Hottie Allie LaForce and CBS Radio’s Doug Gottlieb, co-hosts of LeadOff, seen weeknights on the CBS Sports Network, discuss the job security of Bucs commander Greg Schiano.

Joe’s not a big stats geek, but some are telling and worth noting.

In a Q&A for the Falcons’ official website, Tampa Tribune scribe eye-RAH! Kaufman noted that the Bucs are 1-20 over the past few seasons when they don’t rush for 100 yards as a team. That’s a pretty striking number.

Joe dug a little deeper and, perhaps more telling, the Bucs are 6-3 under the New Schiano Order when they do rush for 100 yards. 

The Bucs have invested a stunning number of millions on their offensive line. It’s one of the highest paid and most experienced O-lines in the game, but they haven’t played well, “inconsistent” Greg Schiano called the O-line yesterday.

Interestingly, Derrick Brooks, speaking on his Tampa-2 show on WDAE-AM 620 yesterday, said he’s confident his film study has shown the Bucs are running more zone blocking this season. Brooks speculated this could be having a minor negative impact on the rushing attack.

Invoking the name of former NFL quarterback Todd Marinovich usually brings out ugly thoughts.

A quarterback who was brought up by an out of control father, who tried his best and largely succeeded to raise a young boy and to build him from a toddler into an NFL quarterback, young Marinovich suffered terrible side effects. He was all but drummed out of the league for using a Woodstock-like grocery list of drugs including amphetamines, cocaine and, lastly, marijuana.

Even more startling, Marinovich, while still in the NFL, began dropping LSD thinking it would not show up on NFL drug tests, which may have been why his final NFL passes resembled Blaine Gabbert’s.

One lesser known milestone for Marinovich was that he set a rookie record with the Raiders for passes attempted in his first two NFL games at 99.

Guess who is No. 2 on the list? That would be Bucs quarterback Mike Glennon with 86. Want more fun facts? Glennon’s 50 completions in his first two games is the most by a rookie in his first two games since Cam Newton came into the league in 2011.

Impressive? Yes. Concerning? Yes.

Joe’s not sure why the Bucs are calling for a green-as-grass rookie to be launching the ball so often. At least with Newton, when he was a rookie, and to a lesser degree RoboQuarterback, they were expected to play. Newton was the opening day starter.

Until Bucs defrocked franchise quarterback Josh Freeman melted down, there was little expectation of Glennon (except from the Mike Glennon Mob), barring injury to Freeman.

Of course, one reason the Bucs have Glennon airing it out so much is that the Bucs may realize they are not getting much of a push from their offensive line, thus rendering Pro Bowl running back Doug Martin ineffective.

The face of the Buccaneers, rookie QB Mike Glennon, had his weekly media session today and shared all kinds of thoughts, from growing with fellow rookie Tim Wright to learning the detailed Bucs offense.

Joe asked Glennon to expound on the loving bonding he and Greg Schiano have been engaging in on the sidelines. Glennon explained that Schiano always ribs him about how he should have gone to Rutgers, and Glennon countered Sunday during the Eagles game, following a couple of big scrambles, that he should have gone to Oregon.

Joe’s got the full audio below, via 620wdae.com. Enjoy.

In each of the past two Bucs games, Mike Glennon put a handoff in the gut of Doug Martin and the ball was fumbled.

Given how the New Schiano Order stresses ball security, these were high crimes against the regime.

Joe asked Mike Sullivan about the problem today, and the offensive coordinator explained that the issue was addressed in a big way.

“That is so basic and so fundamental and so inexcusable,” is how Sullivan described the fumbles. He went on to say sometimes ball security work takes a back seat on a Wednesday when the new plays for the week are installed. But not today.

Sullivan said it was a “major point of emphasis” at practice, specifically the “specific tracks on any given play” of the QB and running back approaching a handoff.

Joe hopes the Bucs can rectify this fast. Communication and comfort levels get tougher on the road, especially in a dome like where the Bucs will head Sunday in Atlanta.

