Current and former NFL coaches Jon Gruden, Tom Coughlin, Bill Cowher, Jeff Fisher and John Harbaugh are currently on the inaugural NFL-USO Coaches Tour. The group is traveling to meet and greet service members for several days in the Persian Gulf region.
Coach Gruden is describing the experience as “life-changing” for himself and his colleagues:
“You can read about what our troops are doing over here or you can watch reports on television, but none of that can compare to being here with them. It’s inspiring. I think sometimes people forget the role our military plays in keeping our country safe. There …read more

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Less than 24 hours after “dismissing” head coach Jon Gruden, the Tampa Bay Bucs promoted defensive backs coach (and recently promoted defensive coordinator) Raheem Morris to head coach. This was not the “high-profile” selection I was expecting, but given the Bucs’ history, I’m not surprised it was a coach with a defensive background. Coach Morris’ philosophy?
“I’m going to be Raheem Morris. The atmosphere changes with the person. You deal with people how you deal with people on an everyday basis. That’s what I plan to do. We’re a family. The Glazers are a family. We’re …read more

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Tampa Bay Bucs head coach Jon Gruden has been fired. The Bucs released a statement today saying coach Gruden and GM Bruce Allen had been “dismissed” (it sounds better than fired) and co-chairman Joel Glazer said:
“We will be forever grateful to Jon for bringing us the Super Bowl title, and we thank Bruce for his contributions to our franchise. However after careful consideration, we feel that this decision is in the best interest of our organization moving forward.”
“Forever grateful” sometimes means “don’t let the door hit you in the butt on your way out.” There …read more

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Tampa Bay Bucs running back Earnest Graham, who leads the team in rushing yards and touchdowns, might be finished for the 2008 season with an ankle injury. Earnest was hurt on his only carry in yesterday’s 19-13 win over the Minnesota Vikings, limping off after landing awkwardly when he was tackled after a 3-yard gain. Bucs head coach Jon Gruden was not optimistic during his presser today:
“I believe Earnest Graham’s ankle looks to be a serious injury and his status for the rest of the season is very much in question right now. It doesn’t …read more

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Tampa Bay Bucs head coach Jon Gruden has the quarterbacks. He might as well use them. Coach Gruden named Brian Griese the team’s starting QB for this weekend’s game against the Atlanta Falcons:
“We’re going to start Brian Griese in the game (against Atlanta). It’s just my opinion, and we’ve talked about it a lot with our coaches, (that) Jeff right now is not himself. We’re going to give him a week off and try to get him ready to go. Brian Griese’s a guy that’s had a good training camp. We’re going to give Brian …read more

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Rumors are heating up over Brett Favre’s potential trade to the Tampa Bay Bucs. But keep in mind these are merely rumors and with the way this whole Brett Favre “unretirement” fiasco has gone, I’m not taking anything I hear — from any source — as the next great possibility to end this slow motion train wreck that has been the divorce of Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers. Brett and his wife Deanna left Green Bay today and Brett’s agent, James “Bus” Cook, confirmed in an e-mail to The Associated Press that the …read more

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Brett Favre plans to report to Green Bay Packers training camp this weekend. He needs to apply for reinstatement via a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell first, but if he does, in fact, show up, the media will turn Packers camp into a circus. The Packers begin their 2008 training camp on Sunday.
Brett is returning with the intention of playing for the Packers (as in starting at quarterback), but the Packers haven’t changed their stance that Aaron Rodgers is their starting quarterback. So, the team gave permission to the N.Y. Jets …read more

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Tampa Bay Bucs RB Cadillac Williams was on the practice field with a trainer during the first day of the team’s minicamp this week. He’s not allowed to practice until he is medically cleared, but head coach Jon Gruden called Cadillac’s speedy comeback from last year’s knee injury nothing short of a miracle:
“It’s one of the most amazing comebacks that I’ve seen. He hasn’t come back yet, but he is banging on the door. Our fans would be proud of him. He’s ready to go now, if you ask him. He’s really putting …read more

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Tampa Bay Bucs first-round Draft pick cornerback Aqib Talib has apparently done quite well in the team’s offseason workouts and minicamps, making big plays in practice against players with a lot more experience. According to head coach Jon Gruden last week:
“He’s going to be the face of this franchise.”
That’s heavy praise from your head coach. Will Aqib live up to the billing? Upon hearing Coach Gruden’s comments, Aqib said he just wants to contribute any way he can. He’ll be battling Phillip Buchanon and Eugene Wilson at cornerback opposite Ronde Barber, where the …read more

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The Tampa Bay Bucs collect quarterbacks like football cards. It seems to be something of a hobby for head coach Jon Gruden. In taking a look at the Bucs’ current roster with the release of Bruce Gradkowski a couple days ago, there are now six QBs listed — Jeff Garcia, Brian Griese, Josh Johnson, Luke McCown, Jake Plummer and Chris Simms. The team will probably keep three. So who gets the ax next? Well, Jake Plummer is semi-retired and hasn’t played since 2006. He’s a good candidate. But Chris Simms recently told the …read more