Buccs On The Pond - Tampa Bay Buccaneers Madden 25 CFM

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An Exclusive Interview With Rhys Withenshaw

Dear readers,

If you've come this far, maybe you're willing to a little further. Okay, I admit it. That Shawshank Redemption quote has nothing to with this. If you haven't checked out that header, I'm Thorley Bishop. Some of you know may know me as the main beat writer for the St. Petersburg Press when it comes to covering the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I've also been awarded a blog to talk about the Bucs, where perhaps I can be a little less diplomatic than when writing an official story. I'm aiming to churn out at least one of these a week, where I'll have a story or an interview, or some sort of observance about our Buccs. I'll also drop in some random stuff now and then, because why not?

Anyhoo, to celebrate my very first issue I'm very pleased to present an exclusive issue with the new owner of the Buccaneers, Rhys Withenshaw!

Interview after the jump...

Thorley Bishop: The NFL season starts this Sunday. Are you excited?

Rhys Withenshaw: Excited? I haven’t talked about anything that wasn’t football for almost a week!

TB: Haha really?

RW: The wife isn’t too happy.

TB: Well I share your excitement, trust me. If I'm not mistaken, this is your first interview since purchasing the Buccaneers. Where have you been? We’ve been dying to hear from you. Why haven’t you done an interview yet?

RW: I'm not big on having a large profile, I’m a low key kinda guy, I’ve bought the team but the focus needs to be on them. Now more than ever. I was hoping to wait until maybe halfway through the season to do this sort of thing, but my PR guy has been pressing me for weeks. “You gotta do an interview, fans want to know the owner,” all that kind of thing, so here I am.

TB: Coming off a poor season a year ago, and now a less than impressive preseason, where is this team headed this year?

RW: There’s always this win-now mentality and it can be dangerous. We’re going to win, it just might take a little more time for everything to come together. If everything goes to plan then I feel we could really contend for a postseason spot.

TB: If it doesn’t go to plan…?

RW: Well, who knows? We’ve got a good young team who are learning and improving all the time, but perhaps one or two of them are still learning the nuances of what it takes to play in the NFL, and it’ll take time. But I trust the fans will be patient, hopefully they can see the direction that we’re trying to take the franchise in.

TB: The 53 man roster is fully set now, you made the final cuts a few days ago, some real surprises in there. Brian Leonard, Markus White, Tiquan Underwood, just a few of the names that people thought would be big pieces moving forward. What was the thought process behind some of the moves made?

RW: Well, when I sat down with Greg [Schiano] and we looked over the roster, one word kept creeping up over and over, which was balance. We wanted the best possible strength as a team, and some of the guys you mentioned are great guys, unfortunately though they were vying for a role in a crowded spot. There’s no point having, say, eight wide receivers who are all great, but you’ve got no depth at guard.

TB: So are you happy with the roster?

RW: I’m happy, yes. But that doesn’t mean we won’t make anymore moves. I’m gonna be combing the waiver wire diligently, I still think there’s one or two areas where we can improve the balance but I think if we were to play all seventeen weeks with this roster we’d be fine.

TB: More specifically, we’ll turn our attention to Sunday, against the Jets. First of all, quarterback. They’ll have the rookie Geno Smith, can I assume Josh Freeman will start for the Buccs?

RW: Josh is our guy, no doubt. I don’t wanna callh him our “de-facto starter” but he will start. He’s done nothing to lose the job and we haven’t seen the other guys push him as much as perhaps we would have liked, but Josh has proved his ability at this level before and we have complete confidence in him to go out there and help us win ball games.

TB: What’s the health of the team looking like right now?

RW:We’re doing good, we’re healthy, aside from William Gholston who’s got an issue with his groin, we’re all raring to go

TB: Is William Gholston definitely out then?

RW: Yeah, he’ll be out a for a few games most likely. After Sunday we’ll see where he is and how he feels before we start to put a time on anything.

TB: Our twitter is blowing up right now, we’ve got lots of questions coming in, so we’ll just run through a few real quick. This one is from Gerald Martin, and he asks if you plan to keep the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay, or is this the first step to an NFL franchise in England?

RW: I understand the concern there, where a foreign owner comes in, nobody knows him. But I’m committed to the area of Tampa, this is a proud and historic franchise. I’ve heard there’s been rumours about relocation but I don’t see that on the cards, as long as we keep getting the support from the fans.

TB: Unfortunately, we are out of time. Thank you so much for joining me, so I'll wish you the best of luck for Sunday, I know I'll be cheering from the sideline, and hopefully we can do this again.


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A Major thanks to Rhys Withenshaw for giving up some of his precious time and answering all of our questions. He is a true gentleman and was incredibly patient with my attempts to pronounce his name correctly.

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Bishops' song of the week:



To celebrate the return of the NFL season, I've gone with "The Boys Are Back" by Dropkick Murphys, because It's been a long time coming, but the boys are back this Sunday!

