The Bucs’ desire to ram the ball down people’s throats took a nasty blow Friday night when All-Pro right guard Davin Joseph went down with a season-ending patella injury.

If the Bucs are to go with the old Raheem Morris mantra “Next man up,” that would be reserve Ted Larsen. But after being questioned at his day-after press conference Saturday, Bucs coach Greg Schiano didn’t seem to hand the job over to Larsen so quickly, reports Brad Biggs of the NationalFootballPost.com.

“We’re going to try to work a couple of things,” Schiano said. “Right now, I’m not sure. Obviously Larsen has worked there. But some of that has to be competed for I think. I don’t think it’s a knockdown slam dunk who it is there.”

Nor should it be. As Joe has written and spoke about before, there is no such thing as a good time to lose Joseph. But if he had to be hurt and lost for the year, now is the time.

In the coming days, over 1,000 players will hit the open market, cut by other teams. Plus, perhaps rock star general manager Mark Dominik could swing a trade for a potential salary cap casualty in the final year of his contract for a late-round draft pick.

No, Larsen shouldn’t just be handed the job. It should be earned. And Joe’s of the mind the Bucs will bring in a few candidates to push or replace Larsen.

Joe didn’t mention this last week, but watching the Panthers’ first-teamers absolutely annihilate the Dolphins’ top defense sent Joe to Walgreens for a six-pack of Tums.

Cam Newton and the running game completely carved up the Dolphins in short order and jumped out to a 17-0 lead. It looked like the varsity against the JV. And it made the Bucs’ success against Miami seem less impressive.

And that brings us to tonight, when the Panthers’ top dogs line up for at least a half against the Jets at 8 p.m. on NBC. It’ll be interesting to see how the Panthers respond against a much better team, before a hostile crowd, and on the national stage.

Joe really wants to see what the Panthers’ ground game looks like. Stopping the run is still the Bucs’ biggest defensive hurdle to overcome.

Look for the Bucs to spread the tight end work around what likely will be three TEs on the roster.

The challenge, though, will be to avoid tipping off play-calls to defenses based on the tight ends in the game. Frankly, much of this revolves around Dallas Clark’s subpar blocking on a team that craves a punishing running game.

In a funny moment at Greg Schiano’s news conference yesterday, the leader of the New Schiano Order was pressed to explain and acknowledge the “tight end by committee” approach. The question came from Tampa Tribune scribe Woody Cummings and Schiano demanded to know where Cummings got his intelligence, “Who gave you that word?” Schiano asked, referring to “committee.”

Cummings let the head coach know it was revealed on the local TV broadcast of the Pats-Bucs game.

“Stinkin’ production meeting, huh,” Schiano joked with a reddened face. “When I say that ‘by committee,’ I mean, you know, there are certain guys that do different things well, better than the next guy. So I think what we’ll try to do is play to their strengths. You gotta be careful when you do that though, if you totally play to your strengths, then it’s like a blinking light, ‘Ok, here it comes.’ So you gotta be proficient enought at least at the things that aren’t your strengths so you can mix it up. But, yeah, I do think we’ll play several guys, which will be good.”

Hopefully, Luke Stocker can stay healthy. He’s no Dallas Clark, but Joe believes Stocker is far more versatile than many believe.

Also, Joe enjoyed Schiano’s analogy of the “blinking light” in relation to how an offense can’t telegraph what’s coming. That was exactly what the Bucs did repeatedly with LeGarrette Blount last season.

While some Bucs fans are concerned by Josh Freeman looking inconsistent and tentative at times this preseason, that doesn’t bother Joe much. Freeman’s learning a new offense, with new coaches and receivers. It will take time, and he’s not turning the ball over, which is a great sign.

But alarming Joe this morning is the Bucs’ relative lack of success in the running game this preseason. The Bucs are supposed to be mauling at the line of scrimmage with their expensive manbeast offensive line and strong pair of running backs.

Through three games, LeGarrette Blount is averaging 2.6 yards per carry, and Doug Martin is averaging 3.6 yards. And these are two guys battling to win a starting nod.

“Run the football” is the identity of the Bucs offense, so Bucs fans were told in the offseason. There have been flashes, but not much more than that.

Now Davin Joseph is down.

In two weeks, the Bucs will need to run the ball against Carolina, a team they had zero success running the ball on last season.

