Betting on the NFL - Tampa Bay Bucs

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Chris Simms

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Whatever happened between Gruden and The Spawn of Simms is a mystery to nearly everyone. Nearly two years ago, Simms was the unchallenged starter of the Tampa Bay Bucs, leading them to the 2006 NFL Playoffs where they eventually lost to the Washington Redskins at home. Later that calendar year, Simms dove in to the endzone, was hammered by a Carolina Panther and then rushed the hospital for a ruptured spleen.

Since that fateful day, Simms hasn’t seen the field. It’s been almost two years, and Gruden has gone in the opposite direction, signing Jeff Garcia from Philadelphia last season and securing some quarterback help by bringing in Luke McCown, Brian Griese and Josh Johnson. Garcia, now 38, is in his 10th year as an NFL player, and was selected to the Pro-Bowl. He’s cagey and sly enough to still be effective in a tailor-made offense for him. Plus, his wife is ridiculously hot, which has to count for something (p.s. – if I were a professional athlete trying to prove I wasn’t gay, I would totally secure a hot wife. It’s truly a win-win. So what if people think I’m gay? I have a super hot wife! And I’m a professional athlete! Well played, Mr. Garcia. What was I talking about?).

Simms is 27 years-old, which isn’t young by any stretch of the imagination. And with a two year absence, and a shattered confidence to boot, Simms is a tough sell for the Bucs, especially since he’s so unproven. Will teams like Chicago, San Francisco or Atlanta take a chance on Simms after so long? Only time will tell.

Still, the Bucs are favorable in NFL futures betting with a +190 to win the NFC South, even though we haven’t had repeat division champions in the South for years. Their only competition is with New Orleans as the Panthers and Falcons have far too many question marks to pose a threat. With many of their starters returning, and their resurgent defense taking care of business, the Bucs are a great value bet at +190 to win the division, though I’d take it easy on their +1400 chances of winning the NFC Championship.

The truth remains that as nice of a kid as Simms is, nobody really cares that he’s a no-show at camp. In 2006, he posted a 43.6 quarterback rating. That was two years ago. With Garcia firmly in place, the athletic Josh Johnson in the works and the enamored Brian Griese backing up Garcia, the Bucs are essentially set at quarterback.

I feel bad for Simms. I really do. He’s put in his work, but he’s not getting his due, and now he’s showing his frustration. Frankly, I hope he ends up in a situation where he can compete for a starting job, at the very least, so we can experience the awkwardness of his Dad having to commentate on his son’s games and not try and chastise him too much. That stuff was classic.