Joe would love Gerald McCoy and the Bucs in the playoffs, but even with an improved secondary, there is much work to do for a playoff berth given how strong the NFC should be this fall.

With the revamped Bucs defensive backfield, the Bucs should have their strongest team since the flirtation with the playoffs in 2010, and quite possibly the Bucs could have their best team since Chucky roamed the sidelines and cursed at everyone.

Some national football types are smitten.

Saturday, beat writer eye-RAH! Kaufman of The Tampa Tribune noted some think the Bucs are a playoff team because of a suddenly stacked roster, so he said on ”The End Zone,” co-hosted by Howard Balzer and Zig Fracassi, heard exclusively on SiriusXM NFL Radio.

eye-RAH! Kaufman: There are a lot of Bucs fans down here thinking that this is a playoff team. And you know what? I’m not so sure they are wrong right now.

Howard Balzer: Well the thing was Ira, last year, at whatever point of the season it was, they were in position to at least be there in the playoff hunt and then, I think, they lost five in a row and the bottom just fell out and then [Josh] Freeman had a couple of bad games, a couple of four-interception games and all of a sudden the season ended badly. Obviously, they showed something there that first half of the season to get themselves into that [playoff hunt] and now they just have to be able to finish and be consistent the whole season.

Kaufman: No question. Greg Schiano had his share, guys, of growing pains in Year 1 after 11 years in the college circuit at Rutgers. They were missing two Pro Bowl guards. They have nine players guys – nine! – on this roster that have made the Pro Bowl. Now, one of them is [wide receiver] Steve Smith from the Giants and he is probably not going to make an impact this year but the others, Carl Nicks, David Joseph, Vincent Jackson, Doug Martin, Gerald McCoy, [Dashon] Goldson, [Darrelle] Revis. There is talent here guys.

There is talent but Joe’s not talking playoffs. Not yet. Why? Just look at the NFC landscape.

The conference is as top-heavy and loaded as Joe can remember in this century. Only six teams qualify for the playoffs; four division winners and two wild cards.

San Francisco, Green Bay, Seattle, New York, Atlanta, Minnesota, Washington and New Orleans are teams Joe believes will be the strongest in the conference. Yes, the Bucs beat Minnesota last year, but it was the Vikings, not the Bucs, who played in January.

Then throw in a few teams with enough talent to challenge for a playoff spot, like Chicago, Dallas and Detroit (which has dangerous weapons), and it’s easy to see how the Bucs could be vastly improved but watching playoff games on the couch.

On paper, the Bucs sure are improved. But to expect a playoff berth, Joe isn’t going there. That’s too much of a leap to predict with the NFC so packed with strong teams.

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Actually, Joe is doing what he always does, delivering what Joe finds interesting. And what Glennon may or may not have to offer once the pads come on in July is interesting, especially since rockstar general manager Mark Dominik confirmed that Glennon will have a huge workload come August.

Glennon joined Movin’ The Chains on SiriusXM NFL Radio on Thursday and was asked to explain where he needs work by co-host Tim Ryan.

“Right now, I mean obviously, it’s about learning this new system,” Glennon said. “That’s the No. 1 thing on my mind right now is to learn our system and what we’re trying to accomplish as an offense. And then once I’m able to do that, when it comes to the football side of execution, I think I just need to continue to get more accurate, to be more consistent, and then finally develop more foot speed and my overall athletic ability.”

It was interesting to Joe that Glennon mentioned improving his athleticism. Glennon is no young rookie; he’ll turn 24 during this season. Of course, he can improve his physical ability, but Joe’s not sure how much is realistic unless Glennon was in a situation at North Carolina State where he wasn’t focusing on it.

Regardless, Glennon is not the athlete Freeman is. It feels like ancient history, but there was a time (2010) when Freeman was the league’s No. 2 rusher at QB and a guy who could win a game with his body.

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Joe, however, has heard from multiple sources that Schiano and Freeman are actually tight and respect each other very much.

Freeman addressed his relationship with the Bucs head coach yesterday on the WDAE-AM 620  ”Sports Page” show.

“Actually, I’ve spent quite a bit of time in Coach Schiano’s office [this offseason], talking with him around the facility,” Freeman said. “Just, you know, getting to know him better, talking about aspirations, what we’re trying to do with this team, you know, the direction.  I actually feel like my relationship with coach Schiano is probably the best of any coach. I got to know him extremely well.

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“Like with anybody, the more you get to know them, the more you find out what they’re about, their morals, just what they stand for. And you know Coach Schiano is all about doing things the right way. It’s been an awesome relationship.”

Does Joe really have to be graphic about the Bucs’ horrifying pass defense last year? The second-worst in NFL history?

