Denver’s John Lynch didn’t like being dumped by the Bucs (to put it mildly), but he understands the NFL is all about business. And that’s the same mind-set he’s bringing in his return to Tampa.
By JOEY JOHNSTON
The Tampa Tribune
(c) Tampa Bay Times. Originally published Sept. 29, 2004.
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Devoted Denver Broncos fans know all about The Broncos Store, located a few deep post patterns away from the team’s training facility.
It has everything. Bronco earrings. Bronco caps. Bronco T-shirts. Bronco playing cards.
And, of course, a flood of authentic Bronco team jerseys. Jake Plummer’s No. 16. Champ Bailey’s No. 24. Rod Smith’s No. 80. Not to mention a popular new item — John Lynch’s No. 47.
“One of our hottest sellers,” said Sue Kissel, the store manager. “We’ve actually had so many visitors from Florida stop by, dozens and dozens. They tell us, “We’re buying John Lynch’s Bronco jersey to wear to the Buc games. That’s our protest.’ Some of them seemed really angry.
“My goodness. What happened down there?”
It’s a question that should bubble to the forefront again this week, as the Broncos (2-1) prepare for Sunday’s game against the Bucs (0-3) at Raymond James Stadium. Lynch, a five-time Pro Bowl safety, signed a free-agent contract with Denver last March after his unceremonious release from the Bucs, his NFL home for 11 distinguished seasons.
Lynch has settled nicely into his role of Bronco team leader and hard-hitting safety. Already, he was fined by the league for a bone-jarring collision with Kansas City’s Dante Hall. Against Jacksonville, with the Broncos desperately needing late-game possession, Lynch torpedoed into Jaguars receiver Jimmy Smith, knocking the ball loose and preventing a first down on a third-and-6 play.
“You’d have to be a complete idiot not to see that John is all the way back as an impact player,” Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said. “He hasn’t lost a thing. It’s almost like he knows what’s going to happen before it happens. He’s playing great.”
And the Bucs are not.
Lynch has noticed from afar.
“I have not been rooting against the Bucs,” Lynch said. “It’s not like that at all. I don’t take pleasure [in Buc losses]. I hope they win every week, except this week.
“Some of my best friends are still on the team. But [this week] it has to be about business. I don’t want to be bitter. I have moved on. Do I think the Bucs made the right decision? Absolutely not. Do I think they’ll regret it? Yes, I do.”
Didn’t See It Coming
Lynch, 33, didn’t want to leave. Coming off surgery to repair recurring neck and shoulder injuries that hampered his 2003 season, he believed all along that the remaining two years on his contract would be restructured to alleviate salary-cap concerns and keep him in Tampa Bay.
“Maybe I was stupid,” he said. “Maybe I was naive. I know these are tough decisions and there’s no easy way. But I still think it didn’t have to be handled the way it was handled.”
For months, Lynch’s agent, David Dunn, said he didn’t foresee a problem. Talks moved along normally. So what changed?
Lynch heard rumblings. He sensed bad vibes. So he called Bucs coach Jon Gruden. “What’s going on? Do you still want me on your team or not?” Lynch remembers asking. He didn’t get a direct answer. They talked a few moments, then Bucs general manager Bruce Allen, on the job for two months, was called to the phone.
That’s when Lynch knew.
“The GM said, “How do you want to handle this?’ ” Lynch said. “Like the announcement, the press conference or something. He said, “These things are always tough.’
“I was stunned. I mean, I’ve been a part of this thing, building up our defense, winning a Super Bowl and all that.
“This is my team. This is my home. I’ve got a pretty big stake in this. And here’s the GM, a guy who just came in, asking me, “How do you want to handle this?’ It was really hard to take.”
Allen, who expressed confidence in Jermaine Phillips’ ability to become a full-time starter, has shied away from detailing specifics about his conversations, deferring to Lynch. Then, as now, he says it was “the best resolution for both sides,” and he’s pleased that Lynch “appears to be happy.”
So how does Lynch explain it?
On his injury:
Lynch said Robert Watkins, one of the nation’s most prominent neck and spine specialists, gave him a clean bill of health. Watkins never was contacted by the Bucs.
