TAMPA, Fla. -- Think of the speed. Trust me on this.
Think of the moves. Think of linebackers diving at Warrick Dunn and coming up with handfuls of air. Think of safeties chasing Reidel Anthony across the goal line.
That draft you feel is carrying spring air. It's a time to dream. Let yourself go.
Think of the chain gang trying to call a timeout because the members are exhausted. Think of the skid marks in the grass. Think of Mike Shula getting smarter ... in a hurry.
For goodness' sakes, think of the touchdowns.
DO NOT THINK ABOUT DUNN'S size. Do not wonder if the new red jerseys come in a size extra-small. Do not think about Anthony's slenderness. Do not wonder if the new pewter pants come in a 22 waist. Do not worry about the ones who got away. Later, there will be time enough for all of that.
For now, think of the sizzle. Think of changing scoreboards. Think of Bucs who are fast rather than half-fast.
Now is not the time for reality. Later you can note that NFL linebackers, by and extra large, come in bigger portions than they do at Duke and Wake Forest. Later you can talk about how NFL safeties are a bit more punishing than they are at Vandy and Kentucky.
For now, think only of the new engines on the Bucs.
Oh, and think fast.
For a change, they are.
A FAST BUC? WHEN IS THE LAST time there was such a thing? Gary Anderson, before his arteries hardened? Kevin House? Danny Peebles? Who?
If there has been one constant to the Bucs, it has been the way they plodded toward their goals. The victories came slowly, and the players traveled to the end zone that way. The only thing that came fast was elimination.
That has all changed now. The Bucs thought so much about speed in the draft, it was a shock they did not draft Keanu Reeves. Juice, the coaches kept saying. By the end of the day, they said "juice" so much you might have thought you were in a police station near Brentwood.
OK, you want to be skeptical? In the draft, there always is room. Dunn is a small back in a league that has largely eaten them alive. (See: Dexter Carter, Eric Bienemy, Troy Stradford, plus 1.4 million others.) Anthony is a slender receiver. Yes, there is a risk involved here. Both are nice players, but it is hard not to wonder how much time each will spend in the training room due to the sheer punishment they will absorb.
YOU WANT TO SECOND GUESS? There is room for that, too. It is possible to love these picks and still wonder if the Bucs might not have been better with other selections. For instance, the Bucs actually traded up before they traded down and selected Dunn, and for a matter of seconds, found themselves with the sixth pick in what was acknowledged to be a six-player draft. Had they stayed still, they could have picked FSU tackle Walter Jones. Ask yourself: Would a draft of Jones, Anthony and Byron Hanspard been preferable to this one? How about a draft of Jones, Dunn and Joey Kent?
No, the Bucs say. They wanted Dunn desperately because they believe he is a rare and special athlete. They were concerned by the talk they heard that the Packers and the 49ers would consider moving to the 15th pick to take him.
The Bucs saw Jones as a player with one year of major competition and more of a natural right tackle than a left tackle. They saw his agent (Eugene Parker) and thought of a holdout.
"You'd have to convince me that a right tackle can win games," general manager Rich McKay said. "A left tackle keeps your quarterback out of the hospital, but I'm not convinced a right tackle does that."
McKay said he is convinced that Dunn will spend no more time in the training room -- and miss no more playing time -- than an average NFL running back. He is also convinced that Dunn will make the Bucs' offensive line look better than it did last year. A little hole might be enough.
"This will change the schemes other teams use against us," McKay said. "No doubt. We gave (Shula) a chance to get more creative. Last year we couldn't do that. We had to score on 12-play drives. That means a lot of things can go wrong: penalties or fumbles or sacks. If you have to take 12 plays to score, you're only going to do it a couple of times a game. So we had to try to win games 14-10."
CONSIDER LAST YEAR'S GAME AGAINST Minnesota. The Vikings crowded eight men inside the tackles and dared the Bucs to do anything about it. They couldn't. They looked like an infantry corps on a march with 75-pound packs.
As far as Anthony, the Bucs considered him the best receiver in the draft. They didn't like Yatil Green's lack of production, and they thought Rae Carruth lacked smoothness. They thought Anthony's big-play ability gave him the edge over Florida teammate Ike Hilliard. In fact, they thought enough of Anthony to consider taking him eighth and trying to trade up with their 16th pick to ensure getting Dunn.
So think of the upside. Why not? As a team, the Bucs scored 19 touchdowns last season in 16 games. In 11 regular-season games, Anthony and Dunn combined for 32.
What does it mean? It means the Bucs are looking at the size of these players' production more than the size of their bodies. It means safeties better back up. It means Michael Husted will try more extra points.
OH, IT MEANS OTHER THINGS, too. Errict Rhett's days as a 30-carry a game back are over. Mike Alstott will get an extra eight to 10 carries a game. Dunn will get 10 or so, plus another five receptions. Rhett has to adjust, though from the immediate whines of his agent, the odds are slim. And fans have to hold their breath every time a linebacker cracks into Dunn and Anthony.
For now, try not to think of those things. Think of things that move. Think of jets. Think of electricity. Think of Sandra Bullock on a bus.
Think of the Bucs going somewhere ... fast.
And try not to think that you have thought this before.
Gary Shelton is a sports columnist for The Times in St. Petersburg, Fla.
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