Tampa Bay defensive tackle Brian Price, a former UCLA standout, is once again dealing with heartbreak.

His older sister, Bridget, 30, died last week as a result of a car accident in Inglewood. So devastated was Price that he had to be hospitalized in Tampa from Monday through late Thursday after reporting to Buccaneers mini-camp.

“He physically broke down,” said his agent, Chuck Price, who is not related to Brian. “He had a high fever, was dehydrated, and couldn’t hold anything down. That stress just plays a wicked role.”

Price plans to adopt his sister’s sons, ages 7 and 9, and had taken them to their first Dodgers game the night before his sister was killed.

Bridget was the third of the Price siblings to die. Two brothers were killed in shootings.

Price has dealt with several injuries since he was drafted two years ago — he had  a groundbreaking surgery to attach both of this hamstrings to his pelvis — and last season had a  pair of severe high-ankle sprains.

Brian Price closes his eyes but sleep rarely comes, not more than for an hour a day, not since the hit-and-run automobile accident last week that killed his sister and left two nephews who call him dad without their mother.

“Yeah, she was like my personal cheerleader, like my No. 1 fan,” Price said Friday of his sister, Bridget James, 33, who died in surgery from injuries sustained in an accident in Los Angeles. “She would be there every day, especially after every game. Win, lose or draw, she was like, “Go get them next time.

“She was a special person. We had a bond. We definitely had a bond. She was real protective. You couldn’t say anything about me, nothing wrong about me, or she would get on you. She didn’t care. She talked the most trash – ever. She was my guardian angel and she’s my guardian angel now. It’s just very unfortunate what happened. I know she’s looking down on me now.”

Tragedy is no stranger to Price or his family. He lost two older brothers to gang-related shootings by the time he was 15. Bridget was the one who helped Price get through the anger and anguish.

Just a day before the accident, Price had received a heartfelt text from Bridget, thanking him for taking her two sons, ages 7 and 9, to their first Los Angeles Dodgers game.

“I remember, I got a text the day before she got killed,” Price said. “My little nephew, E.J., he loves, loves baseball. He’s loves baseball and I finally took him to a baseball game. I asked for permission to take them when they were in school and she was, “Boy, you don’t ask for permission to take them.’

“My nephews look at me like their dad. Their dads aren’t in their lives so, they look at me as their father. Sometimes, they’re like, “Dad, I mean, uncle.’ I took them to the game and it was their first baseball game, so I wanted to make it special. So I picked them up in a limo. It was their first time in a limo.

“I had snacks for them and we went to the game. I bought them souvenirs and stuff for the game. When they got home, she sent me a text and said, ‘I really appreciate you doing that. You’re their father figure. I love you so much. You’ve had such a positive impact.’ It was a real long text and really emotional.

“I wanted to see her that night, but I didn’t drop the kids off. My (other) sister dropped them off and then the next day I was leaving. Sure enough, I wanted to go see her for a reason, but I didn’t make it happen. I should’ve seen her.”

Price was going through the security line at Los Angeles International airport when the first missed phone calls arrived. He learned later that Bridget’s car had been struck broadside, she tried to regain control of the vehicle, but it crossed into on-coming traffic and was struck two more times. The driver that caused the accident fled the scene.

“What they had told me was she was in accident and had gotten rushed into surgery,” Price said. “I was like, ‘Okay, she’s strong. They’ve got her in surgery but it didn’t sound bad.’

“I didn’t know any of the details, they just said they rushed her to the hospital and she’s on her way to surgery. I was like, ‘Dang, surgery?’ Okay, she’s in surgery so I know she’s going to make it.”

Price called his father, Frank, who urged him not to get on his flight.

“So I had him come pick me up … and we were on our way to the hospital,” Price said. “My sister called me and all I heard was yelling and screaming in the background. She said (Bridget) didn’t make it.

“It didn’t feel real. I started cussing her out because I didn’t know it was real. I was like, ‘What the hell are you talking about.’ After it happened, it didn’t seem real. It still doesn’t seem real. It hasn’t really hit me. Sometimes it hits me for a couple of minutes. But it still doesn’t feel real.”

Price said he has not been able to keep down food or get any sleep since the accident. He became sick and spent the three days in a Tampa hospital before being released Thursday afternoon.

