Hall of Famer Calvin Johnson is an example of a superstar receiver who thrived with nothing-special quarterbacks throwing him the ball for a chunk of his career.

Fellow Hall of Fame pass catcher Michael Irvin is in the other camp. He wasn’t much when Troy Aikman wasn’t throwing him the rock. (more…)

Shopped by the Rams.

Sorry, Joe is still not sold on the Bucs’ run game. Yet. (more…)

Joe imagines fourth-year Bucs outside linebacker Cam Gill often leaves One Buc Palace wondering what would happen if he got to play more often. (more…)

Dangerous with time — and without it.

Joe’s old man used to say NFL starting quarterbacks are the [32] very best at their position. But not all have a key luxury. (more…)

Mike Evans is 763 yards from another 1,000-yard season with 15 games to play.

Raise your hand if you think he won’t get there. (more…)

Bucs sacks king Shaq Barrett gives a thumbs-up while discussing his game-sealing pick-six.

Joe is confident that decades from now when Bucs sacks king Shaq Barrett enjoys retirement, he won’t forget how he sealed a win for the Bucs with a crazy pick-six. (more…)

NFL super insider Peter King.

Talk about an about-face. Or is it egg on his face? (more…)

Mike Evans and Vita Vea celebrate with Shaq Barrett after the Bucs sacks king sealed the win over the Bears with a pick-six Sunday. (Photo courtesy of Buccaneers.com.)

Welcome once again to Victory Monday! All is right with the world on Victory Monday. The food tastes better. The Big Storm Brewing beer is colder. The women are hotter. It’s a beautiful thing.

So grab some coffee and attack like Vita Vea! (more…)

Bucs coach Todd Bowles.

Don’t worry. Joe knows how ridiculous this sounds. (more…)

Impressed with Bucs.

This warms Joe’s heart. (more…)

BILL CURRIE FORD IS OPEN DAILY! Shop now online and don’t forget to request the Ira Kaufman Discount. Nationwide lifetime warranty on new vehicles.

BY IRA KAUFMAN

Style points are for figure skaters, not football teams.

Tampa Bay’s 27-17 triumph against the Bears was no modern art masterpiece, yet Bucs fans couldn’t care less. Except for a fourth-quarter lapse that saw Chicago march 90 yards to pull within three points, the Buc defense looked dominant in the home opener.

How important is a 2-0 start? Since 1990, NFL teams that open with two wins make the postseason at a 64 percent clip.

You can demean the Bears as a 4-13 club all you want, but there have been plenty of Buc teams over the years that would have found a way to lose games like this. Instead, Tampa Bay maintained possession for almost 12 more minutes than the visitors and those 17 additional offensive snaps were critical given the heat dome that sat above Raymond James Stadium.

Not surprisingly, the locker room was a sea of smiles. Tristan Wirfs and Mike Evans credited a stout defense, Lavonte David expressed his admiration for a turnover-free offense and over in the corner, Jason Licht almost suffered a hand injury from giving out all those high-fives. (more…)

The chase for the ball was on.

The quiet turning point of today’s victory against Chicago was delivered by, guess who, Baker Mayfield.

And it wasn’t through the air or stiff-arming a defender. (more…)

Focused on play.

Every Bucs fan knows Mike Evans loves the Bucs. But he doesn’t love them enough to work for relative peanuts. (more…)

Physical.

Joe thinks Bucs fans would agree. Offensive line was an expected team weakness entering the 2023 season. (more…)

Breakout?

A pass rush is a beautiful thing, yes? (more…)

Work to do, says Bucs QB.

It shouldn’t have been that close. (more…)

Free agent running back Kareem Hunt.

The Bucs are undefeated so Joe is thinking Super Bowl.

Anything else is a loser mentality. (more…)

Making an impact.

So who is the best Bucs rookie? After two games, an unlikely name sits atop Joe’s list. (more…)

Is it evident at all that Bucs sacks king Shaq Barrett is coming off a blown Achilles and surgery midway through last season?

What a freakin’ beast 30-year-old Shaq is. (more…)

Rob Gronkowski checks in.

Bucs Super Bowl hero tight end Rob Gronkowski knows a thing or two about life in Tampa, and has a few good friends at One Buc Palace. (more…)

A near perfect preseason was meaningless.

A very solid Week 1 start in hostile territory was very nice.

But now it’s official. Baker Mayfield is a comfortable, efficient and effective quarterback in a system that is perhaps perfectly suited for him. (more…)

How bout our beloved and undefeated Buccaneers!

Bring on Philadelphia a week from Monday night at The Licht House!

Tampa Bay continued its physical play against the Bears this afternoon. Five Bucs sacks on the first five drives was quite a statement by the defense. Yeah, the first drive was ugly as the Bears marched for a touchdown, but it was lockdown defense from there.

Super-scrambler Bears QB Justin Fields was limited to just three yards on his first three carries before a huge loss on a bumbled snap midway through the fourth quarter. (more…)