What happens when you put Tampa Bay sports radio icon Steve Duemig and Joe in the same studio to talk all things Bucs for an hour?

Find out at 5 p.m. on WDAE-AM 620. The Wednesday “JoeBucsFan Hour” rolls on. You don’t want to miss this. And now Joe follows an hour of Duemig and Bucs icon Derrick Brooks talking all things football at 4 p.m. It’s must-listen radio for football fans!

Former Bucs franchise quarterback and current Minnesota Vikings starting quarterback Josh Freeman had a few brief words for the Vikings’ pen and mic club and, apparently, he just cannot turn the page on the Bucs, tossing out a not-so-veiled reference to Bucs commander Greg Schiano.

Twittering from the land of a thousand lakes, Tom Pelissero of USA Today jotted down a few of Freeman’s thoughts this afternoon.

@TomPelissero: Freeman also emphasized the #Vikings org has people committed to being “quality human beings” and “they do things the right way around here”

OK, so Josh had his (handsomely-paid) feelings hurt by the big, bad coach in Tampa. You know, Josh, Joe is just going to guess that if you didn’t one-hop so many passes to running backs, if you didn’t mistake so many opposing cornerbacks for teammates, if you didn’t force so many passes to DJ Toes on the Line, and, you know, won a few games, that the big bad coach wouldn’t have been such a bully to you all along. In fact, he would have given you a hug and made sure you had cookies and warm milk before you went to bed each night. Chocolate chip cookies, in fact.

This just demonstrates what Freeman’s detractors have stated all along, that Freeman still has some growing up to do.

Has anyone heard Christian Ponder whine and complain and cry and bellyache and demand to be released or traded? Joe hasn’t.

Then again, Joe would be content with life too if he came home to Samantha Steele each night.

Offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan spent his first Buccaneers game coaching and calling plays from the press box area Sunday against the Eagles.

Was he banished upstairs by Greg Schiano? Not at all. Sullivan said today it was his idea to get back to the bird’s-eye view.

Sullivan was asked about the move at his weekly news conference this afternoon, and Sullivan stressed that he spent “two years in Jacksonville and then eight years with the [New York] Giants, I was always in the press box.”

Sullivan was clear the move upstairs was his idea discussed during the bye week, and it was beneficial and will continue.

“I know from all those years being up in the press box there’s a perspective and a vantage point that you get that I felt would be beneficial,” Sullivan said. “So I just switched with John McNulty, who is the quarterbacks coach. So he’s now on the field and I was just relaying the calls in to him. And so it’s something that gives an added vantage point that I think is helpful from the standpoint of not seeing at ground level but having that bird’s eye view so to speak.”

This really struck Joe as odd.

Why did Sullivan make this move 21 games (plus eight preseason games) into his Buccaneers career? Was he not permitted to call plays from upstairs previously by Schiano? Did Sullivan feel Josh Freeman needed 1-on-1, face-to-face coddling but Mike Glennon doesn’t?

Hopefully, this will help the Bucs’ bottom line on gamedays. Something has to take this offense out of the NFL cellar.

A seemingly physically subdued Bucs commander Greg Schiano took to the podium this afternoon for his daily press conference and was mostly barraged with questions about injured players sidelined and those expected to resume playing after being banged up.

Then, there was a question about Team Glazer. Schiano was asked if he has spoken with Team Glazer recently, since the Bucs are mired in spiral of losing 10 of their last 11 games and are still looking for their first win of the 2013 campaign.

Yes, Schiano said, he has spoken with Team Glazer. Quite a bit in fact. But that’s when Schiano slammed the door shut on the question or any possible follow-up when he said with a stern, direct, clear and firm voice, “We talk often. But what we talk about is confidential. But we talk often.”

So apparently, Team Glazer is talking. To probably their most high-profile employee.

