next time. What if someone wants to make a name by taking on a Buc at some club? Instead of walking away the player decides to fight back, not knowing the other guy has a gun. Or there's a wreck in the wee hours of the morning in which someone gets killed, and we found out alcohol was involved.

"I'm not deaf to this by any means," Dominik said. "Our reputation is important."

Morris said he does talk about this stuff with his players. There are lectures, reminders and everything short of locking them in a closet to keep them in line. There are fines when they fail - "tens of thousands of dollars," Dominik said.

These measures would work for normal people, but this isn't normal. I think Dominik and Morris do stress this stuff; that's what players say, anyway. I'd like to see someone in the locker room take charge of this, to stand up and publicly shout "Enough!"

Nothing works better than peer pressure.

In the meantime, you know the drill. We all know it too well.

At some point, Geno Hayes will say he's sorry. The Bucs will say they've handled it appropriately and the matter is closed. He'll keep on playing; Morris already said Hayes will start Sunday against Detroit. And the cycle continues.

I go back to what Dominik said.

"They have to learn how to be professionals," he said.

He is absolutely correct.

And when that day comes, please let us know.