During one of his many interviews last week, retired Bucs icon Ronde Barber talked about how Panthers WR Steve Smith was his toughest career matchup because Smith would outwork defensive backs on the field, and it was evident to Barber that Smith’s smarts from film study were off the charts.

Barber explained that he was always committed to outsmarting and outworking opponents on and off the field but couldn’t always match Smith’s effort.

Olive oil-lapping, popcorn-munching, coffee-slurping, homeless-mistaken, fried-chicken-eating, oatmeal-loving, circle-jerking, beer-chugging, cricket-watching, scone-loathing, college football-naïve, baseball-box-score-reading Peter King, of Sports Illustrated and NBC Sports fame, talked to Barber about matchups for his Monday column and got Barber to reveal his fearsome threesome of wideouts.

“I played a lot of great players. The receiver position today … so hard to match up now. Megatron [Calvin Johnson] was impossible to cover. Randy Moss in his prime: nothing you can do. But to me, Steve Smith was the toughest guy I faced. When I played him, he was just like me. He chose to outwork everyone else out there every day. That was me.”

If one read’s King’s article further, it’s obvious King will be quick to put Barber in the Hall of Fame when he appears on the ballot in five years.

As for Barber’s list of beastly receivers, Darrelle Revis and friends will get all kind of work against great passing attacks this season, starting in Weeks 2 & 3 against the Saints and Patriots, respectively. Joe’s glad the Bucs secondary got a Week 1 game to work out its issues against the woeful Jets passing attack.

Who the hell wants to work on a Monday morning? That’s why you should catch this interview with rookie Bucs running back Mike James.

James is asked about his favorite team growing up and responds by saying he didn’t have a favorite team only favorite players, then he specifically mentions Warrick Dunn for his charity work. It was a classy and telling answer by one of the newest “Buccaneer Men.”

James hits on many topics and goes on to talk about how he’s most excited about impacting the Bucs on special teams, a wise take given that Doug Martin could be used more often than any other running in the NFL.

There are theories out there claiming Bucs cornerback Eric Wright will be a starter until or unless second-round pick Johnthan Banks takes over the starting job.

They may be accurate. Bucs officials believe Wright may be best suited to being a slot corner and that Banks, unless he is woefully behind others, will get the starting nod when the Bucs travel to Gotham to open the 2013 season, noted the Associated Press in a recent feature on Banks.

The Bucs are confident Banks has the skills and maturity to develop into a top-notch pro, and he is ready to take advantage of an opportunity to contribute right away.

“I’m not going to put myself out there like that,” Banks said of his chances of becoming an immediate starter in a defense that nearly set a NFL record for passing yards allowed last season. “I’m coming in here willing to work hard — special teams, defense — and do anything I can to help.”

There is also the possibility, and this is pure speculation from Joe, that if Banks needs a work before he can start, the Bucs could instead start Leonard Johnson and keep Wright at slot.

Either way, one fun aspect of the upcoming Bucs minicamp will be observing the depth-chart pecking order the Bucs place Banks – just days after he was drafted.

After delivering a pass defense in 2012 that should have prompted Team Glazer to issue free Tums to all season ticket holders, the Bucs now have NFL types raving about what could be the best secondary in the NFL.

Former general manager Charley Casserly and his pundit colleagues ponder this thought/fantasy and more in this NFL Network video.

Casserly is of the mind that Darrelle Revis might not be used to take out the opposition’s stud wideout talents. “You double cover their best receiver and [Revis] goes to their other receiver, and now they have nowhere to go with the football,” he said.

Regardless, the consensus in the video is that the Bucs possess a “top-3″ secondary or darn close to it, assuming — perhaps the biggest assumption of the offseason — that Revis shows up healthy and ready to go on opening day.

The only holdover from the Monte Kiffin years on the Bucs defense, linebacker Adam Hayward, managed to earn — and hold onto — the starting the strongside linebacker starting job after Quincy Black went down injured last season.

Joe found this significant for two reasons: Dakoda Watson couldn’t beat Hayward out, and the New Schiano Order didn’t punish Hayward (on the field) for aggressively shoving coach Bryan Cox along the sidelines.

So Joe must wonder, are the Bucs simply happy with Hayward?

The Bucs’ 2013 plans at strongside linebacker have been the subject of much speculation, especially with the recent addition of former three-year Saints backup Jonathan Casillas. But he’s no hidden Pro Bowler.

Hayward hits hard, has a wealth of experience and is only 29 years old, and he may very well be an upgrade over the improved 2012 edition of Quincy Black. It’s also his second year in the Schiano system. The more Joe considers the situation, the more Joe thinks there may be no real question at all what will happen at strongside linebacker.

It’s hard to believe legions of Bucs fans believed Gerald McCoy was a third-rate football player only one year ago.

Well, that was a garbage take, as the NFL and locals found out. And in a piece penned by Tampa Tribune beat scribe Woody Cummings, Bucs icon Ronde Barber actually fingers McCoy as the defense’s next leader and brings insider word from John Lynch on how opposing coaches break into a sweat when they think of McCoy.

