Joe brought word last week, via Tribune beat writer Woody Cummings, that the Bucs and Mike Williams scheduled a sit-down to discuss a contract extension yesterday.

Joe already detailed why he believes it’s doubtful a deal gets done, but there’s at least reasonable hope.

Williams, it seems, was peppered by fans on Twitter for an update yesterday, and he Twittered out a couple of apparent responses.

@MikeBuc19 - Sorry everyone didnt sign nothing today I appreciate everybody for you guys concern but no matter what I’M STILL A BUC FOR LIFE!! ##BUCNA … GOOD THINGS DON’T COME TO THOSE WHO WAIT GOOD THINGS COME TO THOSE WHO AND EARNS IT

Perhaps the Bucs and Williams are miles apart on a deal, perhaps not.

It is, however, fair to assume that the Bucs are not interested in overpaying for Williams in May, and that Williams is in no hurry to jump on an offer now.

Joe predicts the Bucs will make another move to extend Williams just before training camp. The Bucs need to lock him up, and Williams, who is being paid like the fourth-round draft pick he was, might bite at some solid guaranteed money rather than risk injury in 2013.

There are plenty of experts on the record already calling the 2013 Bucs at least a 10-win team.

But it should be no surprise that the money gurus in Las Vegas and other NFL analysts doubt the Bucs will win more than seven games this season. Tampa Bay Times columnist Gary Shelton explored the heavy-hitter doubters in his column today.

And on and on it goes. Brian Billick, the ex-Ravens coach, has the Bucs 20th in his post-draft power rankings on fox.com. ESPN has them at No. 19. And Bovada, the betting site, has them at 50-1 to reach the Super Bowl. It has 19 teams as a better bet. Cbssports.com had them at 20th before the Revis trade.

Here’s where Joe stands. Joe believes the Bucs have a very legitimate win-now offense, meaning the necessary talent is there to be a playoff-caliber unit. Plus, the overall production was there last year, and the offense should advance in its second season in the regime. On defense, the Bucs have three Pro Bowlers in their prime, assuming Darrelle Revis is healthy, and some excellent young players. Overall, the special teams are above average.

This should be an improved Bucs team in the win column.

However, the Bucs coaching staff has a lot to prove. Nobody can tell Joe that Greg Schiano and his coordinators are proven game coaches, and especially when compared to Mike Smith and Sean Peyton and their NFC South staffs. That’s a huge Bucs question mark.

The Bucs also have massive depth concerns on defense and they’re gambling they won’t be tested.

Again, as of today, Joe believes the Bucs should be an improved team in 2013, but Joe surely wouldn’t wager on them having a better record.

Ten out of 16 NFC teams had better records than the Bucs did last year. Joe’s not sure how many of them the Bucs leapfrogged this offseason.

Joe must admit he’s suffering from Ronde Barber fatigue.

Please do not misunderstand. Joe thinks the world of Barber and, yes, believes someday Barber will be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Or at least should be.

But Joe ran a huge endless Barber stories for three whole days. Of course, for a guy leaving the game like Barber, it was warranted coverage. But even Joe was having his fill reading Barber story after Barber story for days.

The way Joe looks at it, if a hardcore Bucs fan like Joe was getting tired of reading about Barber, then so too, Joe guessed, were his readers.

But this story Joe is bringing to his readers, well, Joe thinks it is extraordinary.

Jeff Chadiha of ESPN wrote a long piece mocking those who don’t understand how good of a player Barber was, and goes so far to proclaim Barber as the most underrated defensive player in NFL annals.

The easy knock on Barber was always that he was more a product of Tampa’s Cover 2 scheme than a gifted lockdown defender. He wasn’t asked to shut down one half of the field, and nobody ever saw him as the second coming of Deion Sanders. The truth is that Barber was plenty effective at what the Bucs did demand from him on a weekly basis. He played within the defense, displayed a knack for the big play and never shied away from contact. Few defensive backs with his size — he was listed at 5-foot-10 and 184 pounds — were as willing to throw their bodies around the way Barber did.

These are the parts of his game that should be best remembered. The reality is that it will be harder to measure Barber’s excellence once he’s eligible for the Hall of Fame. The NFL is tilting so much toward offense these days that defensive players will have a tougher time being immortalized. Iconic talents like Sapp, Woodson and Ray Lewis don’t have to worry about such issues. Understated stars like Barber face an entirely different problem.

