The crazy stat geeks at FootballOutsiders.com have tallied up tackles and attempted tackles for 2010, and Ronde Barber checks in with 14 broken tackles against him, meaning he wasn’t wrapping up.

Barber’s 14, and his 17.5 percent broken-tackle rate, puts him among the worst in the league.

Now Joe knows these stat geeks over analyze everything. But some of their stuff is interesting, if not worthwhile, such as this data. …Gasp, Barrett Ruud shows up as a very sure tackler.

Joe also is posting this to feed Ronde Barber’s paranoia about media people thinking he’s a bad football player. It seems to help his greatness, so how could Joe pass?

The asinine lockout orchestrated by NFL hatchetman Roger Goodell has damaged the game in ways that cannot yet be calculated.

But there is one element that has caused irreparable damage to players and Bucs coach Raheem Morris discussed this yesterday when he sat down with Joe’s good friend, “The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig, live from the Chris Thomas studio of WDAE-AM 620.

While many NFL pundits believe rookies, specifically potentially rookie free agents, will have their growth stunted by the absence of OTAs and what looks to be an abbreviated training camp, Raheem suggested to the WDAE listening audience it is second-year players who will have their development delayed.

“It’s a second-year player [that is hurt by the lockout],” Morris said. “Once [a rookie] has it figured out, he has a chance to come here and get better and get a general understanding of what we want. E.J. Biggers came in and cleaned up his footwork [in the offseason] Josh Freeman improved.

“You make your biggest jump from your first year to your second year. [Not having the players come in because of the lockout], that’s where you really get hurt.”

This is a very interesting perspective from Raheem and makes a great deal of sense. This is also depressing for Joe. The Bucs had a wonderful crop of rookies last year. If Raheem is accurate, and there is no reason to suggest it’s not accurate, it may not be until 2012 until the current second-year Bucs players are able to make the jump to strong NFL veterans.

The lockout was the No. 1 factor behind the Bucs telling HBO producers to take their Hard Knocks invitiation somewhere else, so says Raheem Morris. And the possible impact on the franchise, Josh Freeman, was high on the list, too.

Raheem spilled a more candid take on why the attention-hungry Bucs passed on the ultimate national-attention grabber during an interview yesterday with the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, Steve Duemig, on WDAE-AM 620.

“For us it was more about the first time we may get with our players could have been with full-fledged cameras in our face,”Raheem said. “And also, it could have been my first time seeing my team since [the lockout] or talking to them. And no matter what you might say, the guys shy away from you with a microphone on you.

“The one thing I didn’t want to do was push Mike Williams away from me, or push LeGarrette Blount or even Josh Freeman because those guys don’t necessarily don’t want to be on the camera.”

Joe can’t quibble with the logic. If preseson is limited to a three-week, asinine lockout-shortened mess, it would be brutal for any coach to say, ‘Welcome back, and don’t trip over the lighting interns, camera guys and director’s chairs.’

And if they had any concern Hard Knocks could affect Freeman’s leadership style, that would have had to be the biggest red flag of all.

Apparently tapped out from watching game tape of college football, scoping for talent in next year’s draft (if there is a draft), Bucs coach Raheem Morris visited Joe’s good friend, “The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig of WDAE-AM 620 this afternoon for a full hour of Bucs fun live from the Chris Thomas studio.

Knowing Raheem isn’t allowed to discuss players during this asinine lockout forced upon the innocent American public by NFL strongman Roger Goodell, and acknowledging the powers that be at One Buc Palace were monitoring the broadcast to make sure Raheem didn’t misspeak, “The Big Dog” walked out on potential thin ice and asked if the Bucs could trust embattled cornerback Aqib Talib enough to keep him on the roster.

Talib is currently embroiled in another controversy after being indicted by a Texas grand jury on a felony count of assault for an incident in March.

Raheem danced the tightrope about not discussing players and told “The Big Dog” all is well with Talib when footballs are flying in the air.