“A lot of people don’t give Gerald credit for the year he had last year, but the people that played against him (did),” Barber said. “And when you talk to a guy like John Lynch, who did a lot of games (as a Fox TV analyst), he’ll tell you.

“He’s talking to the other coaches all the time and asking them, ‘What is it with this (Bucs) team that you know you have to stop to beat them?’ And, without fail, they all said, ‘That freaking No. 93 is heck to deal with.’ So, yeah, he’s the guy.’

That sure was enlightening. For those who don’t realize, when John Lynch, or any other analyst, calls a game, he gets to meet with the game’s head coaches about 48 hours prior to kickoff to dive into game plans and pick their brains. So it’s pretty cool that Lynch is getting this feedback.

With all the personnel housecleaning done by the New Schiano Order, it’s interesting that Mason Foster has been granted the highest blessing by Greg Schiano.

Foster has absolutely no one competing with him for his middle linebacker job.

Entering his third season having just turned 24, the Bucs’ middle linebacker has shown flashes of greatness. But he’s essentially a solid, young guy lacking elite talent.

Schiano not only is a defense-first coach but was a linebacker during his college playing days, and he scrutinizes the position. So Foster must have gotten grades of the highest order last season. The Bucs have plenty of cash under the salary cap and are investing peanuts in their linebackers unit. Therefore, Joe believes no movement to push Foster represents a massive endorsement.

Schiano didn’t have to marry himself to Foster, a third-round pick in 2011, but he has.

Joe’s rather confident Foster can up his game another step. A second year in the Schiano defense and continued sound coaching — geez, Bucs coaches even helped take Quincy Black of Bucs fans’ hate lists – should make a difference.

Joe’s good friends at Ed Morse Auto Plaza in Port Richey are at it again, offering a wonderful deal to help spoil moms on Mother’s Day.

You’re already planning to shop for a new or pre-owned vehicle, so let yourself be wowed at Ed Morse Auto Plaza. That’s where Joe bought his pre-owned Ford 27 months ago. Not a problem since! Click below or above.

Joe knows there are quite a few Cody Grimm fans out there. What’s not to like? The guy is a hard worker and a helluva tackler.

That is, when he can play.

Grimm has logged more games on the sidelines than he has one the field, most of his injuries have been leg injuries, which do not help a guy who isn’t exactly fleet of feet.

This led to a Bucs fan asking about the job security of Grimm on a recent NFC South chat with ESPN.

jeff (upstate NY)

With the upgrades the Bucs made in the secondary this offseason, have we seen the last of Cody Grimm and Leonard Johnson in Tampa? I think both those guys could be pretty good if given more playing time…

Pat Yasinskas

Grimm took a pay cut just to stay with them. I’d say he’s a long shot. I think Johnson has a chance to stick as a fourth or fifth CB and special-teams guy.

Joe is of the mind Grimm’s status is on razor thin ice. It’s nothing against him; injuries and an upgrade to the roster have painted Grimm in an unfortunate corner.

But there is something else that is very telling to Joe about Grimm’s chances of remaining with the squad.

Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik is fantastic on radio, but with a drawback. Dominik has a nasty habit of rattling off the complete roster of players at a certain position, which to radio producers is enough to hit the dump button. Nobody in the listening audience outside of family members gives a damn about a third- or fourth-string player and it often results in listeners bailing on said interview quickly.

Dominik, on SiriusXM NFL Radio recently, even worked in an Adam Weber reference, which nearly caused Joe to fall out of his chair.

Joe has heard Dominik mention backup safeties Ahmad Black and Keith Tandy lately but not Grimm.

That right there should tell Bucs fans something.

Ronde Barber discusses with Melanie Collins what he believes is his defining play in this Yahoo! Sports video.

Former Bucs secondary coach Herm Edwards remembers the play of his former pupil, Ronde Barber, in this BSPN video. “You have a fistfight with Father Time when you get into your 10th season,” Edwards said.

Joe breaks up the momentary feel-goods remembering Bucs cornerback Ronde Barber for a bit of good news. Joe knows Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik has discussed getting an extension done for wide receiver Mike Williams.

Well, on face value, it seems contract talks between the Bucs and Williams’ agent(s) are getting closer, or are at least heating up, based on a Twitter from Woody Cummings of The Tampa Tribune.

@RCummingsTBO: The Bucs and the agent for WR Mike Williams will begin a new round of contract talks in Tampa on Monday.

Joe seems gets the idea that contract negotiations have at least moved to the next stage, if not heading down the stretch. It is rare for an agent to just show up at the doorstep of an NFL team just to discuss parameters of a new deal. Why waste the time and money to travel to Tampa for that? That can be easily done over the phone or via e-mail.

Unless, of course, Williams’ representatives are vacationing in Tampa already.

However, Joe has been told by a suit who works at One Buc Palace Williams’ contract negotiations are in the very early stages, the beginning stages.