Joe’s as fired up for the regular season as the next guy, but the Bucs have got to get the ground game humming right out of the gate. Without a dominant running attack, Joe’s not seeing how the Bucs avoid going 0-3 to start the season.

Got tickets for the Bucs-Panthers game on opening day, Sept. 9?

Joe’s friends at Tilted Kilt in Clearwater are going to get you there — in style.

Bucs fans can start their opening-day tailgate at Tilted Kilt and then get on a chauffeured luxury bus at 3 p.m. to Raymond James Stadium for the 4:25 p.m kickoff against Carolina. Then the luxury bus will return you right after the game to Tilted Kilt, where you can keep the party going into the night.

And best of all, a seat on the luxury bus costs only $3.95 roundtrip per person!!

That’s a huge savings! Crap, parking at the stadium would cost you $15 to $25.

Parking is safe, easy and convenient at Tilted Kilt. And you can bring Tilted Kilt food on the bus, and your own adult beverages. … Joe’s friends at Paradise Worldwide Transportation are doing the driving, which means it will be top-shelf service.

Buy your seat now below. After purchase, you’ll get an instant receipt and parking/pickup specifics emailed to you within 24 hours.

Bucs rookie safety Mark Barron made his first splash play in the NFL (hopefully, many more to come) when he grabbed a tipped Tom Brady pass and returned it for six points.

To hear Barron speak after the game to Joe about his play, it was a combination of his teammates playing sound fundamental defense, and Barron being a bit fortunate.

“I think it was just a thing where everyone did their job,” Barron said. “I want to thank Ronde. If he didn’t make that tip, I don’t think I would have made that play.

“Everybody did their job. Everyody was in their zones, doing their jobs and breaking on the ball. That is exactly what [Barber] did and he got a hand on it.”

It hasn’t been lost on viewers of training camp practices that Barron has shadowed Barber constantly. That’s because Barron is trying to squeeze every tiny bit of information from Barber as he can.

“For me, [Barber is] a guy who has been in the league for 16 years,” Barron said. “It’s a privilege [to play with him]. He knows how to play the game. He has a feel for pretty much everything. Instincts, he has them. There’s a lot that he knows and a lot of knowledge that he has.”

While Barron joked that he will be able to tell his grandkids some day that his first NFL interception came off the great Tom Brady, he was still distraught about one aspect of the play.

“The only thing I messed up on was that I didn’t keep the ball!”

In his day after review of the Bucs win over the Patriots in the final home preseason game of the year, Bucs coach Greg Schiano announced right guard Davin Joseph is out for the year, which was released by the Bucs official Twitter feed.

@TBBuccaneers: Davin Joseph will have surgery on his left patellar tendon Monday and will be placed on injured reserve. … Coach Schiano says he believes the Bucs have the answer for Davin Joseph’s absence internally, but they will always see what us available.

So there you have it. Not surprising at all, but still depressing.

As Joe told both Toby David last night and Rock Riley this morning, both of WHFS-FM 98.7, there was no good time to lose Joseph to an injury. But if there is such a thing as a timely moment to go down, this is the time.

In the next week, there will be a glut of players hitting the free agent market, cut loose from their teams. Donald Penn was once such a player.

Also, if the Bucs get wind of a guard who will be cut due to a salary cap casuality, perhaps a trading a low-round draft pick for the guy would make sense.

Usually, teams won’t trade for a potential salary cap victim, as why would a team spend a draft pick when they can get the guy free. But not many teams will have a dire need for a guard like the Bucs. So spending a seventh- or sixth-round pick may not be outrageous if Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik can land a player that, while may never replace Joseph, will temper the blow.

Two weeks ago the Bucs started their game with Tennessee with three three-and-outs. Last night, the Bucs starting defense was smothering.

How smothering? Consider the stats pumped out by CBSSports.com’s Bucs Rapid Reports Twitter feed.

@CBSSportsNFLTB: Impressive showing for #Bucs D last night: Patriots starting O had 8 drives vs. Bucs’ starters, and only 1 drive went more than 14 yards.

Now consider how the Bucs accomplished this and just who it was against. Starting middle linebacker Mason Foster was a late scratch due to a slight hamstring. Three plays into the game, starting defensive tackle Gerald McCoy was on the receiving end of a borderline dirty low hit at the knee. He returned, but just briefly. Then, Adrian Clayborn went down with an elbow/scrotum injury.