For Joe, watching that pass defense was like re-experiencing the nuns that taught him in grade school: a period of Joe’s life he tries to purge from his memory, often with the help of Joe’s good friend, Mr. Alcohol.

So when Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik went on SiriusXM NFL Radio recently and spoke openly about upgrading the secondary, he wasn’t joking. It’s possible the Bucs have gone from the worst secondary to potentially the best.

For this reason, Vinnie Iyer of The Sporting News gives the Bucs an “A” grade for their offseason transactions.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Grade: A

Best addition: S Dashon Goldson

So the Bucs finally did trade for Revis, but given the concern about his knee, the secondary move that deserves more love is the signing of Goldson away from the 49ers. He does everything at safety and is the perfect complement to another hard hitter in run support, Mark Barron. The Bucs aggressively addressed their huge secondary need with a home run.

On paper, it sure looks like the Bucs did a complete 180 with the secondary, including the drafting of Johnthan Banks in the second round.

For this reason in particular, Joe is intrigued to see how the Bucs defend the pass come September.

“Hi-C” has been a regular at FanFest in past years, and he’s still working hard on various charitable community projects. FOX-13 caught up with Copeland about a free football camp he’s having today in Spring Hill. All the info. is here.

Plenty of observers, however, think he could be on the field quickly.

Twice during his ESPN.com live chat today, NFC South blogger Pat Yasinskas wrote that Bucs fans should expect to see Glennon if Josh Freeman gets off to a rough start in 2013.

Joe knows all this blubbering about Freeman comes down to what kind of standards/expectations Greg Schiano has set for Freeman.

If Schiano expects consistency and greatness from Freeman, then history says there’s a solid shot he’ll be let down. Perhaps all Schiano wants is no mistakes as he pounds Doug Martin and moves the chains, playing the kind of football he talked about craving this time last year.

As for Glennon, Joe really hopes not to see him outside of preseason. That likely would mean the Bucs are in trouble, though again it comes back to Schiano’s expectations for Freeman.

Joe could envision a scenario where even if the Bucs are winning, Schiano gives Glennon a start to replace a struggling Freeman, assuming Schiano liked what he saw from Glennon’s big preseason workload. He can always go back to Freeman if it doesn’t work out. Schiano had no problem shuffling QBs at Rutgers, so there’s no reason to think he wouldn’t consider it at the NFL level.

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You know what impressed Joe most about last season? It was how Doug Martin, after a modest start, turned the corner and became a Pro Bowler despite running behind a line riddled with injuries.

Some believe Martin not only will be better this season, but he could very well have a record-breaking campaign.

The pride of Northwestern, Scott Smith, writing for “The Captain’s Blog” on Buccaneers.com, thinks Martin could have a 15-touchdown year.

The problem with choosing a specific statistical first-time achievement for a Buccaneer player is that there aren’t too many obvious milestones left, especially after Freeman’s 4,000-yard campaign last year. Doug Martin rather noisily chased 2,000 yards from scrimmage last year, and while that would have made him just the third rookie to hit that mark it wouldn’t have been a first time for the Bucs. James Wilder had 2,229 during his amazing 1984 season. 100 catches, 1,500 rushing yards, 25 touchdown passes, 200 tackles, 15 sacks, 10 interceptions – they’ve all been done.

We could go with 30 touchdown passes or 20 sacks or the next even number up on some of those lists, but we’ve chosen the 15-touchdown campaign – scoring 15 TDs, that is, not throwing them – for one good reason. The Buccaneers are the only team in the NFL who has never had a player hit that milestone. James Wilder’s 13 touchdowns in 1984 remains the franchise’s single-season record.

Obviously, Doug Martin would be the leading candidate. He had 12 touchdowns as a rookie, which is a pretty impressive opening salvo. If one assumes a little more development in his (already outstanding) game, and in the Bucs’ offense as a whole, it’s not hard to envision a jump of three more scores. Vincent Jackson and Mike Williams might have a shot, as well.

So let’s say this does happen, that Martin reaches such a milestone. That gives Joe good vibes. If a running back sets records, that generally means his team isn’t throwing the ball that much. Often, lousy teams rack up a lot of passing yards because they are playing from behind.

If Martin is scoring that many touchdowns, it tells Joe the Bucs are winning the time-of-possession game, which often translates into victories.

Among many topics, Spence explains why he can’t impress ladies with a Jamaican accent even though he’s from Jamaica. Plus, Spence gets into why the Bucs “fell in love with me,” taking double-teams away from Gerald McCoy, Ron Zook, and why he’s determined to be the strongest Buccaneer.

And Joe always enjoys a guy sitting down for an introduction to Buccaneers fans everywhere sporting a “Don’t Sweat My Swag” t-shirt.