“When he is in a football setting, he’s one of the best students of the game we have,” Raheem said. “He got that from Ronde. Other things need to be groomed and nurtured. Hopefully we get those cleaned up.”

That was a savvy, political dodge of an answer of “The Big Dog’s” question. Big time. Well done Raheem (golf clap).

Joe is hopeful that if Talib is such a good student of the game, he can also become something of a student of proper behavior in the future and keep his nose out of trouble so he doesn’t risk being suspended for a season by Goodell.

Maybe Allen Bradford isn’t the Bucs’ new punishing runner in the backfield. Perhaps that spot will go to Arrelious Benn?

Speaking during an extensive interview on the Ron and Ian Show today on WDAE-AM 620, Benn said the Bucs are going to realize he can do it all on offense.

“I don’t look at myself as a pure, pure receiver. I think that I can do a lot of things. You know, I can probably line up in the backfield. The sky is the limit to what you do with me. That’s things that the Bucs are going to learn,” Benn said. “And I’m learning what I can do and where I fit in the offense. I’m in a situation where I feel comfortable now and I can just go out and play and have fun.”

Benn did have six carries last year for 35 yards, but, of course, Joe doesn’t expect to see Benn do much more of that, especially coming off a torn up knee. 

Among other highlights, Benn said he’s “95 percent” healthy and explained that “last year I had no clue what I was doing” early in the season. As for why, Benn said one reason was the adjustment of “playing with basically a real quarterback, a guy who’s going to get the ball there” — something Benn didn’t have the benefit of in college.

Joe’s got the whole interview for you below. Just click on the pretty arrow.

[audio: BennRonandIan.mp3]

Giant, fancy hi-def video screens are coming to the C.I.T.S. (community investment tax stadium) courtesy of all the people that paid to build the stadium for Team Glazer and the community.

The Tampa Tribune explains that these huge screens will replace the old ones in the end zones but they won’t be in place until 2013, plus locker room and media area improvements are on the way.

Next year, however, the shortfall will be much larger because of long-deferred maintenance at the 13-year-old stadium.

The county, which budgets in two-year cycles, plans to spend $6 million in fiscal year 2012 and $7.4 million the following year for the stadium upgrades. Tampa is budgeting $2.55 million in next year’s budget.

The county will borrow the money for its portion and use the fourth cent of the 5-cent Tourist Development Tax to pay back the short-term loan. The fourth cent is dedicated to bond payments and capital needs at the football stadium and adjacent Steinbrenner Field.

Surely, the commitment for these improvements are key to the big push to have Tampa host the 2015 Super Bowl. Last week Bryan Glazer shared tough talk about getting that game here.

As for taxes footing the bill for the stadium upgrades, hey, this was voted on 16 years ago.

Joe’s just glad it seems the NFL won’t hit the stated lockout-over deadline for the Bucs to play the Bears in England in 2011. If that game returns to its just and rightful place in Tampa, the taxpayers will get back the revenue they expected when they voted to build — and improve — the C.I.T.S.

Yes, Joe knows there are throngs of Bucs fans that want Team Glazer to fire off a nine-figure check to cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha the minute the lockout ends.

Asomugha could be the savior, they say. Joe’s not buying that, but former Buccaneers radio analyst and TV talking head Al Keck is on the bandwagon for Asomugha. Here’s Keck’s case via NCS.TV. Yes, Keck’s trademark hair and tan are in midseason form.

There are many reasons why Joe’s friends and business partners over at WDAE-AM 620 have massive ratings. And one of those reasons is the station’s fabulous coverage of the Buccaneers.

On that front, today is a special day. Arrelious Benn will join the Ron and Ian Show at 10:15 a.m. And the NFL’s youngest head coach sits down in studio with the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, Steve Duemig, at 5 p.m. With Raheem Morris actually in the studio and a light plate of head coaching duties because of the heinous lockout, theres no telling how long Raheem will talk — or what he might say.

Before Raheem, Bucs icon Derrick Brooks checks in at 4 o’clock for his weekly hourlong segment with Duemig.

Those chained to a computer can listen live at 620WDAE.com.