Bad news/good news at One Buc Palace today. All-Pro guard Carl Nicks, whose bum toe/MRSA-infected foot, had surgery in the last 24 hours after seeking an out-of-town medical opinion on the MRSA re-infection that kept him out of Sunday’s game against the Eagles.

However, there is good news, a well placed Bucs source told Joe. Nicks’ condition isn’t that bad and he’s expected to return to action next month.

As Joe wrote earlier, the Bucs practiced with Jeremy Zuttah and left guard for a stretch of practice today, with Ted Larsen at center and Gabe Carimi at guard. Greg Schiano said Davin Joseph is day-to-day after taking a knock on his good knee against the Eagles.

Given the not-yet-100-percent knee of Davin Joseph and the lingering turf toe/MRSA of Carl Nicks, the Bucs’ offensive line, for yet another season, is in chaos.

It appears there may be more shuffling of the offensive line based on the peek of practice Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune was offered this morning, so he documented on Twitter.

‏@RCummingsTBO: Could there be yet another changing of the guards in Tampa. J. Zuttah was at LG, G. Carimi at RG with Ted Larsen at C in practice today

While a move of Zuttah to left guard is not a bad deal; Zuttah may be best as a left guard. Moving Larsen to center troubles Joe. Yeah, he’s a local guy, but whenever he plays, Joe gets nervous and starts pacing his house looking for a bottle.

Joe’s of the belief that in the draft next May, it may be time for Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik to start stocking up on offensive linemen, something he’s never done in the draft.

Longtime 49ers offensive lineman Randy Cross, a three-time All-Pro and three-time Super Bowl winner, now calls Falcons games and is part of the national media.

Cross dove into all things Bucs-Falcons on the Ron and Ian show this morning on WDAE-AM 620 and he doesn’t like what he sees in Bucs land.

There’s a “severe disconnect between [Greg Schiano] and professional athletes,” said Cross, who’s also described the New Schiano Order as “total dysfunction.”

The good news is Cross says the Falcons have been very vulnerable to edge rushes and have not generated much pass rush themselves, putting “an undue amount of stress and fatigue on a relatively young defensive backfield.” Enjoy the full Cross interview below, via 620wdae.com.

“Hey Mike, you hear the one about the priest, the rabbi and the Kansas State QB who walk into a bar?”

One could say Mike Glennon and Greg Schiano are married. Does anyone really think the Bucs’ hierarchy would grant Schiano a chance to develop a third top QB prospect in three years?

Joe doubts it. If Glennon doesn’t prove to be a strong starter, that surely will spell doom for the New Schiano Order. Joe can’t envision a scenario in which Glennon is subpar and Schiano gets another crack at the QB apple.

So Joe and other fans are left to pull for Glennon to be a stud.

Schiano has been vocally giddy about his young QB, and on the head coach’s radio show Monday on WDAE-AM 620, Schiano had a big smile in his voice talking about how he and Glennon were having fun on the sidelines against the Eagles.

“As a coach and the quarterback, you’re having a little fun with the thing, it’s good,” Schiano said of his gameday antics with Glennon. “And Mike’s just going to get better and better and better. And the people around him, you know. We didn’t have Mike Williams this past week. You know, it’s going to be good to get him back and get [Glennon] playing with him more. So I think as everybody becomes more comfortable with each other.  You know, with the emergence of Tim Wright in the passing game, that was also very important. You know, I think Mike Glennon’s going to keep getting better and better.”

Reading that has to get the Mike Glennon Mob all jacked up. And for the record, count Joe as a new, entry-level member of the Mob.

Glennon is the No. 1 QB on the roster and he seems like he could become a productive NFL QB, a solid third-round pick. Not a special guy that’s going to win a Super Bowl, but a solid football player and a likeable kid.

Longtime Redskins and Texans general manager Charley Casserly spoke today on WDAE-AM 620 about how rockstar general manager Mark Dominik needs to have a list ready of coaches who could replace head coach Greg Schiano — in midseason or after the season.

That’s in the job description, Casserly said, because ownership could start calling at any time to begin the exploration process.

