Matthew Emmons-US PRESSWIRE

TampaBay Buccaneers CB Aqib Talib has been suspended for four games for violating the NFL’s policy on substance abuse.

Talib apparently was caught taking the medication Adderall  without a prescription. The CB released a statement:

Around the beginning of training camp, I made a mistake by taking an Adderall pill without a prescription,” Talib said in a statement released by the team. “This is especially regrettable because, for the past several months, with Coach Schiano’s help, I’ve worked very hard to improve myself — professionally and personally — as a player and a man. I am truly sorry to my teammates, coaches and Buccaneers fans, and I’m disappointed in myself. I will work diligently every day of this suspension to stay in top football shape and be ready to help this team in the second half of the season. I have chosen to be immediately accountable for the situation I put myself in, which is why I will not exercise my appeal rights and will begin serving the suspension immediately.

This means the Bucs will be without Talib Sunday when the Chiefs come to town. An unfortunate situation for the Bucs could be a break for the Chiefs. Tampa’s secondary has struggled so far this season but Talib has played well.

Tampa’s defensive line is pretty good so they will likely focus on trying to stop KC’s running game. If Brady Quinn and the KC receivers can find a way to take advantage of the banged up TB secondary early, things should open up in the running game.

September 30, 2012; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Josh Freeman (5) calls a play during the first quarter against the Washington Redskins at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE

While many posts and time have been spent this week getting to know the Chiefs new starting quarterback, Brady Quinn, it’s time to turn our collective attention on Sunday’s enemy: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Coming off a bye week, the Bucs have had an extra week to refocus and concentrate on the Chiefs.* The time off should also be used to clear their minds from what could have been. After winning their first game of 2012 against division rival Carolina Panthers, 16-10, they’ve gone on to lose their next three games by just one score each: Giants 41-34, Dallas 16-10, and Washington 24-22.

*They also hope the extra week off allows the media to forget about those two weeks when they were infamous for trying to blow up kneel downs. But, of course, it’s my job to remind everyone.

Lead by new head coach, Greg Schiano from Rutgers, the Bucs are trying to create a new attitude around the team. An attitude that needed implemented after the team lost their last ten games and visibly quit on then head coach Raheem Morris, which prompted his firing at the end of the season. After making a reported run for Oregon coach Chip Kelly, they decided to hire Schiano, and although they are 1-3, the team seems stronger now than they were last year.

A reason for that strength could be how Schiano began his job with the Bucs, and that is by “winning” free agency. A number of big name additions to the roster have increased the depth and talent across the board and made this team more dangerous* on both sides of the ball.

*But not nearly as dangerous as Bucs cornerback Aqib Talib.

Offense

In 2009, the Bucs took the 6’6” Kansas State quarterback and former Grandview grad, Josh Freeman, with the 17^th overall pick. And much like the Chiefs, the Bucs want to get back to their 2010 ways. That’s because, in 2010, the Bucs went 10-6* and a big reason was because of Freeman. In his first full year as the starter, Freeman threw for 3,451 yards, 25 TDs and 6 INTs.

*Yet missed the playoffs.

It wasn’t just Freeman who had a good year in 2010. Wide receiver Mike Williams, the oft-troubled rookie out of Syracuse, had 964 yards and 11 TDs. And undrafted free agent LeGarrette Blount* had 1,007 yards rushing with 6 TDs, the first time a running back had rushed for over 1,000 yards in a season since Cadillac Williams in 2005.** At the end of the 2010 season, it looked like the Bucs were on the verge of reclaiming the NFC South with an assortment of young talent all over the field. Sound familiar?

*Not because of talent, but he just liked to punch people. Like this time in college, or this time in Titans mini-camp.

*Any guesses on who the leading passer in 2005 was for the Bucs? Two hints: 1) it was the son of a legendary Super Bowl winning quarterback. 2) It’s not Brian Griese.

But like the Chiefs, the success of 2010 has not returned to the team since. In 2011, as I mentioned above, the Bucs lost their last ten games of the season. And the young talent that made every fan* in the Tampa Bay area excited about the future found themselves struggling. Freeman went from one of the league’s most efficient passers to throwing more interceptions (22) than touchdowns (16). Blount saw his rushing yards drop to 781, and besides the beastly run (I have to at least call it that) against Green Bay, seemed like a different runner. Mike Williams also saw his production fall to 771 yards but the biggest drop was his touchdown catches to 3.

*Dozens, if not hundreds of them. That joke is brought to you by these following blackouts.

Not wanting to risk another year of decline, the owner* opened up the wallet and improved the team’s circumstance with some big free agent acquisitions. Pro Bowl Wide receiver Vincent Jackson was brought in from San Diego, Pro Bowl guard Carl Nicks was brought in from New Orleans, and the team traded back into the first round to grab Boise State running back Doug Martin with the 31^st pick. Oh, and let’s not forget free agent tight end Dallas Clark made his way over from Indianapolis to replace the loss of Kellen Winslow Jr.