So the Bucs did this without three key starters.

Then you look at the opposite side of the line of scrimmage and you see a big Patriots offensive line and All-World quarterback Tom Brady.

Impressive, indeed.

Even though we are not supposed to worry about preseason wins and losses, New England coach Bill Belicheat was clearly bothered by how the Bucs defense beat down the Pats offense in this Comcast New England video.

Gerald McCoy went down last night on the Bucs’ third defensive play, and in came E.J. Wilson to fill his shoes.

E.J. Wilson?

Joe has to watch the game again, but Wilson played pretty darn well.

A Butch Davis defensive end at North Carolina, Wilson was a fourth-round pick of the Seahawks in 2010 but was cut midseason. He was signed by the Bucs before last season and blew out his Achilles during the 2011 preseason.

And now he’s backing up Gerald McCoy. For those who love the bottom-of-the-roster drama, Wilson tossed a fat new wrinkle into the defensive line mix. 

Amobi Okoye is still slowed by his knee issue. Gary Gibson made his preseason debut last night and looked rather plodding. Frank Okam can’t be high on the charts if Wilson played over him, and Wallace Gilberry, who drew strong praise from Schiano after the Miami game is still around.

Given the fragility of Gerald McCoy, Joe can’t imagine the Bucs not keeping five defensive tackles on the final roster, one more than usual. That, of course, the Bucs would force the Bucs to go leaner at another position, which could spell unsuspecting doom for a wide receiver or safety, especially given the sad new question mark on the offensive line.

Ronde Barber was too smart for Tom Brady last night

Mark Barron brought home the glory for his pick-6, first-quarter touchdown against Tom Brady and the Pats last night, but it was Bucs icon Ronde Barber who made the play.

Graybeard Barber read Tom Brady, undercut the route and tipped the pass up into the welcoming arms of Barron. Then Barber led the calvary into the end zone.

That wasn’t the only special play Barber made last night, according to the leader of the New Schiano Order.

“Some little things [Barber] did tonight, I haven’t experienced in a long time,” Schiano said, with tone that expressed awe.

Schiano explained that Barber’s “little things” took him back to special moments of his days as a Bears assistant coach in the 1990s.

Joe loves Barber as much as the next guy, but Joe has serious concerns as to how well Barber can play safety and handle the increased pounding he’ll get at the position.

Barber’s going to have some trouble in coverage with tight ends, but last night was an indication that he’s likely going to make up for that with guile and pure football smarts.

It was glorious to get the first real taste of what Vincent Jackson can do in a Bucs uniform last night.

Finally, Josh Freeman fired a pass downfield this preseason. Finally! And it came very early — with zip — to Jackson. It was the second play of the Bucs’ first possession, and Freeman found Jackson in daylight nestled in the Pats’ deep zone for a 25-yard completion.

Then man coverage was no match for Jackson, and he caught two more balls on that opening possession and wrapped up the series and his night with three catches for 49 yards, and a drop.

If the Bucs can simply rip off a Jackson-led drive like that twice a game, Jackson will be in the Pro Bowl and the Bucs likely will be in the playoff hunt.

Jackson makes everything look so easy with his size, speed and route-running. Maybe it can be just that easy?

The Bucs are paying Jackson $11 million+ per season. Hopefully, Mike Sullivan will let Freeman cash in regularly on the high-priced talent.

The Bucs’ attendance last night of 47,440 was surely discouraging to those yearing for the community stain of TV blackouts to leave forever.

The Bucs-Pats preseason game last year drew a crowd of 49,313, per ESPN data. Joe’s no math major, but that means last night’s game represented a drop of roughly 2,000 fans, or 4 percent.

One would think the New Schiano Order and last night’s victory, and Cam Newton in town, and honoring Ronde Barber’s 200th start, would generate enough buzz over the next 12 days to avoid a blackout by the league deadline of Thursday, Sept. 6.

Joe sure hopes so, but it’s hardly a given that Bucs fans get the job done.

While WTSP-TV Channel 10 sports director Dave Wirth, who was the Bucs sideline reporter for Bucs preseason games, reported that right guard Davin Joseph suffered a broken kneecap, Wirth was quick to point out that is not an official word from the Bucs.