Casserly, thought is no fan of a midseason coaching change, saying it’s fruitless in most cases.

Unless the Bucs have their next head coach locked up long term, Casserly said, or there’s “utter chaos in the locker room or the head coach clearly at that point in time is beaten down or he’s quit or one of those things there, really, you don’t accomplish anything in turning anything around by changing [midseason],”

Casserly’s full interview is below. It’s a very cerebral chat. Enjoy.

It still irks Joe the Bucs didn’t think they could use the services of 2012 team sack leader Michael Bennett, who has 3.5 sacks through six games with Seattle.

Through the first couple of games this season, the Bucs shockingly were among the NFL leaders in sacks.

Given how awful the Bucs were in sacks last year, and did nothing but offer lip service to improve the pass rush in the offseason, Joe was stunned at the Bucs’ early success.

(Yes, yes, yes. The Bucs drafted three third-day draftees on the defensive line, and all made the team which should tell fans just how thin the Bucs were up front defensively).

Well, those sack numbers have dropped off considerably. The most recent tally of NFL stats show the Bucs are now tied for 19th in quarterback sacks, though the Bucs have played one less game than many clubs. For those of you who struggle with math at this hour of the day before your daily caffeine inhalation, that means the Bucs are in the bottom half of the league in sacks inching closer to the bottom third of the league.

The Bucs only had one sack facing a guy nearly as immobile as Mike Glennon, and that is Eagles quarterback Nick Foles. Against Arizona and Carson Palmer, it was the same tally.

Joe’s pretty sure the dropoff against Foles came, in part, because the Bucs were simply gassed as the Eagles ran off plays quicker than Joe can down cold beers on a hot summer afternoon. But the Eagles have allowed 16 sacks, tied for 11th most in the NFL.

The simple fact the Bucs let their top 2012 sacker, Michael Bennett, walk away for basically the price of two upper deck season tickets and had chances to obtain established NFL pass rushers in the offseason, but instead just shook their collective heads and said, “Nah, we’re good,” just leaves Joe numb.

Is it water under the bridge? Yes, if your team is able to fill that huge hole.

Initially, it seemed the Bucs did indeed overcome that crater, but they haven’t. So someone over at One Buc Palace needs to man up and confess they blew it with multiple chances to upgrade the pass rush on the defensive line.

Joe’s going to guess that this question, among others, will have to be answered in Bryan Glazer’s office sometime in December.

The Custodian of Canton, eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune, has seen the Bucs up close and personal this season more often than Joe and apparently is appalled by the state of the franchise in 2013.

How much have the Bucs turned eye-RAH!’s stomach? In his recent NFL power rankings, Kaufman has the Bucs below every team in the NFL save for the moribund Jags.

31. Tampa Bay Can the Bucs stay focused amid all the carnage?

Carnage? The carnage has yet come to One Buc Palace. If the losing continues, then one has to think Team Glazer will get involved. At that point, folks, you will see carnage.

At that point, there won’t just be carnage, but upheaval.

To paraphrase Kaufman in a recent radio interview, Joe is here to tell you that the Bucs are nowhere near as miserable as the Jags. Ten days ago Joe saw the Jags with his own eyes in person, sober no less (Joe got roped into driving by his friends back in the Land of the Corn). The Jags are woeful beyond words. Each time Blaine Gabbert takes a snap from center, he wets himself.

In fact, John Madden last week, in his weekly appearance with the one and only Chris “Mad Dog” Russo on SiriusXM, said he coached against the winless 1976 Bucs and the current Jags team, which he watched earlier this season in Oakland, is “on par” with the 1976 Bucs and he laughed in amazement how any front office type actually tried to put together the motley crew known as the Jags.

So if the Bucs have much better talent, and yet are believed to be as bad as the Jags, it is clear evidence Tampa Bay is not being properly coached up.

The Bucs had high hopes for undrafted rookie cornerback Rashaan Melvin, but his preseason hamstring injury never recovered. He didn’t take a regular-season snap and was placed on injured reserve today.

