Ronde Barber has been with the Buccaneers longer than any other player, preparing for his 16th season and his 200th consecutive start on Sunday. And he says he doesn’t know what to expect.
Barber told the Tampa Tribune that with a new coaching staff significantly changing things, he’s as interested as anyone in seeing what the Bucs look like when they take the field on Sunday.
“This is one of the few years, where I can’t say for certain, because I really don’t know how these coaches work yet and I don’t know how we’re going to respond to adversity under this new system,” Barber said. “Obviously, we’ve been trained to deal with it, but I was so comfortable in everything we had here before – the way the defense played, what the offense was doing. I don’t know any of that right now. I’m figuring it out day to day.”
Barber said he believes there are good players on the Bucs, but he doesn’t know if there are enough of them.
“I am cautiously optimistic, because I know we have the talent, especially the front-line, first-team guys,” Barber said. “But we have to be a deep team that understands its roles. Are we there yet? I can’t say for sure.”
Not exactly an enthusiastic endorsement. But an honest assessment.