The Bucs have yet to speak on the record about the injury.

Joseph has, well, sort of.

Joseph took to Twitter just after midnight and seemed to offer a glimmer of hope his injury may not be devastating, though he was vague.

‏@DavinJoseph75: Thanks for all of the support, positive vibes, and prayers. Overall, it could be worse. God has a plan. I’ll be back ASAP.

It’s possible that Joseph may not have a season-ending injury, but again, nothing is confirmed. Greg Schiano will likely have an update in his weekly day-after press conference this afternoon.

Definitely click  through to learn more and/or shop online at Ed Morse Brandon Auto Mall Fiat. Joe bought his pre-owned Ford at Ed Morse and had a fantastic experience. Not a peep of trouble with the vehicle in 18 months. You’ll be amazed by the selection, price and service at Ed Morse.

There have been a lot of changes under the New Schiano Order since Bucs coach Greg Schiano took charge.

One of which is, he has tried to turn One Buc Palace into Langley, where the CIA is headquartered. There is barely no piece of information too small to be deemed classified information. Virtually everything is a state secret.

Like paranoia that pervades much of Washington, Schiano views the third estate as a branch of the KGB. Thus, he has instructed players not only to stay away from scribes away on their private time, but they are not in any way to discuss injuries.

So when Joe and the rest of the local pen and mic club paced through the Bucs locker room trying to scape up any morsel of information on injuries to Davin Joseph, Gerald McCoy and Adrian Clayborn, Joe noticed Clayborn laughing and joking with his teammates. He was not wearing any type of wrap on his arm, where it appeared early in the game he suffered an elbow injury.

So when Joe asked Clayborn, who is one of the nicest guys you would every want to meet, if he was doing OK, Clayborn looked at Joe with an ear-to-ear smile and answered, “I got hit in the scrotum,” and walked away.

Yes, Schiano has his troops well-trained already.

What befuddled the Raheem Morris administration seems to be no problem for the New Schiano Order.

How could this be? How could the slow starts to games, the most consistent aspect of the Raheem regime, poof into thin air under Greg Schiano?

Amazing how that works. Joe still contends the Bucs of last season were just too stubborn to hire a consultant, fresh sets of eyes, to study what was going wrong and causing those heinous starts to games.

Schiano has delivered three solid starts to three preseason games, capped by tonight’s 14-0 zip early lead on the Patriots.

This is by far one the most exciting developments of 2012.

Veteran WTSP-TV sportscaster Dave Wirth just reported on the 10 NEWS airwaves that Davin Joseph has a broken patella (kneecap) and will miss at least three months. Though Wirth says his source is not an official word from the Bucs.

Wirth was the sideline reporter for tonight’s Bucs-Pats game.

Joe is somewhat uplifted by this news, as an ACL tear would have been much more devastating.

Jeremy Trueblood is tight with Davin Joseph. The two offensive linemen were drafted in the same class (2006, Joseph a first round selection, Trueblood a second-round pick) and all but started at the same time.

The duo is so close, that there were heavy rumors last summer that Joseph was prepared to walk away from the Bucs had Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik not also signed Trueblood as part of a package deal.

Even after the game tonight, even after win, Trueblood’s mood was more of a guy who had left a wake.

Neither he nor his fellow offensive linemen would comment on the nature of Joseph’s injury and the Bucs are being tight-lipped about his condition.

But Trueblood did comment what it was like to see a friend unable to leave the field under his own power.

“You feel bad for anyone who gets injured but knowing Davin personally, it was probably embarrassing for him to get carted off, that’s his worst thing,” Trueblood said. “We’re hoping that it’s not that bad but right now, I have no idea.

“I wasn’t out there when it happened as I was rotating with [Demar] Dotson so I was watching from the sideline. All I can do is wish him a speedy recovery.”

Greg Schiano updates Gerald McCoy’s injury

It looks like the Bucs dodged a bullet and Gerald McCoy was not seriously injured when he left the game with a hurt knee during the Bucs’ first defensive series.

Speaking after the game on the Buccaneers Radio Network, Greg Schiano said McCoy just needs some time off to get back on the field.

“I think Gerald’s going to be OK. I think he just needs a little rest,” Schiano said.

Like McCoy or not, this is damn good news.