Buccaneers cornerback Carlton Davis said that anyone doubting the team’s ability to compete in the wake of Tom Brady’s retirement is due for a rude awakening and outperforming any low expectations will require others stepping up to fill the leadership void that the quarterback left behind.
Left tackle Tristan Wirfs shares Davis’ rosy view of the team’s immediate future and he’s throwing his hat in the ring on the leadership front as well. During an appearance on the Vikes Verified podcast, Wirfs said that he does not feel “even close” to Brady’s level of leadership but is “trying to be somebody that the younger guys can kind of lean” on as they head into the 2023 season.
“I’ve really been doing my best this offseason throughout all these OTAs and throughout this minicamp just to be a little bit more vocal,” Wirfs said. “Because I feel like even through college, I’ve never been an extremely vocal leader. I’ve always been kind of a lead-by-example kind of guy – go almost under the radar. I feel like now it gets to a certain point where now I kinda got to take over.”
The eventual winner of the quarterback competition between Baker Mayfield and Kyle Trask will carry heavy leadership responsibilities, but Wirfs and other remaining members of the team’s Super Bowl champs will play an important role in bridging the gap from those days to what the team hopes will be a bright future.
John Lynch finally made it into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the Class of 2021, in his ninth year of eligibility and his eighth year as a finalist. Hall of Fame receiver Terrell Owens said he believes Cowboys safety Darren Woodson should be in Canton over Lynch, a safety for the Buccaneers and the Broncos in the same era as Woodson.
“I’m thinking about a guy like Darren Woodson that’s not in the Hall of Fame, but John Lynch is. How in the hell do you quantify that?” Owens asked rhetorically, on Fubo Sports’ Getcha Popcorn Ready.
Hall of Fame receiver Andre Reed, who appeared as a guest with Owens, agreed that Woodson “no doubt” should be in the Hall of Fame.
Woodson and Lynch’s careers overlapped by 11 seasons. Woodson was named All-Pro three times to twice for Lynch, though Lynch’s nine Pro Bowls were four more than Woodson. Neither was all-decade. Woodson won three Super Bowl rings and Lynch one.
“When I got with the Niners, like I said, I didn’t know anything about no rivalry with the Cowboys and the Niners, I knew nothing about that,” Owens told Reed. “But when it comes to the game plan [it was about where is Woodson]? Granted John Lynch did some great things here and there, but I’m not looking for John [on the field]. I wasn’t. But when I played from my rookie year on, and I played against the Cowboys, I had to identify [where Woodson was]. Just because a guy starts on a defense and he is the No. 1 guy back there in the secondary for that defense, for me overall in totality, that doesn’t mean he’s impacting what I’m going to be doing. Yeah, he has to be accounted for that day because you’re game planning, but I wasn’t scared of No. 47 (Lynch]. And when I was with the Eagles and he was with Denver at the time [shrugs].”
Woodson got a step closer to Canton this year, becoming a finalist for the first time.
The recent New York Times article regarding the latter days — and financial cost — of Tom Brady’s failed relationship with FTX includes a little news about his other crypto-style venture, Autograph.
Per the Times, Autograph “has also struggled.”
Revenues “sank” last year due to the collapse of the crypto market, causing the focus of the company to shift away from marketing crypto tokens and to “helping celebrities find ways to foster loyalty with their fans.” The company’s marketing efforts have dumped some crypto-relevant language, such as “NFT.”
Likewise, Autograph has laid off more than 50 employees.
Brady has attempted to turn his football fame into different types of revenue. It’s unclear how well the efforts are going. FTX was an embarrassing disaster that has left him facing significant civil liability. Autograph is retooling on the fly. The grand vision to make TB12 facilities as commonplace as the Golden Arches has never come close to reality. And who knows how many people are buying Brady-brand underwear or whatever else he’s selling?
Look, there’s no dispute that Brady has won the game of life in a blowout. But his non-football ventures haven’t come close to touching his on-field success. It remains to be seen whether he ever stumbles across something that will.
Tom Brady had well-documented distractions during his final year with the Buccaneers (and, presumably, his final year in football). More details are emerging about one of them — the collapse of crypto trading platform FTX.
Per the New York Times, Brady made an “urgent phone call ” during last November’s collapse to FTX executive Sina Nader, the head of the company’s partnerships. Nader, who was in the middle of a crisis meeting with FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, didn’t take the call.
“I never would’ve expected to decline a call from Tom Brady,” Nader told the Times.
FTX had paid Brady $30 million, most in stock, to endorse the company. His ex-wife, Gisele Bundchen, had received $18 million in FTX stock. After the company collapsed, the stock became worthless.
Per the report, Brady and Bundchen would have paid taxes on at least some of the stock.
Brady and Bundchen also have been sued by FTX customers who lost money due to alleged fraudcommitted by the company.
They both have a lot more money than $48 million. But, still, $48 million is $48 million. The fact that the collapse of FTX happened in November 2022, not long after Brady and Bundchen divorced, expands the major distractions that he was dealing with last season.
Buccaneers cornerback Carlton Davis believes Tampa Bay is being severely underestimated heading into the 2023 season.
Davis told Tyler Dunne of GoLongTD.com that the departure of Tom Brady absolutely does not mean the Bucs are no longer contenders.
“We’re about to do it to ‘em,” Davis says. “Anybody who feels we’ve lost Tom — and lost something — is going to be in for a rude awakening . A rude awakening. Tom was a great addition for us, but obviously it’s a team sport. Obviously, you need components to be successful. We still have those components. And I’m only getting better.”
Davis indicated that the Bucs’ defense is ready to step up even if the offense takes a step back.
“We’re going to wreck shit. Like, wreck shit. Interceptions. Turnovers. Plays will be made. I will say. Plays. Will. Be. Made,” Davis said.
Heading into his sixth season in Tampa Bay, Davis is one of the longest-tenured Buccaneers. In his three seasons with Brady as his teammate, Davis and the Bucs won the NFC South three times. In his three previous season, the Bucs missed the playoffs three times. But Davis thinks he and his teammates can show they were more than just Brady’s team.