Five QBs in training camp? Perhaps not

Bruce Allen just spent a few minutes answering questions before a Greater Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce Buccaneers luncheon that is underway right now, and among his comments were some intriguing statements about the quarterback lineup.

I asked Allen whether he still felt the team was comfortable taking five quarterbacks to training camp as he's said in the past. This time, Allen allowed that other factors, mainly injuries, will impact whether there is adequate room among the 80 players to be heavy at quarterback. As a result, perhaps there is a chance Chris Simms will get his wish of being released sooner rather than later.

Allen said when he stated the team planned to bring five quarterbacks to camp, he was operating under the assumption the NFL would expand training camp rosters. It ultimately decided not to.

On a related subject, Allen said he was surprised at Simms' comments earlier this week criticizing Jon Gruden for his handling of Simms' situation. Allen said he was taken aback by the comments because they differed from statements made to Allen by Simms in private conversations.

Allen went as far as saying Simms' statements were little more than a publicity stunt by his agents. That's a comment that isn't likely to sit well with Simms.

Asked by an audience member to address Simms, Gruden said, "I like Chris Simms. I don't necessarily agree. But I'm going to coach the quarterbacks who are here."

Comments

[Larry]

Kind of explains Chris' comments about the hostage business. An agent is putting words in his mouth.
How could he be ticked off at the Buccs when he received $5 million last year and another $2 million is coming? Does he really expect anyone to give him more than league minimum on a try out contract? He probably has done in that next $2 million, even the Glazers ought to be fed up with this whiner!

[Cebo]

yea, give garcia at least 2 mo years n keep griese as backup, work with mcown more n josh johnson, cuz josh could be the future of the bucs. get rid of sorry behind simms

[Noel (Bahamas)]

It is unfortunate that Chris Simms chose to go this route. We all like when he took us 6-5 in 2005 to finish off Griese's 5-1 start. Had he competed this Spring....who knows...perhaps he would have beaten out Brian Griese for the backup spot...and from there...to the starting position (if he had improved his mechanics). Having competed this Spring in all likelihood, Luke McKnown would have been cut with Simms/Griese sharing the 2/3 spot (not necessarily in that order). Gradkowski was obviously the first to go....and now Simms has put himself as the next to go. Simms has made too much money to act like a child at this point....he is holding out....but not for more money...go figure!

[Greg]

Seems like they all are a bit touchy.

I can see where Chris wants to move on with his career at a team where he has a chance. I applaud that approach versus just the "take my money and be happy approach". But I can also see where Chris being such a nice guy does not deal with the issue directly and instead vents in public rather than telling Gruden and Allen to their faces. If he wants to be a leader he has to learn to deal with things directly.

[Noel (Bahamas)]

Stephen...any update on Depth chart positioning for RB's both considering Graham as a holdout and with him in the mix? I ask this you have actually seen the practices....who is getting the most reps? Bennett? Dunn? Darby? Who looks the sharpest? Who has the best grasp of the playbook?

[Stephen_Holder]

Noel... I saw your email but I'll answer your question here for the benefit of everyone else. I think it's hard to know where Graham will fit in once he shows up (I believe he'll show next week for minicamp). But if we take him out of the equation, Dunn and Bennett seem to be getting almost an equal number of reps in practice. I know Dunn still is and will be for some time continuing to learn the playbook. Remember, he never played for Gruden, so this is all new for him. Plus, this offense is not easy to learn. Bennett, meanwhile has a much better understanding of things, as Gruden mentioned again just today. He's come a long way and I think this will eliminate Gruden's reservations about him that were obvious (to me at least) last season. Gruden seemed very reluctant to make Bennett a significant cog in the offense because he was concerned about his familiarity with the offense.

[Chuck O.]