Ex-Bucs QB Jeff Carlson

Former Bucs quarterback Jeff Carlson (1990 & 1991) writes The QB Blast column here at JoeBucsFan.com. Joe is ecstatic to have him firing away. Carlson is often seen as a color analyst on Bright House Sports Network, and he trains quarterbacks of all ages locally via his company,

America’s Best Quarterback.

Today, Carlson explains why he believes players are ultimately working against their interests by holding organized workouts.

By JEFF CARLSON
JoeBucsFan.com analyst

As a young NFL player I didn’t care much about politics. But the older I get the more I care about the editorials in the newspaper and less about sports.

George Will is a baseball historian and political writer/television commentator with an article about the NFL labor strife that I saw in the Tampa Tribune (page 10) on Tuesday (June 7).

He chronicles the same arguments that have been made in my previous QB Blasts and other places about the financials of the owners and players dividing up over $9 billion in revenue. He finishes his article by stating the owners don’t realize the very nature of the NFL player is to endure pain, so losing paychecks come September may not send the players running back to the bargaining table.

Mr. Will unknowingly makes a critical mistake about professional football players and pain. Sure, the enduring physical abuse heaped on the body is engrained in players from their earliest days of Pee-Wee football, but these are the same behemoth “mama’s boys” that faint at the sight of a needle.

After so many struggle with nothing — unless you are Reggie Bush or Cam Newton (allegedly) — through their first 22 years of life, the feeling of a few bucks in your pocket is pretty addictive — and fleeting as their competitive juices work against their bank accounts.

Too many try to get just one more carat in their earrings than their buddies, a couple more inches on their 3D flat-screens and leave them needing the next season to begin for financial reasons, not necessarily competitive ones.

Republicans in political office have been finding it incredibly difficult to walk back the out-of-control government spending (even to 2008 levels) while Democrats think creating more government jobs and even more spending will fix the worsening deficit problems.

The owners are in a similar situation, but the NFL isn’t working from a deficit like we are as Americans.

To fix what they say is the problem, the NFL owners actually need the lockout to continue into the season to walk back the numbers from the previous deal (that saw both sides increase their wealth). The only way the owners get what they want is to make the players miss paychecks.

Under DeMaurice Smith, who is playing out the most important and critical negotiation of his career (past, present and future), the players won’t break before that (that is why they hired a lawyer to lead them instead of another former player) unless the owners give them the numbers that they want.

A few months ago I believed that they would wrap this thing up by August 15th or simply agree to go back to playing under the old agreement (like they did from 1988-1993) while continuing to figure it out. But after further review I realize the owners have to take this into the season for them to get what they want for the future, that is unless all the owners aren’t solidified on what they want for the future.

George Will calls the owners’ arguments for needing adjustments to the expired agreement paradoxical. They say they need more money for stadiums that 90% of their fans never or rarely use.

The players have a serious paradox of their own. ESPN, the newspapers and sites like this one tell us each day about the players organizing themselves for workouts. Josh Freeman is leading his team by organizing well attended group workouts, while Michael Vick is in Virginia, not leading the Philadelphia Eagles.

ESPN reported through Donald Driver that the Green Bay Packers haven’t put any of these training sessions together, and former players Tedy Bruschi and Mike Golic debated the importance and impact of missing them. Driver said they are still enjoying the Super Bowl win, even though we are in June, just a week or so before their ring ceremony for winning last season’s championship.

The players’ paradox is that the more organized workouts these guys put together the more they put their whole labor battle in peril. We all know the owners can financially outlast the players, so the owners are probably cheering every time they see players spending their own money on lodging, airfare, restaurants to have these “team-building” exercises.

While the Packers stay at home and save their pennies, they are doing the smart thing by keeping financial reserves in their bank accounts for the future fight.

As fans we cheer Josh Freeman, Drew Brees and others showing their commitment and dedication (love for the game) to be prepared for the on-field fight whenever this thing concludes.

But unless they are footing the bill for their less financially prepared teammates, they are unwittingly weakening their ability to hold on for what they are ultimately fighting for.

