Jake Plummer never showed up at the Bucs training camp headquarters Thursday. Neither did Daunte Culpepper. Simeon Rice showed, but he didn't stick around for very long.
Less than three hours after checking in at the Celebration Hotel, Rice was cut from the Bucs roster and forced to check out in a move that stunned many and left some players visibly disturbed.
"[Derrick] Brooks was almost in tears," said Rice, who ran into the Bucs long-standing weakside linebacker in the hotel parking lot just minutes after being told of his fate.
The move came just a few hours after the Bucs set the stage for their action by signing rookie defensive end Gaines Adams, their 2007 first-round draft pick, to a six-year, $46 million contract. Adams was expected to work primarily behind Rice, who was coming off a season-ending left shoulder injury. However, Rice's departure means Adams will immediately step in as the starting right end.
"I wish Gaines all the best, but he's got some big shoes to fill," Rice said shortly after he was let go. "I'm the best that ever did it and they never gave me my props."
Rice came to camp as the NFL second-leading active sacker with 121. He recorded 69.5 of those while with the Bucs and helped lead Tampa Bay to its lone Super Bowl title in 2003.
He was, however, coming off a season ruined by a left shoulder injury that still had not healed and threatened to keep him from participating in camp drills for at least another three or four weeks.
As a result of the shoulder injury, Rice failed the team's training camp physical. He thus joined middle linebacker Shelton Quarles as veterans who have recently been released because of their inability to pass a physical.
"He could have gone on the [physically unable to perform list], but we felt now was the time to make a decision," Bucs general manager Bruce Allen said. "If you drag it on, then it would not be fair to Simeon."
Rice said the Bucs treated him unfairly in letting him go. He argued that he played hurt last year when other players would have quit and feels his determination was not rewarded. And while Allen suggested there's a chance Rice could one day return to the Bucs, Rice all but ruled that out, vowing to join another team and prove the Bucs erred in letting him go.
"I want to play for someone who will respect me," he said. "I never got my respect in Tampa - ever. They came to me today like I was a rookie. No one is going to do what I did."
The Bucs, who ranked next-to-last in the league in sacks last year, are confident Adams can do what Rice did. They also believe additions such as end Kevin Carter will aid their pass rush.
"I feel we definitely improved it over last year," Allen said of the Bucs pass rush. "Everything we've seen this offseason would demonstrate that. And some of the ideas our coaching staff has come up with should prove beneficial."
The Bucs are expected to make more use of three-linemen, four-linebacker sets this year, in part because players such as linebacker Patrick Chukwurah are adept at rushing the passer from the middle level.
The loss of a healthy Rice could be difficult to replace, however. He averaged more than 10 sacks a year during his tenure in Tampa and walked away from the team ranked 13th all-time and third in team history in that category. Despite those numbers, Rice said he was asked to accept a pay cut. When he expressed displeasure with that notion, he and his $7.25 million salary were cut from the books.
"I've got too much standing for that," said Rice, who came to the Bucs in 2001 on what was more or less a tryout basis, agreeing to play for $1 million for the season.
Rice quickly proved himself worthy of a larger deal, recording 11 sacks and two forced fumbles during the 2001 season. The result was a five-year, $41 million deal that proved to be as controversial as it was lucrative.
Rice was always a controversial figure with the Bucs. Near the end of the 2003 season he said some players were "still waiting for the rest of the confetti to come down" following their Super Bowl celebration.
He also complained about Coach Jon Gruden and argued the coaching staff had become soft.
A year later, he found out just how tough Gruden can be when he was sent home from a game in San Francisco after missing a team meeting.
A free spirit, Rice was also sent home from the 2004 Pro Bowl by NFC coach Andy Reid for missing practice and poor conduct.
Might have lost a step and be redundant with KGB on the roster. Would the Packers benefit with him???
