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Buccaneers-Packers Preview: The Power Of Bruce Compels You!

Posted: 6th November 2009 by JC De La Torre in NFL
So it's come to this for the fans of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Hoping that creamsicle and a less-than-masculine looking winking pirate can bring you luck in ending one of the longest losing streaks in the franchise's sordid history. Yes, Bucco Bruce has risen up from Davey Jones locker. Orange will again be in fashion in Tampa Bay. While the fans are hoping for some magical redemption in the "Pastel Foot ...

Buccaneers: One Is the Loneliest Number

Posted: 2nd November 2009 by JC De La Torre in NFL
Then there was one. Yes fans, your Tampa Bay Buccaneers are now the only win-less team in the National Football League, thanks to the Rams winning on the road in Detroit, and the Titans rising from the dead like a Halloween ghost, and thrashing the Jags. For Buccaneer fans, the humiliation doesn't get much worse. At the beginning of the season, it was whispered about in hushed tones. "The Bucs could be ...

An NFL Rookie QB Barometer For The Bucs’ Josh Freeman

Posted: 29th October 2009 by JC De La Torre in NFL
Since the 1995 NFL Draft, there's been 35 quarterbacks chosen in the first round of the NFL Draft. Many of the League's franchises have done it differently during that time. Some throw their rookies right into the fire in a sink or swim type scenario. Others coddle their quarterbacks, not playing them for several years. Now that Buccaneers Quarterback Josh Freeman has ascended to the throne, let's take a look at how ...

Rays Fans Don’t Have a Dog In This World Series Fight

Posted: 26th October 2009 by JC De La Torre in MLB
For Rays fans, it's probably the worst outcome possible. The Yankees versus the Phillies in the World Series. It may be hard for those outside the Tampa Bay area to understand, but there's something nasty about Tampa Bay fans feelings toward New York and Philadelphia. First, let's talk Yankees. There's good reason for Rays fans to hate the Yankees. The Yankee fans (not all but many) are some of the most obnoxious ...

Bucs-Patriots: Bucs Are Free Fallin’

Posted: 26th October 2009 by JC De La Torre in NFL
So I gave it a day to collect my thoughts on another Buccaneers debacle - now the entire world (or at least England) knows how bad this team is after the 35-7 drubbing by the New England Patriots. Come now. Could their have been any other result? Truth be told, the Buccaneers were beaten by New England before boarding the plane to Old England but you've got to give these young ...

Lightning Goalie Mike Smith May Finally Have His Groove Back

Posted: 24th October 2009 by JC De La Torre in NHL
The final result won't be to his liking, but Tampa Bay goaltender Mike Smith may enjoy it anyway. Tampa Bay's top netminder has finally had the cobwebs or rust or whatever it has been that has kept him from performing at his peak performance for the Lightning and has put to back consecutive fantastic outings between the pipes for the Lightning. After making 32 saves in Tampa Bay's 5-2 destruction of the ...
I can safely say that never in my wildest dreams did I expect my 100th article for Bleacher Report to be about the winless Bucs heading over the pond to face a New England Patriots team that just beat Tennessee 59-0. I expected more out of this team, perhaps reading too much into the hype that was Raheem Morris. Believing the comments from guys like Michael Clayton that Jon Gruden was ...

The Wright Stuff: Tampa Bay Lightning Rookie Ascends to the Top Line

Posted: 22nd October 2009 by JC De La Torre in NHL
For 19-year-old James Wright, it's a fantasy world. After being drafted in the fourth round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft from the Vancouver Giants of the WHL, the Saskatoon native figured he would be toiling in juniors and the minors for quite some time. He wasn't a scoring force like Steven Stamkos or a large bruiser like Victor Hedman. He was just a kid who played with a tremendous work ethic ...

Buccaneers-Panthers: Bucs’ Defense Giveth, Then Taketh Away

Posted: 19th October 2009 by JC De La Torre in NFL
Oh how tough it is when you are an NFL head coach in search of your first career victory. Some coaches get it right away and don't have to feel that pressure. For others, like Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris, it can take a little while and now Morris is six weeks into the season. This one definitely has to hurt. The Bucs defense and special teams erased a 14-point deficit to ...

Ohlund and the Improved Defense Has Led to Lightning’s Resurgence

Posted: 11th October 2009 by JC De La Torre in NHL
The Tampa Bay Lightning notched their first victory of the 2009-10 campaign, beating their nemesis, Carolina, 5-2. Going into the game, the Hurricanes had won eight straight meetings with the Lightning, but it wasn't going to happen this night. While Ryan Malone and his hat trick will get all the press, it's really the Lightning's defense that was the difference and has been the difference all of this young season. For those ...