Cornerbacks Melvin, Danny Gorrer (groin surgery) and Michael Adams (knee surgery) were all hit with serious injuries this season. Throw in Johnthan Banks’ MRSA infection and Darrelle Revis recovering from ACL surgery, it’s been a rough year for the Bucs’ secondary.

Immediately after the Bucs-Eagles game, Joe floated the idea that emerging rookie tight end Tim Wright and his wide receiver frame might be best suited as the Bucs’ No. 3 wide receiver right now, especially with Tom Crabtree returning to the lineup.

On Monday morning, former Bucs tight end Anthony Becht suggested the same thing during an interview on WDAE-AM 620.

It’s been dreadful for the Bucs at No. 3 receiver. Kevin Ogletree couldn’t hold the ball, and Tiquan Underwood looked lost Sunday in his first game back off the couch.

Yesterday, Wright coming off seven catches for 91 yards against the Eagles, talked about how he’s learning the difference in how linebackers cover him versus defensive backs, and he explained how he’s been preparing as a starter since he was the fifth string tight end in training camp. You can hear more from Wright, including his Rutgers-man perspective on Greg Schiano, in the WDAE-AM 620 audio below.

The Bucs’ defense has had extreme highs and lows this season, which explains their No. 16 ranking (350.8 yards per game) through Week 6 of the 2013 NFL season.

Sunday against the Eagles surely was the low point, with the Bucs getting burned for huge plays in the passing game and letting Philly ice the win with 11 consecutive runs on a fourth-quarter drive.

For those who don’t think total yards allowed is a fair way to measure a defense, Joe always remembers Derrick Brooks discussing how the glory-years defense set out to fight for “every blade of grass.”

The Bucs are middle-of-the-pack in most defensive categories. But one bright spot remains the rush defense. The Bucs led the NFL last season in run defense, and this year they’re allowing 3.8 yards per carry, good for seventh best in the league. And 20.2 points allowed per game is 10th best.

As for the offense’s ranking, well, Joe doesn’t want to further depress anyone.

“I don’t care what the scoreboard says. We had you on the ropes there, Bill.”

Joe’s getting worried about Greg Schiano. The man is delusional.

After a Bucs’ 3-and-out and punt from the Tampa Bay 10 yard line Sunday, the Eagles had the ball with 8:03 remaining in the fourth quarter leading 28-20.

The Eagles proceeded to run the ball 11 consecutive times up the gut of the Bucs’ defense — 11 in a row! — to set up the game-icing field goal with 2:34 on the clock. The Bucs’ hurry-up offense then managed one first down before turning the ball over on downs and the Eagles lined up in victory formation.

Yet somehow, Schiano believes the Bucs “had an opportunity to win” that game.

Schiano made this claim on the Buccaneers Radio Network last night on WDAE-AM 620. What was even scarier to Joe was Schaino also claiming the Bucs were in the same boat in New England, where they were blown out 23-3.

“There’s no panic. We understand that, you know, there’s a lot of things that have gone on in these five games and, you know, with everything that’s happening, we believe that as a staff, we firmly believe that, you know, we had an opportunity to win all five of those football games,” Schiano said. “And you know what, we need to keep going, need to keep the players continuing to grow and get better. That’s why we practice. That’s why we meet and walk-through. And as we do that, we’re going to start winning. And when we do, we’re going to keep winning.”

Again, it’s stunning to Joe that Schiano believes the Bucs were close to beating the Eagles or Patriots. Keep in mind Bill Belicheat didn’t kick a field goal or try for a touchdown late in the fourth quarter against the Bucs, opting to hand the ball off to LeGarrette Blount on 4th-and-6 from the Bucs’ 11 yard line. That was a gift to Schiano.

As Jonathan Casillas detailed to Joe on Sunday, “It’s easy to put together a three quarter game, you know a lot of people can do that.”

Schiano believing the Bucs are competitive when they’re not is downright scary.