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Next Game:

Who: Jets

When: 1PM

Where: MetLife Stadium, NYJ

Coverage: FOX

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Matchup Preview *|* September 8, 2013
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-0, Away)		New York Jets (0-0, Home)
Injury Report DE William Gholston (Groin) Out OLB Calvin Pace (Thumb) Out ILB Nick Bellore (Upper Arm) Out Game Notes Darrelle Revis returns to MetLife Stadium as the Jets host the Buccaneers on the opening weekend of the NFL season.

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ALMIGHTY COME BUCK!

Bucs put up 20 points in the fourth to snatch week 1 victory


Above: Billy Cundiff watches his winning field goal sail through the uprights


When Buccaneers head-coach Greg Schiano was asked to describe his teams' week 1 victory over the New York Jets, he simply said "ugly". But he'll also tell you that all you need to know is at the end of the day, they are 1-0 at sunset.

It took an almighty comeback in the fourth quarter after an impressive debut by rookie quarterback Geno Smith and some staunch defense from the Jets had them leading by 14 entering the final quarter.

Quote: Originally Posted by Rex Ryan, Jets HC

It's disappointing to blow a lead like that. When it came to crunch time they made adjustments and we didn't. It happens. But there's a helluva lot of promise in this team. Geno [Smith] was awesome today, he didn't light up the scoreboard like Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers, but he took care of the football and gave us a chance to win.

Geno Smith had led the Jets to two touchdowns, one a six yard pass to Santonio Holmes in the first quarter to notch Smith's first NFL passing touchdown. Mike Goodson, who ran all over the Buccaneers defense added a second quarter score. Those two scores coupled with a field goal from Connor Barth, who was cut by the Bucs earlier in the preseason had the Jets in a promising position.

But after a scoreless third quarter, the Bucs wasted no time in the fourth quarter with Josh Freeman finding Kevin Ogletree in the endzone within the first minute of the period. After Billy Cundiff added another field goal on the subsequent drive, it was clear that the momentum was with the Buccaneers, who were stopping the Jets more frequently than earlier in the game. The comeback came to fruition when Freeman marched the Buccaneers down the field once more, before Doug Martin bundled his way over the line from seven yards out, giving the Buccaneers their first lead of the day at 20-17.

Quote: Originally Posted by Josh Freeman, Buccs QB

We made some really key adjustments midway through the game and ultimately we pulled out a win. In the first half we were looking to score on every play, and you can't do that. You've gotta work for it, we weren't and we found ourselves punting a lot. Once we clicked, you saw what we could do. We've just put up twenty points in one quarter.

Geno Smith must have thought he had at least earned overtime when Barth tied the game up with a forty-four yard field goal just before the two minute warning. But the Buccaneers weren't to be denied as Freeman led Tampa Bay into Jets territory one more time, allowing Billy Cundiff to strike from forty-one yards with just fifty-three second left.



Notes: Darrelle Revis had a quiet return to MetLife Stadium, making just three tackles. Tampa Bay Fullback Erik Lorig left the game in the third quarter with an apparent injury.

Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press

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Tampa Bay Buccaneers at New York Jets
Sep 8, 2013	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	OT	SCORE
Tampa Bay Buccaneers (1-0)	3	0	0	20	N/A	23
New York Jets (0-1)	7	10	0	3	N/A	20

Team Stats Comparison
	TAM	NYJ
Total Offense	345	372
Rushing Yards	90	133
Passing Yards	255	239
First Downs	20	18
Punt Return Yards	49	11
Kick Return Yards	44	53
Total Yards	438	436
Turnovers	1 (-1)	0 (+1)
3rd Down Converstion	2	5
4th Down Conversion	0	0
2-Point Conversion	0	0
Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	2/0	2/1
Penalties	10	5
Posession Time	22:53	37:07

Tampa Bay Buccaneers PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Josh Freeman 22/37 283 1 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Doug Martin 20 87 4.3 1 Josh Freeman 1 2 2.0 0 Mike James 1 1 1.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Vincent Jackson 4 73 18.3 0 David Douglas 4 60 15.0 0 Doug Martin 3 16 5.3 0 Kevin Ogletree 3 48 16.0 1 Mike Williams 2 38 19.0 0 Erik Lorig 2 19 9.5 0 Luke Stocker 2 14 7.0 0 Chris Owusu 1 15 15.0 0 Mike James 1 0 0 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK Davin Joseph 1 0 Carl Nicks 1 0 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Mason Foster 11 0 0 0 Lavonte David 10 0 0 0 Mark Barron 4 0 0 0 Dashon Goldson 4 0 0 0 Joe Holland 3 0 0 0 Aaron Morgan 3 1 0 0 Anthony Gaitor 3 0 0 0 Steven Means 3 0 0 0 Darrelle Revis 3 0 0 0 Gerald McCoy 3 1 0 0 Adam Hayward 2 0 0 0 Jonathan Banks 2 0 0 0 Akeem Spence 2 0 0 0 Dekoda Watson 1 1 0 0 Eric Wright 1 0 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Billy Cundiff 3/3 2/2 11 49 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 Michael Koenen 5 284 56.8 2 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Doug Martin 2 44 22.0 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Doug Martin 6 49 8.2 0

