It’s the silly season of crazy draft rumors and smokescreens, and here’s a new one that will punch the Trent Richardson-to-the-Bucs crazies in the gut.

Sal Paolantonio of BSPN just reported that he talked to Trent Richardson who had just heard from Jets officials calling him to confirm his contact information on Day 1 of the draft. Paolantonio also said he had recently concluded a meeting with Rex Ryan and Jets officials that told him they like Richarson and that Ryan longs to see Richardson’s feet to get back to his core beliefs of pounding the football.

(Side note: Paolantonio was extraordinarily rude to Joe about 10 years ago in the Bucs locker room. Who knew a grown man could be such a weasel just because Joe stepped on his microphone wire that wasn’t even in use.)

As Joe wrote the other day, if Richardson truly is the prodigy everyone seems to think he is, then there’s no way he lasts to the Bucs at No. 5. If he did, that would be a truly bizarre occurence and it would make Joe wonder if Richardson really looks that good on film.

Of course, the Bucs could always trade up for Richardson, a move Justin “The Commish” Pawlowski says he would applaud.

It’s not often that a team drafts in the top five. That means in the previous season the team was pretty much horrible.

And even a (former) Bucs cheerleader like Tiffany Jimenez would argue the Bucs stunk last year.

One reason the Bucs have stunk is, in his short tenure as the Bucs rock star general manager, Mark Dominik’s draft selections haven’t exactly made people forget Bill Walsh, though his ability to find gems off the street as free agent signings has been uncanny.

Alan Dell of the Bradenton Herald writes that for the Bucs to turn around what was a horrible season, Dominik will have to raise his batting average with draft picks.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager admitted he and his draft choices are running out of time when he addressed the media last week.

The draft on Thursday will be the fourth under his wing. “We don’t have much more time, nor do the players,” he said. “If you don’t learn from your mistakes you are a bound to create them again. So you really try to look at it and say what was it about that that I missed on, that as an organization we didn’t make the right selection.”

There are two ways for a general manager to not have his contract extended. The first is if the team losses. The second is if the team isn’t getting the job done drafting.

The 2009 draft was bad for Dominik. The 2010 draft isn’t looking that great, but it would help its key draftees could stay on the field.

It’s way too early to judge the 2011 draft but the early results are promising.

Dominik could do well to get a(nother) contract extension if he hits a couple of home runs this weekend.

Joe sees the Bucs offense as a veteran group built to win immediately.

There’s the massively paid veteran offensive line with multiple Pro Bowl types in their prime. There’s the veteran No. 1 wideout making massive cash with experienced third-year guys at Nos. 2 & 3. There’s the 29-year-old tight end with 39-year-old knees who probably has one or two good seasons in him, at best.

And there’s franchise QB Josh Freeman, with 40 starts under his belt, entering a pivotal season.

That leaves running back, where Joe’s a big fan of LeGarrette Blount, but Joe fully realizes you need two quality backs — three wouldn’t hurt — especially when you claim to be a run-first team. (Look at the RB talent on every team in the NFC South.) So Joe sees running back as the only hole on offense and one the Bucs can’t whiff on in the draft, when failing at that position can bring the entire offense down.

Using that logic, Joe could see how the Bucs might believe versatile Trent Richardson is the missing piece for a true playoff-caliber offense. If that’s the mindset of rockstar general manager Mark Dominik and Greg Schiano, then Joe could understand how they could take a whatever-it-takes mentality toward drafting Richardson.

However, that doesn’t mean it would make any sense with a defense filled with as many holes as the Bucs’. The Bucs have five positions with serious question marks in their back-7, and possibly lousy depth at cornerback if Aqib Talib lands in prison or gets suspended.

Joe sees drafting a running back in the first round as an extreme luxury the Bucs just can’t afford.

Grab a back in the second or third round and hurry up and sign the best available free-agent veteran back on the street. Outside of that, the Bucs have to load up on the defensive side of the ball. The cruel facts dictate the move.

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Did Joe mention the stunning deals this month at Ed Morse Cadillac Tampa? Click on through the image below to learn more.

One NFL writer trashes Luke Kuechly by claiming he's just another Barrett Ruud.