“I haven’t been sleeping in like weeks,” Price said. “I’d stay up all night and I go to sleep at like 7 in the morning and wake up in a hour and go about the rest of my day. My sleep patterns have been all out of whack because of what happened. I started to get real sick from the experience and being depressed and whatever. I don’t know, everything kind of fell out of whack.

“They gave me some Ambien to sleep, but that didn’t even work. I was up, I was worried, it was just crazy. It still happens. Like if I doze off for an hour, I will wake up in the middle of the night and it felt like somebody was watching me or something. It’s crazy.”

Price says he plans to adopt his nephews and bring them to Tampa when school ends and the time is right. For now, they will stay in Los Angeles with their grandmother until the end of the school year.

“I know they’re excited to come out here and hang with me,” Price said.

Bridget’s death is just the latest in a tortuous string of tragedies that Brian has had to cope with. His 18-year-old brother Eddie was killed in a drive-by shooting while walking a girl to a bus stop in the gang-filled Crenshaw district when Brian was only 10-years old. Five years later, Brian’s brother Damon was shot in the back of the head by a so-called friend as he drove his car along Crenshaw Blvd.

“Most people wouldn’t see that much tragedy in a lifetime, let alone in their own family,” said Brian’s agent, Charles Price (no relation).

Damon’s shooting death sent Price into a spiral of plummeting grades and threatened to jeopardize his college football career. But as always, there was Bridget to lean on as his support.

After a stellar career at UCLA, Price was the 35th overall pick of the Bucs in 2009. The plan was for him to team with Oklahoma defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, the third overall selection by Tampa Bay, to form one of the best young pass-rushing tandems in the NFL.

But Price’s rookie season was only limited to five games. He was placed on Injured Reserve with a pelvic fracture and underwent separate surgical procedures to reattach both hamstrings.

Last season, Price struggled with conditioning and was limited to 24 tackles and three sacks despite playing in 15 games. Charles Price said he was working with sports therapist and trainer Alex Guerrero,

Price says he is a man of faith, but he admits, there are times when the thought of losing another sibling, this time a loving sister and mother, makes him angry. He prays for understanding.

“When tragedy does strike you, you have to look up to the skies and know that everything happens for a reason,” he said. “We may not know that reason. I get (mad) just thinking about it, thinking why does this have to happen. But who am I to question God. I’m just a humble servant.”

Bucs defensive tackle Brian Price was at Los Angeles International Airport last week preparing to board a flight to Tampa when he got a phone call informing him that his sister Bridget had been involved an automobile accident.

For Price, who lost a second brother to a gang-related shooting eight years ago, the news was nearly too much to bear.

“He got the call, and it might have been his dad who told him Bridget has been in an accident and I don’t think it looks good,” said his agent Charles Price, who is no relation to Brian. “I don’t think Brian got to see her alive.”

Bridget, 30, the mother of 7- and 9-year boys, died almost immediately of injuries sustained in a car accident last week. The resulting grief and mental exhaustion led to a three-day hospital stay for Brian in Tampa that ended Thursday afternoon, his agent said.

According to Charles Price, Bridget was responsible for helping Brian overcome the shooting death of his two older brothers.

“It’s been a rough couple of years to say the least,” Charles Price said. “Especially where he’s coming from and it’s as if he can’t catch a break.”

Bridget was the victim of a hit-and-run accident that caused her car to ‘spin out of control,’ and head on into another vehicle, Price’s agent said.

His sister’s death exacted a heavy toll on Brian, who had planned to attend the Bucs’ first week of Organized Team Activities Tuesday. The Bucs have not commented on the absence of their second-round pick in 2009. But apparently, Brian became so mentally and physically exhausted that he was dehydrated and had to be hospitalized, his agent said.

“It was just a situation where like the stress of the whole situation made him sick,” Charles Price said. “He couldn’t hold anything down. He had headaches, a fever. In fact, he just got out of the hospital (Thursday). I can’t speak for him, but I think it was a combination of the mental and physical stress. I was at the funeral and there was just a lot of grief, a lot of anger. His body sort of shut down on him.”

Bridget’s death is just the latest in a tortuous string of tragedies that Brian has had to cope with. His 18-year-old brother Eddie was killed in a drive-by shooting while walking a girl to a bus stop in the gang-filled Crenshaw district when Brian was only 10-years old. Five years later, Brian’s brother Damon was shot in the back of the head by a so-called friend as he drove his car along Crenshaw Blvd.