New York Jets PASSING C/A YDS TD INT Geno Smith 23/34 262 1 0 RUSHING ATT YDS AVG TD Mike Goodson 26 122 4.7 1 Geno Smith 2 8 4.0 0 Tommy Bohanon 1 2 2.0 0 Bilal Powell 1 1 1.0 0 RECEIVING REC YDS AVG TD Mike Goodson 6 72 12.0 0 Stephen Hill 4 35 8.8 0 Jeremy Kerley 3 32 10.7 0 Santonio Holmes 3 67 22.3 0 Chris Ivory 3 27 9.0 0 Bilal Powell 2 14 7.0 0 Kellen Winslow 1 15 7.5 0 BLOCKING PANCAKE SACK Vladimir Ducasse 4 0 Stephen Peterman 1 0 Nick Mangold 2 1 D'Brickashaw Ferguson 1 1 Austin Howard 3 1 DEFENSE TACK SACK INT TD Dawan Landry 7 0 0 0 Quintin Mikell 6 0 0 0 David Harris 6 0 0 0 Antonio Cromartie 5 0 0 0 Dee Milliner 5 2 0 0 Kyle Wilson 3 0 0 0 Demario Davis 3 0 0 0 Antwan Barnes 3 1 0 0 Antonio Garay 3 0 0 0 Muhammad Wilkerson 3 0 0 0 Aaron Berry 3 0 0 0 Ellis Lankster 2 0 0 0 Ricky Sapp 2 0 0 0 Jaiquawn Jarrett 1 0 0 0 Quinton Coples 1 0 0 0 KICKING FG XP PTS LONG Connor Barth 2/2 1/1 7 44 PUNTING NO YDS AVG IN20 Robert Malone 7 302 43.1 2 KICK RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Clyde Gates 2 57 28.5 0 PUNT RETURN RET YDS AVG TD Jeremy Kerley 1 11 11.0 0

[NewscasterNews4]

This is good so far. Hope you can get through more than 2 seasons. Following.

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Quote: Originally Posted by NewscasterNews4

This is good so far. Hope you can get through more than 2 seasons. Following.

Thanks man, so do I!

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NFL: Biggest Storylines From Week 1 Of The NFL

By Stan Dardjock



After all the build-up, talk and conjecture, the dust has finally settled on week 1 of the NFL regular season. We saw debuts, drama, blowouts, shutouts, wins, losses and even a tie! Here are the biggest storylines from week 1.

New Head Coaches



There were plenty of head coaches looking for their first win in charge of new teams on Sunday. Here's how they did:

Bruce Arians (Arizona) - WIN
Doug Marrone (Buffalo) - LOSS
Marc Trestman (Chicago) - LOSS
Rob Chudzinski (Cleveland) - WIN
Gus Bradley (Jacksonville) - LOSS
Andy Reid (Kansas City) - WIN
Chip Kelly (Philadelphia) - LOSS
Mike McCoy (San Diego) - WIN

Bruce Arians picked up his first win as a head coach proper, with his victories with Indianapolis not counting as technically he was only an interim coach. In the battle of the new head coaches, Andy Reid pulled out a victory over Gus Bradley's Jacksonville Jaguars 41-24.

Rookie Debut Watch



There were plenty of exciting rookies to keep an eye out for in week 1. E.J. Manuel and Geno Smith were the only starting quarterbacks new to the league, with Manuel struggling in his first NFL start against the New England Patriots. Manuel posted a QB rating of just 46.9 after completing only 13 of his 34 pass attempts (38%). In that time he was able to throw both a touchdown and an interception.

Smith looked the far better of the two on Sunday, as he posted a QB rating of 100.3, throwing for 262 yards and a touchdown without turning the ball over. It wasn't enough for a victory however, as Smith's Jets fell to the Buccaneers by three. Smith rarely threw towards former Jet Darrelle Revis, who made just three tackles on a quiet return to MetLife stadium for Revis Island.

On the defensive side of the ball, Tyrann Mathieu had a quiet day for the victorious Cardinals, though he did return a punt 29 yards in an early show of his playmaking ability. St. Louis weren't so kind on the rest of the Cardinals defense however, as Tavon Austin hauled in four catches for 55 yards for the beaten Rams.

Meanwhile, the Packers run game still hasn't come to fruition, as Eddie Lacy could manage just 41 yards from 18 carries, As the 49ers literally ran over Green Bay, with two rushing touchdowns of their own.


Separating the Cowboys from the Cowmen



The Dallas Cowboys debuted their new Tampa 2 defensive scheme against the New York Giants on Sunday. How'd it go? Well, uh...

The G-men hung forty points on the Cowboys, with Eli Manning posting a 97.6 QBR and David Wilson rushing for two scores. Antrel Rolle also added a pick-six as Tony Romo went 28/52 and was picked off twice.

At least there's always next week, right Dallas?