For the first time Joe can ever remember, he just wants to hide somewhere away from any draft information until the beers begin pouring at Joe’s draft party Thursday night.

The speculating, posturing and — dare Joe say? — lying has reached crazy proportions.

All of a sudden yesterday, Joe heard things that made the antennae jump out of Joe’s head. For weeks, months, all Joe heard was that USC tackle Matt Kalil was an all-World offensive tackle, a franchise stud.

Now, thanks to a secretive offensive line coach talking (planting?) information to Pat Kirwan like Deep Throat, hiding in a parking garage in the dark of the night, all of a sudden Kalil is a no-good bum and another Robert Gallery?

Last night Tuna Parcells, who never won a championship without Bill Belicheat at his side, claims Alabama safety Mark Barron is a “box safety,” thus is not a first-rounder?

Parcells, a pillar of honesty, wouldn’t be playing BSPN so one of his boys still in the league (Jerry Jones, Belicheat, Tom Coughlin) might benefit from Barron sliding thanks to getting shat on from Parcells, on national TV no less, would he?

Where was all of this talk at the Senior Bowl?

Another crazy item comes from Andy Benoit of the New York Times. He recently Twittered about Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly.

Benoit is an avowed Barrett Ruud hater. To Benoit, Ruud is a walking version of an Ebola virus. When stuck for something to write, Benoit salves his inner writer’s cramp and will type many dozens of words about how Ruud has stained the soil of NFL playing fields.

Now Benoit is trying to sully the name of Kuechly by comparing him to a young version of Ruud.

@Andy_Benoit: In the very, very little I’ve seen of Luke Kuechly, he seemed like a faster Barrett Ruud (not a compliment).

Couple of things: First, this comparison is nearly as bad as Benoit’s attempt to document how baseball is dead. Strange, the game has never been better, financially. Eh, an annoying fact.

But trying to cut the knees out from Kuechly because he is another Ruud is crazy on many levels.

Now Joe knows many Bucs fans hated Ruud as well because they wanted Ruud to be a Jack Lambert-type when that is not the position he played in a Tampa-2 defense (there’s another one of those irritating facts).

So Kuechly is rotten because he covers receivers well and racks up tackles like Joe does beers on a Friday night, all of which were traits of Ruud (not the beers)? My, how horrible of a linebacker that is!

Or is Benoit irritated that Kuechly is white?

If, as Benoit suggests, Ruud was so miserable, how is it — just as Tim Ryan of SiriusXM NFL Radio correctly predicted — the Bucs defense totally collapsed to a historic franchise low without him. The Bucs linebackers unit may very have been the worst in the NFL.

If, again, as Benoit believes, Ruud was so pathetic, shouldn’t the Bucs linebacker play have improved without him? No?

At least Joe gives many props to Benoit for being honest and claiming he hasn’t really watched Kuechly play.

But this is the silly season (on steroids) we are in, where nothing is really to be believed on face value.

Damn, the clock can’t begin to start soon enough for the Colts to satisfy Joe.

Who has better sources than Pat Kirwan? Joe wouldn’t bet on anyone.

The former Bucs scout, Jets assistant coach and Jets personnel executive now works for NFL.com, CBS Sports and SiriusXM NFLRadio. And Kirwan jumped on the Movin’ The Chains airwaves this afternoon fresh off meeting with a current NFL offensive line coach.

Kirwan said the coach has worked out the top 2012 O-line prospects and pored over film of all of them. Kirwan wouldn’t name his source but said this coach considers Southern Cal tackle Matt Kalil a pick in the No. 15 overall range and that there are no other O-linemen worthy of a first-round or second-round grade.

“Pretty bad,” Kirwan said his source says of this year’s O-line class.

Now let’s say this assessment is accurate. Perhaps the poor overall class makes Kalil that much more attractive as trade bait if the Bucs are ready to pick at No. 5 and Kalil is still there (and the Bucs’ potential other top-5 targets are gone)? Left tackles are always in demand. Or perhaps Kalil’s mid-first-round grade scares the Bucs away from taking him and they look to one Luke Kuechly?