It might be easier to see this another way if Barber had Sapp’s brashness or Lewis’ charisma. It also would’ve helped his cause had he played in a bigger market, as his brother surely could attest. The beauty of Barber’s game was that he was so consistently adept at the little things that result in big moments. He impressed you more with his savvy than he ever did with sensational highlights.

Joe has written the following before but it bears repeating: This nonsense that Barber was a system cornerback, Joe just wants to ring someone’s neck when he hears this.

Joe Montana was a system player. So too was Lawrence Taylor. And Franco Harris, as well as Kellen Winslow. All four are considered to be either the best or among the very best at their positions.

Hell, every player is a system player. The frauds who claim Barber is a system player, well, that’s akin to suggesting others freelanced each and every play.

Look, every team plays within a system. To knock a guy for that is really just reaching for an excuse to drag a guy down because someone isn’t intelligent enough or observant enough to bring a better premise to the table.

Yes, when Bucs great Ronde Barber retired last week, he suggested Gerald McCoy would pick up the mantle as the leader of the Bucs defense.

It seems like Barber’s view of his former teammate is shared by others.

On CBSSports.com, former Bucs scout, NFL coach and front office man Pat Kirwan typed a piece where he ranked all defensive linemen in the NFL. In this article, Kirwan claims GMC is the No. 3 defensive tackle in a 43 front.

3. Gerald McCoy, Tampa Bay (29): There were times last season McCoy was the best in the league. He is tall for the position but has demonstrated the ability to get under the pads of the offensive linemen. He was a Pro Bowl player last year but there are players closing in on him this year and he needs to keep improving.

Through no fault of his own, GMC will be linked forever to Ndamukong Suh, the Lions’ defensive tackle, and Kirwan ranks Suh higher than GMC, but not as the best 43 defensive tackle. Kirwan believes Geno Atkins of Cincinnati is the best DT as a 3-technique.

Sure, GMC got off to a slow star because of injuries but he showed last year what he can be. If that means in some people’s eyes GMC is the third best defensive tackle in a 43 defense, Joe will take that.

Start your day with the Morning Cup of Joe from HootersCalendar.com. And don’t forget to visit HootersCalendar.com for amazing videos, pictures and cool gifts. It’s Joe’s second favorite website.

Bucs news forthcoming.

Derrick Ward must have had a really bad Mother’s Day. [Twitter]

Disturbing: Illinois man arrested for sexually molesting a peacock. [Daily Herald]

Former Jags star receiver Jimmy Smith is doing time in a Mississippi hole for various felonies. [TheBigLead]

Study claims iPads will give you a heart attack. [Bloomberg]

So now the feds are wiretapping reporters’ phones? How Soviet of them. Buddy Nix is outraged. [AP]

The more you learn about Titus Young, the more you expect him to die an old man while incarcerated. [PFT]

What bullpen woes? [RaysIndex]

There’s trying to be objective as a journalist, and then there’s plain silliness.

Joe will now bring you an example of silliness, courtesy of TampaBay.com Bucs beat writer Stephen Holder.

Holder penned a piece studying position battles entering the start of Bucs OTA practices next week. Holder believes there’s a mystery at No. 2/backup running back.

While veteran free-agent signing Brian Leonard is a solid addition, he is best suited for the role the Bucs are projecting for him: a third-down back expected to be active in the passing game. That leaves sixth-round draft choice Mike James and second-year man Michael Smith as the primary candidates.

Some in the organization have indicated James has the edge here, but it’s much too early to tell. That’s, perhaps, something that can be clarified a bit in the coming weeks.

Joe zeroed in on Holder claiming it’s “too early to tell” whether Mike James has an edge on Michael Smith.

Jimminy Christmas! Of course James has an edge right now. Smith was captain of the Bucs inactive list after being the 2012 opening-day kick returner and subsequently getting permanently yanked, despite the Bucs turning to streetwalkers to return kicks. Then the Bucs went out this season and drafted James, a guy the organization has openly compared to Earnest Graham for his versatility, work ethic and team-first mentality.

Why the heck would the Bucs trade up and draft James if Smith was thought of so highly?

Plus, rockstar general manager Mark Dominik has said many times he prefers big running backs. James has 20 pounds and an inch on Smith.

Joe views James as the handpicked backup running back, a role he’s likely to keep unless he starts fumbling, which was an issue with Smith at times during 2012 practices.

Did the weekend leave you with a court date?

Call Metcalf Law today to schedule a free consultation. MetCalf Law provides criminal defense for clients across the Tampa Bay area.

Click below to learn more about Tampa Bay criminal defense attorney and Tampa DUI lawyer Brett Metcalf.