*The Bucs owner Bryan Glazer, knows about opening up the wallet, seeing as he’s also purchased a controlling interest of England’s football club, Manchester United.

Jackson added firepower to the receiving corps alongside Williams and 2010 second round pick Arrelious Benn out of Illinois. Martin was drafted to bring a different dynamic to the running game, and, by being a more complete back than Blount, earned the role of opening day starter for the Bucs. Nicks, meanwhile, reinforced the offensive line while also making it the NFL’s most expensive offensive line, with Tampa devoting $168 million to the unit over the last three seasons. From left to right: 2010 Pro-Bowler Donald Penn, two-time Pro Bowler Nicks, Jeremy Zuttah, Ted Larson and Demar Dotson is filling in for an injured Jeremy Trueblood.

So far in 2012, the Bucs are 29^th in passing yards per game (185), and 23^rd in rushing yards per game (91). Freeman is 65/119 (54.6%) for 790 yards, 5 TDs and 4 INTs. Doug Martin has 247 yards off 71 carries (3.5 ypc) while Blount has been limited to 44 yards off 13 carries (3.4 ypc). Free agent addition Jackson is leading all receivers with 16 catches for 304 yards and 2 TDs while Williams has 11 catches for 219 yards and 2 TDs. Dallas Clark is the third leading receiver with 81 yards.

Defense

Offense wasn’t the only side of the ball that needed a facelift. The 2011 Bucs defense finished 30^th in the NFL in yards allowed per game, and were the absolute worst in points allowed per game at 30.9. Not easy to win a lot of games giving up that many points. The ironic part of those statistics is that the Bucs have historically been known for their defense.*

*Tampa 2 anybody?

It can’t be denied that’s what the team has been trying to get back to. The team’s first selections in the last three drafts have been on defense with DT Gerald McCoy in 2010, DE Adrian Clayborn in 2011, and S Mark Barron in 2012. In fact, eight out of ten draft picks taken in the first three rounds since 2010 have been for the defensive side of the ball.

And with all these draft picks, a young defense is the result. McCoy* and 2009 3^rd round pick Roy Miller out of Texas make up the defensive tackle positions. At the defensive end position, it becomes a little more complicated. In a perfect world, I’m sure the team and Bucs fans alike would love to have defensive ends Clayborn and 2011 2^nd round pick Da’Quan Bowers** line up on opposite sides. Unfortunately for the Bucs, both are injured. Bowers is out with an Achilles injury (with a return late in the season possible) while Clayborn is done for the season with a knee injury suffered in the loss to Dallas. That forces Michael Bennett and George Johnson into action. Bennett started 10 games for the Bucs last season.

*Who is just trying to stay healthy this season. Hopefully he’s fixed his tackling technique.

**If you follow the drafts, then I’m sure you recognize this name for a player that was a unanimous first round pick until an injury was discovered and he continued to slide down the draft board until the Bucs took a chance on him.

At the linebacker position, the Bucs have Mason Foster, their 2011 3^rd round pick, at inside linebacker. To Foster’s right is Lavonte David, the 2^nd round pick rookie out of Nebraska. To the left is Quincy Black, the 2007 3^rd round pick out of New Mexico, who has started at least 10 games every season since 2009. While there is not a lot of experience amongst the group, the group is performing well with Foster and David leading the team in tackles.*

*Which one should expect but I remember those bad Chiefs years when our safeties were leading the team in tackles. Not good.

The defensive backfield for the Bucs is one that should be better. Aqib Talib*, the 2008 1^st round pick out of KU, and free agent pick up Eric Wright from Detroit, man the corner positions, while 2012 1^st round pick Barron and the ageless wonder Ronde Barber** make up the safety positions. But despite this talent, the Bucs are last in the league in pass defense, allowing a staggering 345.3 yards per game through the air. In comparison, the team is 4^th in the league at rushing yards allowed with 73.8 yards per game. Then again, why run when teams are having such success with the pass. Unless, of course, you have Jamaal Charles as your running back and Brady Quinn*** as your quarterback …

*Who’s own mother isn’t even a fan.

**Who my former roommate and avid Bucs fan ensures me will be a Hall of Famer and I see nothing that would disagree with that notion. He’s been good for a very long time. Wish I could say the same for his brother.

***Quinnsanity!

Special Teams

Kicker: Connor Barth* – 9/9 on FG attempts

*Yes, I’m also surprised it’s not another Gramatica.

Punter: Michael Koenen – 43.6 net punt average

***

As far as this matchup is concerned, I will say this: the toughest part of the Chiefs schedule is behind them, and if they want any chance of salvaging the season, it MUST start on the road in Tampa Bay, where my former roommate made sure I informed everyone that the cannons in the stadium don’t just fire on points, they also fire every time the Bucs enter the redzone. So let’s hope we don’t hear the cannons tomorrow.