While the Bucs taking Kalil makes great sense if Morris Claiborne is unavailable, that only applies if they’re sure he’s a homerun pick.

Gauging the pulse of Bucs fans, it seems no subject has fired up fans more than the debate about the merits and drawbacks of drafting Alabama running back Trent Richardson since the Bucs cut soon-to-be Hall of Famer and all-time favorite Derrick Brooks.

Joe has made his voice clear on this issue. So Joe’s trying to bring additional views into the mix.

Good guy Charlie Campbell, formerly of PewterReport.com, has been working for WalterFootball.com for just about a year now. Campbell’s main focus year-round is the NFL draft.

In a recent mailbag on his site, Campbell explains why he would take both Oklahoma State wide receiver Justin Blackmon and/or LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne over Richardson.

From Edmund Kuhn, Bangor, Maine

“I noticed in your big board you have Trent Richardson behind Justin Blackmon and Morris Claiborne. Most rate Richardson ahead of them. Why do you have Richardson behind them? “

That is another good question, and I can answer that in a number: 30. In doing the Big Board, I take into account longevity and how long a player will be playing. By the time those three players hit 30, Richardson could easily be on his last legs or he could already be done in the NFL. That is just the nature of the beast at running back. Wide receiver and cornerback are different. There are many effective wideouts and corners who are Pro Bowlers at 30 and even playing well into their mid-30s. You don’t see that at the running back position.

Thus, Blackmon and Claiborne could be in the middle of a second long-term contract and performing well while Richardson’s career is at the end. Blackmon and Claiborne could be starters for 10-plus years. Richardson won’t make it that far and is more like a 5- to 8-year player. That is the reason why I have Richardson behind Blackmon and Claiborne.

This spooks Joe a great deal as well. Few running backs short of Barry Sanders make it to 30 unscathed. Many are on fumes by the time they get to 30.

Richardson reminds Joe of one of his favorite running backs, another Crimson Tide man, Shaun Alexander. For seven years, Alexander was a wonderful back, thrilling, fantastic. One of the NFL’s best.

But the constant wear and tear and the brutal beating he absorbed finally took its toll. Alexander’s last year in Seattle, he was 30, and a mere shell of his former self. He was out of the league a year later.

Candid former Bucs tight end and current Buccaneeers Radio Network analyst Dave Moore threw a bucket of cold water on the idea of the Bucs drafting Trent Richardson this morning during the Ron and Ian Show on WDAE-AM 620. Moore said Richardson is a not a running back that will take over a football game and the Bucs can get the back they need later in the draft.

Moore would like to see the Bucs trade down and address linebacker and secondary in a big way. He also weighed in on the culture change of the Greg Schiano regime and more. Click to listen below:

Joe bought his pre-owned Ford at Ed Morse Auto Plaza in Port Richey about 14 months ago. What a great experience and the car has been completely trouble-free. Click on through below to shop their great inventory. You won’t go wrong at Ed Morse.

Former NFL great Randy Cross fired an arrow at rockstar general manager Mark Dominik today during an interview with Bobby Fenton on WDAE-AM 620 radio.

The good news is Cross said he believes the 2012 Bucs are a winning football team and possibly a playoff team and it was the wrong mix of people, not talent, that soiled the Raheem Morris regime.

“They’re much closer to the team and the record after 2010 than they are after the 2011 season. I just think there was a such a meltdown and an incomplete job done as far as building that roster and stocking with the right kind of personalities,” Cross said. “You add the right sort of people.

“You know, you look at what you’ve done over the last two years. I love Adrian [Clayborn]. You get [Gerald] McCoy healthy and going. Josh Freeman has a Josh Freeman kind of year and doesn’t regress. You’ve done some very, very nice things. I think you’ve got areas that I’d immediately get after. Specifically, and it sounds strange, but I would go back into that defensive line personally and add a little bit. I’d go to that offensive line and add some.”

With all the draft gurus talking about player grades and big-board rankings, etc., it’s refreshing to hear a reminder like this from Cross that GMs aren’t just stockpiling bodies but trying to blend personalities, add the elements for good team chemistry, and all the other stuff that makes a winning football club.

