Allen chats at Super Bowl

Bucs general manager Bruce Allen took a few minutes at Super Bowl XLII to address some topics with the media Friday. Here are some of the highlights.

On signing his new three-year contract extension:

"Happy. We like what we have,'' Allen said. "Every fan in Tampa knows we have the best facility in the NFL, we have the best stadium in the NFL, we have a young group of guys, we've got plenty of cap room and an opportunity to make the team better.

"Having the coaches all remain constant and the coordinators, it allows the players on our team to understand how they have to get better because it's the same coaches.''

On cornerback Brian Kelly telling the Times he intends to exercise an option to "buy back," the final year of his contract and become a free agent, Allen said: "We didn't talk about that at that time, but that was before that (story),'' Allen said. "We'll talk. I want to know what he wants to do.''

On efforts to sign running back Earnest Graham to a contract extension: "What we were doing the last few weeks was finalizing our free agent list,'' Allen said. "The first focus is on the players who don't have contracts, whether they're on our team or the opposition and making sure we pinpoint who we want out of there and then reward our guys at that point.''

On preventing a collapse after winning the NFC South like the one they experienced in 2006, Allen said,  "You try to increase the talent level. You try to increase the depth on your team. You keep the hunger that we had this last off-season. The players on this team were hungry. You talked to them and they commented at different times about being embarrassed about what happened here. Keeping that hunger is important.''

On the possibility of signing Warren Sapp to a one-day contract so he could retire as a Buccaneer: "He's a Raider,'' Allen said. "And I understood he's going to do a Raider retirement.''

On Mike Alstott having a future role with the Bucs: "When that is, this year, next year or the following years, Mike, as he knows, is always associated with us. He's going to take some time and figure out what he wants to do. For a guy who just retired, he surely has a lot of commitments he's made for the next year.

"I don't think he wants to coach. And it's the time (involved).''

The Bucs aren't ready to officially announce the hiring of Rams offensive coordinator Greg Olson as the team's quarterback coach or Earnest Byner as the running back coach.

"I know we did interview and talk to Greg Olson. He's still under contract with the Rams. Until that's final...after the Super Bowl,'' Allen said. "We've talked to Earnest. It was a nice conversation. But that was all.''

--Allen said he wasn't upset the Bucs weren't selected to play a regular-season game in the United Kingdom in 2008.

"No, I love our fans,'' Allen said. "We'll do it, as will everybody in the NFL.''

Comments

[Anthony Gironda]

Allen, You are WRONG about Warren Sapp!! He may have been with the Raiders, but his will always be with the Bucs. So shut your mouth & let the man retire as a Buccaneer because he won a Super Bowl with them before you showed up!!

[Anthony Gironda]

Warren Sapp's heart will be with the Bucs, so let him retire as a Buccaneer!!

[Stephen Blackehart]

I don't think it's really up to Allen, or the Bucs for that matter. If retiring as a Raider is what Warren Sapp wants, what can they do?

[Dan]

GM always refers to the fans, the fans. Put your vanity aside, Bruce. "The Fans" generally appreciate what Sapp meant to our team. If Sapp will participate, do it. If not, then don't. Don't make it YOUR choice.

[KRISTIAN]

HECK,I THINK WE SHOULD TALK HIM INTO A 1YR CONTRACT AND LET HIM PLAY,AND THEN LET HIM RETIRE AS A BUC,WITH A HOT YOUNG D-LINE,THINK ABOUT THE LEADERSHIP HE'LL BRING BUT I THINK IT WILL CREAT A SPARK IN HIM AND BRING BACK A LITTLE OF THAT OLD BUC FIRE ON DEFENCE.

[Shane]

wow so many people want a loud-mouth trash talker(who by the way can't back up anything he says anymore) back in a bucs uniform but not jerramy stevens who actually wants to be part of the bucs. Anyone watch the radiers-jags game where warren got 2 unsportsmanlike penalties for yapping at a ref(one right after an unsportsmanlike penalty for another raider) and got kicked out of the game before halftime? Yep that's the kind of person i want back in a buccaneer uniform even if it's only for a day. The bucs made the right choice in getting rid of him and shouldn't take him back.

[Jay]

Re Sapp: "Warren is a Raider" - translation: Al Davis is completely insane and wouldn't let Sapp retire as anything other than a Raider without some sort of compensation or draft pick since they technically own the rights to him.

As for that unsportsmanlike call, Shane? Yeah, I saw the game, and the ref was completely out of line because he didn't even consult with the defense on whether or not they wanted to accept the penalty (it was a hold on Jax) or decline. Another player objected (I want to say a LB), got the unsportsmanlike but they reversed their standing, and Sapp let the ref have it for being an incompetent moron. The second flag was because the ref had his feelings hurt and made up a phantom "he touched me" flag and had him ejected - 1st and goal on the Raiders 1 yard line. Then Jax throws a pick and has it returned all the way to the original line of scrimmage. It was a comedy of errors. I'm still with Sapp on that one though. But hey, if you want to pile on, at least get the scenario right.

