The Football Diner Big Interview: David Tuckman interviewed by Brian Davis September 10th 2011
Hello Mr. Tuckman, I hope you are doing well?
Doing very well thank you…must say I miss the heck out of London, but I’ll be back soon enough.
How do you feel the lockout has affected the preparation for teams this season?
Really depends on which team you are talking about. I think teams that have had coaching changes (SF, Dallas, Houston, etc….) might suffer a bit early on. They just weren’t able to get the new schemes integrated during the off-season. In some cases, it can be an awful lot to learn in training camp. For the majority of teams that kept most of their coaching staff in tact, I don’t think the lockout will affect them one bit. As for teams that made deep runs in the playoffs….(Green Bay, Pittsburgh, etc…) I think the lockout might have actually helped them. A bit of time away from the game to recuperate the mind and body can be a good thing.
Which team from those with new Coaches/Coordinators/Quarterbacks, tipped to struggle, do you tip to fair the best?
Sam Bradford has a new offensive coordinator in St. Louis, but I think he’s smart enough to realize how QB-friendly Josh McDaniels is. Bradford is really intelligent – I think he’ll be fine. I wonder about SF….only because after last year, could it really get any worse? …With Peyton’s injury the AFC South should be in the Texan’s hands, but I’d be a bit worried about their defense. New players, new coach in Wade Phillips. Green Bay struggled initially when Capers came over and made the switch to a 3-4. And don’t forget Mario Williams is making the switch from DE to LB…he’s always played with his hand on the ground….in the three-point stance. Now he’s being asked to stand up in a two-point stance. He’s tremendously talented, but many very athletic players can’t make the change.
And how about the mad dash Free Agency, a good thing for the league or do you prefer the Pre-Draft format?
It was a lot of fun, but I think the pre-draft format is probably better for the players and the teams. It’s nice to know what you need before the draft.
How do you see Peyton Mannings injury affecting the Colts season? Is Kerry Collins really good enough to steer the team to a playoff berth in a tough division?
Just looked at the Colts schedule and with Collins under center, I see the Colts winning around 4 games. I really think Peyton was able to hide a lot of this team’s weaknesses and when you look at this Colts team, their shortcomings are pretty ugly. I could spend 10 minutes telling you why this team isn’t going to win very often, but basically their o-line is suspect and they can’t stop the run.
Detroit appear to be the sexy pick for this year (I was on the bandwagon before it became sexy by the way!) but how do YOU see them doing this season?
Funny, I was about 3 years too early also…I like Detroit. If they can get a consisitent running game and stay healthy, they should contend for a playoff spot. They have two of the most dominant players in the game in Calvin Johnson and Suh. It should be a fun season in Detroit.
Tim Tebow.. Where did it all go wrong? From Starter to possible 4th best QB on the roster
He is not an NFL Quarterback….I was on the record long ago saying this. He’s an amazing athlete and could contribute to a team in other ways, but I don’t believe he’ll ever be an above average starting Quarterback in this league.
Weve seen a larger number of UDFAs make roster spots this year, having a starter who was a UDFA appears to be the new sexy (thats 2 sexy references in questions so far, Im starting to worry!) What do you make of that number increasing, given the shorter amount of time Coaches have had with their players?
Remember the draft used to be a lot longer and some really good players were drafted after the 7th round…Over 120 division 1 universities means a lot of good football players. The scouting process will never be perfect and with the salary cap, it’s great for a team if they can find a “diamond in the rough” especially at the cheaper costs…also, a UDFA will often choose a team based on where they think they might fit in better.
The Philadelphia Eagles Dream Team Are you buying it?
hmmm….they’ll be good. But let’s remember, Vick played most of the games last year and if not for an awful punt, they don’t even make the playoffs. Defensive coordinators have had a full off-season to figure out how to contain Vick. He was signicantly less effective in his last 4 or 5 games as compared to his first 5. I’m also not convinced he stays healthy. So, in a word….No. I’m not buying it. Playoffs…probably….but I don’t see them getting out of the NFC
With the #1 pick of the 2012 draft the
Cincinnati Bengals …
select …
Andrew Luck…Even the Bengals can’t screw this up….or can they???
Your Super Bowl teams are?
Last season I picked Jets/Green Bay which was pretty darn good if I do say so myself, but this year I have much less conviction. I’m going on a limb…how about San Diego/Atlanta
The Bears and the Bucs will be taking part in our Annual International Series this season, tell us what you expect to see?
My producer will hate me for saying this, but I’m not impressed with the Bears….I think they take a major step backwards this year. As for Tampa Bay, I like Freeman, but I don’t think he’s quite as good as he looked last year. My gut is that these are two non-playoff teams…
David, Can we expect to see you on TV this season or hear you anywhere? And Anything else youd like to plug?
I’ve been in contact with the producers over at SKY and hopefully I’ll be on a few times this year.
Doing very well thank you…must say I miss the heck out of London, but I’ll be back soon enough.
