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05-04-2003, 11:44 AM
- Keyshawn Johnson gave Chris Simms his first taste of rookie hazing Friday.
``He brought up the Oklahoma game like everybody seems to,'' Simms said with a laugh.
A lack of success against the Sooners fell to second on the former Texas quarterback's list of sore subjects last Saturday, when he had to switch off the NFL draft telecast and watch basketball as team after team passed on him.
The Bucs selected Simms, the son of former New York Giants QB Phil Simms, with the final pick of the third round. The pick kept the Bucs off a long list in Chris Simms' head.
``After the first round, I pretty much said I hated every team in the NFL,'' Simms said. ``I couldn't hate Tampa Bay because they didn't have a first-round pick.''
With some help from his father, Simms has begun to look at his draft-day fall as a blessing. Gone are the expectations that followed him from Ramapo (N.J.) High to Texas, where fans treated the arrival of the nation's top high school quarterback as a prophecy that he would bring the Longhorns a national title.
``When I got to Austin, I think everybody expected me to win the Heisman my freshman year,'' Simms said. ``That was a little unrealistic. Here, I can escape to the background a little bit and learn what I have to learn.''
Simms spent Friday's workouts shadowing starter Brad Johnson. Simms likely will be the No. 3 quarterback, while Shaun King and free-agent signee Jim Miller will compete for the backup job.
JOHNSON MUM ON CONTRACT: Brad Johnson declined to discuss his contract status Friday, saying he would wait for a more appropriate time.
Johnson's agent, Phil Williams, said in March that the quarterback was angry with Bucs management for removing a $1.5 million guaranteed payout from his restructured contract. Bucs officials claim the omission was an oversight.
``Right now is not the time or the place to really bring those discussions up,'' Johnson said. BUCS ON SARS: A trip to Japan for their Aug. 2 preseason opener against the Jets has a few Bucs worried about Sudden Acute Respiratory Syndrome, but DT Warren Sapp remains unconcerned.
``SARS is in China, ain't it? China and Japan are two different things,'' Sapp said. ``I didn't flunk [geography]. Japan is this little island over here, and China is the big Communist thing over there. The Communists got the bad thing, and we're over here playing. They are two different countries.
``I don't think they can walk across to Japan, so I think we'll be safe.'
http://bucs.tbo.com/bucs/MGAG10NW8FD.html
``He brought up the Oklahoma game like everybody seems to,'' Simms said with a laugh.
A lack of success against the Sooners fell to second on the former Texas quarterback's list of sore subjects last Saturday, when he had to switch off the NFL draft telecast and watch basketball as team after team passed on him.
The Bucs selected Simms, the son of former New York Giants QB Phil Simms, with the final pick of the third round. The pick kept the Bucs off a long list in Chris Simms' head.
``After the first round, I pretty much said I hated every team in the NFL,'' Simms said. ``I couldn't hate Tampa Bay because they didn't have a first-round pick.''
With some help from his father, Simms has begun to look at his draft-day fall as a blessing. Gone are the expectations that followed him from Ramapo (N.J.) High to Texas, where fans treated the arrival of the nation's top high school quarterback as a prophecy that he would bring the Longhorns a national title.
``When I got to Austin, I think everybody expected me to win the Heisman my freshman year,'' Simms said. ``That was a little unrealistic. Here, I can escape to the background a little bit and learn what I have to learn.''
Simms spent Friday's workouts shadowing starter Brad Johnson. Simms likely will be the No. 3 quarterback, while Shaun King and free-agent signee Jim Miller will compete for the backup job.
JOHNSON MUM ON CONTRACT: Brad Johnson declined to discuss his contract status Friday, saying he would wait for a more appropriate time.
Johnson's agent, Phil Williams, said in March that the quarterback was angry with Bucs management for removing a $1.5 million guaranteed payout from his restructured contract. Bucs officials claim the omission was an oversight.
``Right now is not the time or the place to really bring those discussions up,'' Johnson said. BUCS ON SARS: A trip to Japan for their Aug. 2 preseason opener against the Jets has a few Bucs worried about Sudden Acute Respiratory Syndrome, but DT Warren Sapp remains unconcerned.
``SARS is in China, ain't it? China and Japan are two different things,'' Sapp said. ``I didn't flunk [geography]. Japan is this little island over here, and China is the big Communist thing over there. The Communists got the bad thing, and we're over here playing. They are two different countries.
``I don't think they can walk across to Japan, so I think we'll be safe.'
http://bucs.tbo.com/bucs/MGAG10NW8FD.html