“Most people wouldn’t see that much tragedy in a lifetime, let alone in their own family,” Charles Price said.

Damon’s shooting death sent Price into a spiral of plummeting grades and threatened to jeopardize his college football career. But as always, there was Bridget to lean on as his support.

After a stellar career at UCLA, Price was the 35th overall pick of the Bucs in 2009. The plan was for him to team with Oklahoma defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, the third overall selection by Tampa Bay, to form one of the best young pass-rushing tandems in the NFL.

But Price’s rookie season was only limited to five games. He was placed on Injured Reserve with a pelvic fracture and underwent separate surgical procedures to reattach both hamstrings.

Last season, Price struggled with conditioning and was limited to 24 tackles and three sacks despite playing in 15 games. Charles Price said he was working with sports therapist and trainer Alex Guerrero, who works with quarterback Tom Brady and running back LaDanian Tomlinson.

“Literally, prior to getting the news, he making great physical strides and had done all the preliminary work to have a great season,” Charles Price said. “None of that really seems important now. But this was just a setback in every way. I was at the funeral and to me it was one of the saddest things I’ve ever encountered.”

Bridget’s sons will remain in Los Angeles with their grandmother until school ends but Brian plans to adopt them both and invite them to live with him in Tampa.

“Obviously, he’s the only son now and there are a lot of young girls in the family,” Charles Price said. “He’s trying to be there, to be the strong one for his family. This is his third older sibling he has lost and Bridget was always there for him when his brothers died.”

Despite his loss, Brian is determined to get his NFL career back on track and could participate in team workouts next week, his agent said.

“I always thought the kid was super motivated and didn’t need any extra incentive to play hard,” Charles Price said. “There’s no doubt in my mind, he won’t stop now. The minute he puts it together physically, he’s going to be one of those players everyone is talking about in training camp and the preseason. That’s just how tough he is.”

TAMPA

Like his bulldozing running style, LeGarrette Blount is not going to dance around an issue when he can plow through it. So when asked how the Buccaneers’ selection of Boise State running back Doug Martin will affect his workload, Blount did not stiff-arm the topic.

“I think nobody can affect my carries but me,” Blount said. “They drafted him because we needed him. But at the end of the day, we’re both going to play. Don’t nobody affect my carries but me, not what he does, not what anybody else does, just how I practice and how fast I get the offense down pat and everything like that. That’s the only thing that will affect my carries.”

So despite the addition of Martin and Utah State running back Michael Smith in the draft, does Blount see himself as the starting tailback?

“Yeah,” he said smiling, “until they take it away.”

That’s not to suggest Blount couldn’t see what was happening at the running back position shortly after coach Greg Schiano was hired from Rutgers. In March, Schiano was critical of Blount’s lack of ball security. In two pro seasons, Blount has fumbled nine times, losing six.

With only Blount and Mossis Madu on the roster at running back, it was inevitable the Bucs would fortify that position, perhaps with the No. 5 overall pick. Tampa Bay traded down two spots to select Alabama safety Mark Barron while picking up a fourth-round pick. The Bucs then used that extra selection to trade back into the first round and take Martin 31st.

Even before the draft, Blount knew the Bucs were going to find someone to come after his job. So he took advantage of the offseason program to lose between 5 and 10 pounds. “I kind of had the idea they were going to draft another guy, so you’ve got to come back in the best shape possible,” Blount said.

On the first day of the Bucs’ team workouts on Tuesday, Blount took his spot as the No. 1 tailback while a gimpy Martin worked on another field with a trainer helping him recover from a hamstring strain.

Blount, the Bucs’ leading rusher the past two seasons with 1,788 yards and 11 touchdowns (4.6 average), has rarely been used on passing downs or as a receiver. He has 20 career receptions for 162 yards and no touchdowns. Under new offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan, Blount hopes for more opportunities in the passing game.

“I’m proving more and more every day that I can play on every down,” Blount said.

Blount believes the competition with Martin and Smith will make him a more complete player.

“You’ve got to be a competitor and competition is what makes guys better than what they would usually be,” Blount said.

“Nobody in the NFL can ever be comfortable. You have your select few that can. Adrian Petersons and your Ray Rices and your Arian Fosters. You have a handful that can be comfortable in their offense no matter who you draft. No, I haven’t gotten comfortable, I haven’t established that kind of credibility yet.”

