EDITORIAL

With the 2014 professional football season looming, many people are curious about whether the Pewter Pirates will rebound from a disappointing 4-12 season last year.
“I think that the Buccaneers will go 6-10 this season,” said Social Studies teacher Mr. Righter.
Junior Osceola football player Robert Mitchell said, “I think that they will be better but I am not super optimistic.”
I am personally optimistic about this season due to a strong defense, superb coaching staff, good management and an improved offense. First the defense: last year the Buccaneers’ defense was the middle of the pack, ranking 21 in points per game, 17 in pass defense, 16 in run defense and 5 in turnovers. After releasing star cornerback Darrel Revis in order to save 16 million dollars in salary cap space, new general manager Jason Licht spent that money on cornerbacks Alterraun Verner and Mike Jenkins and defensive linemen Michael Johnson and Clinton McDonald.
Licht also brought in ex-Bears coach Lovie Smith, who had been out of football for a year. Before being fired from the Bears, Lovie led them to the 2005 NFC divisional game, the 2006 Super Bowl and the 2010 NFC championship game. Lovie also brought with him ex-Vikings Coach Leslie Frazier, who was fired after last season.
Despite being a mediocre coach, Frazier is a stellar defensive mind and will be calling the plays for Tampa’s defense this season. By combining Frazier and the Bucs’ up and coming defense, I predict that they will be a top 5 defense this year. The Buccaneers have added many big targets to their offense this season along with a new quarterback and two new offensive linemen.
In the 2014 draft, the Bucs drafted wide receiver Mike Evans and tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins, who both stand at 6 feet 5 inches. Both will help spread out opposing secondarys so that there are more one-on-one math ups. GM Jason Licht also helped shore up an offensive line that gave up 47 sacks last season by adding new left tackle Anthony Collins, a young lineman who is very athletic. They also added ex-Packer center Evan Dietrich-Smith who will add experience and toughness to the line. There is even a new quarterback in town by the name of Josh McCown who came over from the Bears on a 2 year 10 million dollar contract. McCown filled in last season after Jay Cutler went down and tossed 13 touchdowns and only had one interception.
The man calling the plays this year will be ex-California head coach Jeff Teddford, who is in his first season calling plays in the NFL. Since it is Teddford’s first time calling plays on the professional level it will be nice to have veteran quarterback McCown on the roster to help keep the team moving forward… literally. Thanks to all of these improvements to the team, I am very confident that the team will improve off of last season’s debacle but it will still take at least another year for this team to become playoff ready.