Winning, Losing the Stafford Sweepstakes
Adam J Locascio
Tuesday October 3, 2006
The Tampa Bay Storm have lost their bid to resign their quarterback, Shane Stafford. Using the term "bid" might be a little presumptuous because Stafford was quoted on Saturday, two days before the free agent signing period had begun, as saying that he was going to be joining the Storm’s most hated rivals, the Orlando Predators.
Although Stafford told the St. Petersburg Times in May, "It's nothing against the Tampa Bay Storm and nothing against the Tampa Bay community. But, like I told Coach [Tim Marcum], Tampa Bay is the place I want to be, and if we can work things out I want to be here again," it did not appear that the Storm were even afforded a realistic opportunity to bid for Stafford’s services.
Just after the season ended, head coach and general manager Tim Marcum attempted to re-sign Stafford immediately, but Stafford refused to give Marcum a negotiating price and stated he wanted to test the free agent market.
Stafford basically rewrote the record book in Tampa, and that’s no small feat. The Storm boast five Arena Bowl titles, four of which were manned by Hall of Fame quarterback (and current Predator head coach) Jay Gruden, who basically held every notable passing record in Storm history. Entering the free agent period, Stafford and San Jose SaberCats quarterback Mark Grieb were arguably the two best free agent options available to any team looking to improve their roster this off-season.
What the Stafford signing means for current Predator quarterback Joe Hamilton remains to be seen. The signing of Stafford seems some what quizzical given that Hamilton took the Preds to Arena Bowl XX last season and took the Preds to the Conference Championship in 2005. Hamilton holds a .667 win percentage as a starter and was a second-team All-Arena selection last year.
"Our goal is to work out a deal for Joe Hamilton that will allow him to continue his career in a city where he wants to play. Joe was a great quarterback with the Predators and is a true professional. That made the decision to pursue Shane a difficult one," said Predators head coach Jay Gruden.
But why would the Preds choose to replace a proven post-season asset with someone with limited post-season success?
No one can argue with the numbers. Stafford was a fantasy football owner’s dream. He was the first quarterback to pass for back-to-back 400-yard games. His regular season stats were gaudy and impressive.
But Stafford was good for about one dropped snap per game, usually at an inopportune time. He never became the kind of quarterback that makes everyone around him better. When injuries mounted, Shane was often by himself on the field.
His regular season win percentage as a starter was only .525 (32-29), despite becoming the Storm’s career leader in completions (1,357), attempts (2,143), passing yards (15,667) and passing touchdowns (189). The Storm never even won the South on Stafford's watch.
And while Stafford racked up pinball machine-type numbers in the regular season, he was met with futility in the playoffs. In his five seasons with Tampa Bay, the Storm only escaped the first round of the playoffs once, that being in 2002 when the Storm upset the Los Angeles Avengers on the road. Under Stafford’s watch, the Storm lost 56-52 to San Jose in 2004. Similarly, in 2005, the Storm lost 62-46 to the Georgia Force. Further, in his three playoff losses as a starter, Shane was 58-for-116 (50%) with 14 touchdowns and four interceptions.
And most notably, up until this last season, the Storm had never missed the playoffs, but the unthinkable happened, and the Storm sat home for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.
Maybe it was time for a change.
The sad truth is until Stafford guides a team to an Arena Bowl title, he is, unfortunately, the Peyton Manning of the AFL. Regular season dynamo – post-season pariah.
The last time the Storm advanced out of the first round of the playoffs was in 2003 with John Kaleo as their quarterback. The Storm defeated the Detroit Fury and the Orlando Predators en route to an Arena Bowl XVII victory over the Arizona Rattlers. Stafford was playing for NFL Europe at the time and was not on the roster.
Coincidentally, the Storm have re-acquired Kaleo from the Columbus Destroyers upon hearing of Stafford’s defection to Orlando.
While Stafford will certainly be missed by the fans of Tampa Bay for his philanthropic endeavors as well as his athletic performance, the Storm might be better off having moved in a new (old) direction.
As far as the Storm go, Stafford going to the Predators was not a choice by the Storm’s front office. They made every attempt to keep Stafford in blue and gold. However, Coach Marcum shouldn’t lose too much sleep over the matter. It could be the best move he didn’t make.
Adam J. Locascio is a financial advisor in the Tampa Bay area and a Board Member of the Tampa Bay Storm Surge Fan Club. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Phoenix and is a six-year season ticket holder for the Tampa Bay Storm.