Who says the Bucs don’t get national media attention?

Why even the queen of financial yentas, Suze Orman, took on the prospect of determining whether some dude with a fat wallet should buy a pair of Bucs season tickets for $2,995 the other day on CNBC. Here’s the video below.

Raheem Morris famously referred to him as a “career backup.” Bucs fans think of him as sort of a slash player, brought in on gimmick plays to confuse opposing defenses.

But Josh Freeman’s backup, Josh Johnson, doesn’t see himself that way, so he tells video star Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune. So once the 2011 season is completed — if there is a 2011 season — it very well could be Johnson’s final appearance in pewter and red.

Johnson has never complained about being a backup, but he also does not anticipate holding a clipboard once he becomes a free agent after the 2011 season.

“In all reality, and it might sound crazy when I say this, I never played football to just be a backup. That was never my goal,” Johnson said on Tuesday. “I always push myself to be the best and the only way you can be the best at something is being on the field all the time. That’s not the situation I am in right now. I’m not playing and I understand why I’m in that situation, but I didn’t get into this (football) for lifetime financially security.

“That’s what other people’s goals are, but I got to get on the field. That’s just the kind of player I am. I like to earn my keep. If I fail on my own, I can live with that because I had the opportunity, but if I have to sit back and accept what is already there for me to get, then I’ll feel like I shorted myself, and I don’t get down like that.”

Unless something dire happens to Freeman, Johnson will never get a chance to be a regular starting quarterback in Tampa Bay. Joe can’t blame the guy if he wants a shot.

If Joe were Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik, knowing Johnson will walk away, why not trade him to the 49ers where he will be reunited with his old college coach, Jim Harbaugh, on a team that clearly has no solid starting quarterback, and thereby get a draft pick for him?

We all know how much Dominik covets draft picks. Joe would hate to see Johnson go, but he can’t blame the guy for wanting a shot at a starting gig.

Some of Ronde Barber’s ongoing frustration with the media has bubbled up to the surface this week.

It was almost two years ago that Barber unleashed an unprecedented tirade on local media during a Total Access show on WDAE-AM 620. Here’s an excerpt from back in September 2009.

Then an annoyed and passionate Barber said he dislikes the barrage of negativity from the Bucs beat writers even during good Bucs seasons and asked, “To our beat guys, ‘Do you just want us to fail?’”

Barber went on to say he embraces positive thinking and that constant negativity from the media is part of “what’s wrong with society.”

This week, Barber sat down for a great interview on NFL.com and expressed more bitterness about the regular scribes and multimedia fellows on the Bucs beat. He says some (perhaps all?) think he’s a bad football player. 

You have a Super Bowl ring, and your career numbers will stack up with the best. But you’ve played on many teams — especially later in your career — that didn’t win. Does that take the luster off your career?
RB: It’s nice that you asked that question, because my career didn’t start that way, it started off on winning teams. From 1997-2001, we were perennial (winners). But for the next 6 to 7 years we made the playoffs once or twice. So maybe it has. Tampa is not a huge market. A lot of things I’ve done in my career have gone pretty unheralded. People who cover us don’t even believe I’m a good player, and that stings sometimes. The fact I’ve done it for 15 years, and done things not a lot of guys have done, should speak for itself. But sometimes it doesn’t. All I can do is go out there and continue to prove who I am and who I’ve always been. The people who love me, love me, and that’s all I care about. Hopefully history judges me favorably.

Joe can say honestly say he doesn’t know any Bucs beat guys that “don’t believe I’m a good player,” as Barber put it.

Whoever these mysterious and misguided haters are, Barber seems to know their names.

Frankly, Joe believes Barber is just a type of  guy who is fueled by negative press — even if it’s not there. The guy has admitted to working angry with a chip on his shoulder from the day he was drafted lower than he thought was right.

Hey, if paranoia helps Barber make splash players and stay healthy, Joe’s all for it.

"Yo, Mark, I had pimps throwing passes to me each day in the prison yard."