Key player cogs gone from the 2011 Bucs are Albert Haynesworth, Geno Hayes, Sean Jones, Tanard Jackson, Jeff Faine, Josh Johnson and Kregg Lumpkin. Stepping in are Carl Nicks, Vincent Jackson, Eric Wright, Dan Orlovsky, Amobi Okoye and a whole new round of draft picks.

Hopefully, with a new law-and-order coaching staff, that’s enough to wipeout the quit the Bucs displayed in 2011.

UPDATE: WINNER ANNOUNCED – ADAM HOGE of Tampa was chosen randomly Friday night. He’ll be attending in style Thursday with a party of six in a chauffeured limo courtesy of Paradise Worldwide Transportation.

Joe’s incredible opening-night draft party on Thursday, April 26 at Pete & Shorty’s just got more exciting. As if Bud Light girls, The Commish, jersey giveaways, former Bucs DE Steve White, and great food wasn’t enough.

Paradise Worldwide Transportation is so fired up by the draft blowout they are giving away a roundtrip limousine ride to the event from Hillsborough, Pinellas or Manatee County. That’s right, you could be living, say, in Brandon, and you could have a limo at your door to take you and your buddies to the party, and then Paradise will take you home afterwards. Your Brandon limo could make you the talk of the town and let you enjoy the draft like never before.

Just email joe@joebucsfan.com with the subject line “DRAFT LIMO” and the following information: Name, Address, Size of your group.

A winner will be randomly selected and notified via email on Friday, April 20. The winner will have 24 hours to respond and accept before JoeBucsFan.com will assign a new winner. Good luck.

Yes, there are only two-and-a-half scant days until the draft. Joe’s already getting complaints readers are tired of his pimping for stud LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne and dismissing drafting a position that is not needed with the Bucs and is a bad value pick at No. 5, a running back (specifically, Trent Richardson).

Well, Joe’s not going to start lying and being dishonest both to himself and to readers and start cheerleading for what Joe perceives as a bad pick just to pacify some people, huh-uh.

As eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune typed, the holes in the Bucs secondary are so massive, and Claiborne is so talented, that if Claiborne is stil on the board when the Bucs draft with the fifth pick Thursday night, Claiborne will simply be too irresistible for Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik to look past.

Playing in the NFC South, Tampa Bay cornerbacks are required to shadow game-breaking receivers such as Carolina’s Steve Smith, New Orleans’ Marques Colston and Atlanta’s Roddy White and Julio Jones.

“Defensive coordinators covet that one outstanding corner,” former Seahawks general manager Tim Ruskell said. “The way the game is played today, the value of cornerbacks can’t be overstated.”

If the Bucs didn’t have massive holes in the secondary while facing Matty Ice, Drew Brees and Cam Newton twice a year, if the Bucs didn’t have such dire needs of upgrades to linebacker (not to mention filling the void left by Geno Hayes), and if the Bucs didn’t already have a proven running back, then maybe, maybe Joe would think about drafting Richardson at No. 5.

Problem is, all three premises Joe laid out, match the Bucs’ needs/strengths.

Joe’s been irritated by a couple of his sports radio brethren in the media over the past few days, specifically good guys Tom Krasniqi of WHBO-AM 1040 and J.P. Peterson of WQYK-AM 1010.

Basically, each has said on his respective afternoon drive show that there’s no reason to believe the Bucs are not shopping Aqib Talib, even though both are completely aware that Greg Schiano came out last week and boldly squashed that rumor floated initially by PewterReport.com.

Schiano even fully clarified saying “there’s absolutely zero thinking on our part as far as wanting to [trade Talib].” And Schiano explained further saying he wants Talib to be a Buccaneer.

Krasniqi and Peterson have shrugged off Schiano’s comments as the kind of baloney response every team says when it comes to trade rumors.

Here’s why Joe disagrees: Schiano’s entire stated philosophy to his team — core beliefs, if you will — is Trust, Belief and Accountability.

So why would Schiano lie right out of the gate about Talib when it could undermine the credibility he’s trying to build with his players and with fans?

