Bucs
Bryant Making A Positive Impression
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Published: June 19, 2008
TAMPA - The Bucs raised a lot of eyebrows by signing oft-troubled WR Antonio Bryant. Ever since, the one who has been raising eyebrows has been Bryant.
Seemingly eager to prove that he still has a lot of good football left in him - and at the age of 27, he should - Bryant is close to establishing himself as a potential starter for the Bucs.
"He's probably been one of the two or three best guys we've had working at wide receiver," Bucs pro personnel executive Doug Williams said.
"He's got a great passion for the game, and he really missed it. You can see that in him. He's hungry and he's showing us that he really wants to be here and be a part of this team."
Before signing with the Bucs, Bryant hadn't been a part of any football team for nearly a year. The 49ers were his last club, but they let him go in March 2007 after Bryant had a run-in with Coach Mike Nolan.
A similar exchange with Bill Parcells resulted in the Cowboys trading Bryant to the Browns in 2003. The Browns then let the 2002 second-round draft pick leave via free agency after the 2005 season.
A league suspension that was tied to Bryant's arrest on a DUI charge in 2006 may have contributed to his absence from the game last year, but he's back now, and the Bucs seem very pleased with him.
"I'll tell you, Antonio Bryant has really been impressive," Bucs coach Jon Gruden said this week. "We really like the things Antonio Bryant has done here, so we'll see how it works out."
Bryant is fighting Michael Clayton, Maurice Stovall and Ike Hilliard at receiver, but others are in the mix, too, including second-round draft pick Dexter Jackson, Paris Warren, Cortez Hankton and Chad Lucas.
"We may not be as bad at that position as a lot of people thought," Williams said.
A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC: With a Monday night game against Seattle on the schedule this year, the Bucs have plans to alter their training camp schedule to include a night practice.
Gruden didn't offer specifics on when such a practice would be held or whether there might be more than one.
"I want to see our new punt returners and kick returners handle the ball in the lights," he said.
WORDS OF WARNING: DT Dre Moore was one of the players who came to the rookie minicamp last month in less than top physical condition. He still isn't in the kind of shape the Bucs expect, and Gruden issued a few words of warning to him.
"He still has a long way to go to master playing pro football in this area of the country," Gruden said of Moore, a Charlotte, N.C., native who played his college ball at Maryland. "He's going to have stamina issues until he gets himself into great shape.
"And I think every defensive lineman, every 320-pound guy, will tell you that. But he's working at it. It means something to him and he's in good hands with strength and conditioning coaches Curtis Schultz and Mike Morris."
BOWLING BREAK: The Bucs took a break from their minicamp activities Wednesday to go bowling at Pin Chaser Bowling Alley.
"It's a nice break ... we get a little work, but it's fun. Even though football is fun, it's a lot of hard work," DE Greg White said.
FB B.J. Askew felt the same way. "Coming here was great so we can take a load off our bodies, let it rest a little."
Besides the rest, it was a way for the team to bond through another type of competition.
"We're hanging out with each other," White said, "but we still want our bowling team to win."
Roy Cummings, Steven Hinton
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