The minute convicted felon and former prison inmate Plaxico Burress walked out of a New York pen yesterday, some Bucs fans spent the previous evening trying to concoct ways to justify the Bucs sullying their roster with the previous NFL malcontent.

Some Bucs fans previously had hoped a rusty Tiki Barber, having stepped away from his NBC News and sports gig, would help the Bucs (not an absurd thought).

In the mind of eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune, these fans are wasting their time. The longtime Bucs beat writer took to Twitter this morning to suggest the folly of such dreams, via TBO’s Bucs Twitter feed.

Anyone who thinks the Bucs are interested in Plaxico Burress or Tiki Barber is dreaming. Too much age, too much baggage for this team.

Joe pointed out yesterday how, under further study, signing Burress doesn’t fit Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik’s philosophy.

Now Joe has no idea what kind of football shape Tiki is in and given how well Ricky Williams played after taking time off to pull bongs with the aborigines, maybe Tiki has tread left on the tires?

But Tiki was known as a clubhouse lawyer of sorts and some think he back-stabbed Giants coach Tom Coughlin and quarterback Eli Manning. If that is remotely accurate, Joe doubts Dominik would want such issues in the Bucs locker room.

Like legions of virile men, Joe watches NFL Network and saw Ronde Barber on the air the last two nights.

On Sunday, Barber sat in on the “reaction show” for the unveiling of players 50 through 41 in the series Top 100 Players of 2011, as voted by current NFL players. Barber was appalled that horny-sleazy Ben Roethlisberger showed up in that group, saying the Steelers sinnner was far better than that ranking.

Yesterday, Barber joined the Total Access crew and sat down with Rich Eisen to talk all things Bucs. The video is here. Joe suggests you watch it.

Barber touches on Raheem Morris’ roots as Mike Tomlin’s “coffee-getter guy” and proceeds to give his take on Aqib Talib, about whom Barber says “I love him to death.” Barber references the somewhat bizarre and unbelievable St. Pete Times report of the imminent demise of Talib’s Tampa Bay career saying, “I don’t think that we’ll lay him out there.”

Barber also offers his take on Tiki Barber (second video in the link above). Reading between the lines of that interview, Ronde sure sounds like a guy who’s not prepared to retire after the 2011 season.

Bucs employees, fresh off an unpaid week off, returned to the office Monday just in time to hear news the Buccaneers inked a new, multi-year marketing partnership with drug store giant Walgreens.

What timing! What a morale builder! 

The team spit out the announcement on its official website. It is said to include exciting “store-level” programs for customers and fans. This is a great score by the Bucs corporate sales staff. Hats off to them.

Joe wonders whether Walgreens will get creative. Perhaps logo condoms with player packaging and numbers?

Joe imagines three-packs of LeGarrette Blounts would move well on Saturday nights.

"Don't worry Mr. Glazer. We won't have any defensive rookies smelling like a goat this year."

It is an established fact that rookie defensive linemen often struggle in their first year in the NFL because they are no longer facing 19-year old children across the trench known as the line of scrimmage.

In the NFL, rookies are facing men, grizzled veterans. It’s a different game.

But this is virtual balderdash to Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik. Cornered by eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune about the youthful ages of his defensive linemen, Dominik dismissed the notion that it can be a drawback.

The Bucs have used a flurry of premium picks on defensive linemen in the past few drafts, but Dominik isn’t concerned Tampa Bay has become too young up front.

“Defensive linemen can jump in and play early in their career,” Dominik said. “I steal from every club in this league and you look at a team like the New York Giants – their pattern of drafting defensive linemen every year makes a lot of sense to me.

“We’ll continue to bolster our D-line because we now play against Drew Brees in New Orleans, Matt Ryan in Atlanta and a young quarterback (rookie Cam Newton) we’re going to have to deal with every year in Carolina. We want to have the best defense in the NFC South next season.”

Well, sure, the Giants may get decent play from rookies up front, but is this the norm or a fluke? NFL history suggests the Giants getting solid play up front from their rookies is more fluke than norm.