Joe can’t begin to explain the acid reflux he suffered on football Sunday nights last year after having nightmares of the Bucs secondary.

How rotten was the second-worst pass defense in NFL history? The Family Resource Council petitioned the FCC to remove Bucs games from broadcast television fearing the long-term damage to childrens’ mental health after viewing two games.

But Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik went to work, and in some people’s eyes, has turned the NFL’s worst secondary into perhaps the best in a matter of weeks.

In a well-detailed article on NFL.com, Bucky Brooks breaks down just how well the Bucs secondary should play, and why they will be so improved, and not just because they added a name cornerback and drafted a corner in the second round.

Of course, the lynch-pin to the flexibility and makeover of the Bucs secondary is Darrelle Revis.

Having studied Revis’ game throughout the years, I’ve been most impressed with his versatility, technique and instincts. Revis is a rare commodity at the position, possessing the size and strength to match up with big-bodied receivers on the perimeter while also boasting the quickness and burst to run with speedsters. Most importantly, he is a technically sound player with the capacity to play man or zone utilizing a variety of techniques.

From mugging receivers in press coverage at the line of scrimmage to keying the three-step drop while adhering to hash-split rules — cornerbacks will anticipate routes from receivers based on their alignment and the location of the ball on the field — Revis’ mastery of the fundamentals allows him to thrive in any scheme. This gives the defensive play-caller ultimate flexibility in the game plan, allowing him to diversify coverages to take away the strengths of the opponent’s personnel.

Now, Revis might not return to All-Pro form immediately following a lengthy rehab from a torn ACL, but that shouldn’t deter the Buccaneers from building packages around his immense talent. When healthy, he has repeatedly demonstrated the ability to take on the opponent’s No. 1 receiver with little assistance from a safety over the top. This could encourage the Buccaneers to utilize more “quarters” coverage concepts, with Revis playing as the field corner.

In Brooks’ piece, you can find out why Revis is so important, not just to add talent, but he makes players around him better.

For example, with Revis (if healthy) the Bucs can roll coverage of the safeties to help out either Eric Wright or Johnthan Banks because Revis can handle so much real estate himself. It’s almost like having a third cornerback on the field, Revis can be that good.

If Brooks’ observations and studies come true, Joe can look forward to a solid night’s rest on Sundays this fall without having to eat TUMS like M&Ms.

Among Bucs unrestricted free agents still unsigned, it seems wide receiver Sammie Stroughter may have the best chance of returning.

So a month from now when the Bucs gather for their first offseason mini-camp, their summer training camp roster will be just about set.

Oh, there will be guys on the fringes available to fill in a spot or two as teams generally will shave some salaries after June 1, but not many.

Four Bucs unrestricted free agents are still out there who – theoretically — could return. The fact they are unsigned in the middle of May suggests the Bucs aren’t enamoured with them. So Joe is going to take a look at what is happening with the fab four.

Dallas Clark: The former starting tight end has yet to sign anywhere. Though past his prime, he is still productive. Recently, Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik noted that Clark’s representatives said they “want to go in a different direction.” And it could be that said direction is retirement, if Clark can’t get a dollar figure he has in mind.

Brandon McDonald: A backup corner on one of the worst secondaries in NFL history, McDonald may have just “played” — if that’s what you want to call it — his way out of the NFL. The Bucs were caught combing local nursing homes they were so desperate last year for corners. Given a chance, McDonald often was dreadful beyond words. It’s fair to say McDonald may be working a farm before he’s back on an NFL roster.

Roscoe Parrish: Partially because Michael Smith became captain of the inactive list, the Bucs struggled to find a decent returner all season, pinning hopes on a veteran like Parrish to somehow channel his earlier career. It didn’t happen, and with Johnthan Banks, who could return, as well as the rights to track star Jeff Demps, it sure seems like the Bucs have turned the page on Parrish.

Sammie Stroughter: Once looking like a steal in the late rounds of the 2009 draft, Stroughter, when healthy, was productive. The problem is Stroughter is oft-injured. On face value, the Bucs have loaded up on wide receiver depth signing Kevin Ogletree and Steve Smith, which doesn’t bode well for Stroughter coming back.

Joe is quite sure the Bucs have moved on from Clark, McDonald and Parrish. Still, if any of the four Bucs UFAs could return for training camp, if not mini-camp, it may be Stroughter. What’s to lose? He will come cheap, and if nothing else he provides Bucs coach Greg Schiano with that coveted ”competition.”

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.