It makes no sense. And Joe refuses to believe Schiano would be so foolish. Joe has to give the guy the benefit of the doubt until he proves he doesn’t deserve it. Ironically, both Peterson and Krasniqi openly say how much they like and respect Schiano.

Now if Joe were to accept the takes from the sports radio guys, then Joe would be forced to believe that Schiano lied to fans, media and his team when he didn’t have to. Obviously, Schiano could have offered some sort of coachspeak about the Talib rumor that said, ‘teams guage trade interest all the time and no player outside of a select few should feel safe.’ Or he could have brushed it off and said something like, ‘I don’t want him traded, so you’d have to ask Mark Dominik if he’s gotten offers.’

But no, Schiano offered the make-no-mistake denial quoted above.

Now Joe cannot find one Bucs fan irritated that Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik signed San Diego wide receiver Vincent Jackson. The former target of Philip Rivers instantly gives the Bucs a home run threat at receiver.

But he does more than that, said NFL.com contributor and Bucs beat writer Jenna Laine.

Appearing last night on “670 The Score,” WSCR-AM 620 in Chicago, Laine believes Jackson’s presence in the locker room is twofold.

After initially gaining the rapt attention of host Matt Abbatacola by explaining how she was wearing pink pajamas, Laine explained how valuable Jackson will be to the rest of the young Bucs receivers.

“Not having a leader in the [receivers] meeting room to show them how to be leaders, it was the blind leading the blind. When you don’t have someone to show yo9u how to be a pro, that is when problems happen.”

Laine also believes LSU cornerback Morris Claiborne, if available, is the smart pick for the Bucs at the No. 5 position.

“You are going to need three solid corners. Claiborne is instinctive and fluid. He can play man and zone. They trusted him in so many situations at LSU they didn’t have to worry about anyone making a big play against him. And he is a solid special teams performer.”

Joe believes Laine is onto something with Jackson’s roster spot. The guy not only can be a big brother of sorts, just having Jackson around will push Mike Williams and Arrelious Benn and Preston Parker. Competition is always a good thing.

It’s no surprise that any current and former offensive lineman would claim that a good O-line is the absolute key to a successful running game, versus the running back holding anywhere close to the same importance. 

Three time All-Pro O-lineman Randy Cross makes this point on Sirius NFL Radio regularly. And joining Cross in the camp of pundits saying the Bucs would be out of line drafting Trent Richardson is former Bucs guard Ian Beckles (1990-1996).

But Beckles took this line of thinking a giant step further today with a bold statement made while co-hosting the The Ron and Ian Show on WDAE-AM 620.

“Every running back I played with could have run for 1,200 yards with the [right] offensive line,” Beckles said.

Beckles served up this stunning take during a discussion of what drafting star offensive tackle prospect Matt Kalil would mean to the Bucs and why he’s a smarter pick than Richardson.

Look, don’t shoot daggers at Joe. Joe’s just relaying takes from two linemen that played a combined 21 years in the league.

As Joe first pointed out last week, it’s looking more and more likely that the Bucs could have stud offensive tackle Matt Kalil fall in their laps.

It’s beginning to appear Minnesota will draft LSU stud cornerback Morris Claiborne, who Joe covets for the Bucs.

Then, the Browns will draft Alabama running back Trent Richardson. That leaves Kalil still on the board.

Joe wrote last week if he were Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik, if the above-mentioned scenario plays out, Joe would draft Kalil quicker than one could say “free beer.” You’d have a guy who would be an anchor on your offensive line for the next decade if not beyond.

Now some of Joe’s detractors claim this would be a bad move because it would tie up too much cash on the offensive line. Joe suggested this is not exactly accurate as Jeremy Trueblood is in the last year of a two-year contract. Factor in the rookie wage scale in effect and it’s not a hit financially as some would believe.

Joe was of the mind Kalil would step into Trueblood’s spot and in a couple of years, replacing left tackle Donald Penn.

But Stephen Holder of the Tampa Bay Times seems to suggest Penn, not so much Trueblood, should be keeping a close eye on Thursday’s transactions.

Penn, a 2010 Pro Bowl selection who turns 29 this week, has four years and more than $22 million remaining on his contract. But the guarantees in his deal have already been paid, meaning there are few financial consequences for his release. And Penn wasn’t at his best in 2011, when he failed to keep his weight in check.

