Demolition derby A dominant performance in Atlanta gives us a two game lead over New Orleans and a 3-0 Divisional record, beating the Saints, Panthers and Falcons by a combined score of 82-28. With home games against Atlanta and Carolina to come in a relatively undemanding finish to the schedule, the NFC South is now ours to lose. The only worrying thing is that Nick Halling is now tipping us: “Tampa Bay? Take ‘em seriously”. In the last four seasons, each of the NFC South teams has won the Division and each team has also finished bottom, making it the ultimate parity group in the NFL. I actually think it’s a shame that the Division, which is normally so competitive, is so weak this year. It hasn’t helped that two of the teams have been playing without a serviceable QB, but we’ve had enough problems of our own in that area in recent years (more on that below). Time to look to the future? I was surprised to read that Jon Gruden has already used eight quarterbacks in his time in Tampa (can you name all of them? See answer below) and the lack of stability and quality in this most crucial position has seriously undermined the team’s progress in recent years. Jeff Garcia’s arrival has steadied the ship and his productivity and leadership this season will, almost certainly, earn him another year under centre. It’s unfortunate that we didn’t pick up Garcia in 2004 when he was released by San Francisco and was apparently very keen on a move to Tampa. The Bucs were in a dire Salary Cap position at the time and could only offer Garcia a $500,000 deal – when Cleveland came in with a $5 million offer, Garcia was left with a financial no-brainer, but he subsequently spent the next three years bouncing around the League before landing at One Buc Place. Garcia is on a two-year deal and, despite his outstanding play this year, is clearly not the long-term solution. He will be thirty-eight by the time the 2008 season starts and the Bucs really need to get their succession plan in place sooner rather than later. Not so long ago, Tampa persevered with a lumbering Brad Johnson for too long and they’ve lurched from one quarterback to another ever since. I feel that it’s time to find the quarterback that can take the franchise forward for years to come. In my opinion, none of the Bucs’ current crop of back-up QB’s have so far given any indication that they might step up to become the future starter and there has been speculation that we might try to bring in one of the Cleveland Browns’ quarterbacks at the end of the year. The Bucs reportedly now have thirty million dollars of Salary Cap space available and should be in a great position to recruit Jeff Garcia’s eventual successor, should they choose to go this route. Derek Anderson becomes a restricted free agent at the end of the year and Brady Quinn is currently warming the bench, so Cleveland have an embarrassment of riches and it may be an opportunity to grab one of them. If the Browns are not in contention for a play-off place, Quinn may see some playing time before the end of the year and both Cleveland and any potential suitors would get an indication of what he can do. The problem is that half the teams in the NFL ought to be on the lookout for a new quarterback and there’s a paucity of available talent. A move for Quinn could give him a year to bed-in as Garcia’s understudy, but Gruden’s offense is notoriously complicated and it may be too much to ask for a quarterback with no real experience to step in, should the need arise. It’s not as though we currently have an outlet in a consistently effective running game to fall back on, in order to keep things simple for a rookie quarterback. Derek Anderson’s play has been something of a revelation this year and I’d like to see us try to get a deal done with him, rather than Quinn, if the Browns could be persuaded to let him go. Anderson is a solidly-built, six-feet-six, with a good arm and a man with a year’s experience in the League would be invaluable to us. As a restricted free agent, the Browns would have the opportunity to match any offer to Anderson, but they may still see Brady Quinn as their future. If the Buccaneers do get either Quinn or Anderson, perhaps the new QB could be persuaded to smuggle Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow out with him. Joey Galloway is our only deep-play threat, but he turns thirty-six this week and can’t go on forever. Ike Hilliard has been a really good mid-range target this year and has been particularly effective on third down conversions, but he’s also the wrong side of thirty. Unfortunately, Michael Clayton seems unlikely to fulfil the promise of his outstanding rookie year and Gruden appears to have lost faith in him. Some key offensive positions will need an overhaul before too long and I’d like to see it begin with a really positive step at quarterback. Dare the Buccaneers take stock at the end of the year and say “Thanks Jeff, you’ve been great but we’re going in a different direction”? I very much doubt that they’ll be so bold. (Gruden’s QB’s: Brad Johnson, Rob Johnson, Shaun King, Brian Griese, Chris Simms, Bruce Gradkowski, Tim Rattay and Jeff Garcia). Let’s play the ultimate in Fantasy Football There was a story in the British press last week about fans' community website MyFootballClub agreeing a deal to take over Blue Square Premier outfit Ebbsfleet United. The 20,000 MyFootballClub members have each paid £35 to provide a £700,000 takeover pot and they will all own an equal share in the club. Members will vote on player selection, transfers and all major decisions. Now surely this is a precedent which Bucs UK members should act upon? I reckon that if we each put in fifty quid, we should be in a position to make the Glazers a serious offer for the Club. Assuming that our negotiations are successful, I would suggest that Richard Lowe and Lee Bromfield represent us at the spring Owner’s Meeting, so they can give some constructive feedback to the Patriots and the Panthers, with their usual tact and diplomacy. Wayne Maw has his finger on the pulse of the College game, so he should make the picks on Draft Day (you can never have enough former Gators on the team). Paul Stewart and Phil Jones should be joint Head Coaches – this is not based on any particular ability, but I’ve seen the DVD from the Bucs UK Fantasy League Draft Day and they can obviously curse better than Coach Gruden. Head Coach is purely an honorary title anyway, as all team selection and tactical decisions will be made as a co-operative, via our laptops. Play-calling will be sent to Jeff Garcia via e-mail, so he’ll need to be equipped with a BlackBerry – this will mean that each game becomes a six-hour epic, but that’s more time for TV advertisements and more revenue for us. Naturally, my role will involve cheerleader selection and the casting couch is already on order.