Let’s just say Joe is not expecting Adrian Clayborn and Da’Quan Bowers to be playing in Honolulu next winter.

Photo courtesy of Rachel Baribeau.

Joe recently ran a story that Bucs defensive tackle Brian Price, who is said to have screws in his pelvis as a result of a ruptured pelvis that cut his rookie season short, was involved in Zumba classes as part of his rehab.

Joe had no idea how this could help (or hurt) so Joe decided to speak with a solid source on Zumba. Rachel Baribeau is not just a sports journalist, but a Zumba instructor. You may be familiar with her TV work on the “Tony Barnhart Show” on CBS College Sports or her appearances on “The Tim Brando Show” heard on the Sporting News Radio Network.

Until recently, Rachel hosted sports radio shows, did grunt work for ESPN GameDay broadcasts in the south, and was the online anchor for Tidesports.com (though she’s an Auburn graduate). A few weeks ago, she began working for Fox Sports and Scout.com.

JoeBucsFan: How long have you been teaching Zumba and in your view, how can this help football players?

Rachel Baribeau: Well, first, I know Zumba is great for the cardiovascular system, it’s just wonderful. Secondly, you are moving constantly. That’s what Zumba means: moving every part of your body. A lot of the moves are centered in the core area. You are moving your pelvis and your lower back, your abs, the whole nine yards. You are burning calories and building muscle. Generally in a class you can burn 500 calories. In my class you can burn 1,000.

You do not come to the gym or my class if you are not going to get a good workout. I will kick your butt (laughs), that’s for sure.

Joe: Bucs defensive tackle Brian Price is recovering from a fractured pelvis that allegedly has screws in it. Would Zumba be too intense? As an instructor, how would you assist someone like that recovering from such an injury?

Rachel: Definitely you would have to get him released by a doctor. Then the doctor allows him to come back, make sure he can work Zumba movements. Zumba is very much based in Latin dancing. It comes from Colombia. There’s also some belly dancing and hip hop and rock and roll involved but it is based in Latin dancing. Second, like any student, there are always options. Do the moves you like to do. You are not going to do the same moves the first couple of days like I do, especially if there are screws in your pelvis. Zumba kicks my butt every single time and I have been doing this for three years. I never teach the same class. Your body… you never know what is coming. But you have to listen to your body. You are the master of your own body. I can’t feel your pain. You have to be very, very in tune with your body so take it easy. After you ease into it, you can do more, very gingerly, sort of dipping your big toe into the pool.

After you come along, Zumba will make your hips will be moving and more fluid. It will help in that area. I really think Zumba is perfect [rehab for Price]. This is targeted for that area.

Joe: Have you ever had athletes in your classes?

Rachel: Sure have. As a sports reporter three or four years ago in Columbus, I trained with an arena football team there. There were no perks. I tried to train but nothing prepared me for two-a-days. I was the only female who has fully participated in a training camp with a professional football team. I had the contusions and bruises from my head to the bottom of my feet. They didn’t take it easy on me. It was the most amazing and terrifying experience of my life.

Because of that, I got into Zumba again and I invited some of those players to join me in my class. See if they could cut the mustard. There was a defensive end and another defensive lineman in the class. They were whipped. They were absolutely whipped. No joke. They almost passed out. They almost didn’t make it. They said it would be great for football players.

We cheered them on. They were dancing. They were feeling it. It was something special. They had newfound respect for Zumba.

Joe: Tell Joe a little bit about your new job with Fox Sports.

Rachel: I am a field reporter. That means I will be covering the SEC West, which will be an amazing division to cover. I will do a touch of recruiting, both football and basketball as Scout.com sends me to other events. I am very fortunate. I am excited about the new gig. The possibilities are endless. It’s pretty exciting.

You can follow Rachel on Twitter at @RachelBaribeau or monitor her work from her website RachelBaribeau.com.

The Bucs’ first-round pick, manbeast defensive end Adrian Clayborn, continues to tour the local radio airwaves and returned to the Buccaneers’ flagship station today on The Ron and Ian Show, co-hosted by former Bucs guard Ian Beckles on WDAE-AM 620.