Schiano said performance in training camp and preseason games will determine the running back workload.

“It’s way too early for that,” Schiano said. “We have to see who performs. You earn your touches. So depending on how you practice and how you play in the preseason, that will determine how many touches you get by percentage, whether it’s ballcarriers or pass catchers or whatever. Pass catchers, sometimes the defense can dictate a little more. But ballcarriers? We make that decision.”

In need of a franchise type running back, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers traded up into the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft to take Doug Martin of Boise State. Though great things are expected from the rookie back, how Martin’s career with the Bucs will go still remains to be seen. However, if Martin is to become the greatest running back in Buccaneer history, he will have to outdo the following five backs.

James Wilder (1981-1989)

Wilder holds the top two rushing seasons in Tampa Bay history having gained 1,544 yards on a whopping 407 carries in his Pro Bowl 1984 season, and then following it up with 1,300 yards on 365 carries in 1985. At 6-3, 225 lbs. Wilder was an imposing runner who carried the ball over 40 times in a game twice, racking up 14 games of +100 yards during his Bucs career. An equally gifted receiver, his 430 receptions (for 3,492 yards) are a Tampa Bay team record, as are his 5,947 career yards rushing.

Mike Alstott (1996-2006)

A fan favorite who spent his 11 year career in Tampa Bay, Alstott made six Pro Bowl teams as a fullback. The 6-1, 250 lbs. second round draft pick out of Purdue would go on to rush for 5,088 yards (2nd on the Bucs all-time list), gaining another 2,248 yards receiving. Along the way Alstott would score 71 total touchdowns. As a tribute to his play, the Associated Press would select Alstott to three All-NFL first teams, and one second team, during his stellar career.

Warrick Dunn (1997-2001)

Drafted in the first round in 1997, Dunn would spend the first six seasons of a 12 year career with Tampa Bay. In that span of time the former FSU star would log two +1,000 yard seasons and two Pro Bowl selections. By the time he left the Bay area to go play for Atlanta, Dunn would rack up enough yards (4,986 yards) to rate third on the Bucs’ all-time list. The dimunitive back would also end up gaining a total of 7,690 yards from scrimmage.

Carnell “Cadillac” Williams (2005-2010)

The fifth pick overall in the 2005 NFL Draft, Williams got off to a sparkling NFL debut gaining 148, 128, and 158 yards in this first three games in the NFL. Unfortunately for the former Auburn star, the rest of his career in Tampa Bay was marred by injuries and despite a rookie season in which he rushed for 1,168 yards, Cadillac would end up with only 3,677 yards rushing overall. Still, his sterling start would earn Williams the 2005 NFL Offensive Rookie of the year award.

Ricky Bell (1977-1981)

The first overall pick in the 1977 NFL Draft, the former USC star took a few years to get it together for the Bucs. After gaining only 1,115 yards his first two seasons with the team, Bell enjoyed a breakout season in 1979 when he gained 1,263 yards on 283 carries, becoming Tampa Bay’s first 1,000 yard rusher in the process. Illness would cut his career (and life) short leaving Bell with only 3,056 yards rushing in 60 career games for the franchise.

About this writer: A resident of Orlando, FL, the writer has been a fan of Tampa Bay since their inaugural season in the NFL. The writer lists Steve Deberg, Ricky Bell and Hugh Green among his all-time favorite Buccaneers players.

TAMPA — The Bucs were busy on the eve of their first team workouts.

Tampa Bay signed its two draft picks from West Virginia — linebacker Najee Goode and cornerback Keith Tandy — to four-year contracts Monday.

Meanwhile, kicker Connor Barth was Tampa-bound and said he was ”excited” to see his teammates, an indication a deal may be near.

The Bucs’ franchise designee has not signed his $2.645 million tender nor reached an agreement on a long-term deal. But based on his tweet Monday night, could one be close at hand?

“Headin back down to Tampa today. … excited to see all my teammates again!” Barth posted on Twitter.

Barth set a franchise record by hitting 26 of 28 field goals last season (92.9 percent). He is believed to seek a long-term deal in excess of $3 million per year. He did not participate in voluntary veteran minicamp before the draft. The NFL deadline for teams to reach a long-term deal with franchise players is July 15. If no deal is reached at that point, Barth would play the season under the tag.