Bottomline - if you study film on Sims throwing mechanics he is totally a wrong fit for the Buc's offensive system. His wind-up, long ball throw (best one he makes) got "scouted" by the time he was made the starter in 2006. Not being able to hit the short timing slant pass got defenses giddy, where they would hang in the passing lanes and spike his passes like a volleyball. All this nonsense about who's saying what and who likes who is totally not applicable to the decision process. Why the agents and media pick this story up is very frustrating to the true football fan that wants reporting to be about x's and o's, how will the Bucs execute this year with the players they have, what's happening in the same capacity with our division rivals - that's what we are waiting to read about (see above - do you need more insight into your readers wants???) Go Bucs, go Gruden, go Buc fans that know what they are talking about!

[george c. costanza]

it's a good thing the Glazer family insisted Simms stay on the roster last year so we can all follow this needless "drama"

[Nick]

Where's that OL that started in 2006 that was suppose to protect Simms? seems to me they are all gone cause none of them started last year. Did we all forget that as a young starter Simms went 7-0 when sacked 2 or less times in a game. Let not put the blame on Chris, why didn't Gruden ever use the shot gun knowing this kid had a long wind-up? Chris Simms will win a SB or 2 on another team long before Tampa will ever see one. Beside, we better hope he doesn't end up in our division, cause he will beat us for the next 10 years. Did we all forget that he went 5-1 including winning 3 road games against our division in 2005 as a young starter? How many young QB's can make that claim? This kid has 15 career starts and there isn't anyone able to evaluate his potential. In fact our divisional opponents were a lot tougher when Simms face them.. Give it a break, Simms was hurt last year and couldn't play but Gruden listen to the doctors that were wrong insisting that Simms get on the field. My money is on Chris Simms winning a SB. This will be the biggest mistake Tampa has ever made. Chris Simms is a 10 game winner for the next 10 years and will lead any team he is on to the playoff year after year. You heard it here first!!

[Matt]

Based on the comments of Gruden and Allen, it appears to me that Simms will be cut before training camp. That's the best solution. He doesn't want to be here and Gruden never wanted him here. Simms wouldn't get a fair shake in camp anyway, so I don't think a trade market will develop. But I disagree with Allen that Simms' comments were nothing more than the words of his agent. I remember Simms being very unhappy last year, but not saying a whole lot about it. Unlike Gruden, Simms has class. But enough is enough. If Simms has to apply a little media pressure to get his release, then so be it. It should have come a long time ago. Good luck Chris. I'll miss you.

[CVal]

Hey, you know what happens when the entire opposing d-line gets penetration thru a soft o-line? Balls get batted down and QB's get nearly killed. Tired of the baloney comments from people who mimic other idiots and didn't even see those games. Tired of people who say they're Buc fans and show such disrespect for a player who gave his all. I have no idea if Simms will ever play again or be great, but he deserves respect, regardless. Unlike his bashers, he earned it!

[DR]

Bashers or truth tellers? It's time to face the truth CVal and Nick. The fact is, even in college, Simms couldn't beat the big teams on the schedule. There were times he should have been yanked and you wonder if his last name was a factor, I think it was. Applewhite outplayed Simms and was an afterthought for some reason. He deserves respect for playing with heart but respect as an NFL QB, he deserves none. He has nice arm strength but his wind up didn't help him out. Most QB's get pressured in the NFL and to say that when he wasn't pressured he did well, it proves my point. If you pressure Simms early, he was done for the game because he can't handle the pressure. His downfield reads were terrible and he had way too many balls batted at the line of scrimmage. That means he couldn't read the passing lanes and/or his release was too slow. I got my money on Grad seeing the field before Simms.

Enough with the he couldn't win the big game in college crap. Only a moron worries about rather or not a QB won the big game in college cause if that were the case Peyton Manning would be bagging grocery. Bottom line is that he just doesn't fit in the system and we can tell nothing more or nothing less from Chris Simms play in TB. The O-line sucked like someone pointed out earlier which is why the guy nearly got KILLED!!! And for all of you that think Griese is the answer I only have one thing to say, "With the number one pick the Tampa Bay Buccaneers select..."