Beckles and Clayborn had an exchange about adapting to the NFL when Beckles seemed to assume Clayborn would be trying to add weight to his frame, which was 6-3, 281 pounds at the scouting combine.

Clayborn set him straight.

Ian Beckles: You’re probably going to have to change it up a lot because that bull rush is going to get old about the second quarter because you’re playing against 350 pound men. Have [the Bucs] said anything to you about your weight. You’re listed here at 281. Do they want you to come at that weight or maybe a little bit heavier?

Adrian Clayborn: Oh, no. I’m getting down a little bit more. I’m at 278 right now. I trying to get down at least to 275 by training camp. I’ve heard horror stories about losing weight [at training camp], but I don’t think I’ll have any problem with that.

Joe’s not sure what to make of Clayborn looking to drop weight entering training camp. Perhaps the Bucs and other NFL teams at the combine told him they wanted to see him add speed.

It’s only six pounds in Clayborn’s case, which is probably meaningless.  … Or not.

Regardless, Clayborn will have his hands full in practice with Donald Penn lined up in front of him and chewing his ear off.

Joe has an avowed distaste for BSPN because, well, frankly, Joe has higher standards (and if that offends people for being snobbish, so be it). If Joe wants intelligent information about his sports, he turns to the man channels, the NFL Network, MLB Network and the NHL Network.

(To be fair, ESPN — notice Joe can type the correct call letters when warranted? — is the gold standard when it comes to college football coverage, and Joe is very sincere about this. Every time that outfit does something college football related, it demonstrates to anyone with a keen eye and open mind the laziness and disregard it has for other sports.)

So unless Joe is tipped off about something relevant broadcast on the Romper Room show (SchlockCenter), Joe is unaware. The last time Joe watched SchlockCenter was June 2004.

Thankfully, or unfortunately, Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times helps the rest of us. In his otherwise solid “Shooting from the Lip” Monday morning column, in which Jones recaps the highs and lows of a weekend of sports broadcasting, rarely if ever Jones does not reference BSPN in some way, almost as if he is contractually obligated to do so. Sadly, Jones often writes about that insipid “Sports Reporters” show, a horribly, bastardized ripoff of the old principled, thoughtful, “The Sportswriters on TV” weekly show.

That Lupica show — Joe has never confirmed but is led to believe from rumors that Lupica’s brother-in-law owns the company that produces the show — is not just predictable but worthless in Joe’s eyes, in other words, perfect for BSPN. Joe doesn’t give a damn what Lupica thinks or speaks nor will his opinion or position on anything influence Joe. Really, who the hell cares what ivory tower, New Yawk-centric Lupica thinks about some first-name-reference-only non-basketball association clown?

The heavily-edited, if not butchered, Sunday morning cable reruns of “The Sopranos” are more enlightening and entertaining.

This week, Jones references a SchlockCenter piece Sunday where the Bucs came up.

Cris Carter believes the Bucs should go after convicted felon/wide receiver Plaxico Burress. Carter suggests the young Bucs receivers need a veteran to lead them.

Jones, correctly thinks this is a bad idea. Joe agrees for a myriad of reasons. Burress, before he was thrown in a cage, was a malcontent. The Steelers tired of his selfish ways and washed their hands of him, despite the pleading of way-too-handsy-with-women Ben Roethlisberger.

With the Giants, he was habitually late to meetings and practices and often didn’t put out 100 percent effort.

Then, throw in the fact the dude decided to go to a night club with a loaded rod in his sweatpants pocket no less! After facing charges, Burress had a chance to plead out and maybe serve a handful of weeks during the offseason in a pen, but decided to fight the charges and threw away a couple years of his life and career.

Real swift this guy.

As Jones points out, is this the type of veteran the Bucs want with young players? The answer is simple: No.