It’s less likely Kalil would play right tackle because of his demonstrated ability at the more valuable left tackle position. But if the Bucs are open to that, Trueblood is in the final year of a two-year contract and the future of the position is uncertain.

There are positions of greater need for a team that finished 4-12 in 2011? But there might not be a pick of greater value than Kalil, depending on where the team has him ranked.

People always scream the Bucs not only need to draft the best available talent, but with a No. 5 pick, the Bucs’ personnel department cannot risk missing an impact player with this pick.

If Claiborne is gone, Kalil has the best chance of having a major impact for many years to come.

It seems the Bucs really are the most beloved and popular NFL team in Florida

Attendance talk in any sport is generally a yawner for Joe, but given how much blackouts affect the Bucs’ fan base, Joe can’t avoid studying what’s going on.

On that front, stunning news came out of the Miami Herald this weekend with a revelation from columnist Dan Le Batard that the Dolphins are working hard to keep their season-ticket base at 30,000. 

From 1995 to 2005, Dolphins season-ticket sales were always around 60,000, but one source says the team is presently laboring to be at half that number. Sales are worse at the moment than the 46,131 season tickets the Dolphins sold after a 1-15 season, and that’s with the Dolphins selling a season-ticket package of 10 games in one section for $250 — $25 per game, the cheapest rate in the league.

Wow! Keep in mind Bucs season ticket sales checked in around 40,000 last year and likely got a bump after the Bucs made a big splash in free agency last month.

It’s just hard to imagine how the once-mighty and popular Dolphins have 25 percent fewer season tickets sold than the Bucs. Miami won the tough AFC East in 2008 and have at least stayed competitive. But obviously fans have lost faith in their wacky front office and the challenging economy has made folks far more quick to dump their tickets if they’re feeling dissatisfied.

It’ll be interesting to see whether the Dolphins again gobble up tickets to get their home games televised, of if they go the other direction and let blackouts infest their market to allegedly drive fans to games.

Joe also wonders whether Miami will do something bold and unpredictable in the draft, aka trade up to draft Trent Richardson or Ryan Tannehill, to drive excitement and ticket sales.

Look, Joe knows Trent Richardson is a great football player and a great pro prospect. Joe’s not an idiot.

But Joe’s tiring of the crazy faction of Bucs fans that really think this guy is going to wear pewter and red on Thursday. Joe even believes many of these fans would pass on a night of passion and domination with Rachel Watson if it meant seeing Richardson in a Bucs jersey. Forgetting for a moment that Richardson isn’t the smartest pick for the Bucs at No. 5 overall, Richardson is not going to be there for the Bucs at No. 5.

If Richardson is the legendary, once-a-generation running back every draft guru and Richardson-crazy fan say he is, then there’s no way the Vikings, with their No. 3 overall pick, won’t have a pile of great trade-up offers for Richardson. That’s reality. When draft day comes, if Richardson really is considered that special, the Vikings will get pounded with deals from multiple teams.

And the Vikings will deal — and the build-through-the-draft Bucs won’t be the ones trading up. Minnesota has Adrian Peterson locked in to another $40 million or so guaranteed on his new contract. They have no need for a running back but a big need to stockpile talented players by trading the pick.

Then there’s Cleveland. If the Vikings don’t deal, what would be a huge red flag for Joe on what league GMs really think of Richardson, then the Browns are sitting there at No. 4 and hurting for running back. Yeah, it’s Cleveland, but it’s damn hard to believe they wouldn’t take Richardson.

The point is if Richardson is the superstar savior some Bucs fans believe he legitimately is, then there’s no logical reason for these same fans to believe he’ll be there for the Bucs.

Joe wants to believe rockstar general manager Mark Dominik and Greg Schiano would not draft Richardson, but Joe firmly believes they’ll never get the chance at No. 5.

One of the more amazing things about the Raheem Morris era was the Bucs’ habitual slow starts to games.

Sometimes they battled through to victory; sometimes they got brutally clobbered. Regardless, they started slowly nearly every game.

