Raheem Morris Wears The Heavy Headset

Heavy is the headset worn by head coaches in the National Football League. Raheem Morris, the youngish coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will turn 33 next month and he's finding out that decisions are a tough part of this high-profile job. Media and fans were speculating on his big impending decision, the starting quarterback job for his football team. It was supposed to come down this week, prior to Thursday's preseason home game against the Miami Dolphins. Morris has asked for a time-out. He needs more time. After Saturday's 24-23 win in Jacksonville, he really needs it. Luke McCown, Byron Leftwich and Josh Freeman are his top three signal callers and all have had their moments, which leaves Morris with a moment of his own, the need to further contemplate who will be under center in 20 days when his guys face America's team -- the Dallas Cowboys in the regular season opener. Along with the quarterback brain teaser, Morris has only 12 more days to select his entire 2009 roster. The NFL mandates that all teams reduce to 53 players by September 5. Morris will have to give pink slips to 27 men who are now in his fold. What Morris needs, what the Buccaneers need, are 52 more players like rookie Sammie Stroughter. Stroughter was the talk of training camp and is now the talk of the preseason. A seventh-round draft pick, the unheralded longshot has made the football team and he made it in spectacular manner. Stroughter returned a kickoff 75 yards against the Jaguar and caught a nine-yard touchdown pass from McCown. He's been a hustling, overachieving dynamo and Morris simply needs more like him. The Buccaneer name players, guys like Kellen Winslow Jr., Michael Clayton, Gaines Adams and just about every other player on the roster, need to follow Stroughter's lead. Stroughter has set the pace, done more than anyone on this team when it comes to unleashing flat-out "want-to." Yes, Morris needs all his players to follow Stroughter's example. But right now, there are still so many things dangling in the air. And the quarterback decision is one of them. Time is running short. Sunday, September 20 will be here before these Buccaneers know it. And Dallas is waiting.