[Larry]

Sapp figured nicely into our Superbowl winning team however he did not have many fans in his own lockerroom or treat his fans very well either. I had 2 run ins with him and can't stand the man.
He's a Raider and let's keep him a Raider. Like Allen says, it's a moot point if he chooses to retire a Raider

[Joe Smith]

So many ignorant fans here. The Raiders hold Sapp under contract. Therefore, they hold his rights in retirement. He cannot just go to the Bucs to retire (or play another year as someone suggested). The Raiders are not going to let him come to Tampa and play another year, unless they WAIVE him. So for all you Bruce Allen bashers, it is not his decision or the fans of Tampa. The whole decision rests with the Raiders. Allen is right, he is Raider. The same thing will come up when Lynch retires. If the Broncos hold his rights, he will retire a Bronco. GET OVER IT.

[DR]

Hey Ronde, sorry your twin couldn't win! The G men were better without Tiki! That was a team without "me" players like your brother who wanted a parade for his retirement. Is Coughlin a terrible coach like your bro said now? Is Eli a terrible leader after a game winning touchdown? The Barber Shop, on Sirius Satellite should be discontinued! At least you Ronde, won a Super Bowl and lost to a Super Bowl champ! But your bro was on the sideline watching a better TEAM win the big game!

[Mike]

Wow DR for a Cowboy fan you sure are gloating about a division rival like they are your boys!

[DR]

Mike, i'm glad the Giants won. If you ever listen to the Barber Shop, you would know what i'm talking about. Tiki Barber was predicting a Giants loss and hoping for a loss every week. He has eaten his own words all season and won't admit to it. The Giants are a far better team without him, and the other cancer, Jeremy Shockey.
I wouldn't care who was playing the Pats, I would root against the Pats regardless. The Pats just prove how classless they are and how overrated they are. They aren't even in the Top 5 of greatest teams of all time. The 92 Cowboys would have slaughtered the Pats like they slaughtered the Bills.

[skp]

what a bunch of hotheaded morons to start this thread re: sapp retiring a buc. lay off bruce, it's not up to him, and saying anything other than what he said about warren sapp's future plans is tampering and against NFL rules.

retired or not, for the life of his current deal sapp's rights belong to the raiders. if we don't want to pay compensation (draft picks) to al davis for sapp's right to sign a 1-day contract with us, he'll have to declare his retirement as a raider. he'll be honored next year, i'm sure, and will enter the Hall of Fame as a Buc.

[Dylan]

What is it with all the Sapp talk? Do any of you even remember how Sapp really didn't care about Tampa outside of the field? Sapp has never been one of those guys who would care about something like that. If and when Tampa has a ring of honor, then maybe. He will enter the Hall as a Buc, and right now that is all you can say. Appreciate what he did on the field, you should. But don't make the guy out to be a John Lynch or a Tony Dungy, because that... he certainly is not.

[Meong Duk Kim]

I never like warrn sapp since he come to my restarant and eat half a my lunch buffet ... then he not leave tip for waitress!
what kinda fat man do that?

[aaron]

what is your peoples problem? just because a player leaves Tampa doesnt mean he is the devil. Warren Sapp is one of the all time great Bucs. He had a HUGE part in turning this franchise around. what he did on the field was a thing of beauty. not everybody is going to be a Mike Alstott or a John Lynch in the community. sapp wasnt a saint like those two but he wasnt like david boston or hell even jeremy stevens. you fans get SO freaking bitter when someone leaves. just like in Simeon Rices case. while he was here he was great, but we cut him. that should be that. but you guys have to take shots at him and cast him as an a**hole. rice's treatment and sapps treatment is completly unnecessary and classless. they both were very instrumental in us turning the corner and becoming a top notch club. give them your respect. you dont have to love them or even like them, but give them respect. we won a superbowl with them. just because they are no longer with us or they werent saints doesnt mean you should trash them. this is something i would expect from a Raiders fan or a Redskins fan, not a bucs fan. take a step back and look at the big picture. they were huge parts of our superbowl team and they should be congradulated, respected and thanked for that.

[DR]

Aaron, you're right on Sapp, he's a great player and is just waiting time for the HOF. People don't like him because of his blunt honesty. He wasn't a fake.
You made a mistake by putting Lynch and Alstott in the same sentence. Alstott has done good things but his reputation off the field has been questioned numerous times. Lynch hasn't been questioned though.

[aaron]

what has alstott done? all i have heard is good things...i just hate the way a lot of the bucs fans on this blog trash players that have left. especially ones that have been so instrumental to our past success. classless...

[DR]

I'm friends with a couple bartenders and they have some bad stories. They view him as a stupid jock with money who does some good.
I don't care what players do in their own time anyways. You can't take what thye do on the field away from them. Athletes are NOT role models. You look at the HOF already and there are questionable guys in, especially in baseball.
I keep players in between the playing lines when I judge them for awards in the game they play. What they off the field has nothing to do with what they did on the field. Jerry Rice could kill 4 innocent people tomorrow and he would still be the best WR ever to play the game.

[aaron]

I hear you DR. i hadnt heard that about alstott but i am not going to argue about that. now if someone is standoffish and they just dont like being in the public eye all the time or even if they are brash, i dont care. sapp was great for us and so was rice. they were huge in our transformation and they deserve respect. it is not like they were like Jeremy Stevens or anything. the were loud and they were out there, but they were ours.

[DV]

Allen, You are WRONG about Warren Sapp!! He may have been with the Raiders, but his will always be with the Bucs. So shut your mouth & let the man retire as a Buccaneer because he won a Super Bowl with them before you showed up!!

Posted by: Anthony Gironda | February 02, 2008 at 01:28 AM

LOL WHAT A FLAMER!!! Such a tool, Anthony.