Exclusive Bucs coverage by Gary Shelton Sports

In the NFL, turnarounds do happen

August 9, 2019 general

Monday, 4 a.m. Imagine the Bucs being good. More importantly, imagine them being good now. It’s hard, I know. You have to suspend a lot of disbelief that the franchise has built up over the years. You have to picture a lot of things going right. You have to envision Bruce Arians as a miracle […]

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View from the golf cart: Hoping to win

August 8, 2019 general

Thursday, 4 a.m. Bruce Arians isn’t asking for much. Just to win. Arians, who coaches his first Bucs’ game Friday night against Pittsburgh, would like to start out well. The Steelers were 9-6-1 last year and beat the Bucs in the regular season. “A win – that’s the only reason we play the game,” Arians […]

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Might Winston be an improved quarterback?

August 7, 2019 general

Wednesday, 4 a.m. You squint to see something different, something wiser, something better. Jameis Winston stands in front of the room, speaking, and he looks much like the man who attempted to talk away another interception, another defeat, another disappointment. You hope for something different, for some special phrase he could say to convince you […]

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View from the golf cart: Arians likes running backs

August 7, 2019 general

Wednesday, 3 a.m. A year ago, there wasn’t much they could do most of the time. This year, Bucs’ coach Bruce Arians continues to like his running backs. “This is a very, very solid NFL group,” Arians said Wednesday night. “They each bring something different to the table. You can get everything done within the […]

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Bucs’ David missing with ‘minor’ procedure

August 6, 2019 general

Tuesday, 2 a.m. Jameis Winston had a good day. Lavonte David is injured. Chris Godwin had a good day. The defense lacked energy. And Bruce Arians is ready for his team to play against Pittsburgh in Friday night’s preseason game. And that’s how the Tampa Bay Bucs looked from the golf cart. Arians found the […]

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Arians pleased with the Bucs on Saturday night

August 4, 2019 general

Sunday, 3 a.m. Sometimes, maybe the job doesn’t look as daunting. Sometimes, maybe the flaws don’t seem too deep. Ask Bruce Arians, whose thought his team had a great practice on Saturday night. “Again, like I told the team, Bucs win tonight,” Arians said afterward. “That was a heck of a practice. You roll the […]

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Arians likes what he’s seen from Winston so far

August 3, 2019 general

Saturday, 3 a.m. Bruce Arians likes what he sees out of Jameis Winston. The rest of us? We’re waiting to decide. Oh, we’ve seen the flashes of excellence from Winston, too. But we’ve seen too many losses, too many interceptions and too many fumbles. It has been a trial for a Bucs’ fan who has […]

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Arians scolds receivers after night practice

August 2, 2019 general

Friday, 3 a.m. Bruce Arians likes it when the stars come out at night. In fact, he likes it when the players aspiring to be stars come out, too. The Bucs worked Thursday night as part of their training camp, and Arians saw things both good and bad in the Bucs’ practice. “I like the […]

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Can the Bucs be coordinated enough to win?

July 31, 2019 general

Wednesday, 3 a.m. Over the years, there have been great Bucs’ coaches who weren’t the head coaches. Monte Kiffin, for one. Joe Gibbs, for another. Wayne Fontes and Greg Olson and Abe Gibron and Floyd Peters and Rod Marinelli and Dirk Koetter (a very good assistant coach). Then there have been those who got lost […]

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Can Bucs’ secondary be markedly better this year?

July 30, 2019 general

Tuesday, 3 a.m. So Drew Brees was talking to Eli Manning. Whee, he said. And Matt Ryan was chatting with Jared Goff. He’s excited, he surmised. Then there was Cam Newton, who was talking to Andrew Luck. Yippee, he summed up. There was Jimmy Garappolo and Marcus Mariota, Nick Foles and Matthew Stafford, Deshaun Watson […]

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