“I’m not trading for that POS! I learned my lesson with Swaggy.”

So the trade deadline came and went. Bucs fans who constantly hit F5 on their keyboards, hoping to see an update at some point Tuesday, were left hearing crickets.

No news. No update. No trade. No luck.

Joe wasn’t really surprised by this. Did the Bucs have areas to address to give both the team and fans some confidence the team could make a Super Bowl run? Of course.

But two things were involved: One, Bucs AC/DC-loving general manager Jason Licht loves his draft picks. Prying one away from him might be more difficult than pulling a steak bone out of a hungry Belgian Malinois’ mouth.

And apparently, the Bucs think, despite a myriad of injuries to key players, that they have the horses to make a Super Bowl run. We shall see.

The way Bucs coach Todd Bowles spoke yesterday, it seemed the Bucs never got any closer to making a deal than talk.

“I think it’s always a matter of compensation,” Bowles said about trade chatter between the Bucs and other teams. “Things [were] discussed, but nothing really materialized close.”

As Joe pointed out, no deal tells Joe the Bucs think they can make a push to Santa Clara with the hand they have been dealt with after injuries. Bowles did not disagree.

“It’s not just confidence,” Bowles said. “It’s just a matter of things working out how you want them to work out. It’s not a confidence thing with the other guys, or it’s not a detriment [thing] at the same time if we don’t get anybody…

“It’s just, you see some things that can try to make you better, and if it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t fit you and it doesn’t fit what you’re trying to do, then you just move on.”

Joe knows the Bucs are also big on bringing in the right people. Perhaps there was a deal to be made but the Bucs didn’t want to introduce “that guy” into the locker room.

You know, like DeSean Jackson and Swaggy Baker? (coughCANCERScough).

That’s certainly understandable.