Goode, a fifth-round pick, is expected to begin the offseason working at middle or strong side linebacker. Tandy, a sixth-round pick, played cornerback in the recent minicamp but has the ability to move to safety.

Goode, who tied a school record with 52 games played, finished his career with 157 tackles, 22.5 tackles for loss, eight sacks, 13 passes defensed, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He was named first-team All-Big East as a senior.

Tandy, a two-time All-Big East selection, started 40 of the 45 games he played. He recorded 188 tackles, eight tackles for loss, 13 interceptions, 37 passes defensed, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.

Bucs coach Greg Schiano said Tandy is versatile enough in coverage to play safety.

“Some guys are just man-to-man guys,” Schiano said. “They’re like, ‘I got that guy,’ and other than that they struggle. Keith’s not like that. He’s a complete defensive back.

“He has zone skills, man skills, press skills, off skills, so we just need to see where he fits best right now. He does have the kind of versatility that’s going to (allow us) to mix and match where he’s needed.”

Around the league

BEARS: Quarterback Jay Cutler said his right thumb is fine after offseason surgery to repair a fracture.

EAGLES: Left tackle Jason Peters, who had Achilles surgery six weeks ago, injured it again in a fall at his home and needs surgery again. CSNPhilly.com first reported the second injury.

GIANTS: The team waived safety Chad Jones, a third-round draft pick in 2010 who was seriously injured in an auto accident two months after being drafted.

SAINTS: The players union’s grievance against the league in the team’s bounty scandal will be heard Wednesday in New York.

TITANS: Free agent Javarris James, a former college running back at Miami, signed.

VIKINGS: The Vikings stadium deal that Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton signed into law Monday involves public participation, but it also prevents the public from getting a look at the team’s finances during the partnership to build the $975 million facility.

The 2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ schedule will give the team a chance to get back on track after a very rough 2011 NFL season. Tampa Bay had finished 10-6 in the 2010 season, giving fans a lot of hope coming into 2011, but the team regressed to a 4-12 record and fell way out of the playoff race.

After adding Alabama safety Mark Barron and Boise State running back Doug Martin in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft, fans have reason to start getting excited about the upcoming campaign. The first game is on Sunday, Sept. 9, when the Buccaneers host the Carolina Panthers. It’s a tough game to open with, but an opportune time to make a statement to the NFC South.

2012 Tampa Bay Buccaneers Schedule

Week 1 : Sun , Sep 9 – Carolina at Tampa Bay, 4:15 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 2 : Sun, Sep 16 – Tampa Bay at New York Giants, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 3 : Sun, Sep 23 – Tampa Bay at Dallas Cowboys, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 4 : Sun, Sep 30 – Washington Redskins at Tampa Bay, 4:15 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 5 : Sun, Oct 7 – BYE

Week 6 : Sun, Oct 14 – Kansas City Chiefs at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m. ET (CBS)

Week 7 : Sun, Oct 21 – New Orleans Saints at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 8 : Thu, Oct 25 – Tampa Bay at Minnesota Vikings, 8:20 p.m. ET (NFL)

Week 9 : Sun, Nov 4 – Tampa Bay at Oakland Raiders, 4:05 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 10 : Sun, Nov 11 – San Diego Chargers at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 11 : Sun, Nov 18 – Tampa Bay at Carolina, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 12 : Sun, Nov 25 – Atlanta Falcons at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 13 : Sun, Dec 2 – Tampa Bay at Denver Broncos, 4:05 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 14 : Sun, Dec 9 – Philadelphia Eagles at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 15 : Sun, Dec 16 – Tampa Bay at New Orleans, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 16 : Sun, Dec 23 – St. Louis Rams at Tampa Bay, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Week 17 : Sun, Dec 30 – Tampa Bay at Atlanta, 1 p.m. ET (FOX)

Source:

Bucs Team Page

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers signed ex-LSU quarterback Jordan Jefferson on Sunday and added him to their 90-man offseason roster. By Sunday, Jefferson was let go, according to Pro Football Talk.

New head coach Greg Schiano had high hopes when they signed Jefferson earlier in the week.

“There’s a lot of upside there,” coach Greg Schiano said following Jefferson’s minicamp tryout last weekend, according to the report. “So I think we would like to have a chance to work with him.”

Jefferson had an up and down college career, culminating with a loss to Alabama in the BCS National Championship Game.