“I’d say that’s odd,” Lynch said. “You expect them to seek another opinion, but at least talk to the man [Watkins]. I think they were just hiding behind the injury thing. They said they were concerned I couldn’t pass a physical. Well, I passed 15 physicals on free-agent trips.
“Don’t put it on the physical. If you’ve made a decision about not wanting me, be a man about it and tell me. I’m not going to pass a physical? That’s simply not true.”
Shanahan said Broncos doctors thoroughly tested Lynch and there were no reservations about his neck or ability to resume his career.
On his contract:
What about playing for a reduced salary, lessening Tampa Bay’s financial burden?
“That was never offered,” Lynch said. “I never wanted to be greedy. I was willing to talk about it, to finish my career in Tampa, for all the right reasons. Apparently, that never was a possibility, in their minds.
“What was said, by the GM, was him telling me there’s more dignity in maybe being traded. Obviously, they wanted to get some value out of me. I said, “Let’s not talk about dignity here. Just let me go.’
“He offered to meet me out in Phoenix and talk it through. I didn’t see the point in that. It was over.
“On one hand, they’re saying I can’t pass a physical. Then they’re saying they want to try and trade me? That’s when I kind of lost it. Don’t play that kind of game with my career.”
Gruden said he would have preferred for Lynch to finish his career as a Buc.
“In these modern salary-cap times, man, sometimes you’ve got to do some things you really don’t want to do,” Gruden said. “I’d like to give all my players $10 million. It hurts to lose a guy like John Lynch or Warren Sapp [who signed with the Oakland Raiders]. I love those guys.”
Lynch said there’s no lingering resentment toward Gruden (it appears different with Allen, whom he continually referred to as “the GM”).
Either way, business is business.
“Jon Gruden helped put a Super Bowl ring on my finger,” Lynch said. “I always understood him for what he was, a tremendous football coach, a tremendous leader. It’s not a character flaw, but when you’re not on his team any more, you don’t exist. I never had illusions to the contrary.
“I really got caught up in Jon’s fiery speeches and the way he motivated us. When he came [to the Bucs], I remember saying to a teammate, “Can you believe this guy? This is unreal. I’d go through a wall for him.’ He just told me, “No matter what, don’t ever forget we’re just pawns in his game here.’ And I guess that’s true. That’s the NFL. Sometimes, you just have to move on.”
Embraced By Broncos Teammates
Lynch, while allowing that he and his family miss Tampa, said his career has been re-energized by the move to Denver.
The good feelings appear mutual.
“The cure for what ails Broncomania is John Lynch,” Denver Post columnist Mark Kiszla wrote in May. “In an era when athletes want all of the money and none of the responsibility, Lynch volunteers to be a role model.
“Lynch is the greatest heist in the name of Denver sports since the Avalanche stole hockey icon Ray Bourque, who was more Boston than a tea party. When the Broncos pirated Lynch away from Tampa, it was as if [Mike] Shanahan smuggled all the water from the bay while riding out of Florida on a manatee with Bern’s Steak House in his pocket.”
Got the picture? There’s more.
“Having John here reminds me of my time with the Redskins, with Darrell Green,” Broncos cornerback Champ Bailey said. “Both have such great presence, on and off the field. It’s awesome for us, but I have to wonder what Tampa Bay must have been thinking.”
“We like him here,” Broncos safety Kenoy Kennedy said. “He’s still got it. I think the Bucs are going to be feeling him [in Sunday’s game]. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had the best game of his career.”
Lynch said it may seem strange in the visiting locker room, just as it was bizarre to initially see himself in Bronco blue and orange.
He’ll look forward to greeting old friends in the postgame. Between the lines, it’s about getting Denver to 3-1.
“You never forget relationships,” Lynch said. “I still have those Monte Kiffin teachings swirling around in my head. It’s almost like I needed a translator sometimes because I was going back to the way we called [defenses] in Tampa.
“When they [the Bucs] play great defense, it still makes me proud. You had a hand in creating a standard that they live by.”
When Lynch departed he said, with great emotion, that he would “always be a Buc in my heart.”
Does that still apply?
“The Bucs defined a lot of who I was as a player and a person,” he said. “I didn’t get the ending there I would’ve liked. You never forget your friends and your memories.
“But I don’t have trouble distinguishing my loyalties. I’m a Bronco now. We’re going down there to kick some butt. I’m sure they feel the same way toward me.”
