NFLEL Nine

DT Delbert Cowsette would like to follow Damian Gregory's path to the Bucs' active roster in 2005

Feb 02, 2005 -

Who will be this year’s Damian Gregory?

A list of nine possibilities was announced Thursday by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who revealed the players the team will allocate to the NFL Europe League this spring. The largest contingent of Buccaneers ever sent over to Europe at one time, the group includes two receivers and two defensive tackles, as well the team’s recently-signed punter and kicker.

The Buccaneers’ 2005 NFLEL allocations are:

CB Blue Adams

DT Delbert Cowsette

K Todd France

WR Adrian Madise

WR Terrance Metcalf

S Kalvin Pearson

DT Bryan Save

P Brian Simnjanovski

T Mitch White

Those players must still be drafted by one of the six NFLEL teams or allocated to a team after the draft in order to play in the league. When NFL Europe held its annual “allocated player draft” last February, the first overall pick was one of the men sent over by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers: defensive end Corey Smith.

Smith was obviously thought to be a legitimate NFL prospect by the Berlin Thunder, who picked first, and indeed the former North Carolina State standout did make an appearance on the Bucs’ roster for a few weeks in 2004 (and previously in 2002 and 2003). However, it was the somewhat less heralded Gregory who proved to be the surprise of Tampa Bay’s training camp.

Gregory, a defensive tackle who was signed late last February after brief stints with Miami, Cleveland and Oakland, was immediately added to the Bucs’ list of NFLEL-allocated players and found a spot on the Scottish Claymores’ roster. After a nice season overseas – 35 tackles and 4.5 sacks – Gregory had a strong training camp, earned a spot on the 53-man roster and was a regular part of Tampa Bay’s defensive tackle rotation before sustaining a season-ending knee injury in Week Six. Gregory hopes to factor into the team’s plans again in 2005.

That’s the goal for the nine Buccaneers in line for NFLEL action this spring. The 11-week NFL Europe season, which begins on April 2 and culminates in World Bowl XIII on June 11, is an excellent opportunity for unproven players to get significant playing time. The NFLEL has launched many successful NFL careers, as teams are given an opportunity to see their prospects in extensive game action, rather than just on the practice field.

Former NFLEL standouts who made an impact in the NFL in 2004 included Carolina QB Jake Delhomme, Dallas DT La’Roi Glover, Green Bay G Marco Rivera, Kansas City WR/KR Dante Hall and G Brian Waters, Miami QB Jay Fiedler, Minnesota WR Marcus Robinson, New England G Joe Andruzzi and Atlanta WR Brian Finneran.

Wait, there’s more: New Orleans WR/KR Michael Lewis and RB Aaron Stecker, N.Y. Giants QB Kurt Warner, Oakland T Barry Sims, Baltimore DTs Marques Douglas and Kelly Gregg, Cleveland QB Kelly Holcomb, Denver C Ben Hamilton and Houston WR/KR J.J. Moses.

The Bucs know the possibilities of the NFL Europe League first-hand. QB Brad Johnson, one of the NFLEL’s most famous products (it was called the World League when Johnson was across the pond in 1995 with the London Monarchs), started Tampa Bay’s first four games in 2004 and most of the previous three seasons. Other 2004 Bucs who previously made strong showings in the NFLEL included Gregory, Smith, DT Chartric Darby, CB Corey Ivy and WR Edell Shepherd (on injured reserve).

France and Simnjanovski should feel especially good about the opportunity, as the list of former NFLEL kickers and punters now plying their trades successfully in the parent league is very long. That group includes the two star kickers of the upcoming Super Bowl, the Patriots’ Adam Vinatieri and the Eagles’ David Akers, as well as the Chiefs’ Lawrence Tynes, the Dolphins’ Mark Bryant and the Redskins’ Ola Kimrin.

The list of punters is even longer: Arizona’s Scott Player, Atlanta’s Chris Mohr, Buffalo’s Brian Moorman, Cincinnati’s Kyle Richardson (on injured reserve), Jacksonville’s Chris Hanson, Kansas City’s Steve Cheek, Minnesota’s Darren Bennett, Philadelphia’s Dirk Johnson and Seattle’s Tom Rouen.

All of the players allocated to NFL Europe by the Buccaneers this year come from the group of “reserve/future” free agents signed three weeks ago.

There are six NFLEL teams on which these nine players may end up, including the newly-formed Hamburg Sea Devils. After the allocated players are drafted or assigned to their teams, the entire league holds a joint training camp in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area, including a day of scrimmages at Raymond James Stadium. Training camp begins in late February.