If you haven’t heard yet, teams other than the Kansas City Chiefs are picking in the 2011 NFL Draft.  In fact, those teams play a very important role in the Chiefs’ draft since the Chiefs don’t pick in the top 5 this year.  Who the 20 teams before us pick can have a significant impact on who we draft.  So, for those wondering why I don’t think AJ Green or Julio Jones will be there for us at 21, take a look at one way I see the first round of the Draft going.
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Last year, Kansas City’s draft day neighbor was the Washington Redskins. Guiding a team with a bit of mystery surrounding them, but with a consensus need for an offensive tackle, former Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan followed suit by selecting Oklahoma T Trent Williams with Washington’s first-round pick.

The rest is written. Eric Berry went to the Chiefs at number five, while Russell Okung fell to Seattle at number six.

From www.kcchiefs.com (share this quote)

Interesting article from Josh Looney at KCChiefs.com about KC’s draft day neighbor. This year the Tampa Bay Bucs will be drafting before the Chiefs in the first round. While the Chiefs won’t be able to be totally sure who the Bucs are going to take, having a good idea of their team needs could give KC more time to mull over their possible options while they are on deck and Tampa Bay is on the clock.

There is a report out from Tampabay.com on the details of the Alex Magee trade:

We’ve learned the details of Tuesday’s trade that brought defensive end Alex Magee to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

The Bucs gave the Kansas City Chiefs a fifth-round pick for Magee, a 2009 third-round choice. But the Bucs also received a sixth-round pick back, making the net cost of the trade very little.

Magee, who will wear No. 97, will be a little bit of a project for the Bucs who are desperately trying to increase their dormant pass rush.

It isn’t really much of anupgrade but it is still an upgrade. Scott Pioli seems to value 5th round draft picks. You may remember he made very good use of two 5th round picks during last year’s draft.

He used one in order to trade back into the 3rd round to draft Tony Moeaki and he used the other to draft Kendrick Lewis.

This trade may seem insignificant now but if Pioli can work his 5th round magic again next year, it could pay off big time. Then again, Magee was a 3rd round pick himself…but we;ll ignore that for now. =)

Source: Yardbarker.com

“We’re just trying to get a little bit better each and every day.”

If you’ve watched his daily press conferences dating all the way back to last season, then you know this is a phrase that Chiefs coach Todd Haley likes to use a lot. He repeats its it over an over again as if banging on a drum searching for a beat.

If you’ve ever tried to teach yourself to do something new, whether it be playing an instrument or solving a puzzle, you know how maddeningly frustrating it can be. Early on it seems as if you will never get the hand of it. You keep making the same mistakes, you get frustrated and you think about giving up.

Then, one day, something clicks and you are starting to get it. You aren’t a master by any stretch but your taste of success, the small reward you get from even the smallest sign of progress, emboldens you enough to keep at it. You learn the value of hard work because it wasn’t easy and it didn’t happen over night. It just slowly evolved.

Last night against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Kansas City Chiefs showed signs of progress.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

Tonight at 6:30 (CST) the Chiefs will take on the Bucs and we will all be watching togehter here at AA. Be sure to join us for our live game chat. We’ll kick things off at 6:00 PM.

See you then!

Source: Yardbarker.com

If the Chiefs showed last Friday night that they weren’t yet up to the task of taking on a team like the Atlanta Falcons then they had be ready to show this Saturday that they are beyond a team like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Truth be told, the Chiefs should be expected to struggle against a team as talented as the Falcons this early in the year. To be fair, it is entirely likely that they will struggle against the San Diego Chargers in the season opener on Monday Night Football. These are superior teams with more experience players that have been playing together longer than this Chiefs outfit.

They Chiefs, because of their influx of promising young talent and coaching experience are going to be better this year.

How much better?

That is going to depend on the development of their young players and their quarterback.

That is why Saturday’s game against the Buccaneers is an excellent litmus test for the Chiefs. It will perhaps be an even better test than the 3rd preseason game against the superior Philadelphia Eagles where the starters are likely to play well in to the 3rd quarter.

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Anyway, the real news here for Chiefs fans is that the Bucs have a jillion QBs. Why is that news? Because the Chiefs don’t have a good back-up option at quarterback. Tyler Thigpen is short, and he’s a better athlete than quarterback. As for Damon Huard, it became clear to me last season that he prefers holding a clipboard to getting shellacked. Plus, neither player has impressed anyone up in River Falls. The Chiefs need a back-up quarterback, preferably one who has some long-term potential should Brodie Croyle fail.

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Since the Bucs now have seven quarterbacks and Chris Simms is reportedly healthy and throwing well, who else thinks the Chiefs should consider trading for him? After all, we didn’t draft a quarterback to compete with Brodie Croyle, and Damon Huard looked finished at the end of last season. How much could a trade possibly cost when everybody knows the Bucs have to unload a couple QBs? I mean, they have to. And he might even get cut, which would be even better for us.

This and my 3-4 idea might not happen, but both make some sense to me. Anyway, had to give you something to chat about on my way out the door.

Tell us what you think of Simms in Red and Gold?