It's Time to Leave Aqib Talib Alone. He's a Buc, and Staying a Buc.

Just like our flag, the Bucs need to stay Behind Aqib

We here at BuccaneerTalk.com are getting pretty sick and tired of hearing sports talking heads, locally and nation-wide, talking about the Bucs somehow trading or releasing Bucs CB Aqib Talib.  We've grown weary of seeing blogger websites and news publications writing about if the Bucs will trade him, and if so, where he might end up.  We can answer any question, quell any rumor, and kill any speculation with the following statement :  Aqib's not going anywhere, he's staying right here.



Aqib Talib's future was in doubt for quite some time.  And during that time, many Bucs "fans" and "followers" showed their true colors and called for the dismissal and removal of one of our best defensive players we've had since the championship days.  Without knowing the real facts about what happened the day that Aqib went to defend his sister from her ABUSIVE, CONVICTED SEX OFFENDER EX-BOYFRIEND, many people abandoned Talib and wrote him off.  Fortunately, the people who mattered the most, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, stood by his side and in our eyes, did the right thing by waiting this out, and letting the judicial process run its course, before they made a decision.

The evolution of Josh Hamilton from troubled youth, to Man-Beast

Tampa Bay Sports has a long history of abandoning young, troubled talent, and then begrudgingly watching them excel into elite players with a later team who took a chance on said player.  Case in point, the above pictured Josh Hamilton.  Its well known that he was the 1st overall draft pick, by the terribly named Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 1999 MLB draft.  He was moving along in our minor league system until his career was derailed by an automobile accident in 2001.  This started a downward spiral of injuries and drug addiction, which according to Hamilton, began with his dependency on pain prescriptions, which in turn, evolved into dependency on hard drugs and alcoholism.  While still under contract with the Devil Rays, Josh took 2004 through the first half of 2006 off, and fought his addictions.  He eventually overcame these demons enough to make a return to the Devil Rays in late 2006.  With some doubt still lingering about his fully abandoning these habits, Tampa Bay left him off of their 40-man roster, and left him vulnerable to be picked in the Rule-5 Draft. The Rule 5 draft is a means to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor league affiliate teams when other teams would be willing to have them play in the majors.  Josh Hamilton was picked 3rd overall, and within mere months, he made his Major League debut and became the MLB rookie of the month.  The rest is history.  He is now the most dominating hitter in the game.  And we simply let him slip through our grasp becuase we didn't have the patience to help him.

Talib has the talent to shut down the game's best.
Just as Larry Fitzgerald

Aqib Talib has the talent and skill-set to be one of the league's best defensive players.  Notice we didn't just limit his potential to "best defensive backs".  We said "best defensive players" because he can be that good.  Coach Greg Schiano seems to believe this as well.  With so many reports claiming that the Bucs are currently concerned about his behavior, Greg Schiano stomped that fire out pretty quickly when he exclaimed, “The thing that I can tell you is since I arrived here Jan. 26, he’s been awesome.  The way he’s worked, he’s been here every day.  I hope that it’s left behind him and there isn’t anything, and that we can move forward because, again, I can only judge people since I’ve been involved.  I can’t stick my head in the sand, as I’ve said before, but on the other hand, he’s been extremely focused here, doing everything that we asked. So I’m pleased with that and hope everything can just kind of sort itself out.”  Does that sound like a coach who's really troubled by Aqib's character?  NO.  It sounds like Schiano is doing the RIGHT THING, and giving Aqib Talib a fresh slate.

This is the NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE.  This is not the "National Upstanding Super Clean Citizen League".  If it were, we'd have no beef here.  But if this young man posesses the talent to make an impact on our ability to be a championship team, we need to do the right thing and stand behind him during the tough times.  Instead of abandoning him, we should cultivate his evolution from a young troubled youth, to a seasoned, changed-for-the-better man.  If Derrick Brooks, the golden standard for high-character in Tampa Bay Sports lore, vouches for Aqib Talib; its time that talking heads and media type start laying off this young man.  All young men make mistakes.  But real men learn from them and grow.  This is Aqib's opportunity to do just that, and the Bucs would be smart to continue to stand behind him while he does so.