FanPost

Gruden/Dungy

I come here as a Buc fan, but many in Tampa, including myself, have a great deal of respect for Tony Dungy. The way Dungy carries himself on and off the field is top notch. The Colts take on his calm persona and his ability to treat men as men earns his players respect. He also knows defensive talent when he sees it and his game planning and strategizing are vastly underrated.
Coaches who yell, like Gruden, can be effective also, especially if they know their stuff and work long hours like he does. Unfortunately the message wears thin after some time. Being a hard *ss works in college because of turnover every three to four years. Yelling and public humiliation will grate on players after three or four years in the pros (see Bill Parcells and Larry Brown NBA) so either the coach leaves or the team gets turned over. In the Bucs and Jon Grudens case, the team has turned over with just three players, Brooks, Barber and Kelly, left over from the team that won the SB in 2002. It's not a bad thing having a young, fast defense, sprinkled with veterans. Gruden also has his veteran QB who can run his complicated playbook. There are a few guys who actually benefit from the coach being a task master or they stand up to the coach and take their respect as Garcia has. The D is run by Monte Kiffen and he also helps select D players. Keep your eye on Rudd and Phillips this Sunday for some hard hits. I expect a closer game than most predict.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Stampede Blue's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Stampede Blue's writers or editors.