Last year Joe begged and pleaded on these here pages for the Bucs to find a consultant to come in and study why the Bucs were mental midgets — and physical midgets — in the first quarter and first-half of games. But that never happened, and Raheem had no answers.

Enter Greg Schiano.

The new head coach’s ramped up practice tempo unveiled this week will solve the Bucs’ propensity for slow starts, so says Arrellious Benn in this Buccaneers.com video. (Click the link to watch.)

Essentially, Benn believes religiously working up-tempo will carry over to Sundays, especially practicing “paying attention to detail when you’re tired.”

There’s no doubt in Joe’s mind Schiano will keep everything ramped up through future minicamps, training camp and the early stages of the regualar season. Enacting a real and thorough culture change will require that consistency and drive.

But it’ll be interesting to see how Schiano adapts as the long NFL season goes on and injuries take their toll. Joe’s willing to live with the consequences of a somewhat burned out team come December, if the results of the hard work are seen on the field. He can always dial back the practice energy a notch in 2013.

Yes, the Bud Light girls will be in the house for Joe’s absolute blowout of an NFL Draft party at Pete & Shorty’s onThursday. But the evening is not just about beer and girls and the jerseys Joe will be giving away, it’s really about hardcore football fans gathering for serious draft fun and analysis.

Justin “The Commish” Pawlowski will broadcast live at the party on the 1010 AM airwaves breaking down every draft happening, and former Bucs defensive end Steve White (1996-2001) will be in the house joining Justin at times on the air and simply enjoying himself among fans. 

White is hands-down one of the most astute Bucs and NFL analysts around. Many of Joe’s readers became addicted to his Bull Rush column on JoeBucsFan.com and on White’s personal blog. Joe has warned Steve that he can’t protect him from the Internet groupies that might harass him, but Steve is not concerned. So if you ever wanted to buy Steve White a beer or shake his hand, the draft party is your chance.

Joe’s hoping to announce other special attendees in the coming days.

Greg Schiano wants to run the ball. He’s drooling over his offensive line. Goodness, the way Schaino talks about running the ball, one might think he wants to take the NFL back to the 1970s.

Joe guesses that as a young lad Schiano was mesmerized by Larry Csonka and Mercury Morris dominating the NFL in 1972 and 1973, enroute to back-to-back Super Bowl wins. Want a mind-blowing stat? Bob Griese was a Pro Bowl quarterback with that ’73 team despite completing less than nine passes per game. Nine!

The point is with a high-priced, high-powered Buccaneers offensive line, and a coach in love with the handoff, the Bucs obviously need to add to their stable of running backs. Moisses Madu, Robert Hughes and LeGarrette Blount are nowhere near enough.

Joe expects the Bucs to draft a running back in Round 2 or Round 3 later this week, but they still need a veteran back to round out the stable.

Free agent Ryan Grant is a name that intrigues Joe, and one that seemingly would pique the interest of Schiano and rockstar general manager Mark Dominik. Grant, 29, is a high character guy, a former captain at Notre Dame, who came on strong in Green Bay in second half of last season and revived his career.

The Journal-Sentinel out of Milwaukee yesterday claimed the Packers want Grant back but money is likely an issue, along with promising young backs on Green Bay’s roster.

Last year, Grant started out slowly upon his return from ankle surgery, but late in the year he looked much more like the 1,000-yard rusher he had been for the Packers in 2008 and ’09.

In his last five games, he carried 50 times for 276 yards and two touchdowns, averaging a healthy 5.5 yards per carry. He also caught eight passes for 179 yards, including an 80-yard touchdown on a screen pass.

Grant is an unrestricted free agent and can sign with any team.

The Patriots may have brought in three backs at one time with the idea of signing the one who was willing to take the cheapest deal. Grant accepted a $1 million cut in pay last year but still earned $4.25 million salary and probably isn’t prepared to sign a minimum-wage deal.

Joe can’t speak for Grant’s pass blocking, but he’s surely a guy that can do some explosive stuff on third down and run hard between the tackles, plus he comes from a classy club and has playoff experience.

The Bucs shouldn’t look for a way around scoring a veteran running back. Maybe it’s not Grant, but they do need one.