Carter pointed out that coach Raheem Morris might be a good fit for Burress and the Bucs could use a veteran receiver to go with its young core. But, when you think about it, Tampa Bay really doesn’t make sense. With all their recent arrests, the Bucs probably would be best served to avoid bringing in someone with that kind of baggage. Plus, the way the Bucs receivers were playing at the end of last season, they don’t need a guy who hasn’t caught an NFL pass since Nov. 16, 2008.

But Joe will go one step further than Jones. Last year we heard cries from all sorts of football pundits that screamed the Bucs needed veteran leadership because the team was so young, specifically at wide receiver.

While the points were valid, look at what happened: The Bucs still won 10 games.

If the Bucs were able to get by without a veteran receiver then (what, is Micheal Spurlock a spring chicken?), the Bucs certainly don’t need one now. And as Jones wrote, certainly not a guy with Burress’ baggage.

So folks can stop lying awake at night with the thoughts of Burress wearing pewter and red this season.

If there is a season.

Back when the Bucs snatched Adrian Clayborn in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft, the big defensive end got on the phone with draft guru Justin “The Commish” Pawlowski of WDAE-AM 620 and talked about being physical in a big way.

His tough talk got Joe fired up and some of the quotes went national.

Clayborn said Bucs fans will see a defensive end who gets after the quarterback and will “kick offensive lineman’s asses” in the running game. And he said, “If you’re not playing violent on the defensive line, there’s something wrong with you. Go somewhere else.”

Apparently, former Bucs QB Shaun King was paying attention and he asked Clayborn about those comments Friday on The King David Show on WQYK-AM 1010.

Shaun King: You made interesting comments after the draft. … You got a lot of fans by these comments. You were pretty adamant that you’re very aggressive, that you’re violent, that want nothing better than to hurt offensive linemen and offensive players. Talk about that mindset.

Adrian Clayborn: I just believe that’s the way all great defensive linemen want to play. I mean look at [Ndamukong] Suh. He plays so violent. He gets after people. It’s just an aggressive position. That’s how I like to play and that’s how I’m going to play.

Of course, Joe doesn’t know whether Clayborn will pan out or whether he can back up the tough talk, but the Bucs could sure use a punch-him-in-the-mouth kind of guy at D-line or linebacker.

You’ve all read THE PESSIMIST, who spews his Bucs-related anger like no other. But Joe also wants you to know THE OPTIMIST. 

THE OPTIMIST is Nick Houllis, a Bucs fan and an accomplished writer whose steadfast allegiance to the team goes back to the 1970s. Houllis is the founder, creator and guru of BucStop.com, a place Joe goes to get lost in time via Houllis’ stunning video collection.

THE OPTIMIST will shine that positive light in your eyes. Some will love it. Some won’t.

Were all excited waiting for the time to pass so it can be football season again! Oh sure there is lockout, some of us actually pay attention to it, while others realize it’s just a few OTAs were missing so far.

Besides, summer is coming and that’s when the NFL usually goes quiet full-time. Outside of JoeBucsFan.com and BucStop.com, you never hear much about football in July until camp opens, and we can’t wait because the Bucs should be competitive and this time we all know it.

Josh Freeman is a seriously talent. We have some exciting receivers, we’re building a defense, and we have a legit running threat in LeGarrette Blount.

Or do we?

Question of the day: Was it Blount that gave the Bucs a respectable running game? If you think you know the answer for sure, keep reading, because some of the evidence may surprise you.

We all know our recent history; the Bucs won the first two games of 2010 over a couple bad teams with some opportunistic plays on defense and some nice throwing by Josh Freeman. But the running attack was nothing to write home about.

And it got worse; big time losses to Pittsburgh where the Bucs got 53 yards on the ground, and New Orleans where we couldn’t even run for half of that. Cadillac Williams was averaging about two yards per carry, worst of any starting running back. Fans saw LeGarrette Blount hop for 12 yards on his first carry and bulldozer into the endzone with an ala-Alstott effort against Pittsburgh and we were calling the radio stations and posting on the websites “We want more Blount”!

The Bucs couldn’t accommodate, Cadillac knew the protection schemes; Blount did not. We couldn’t risk getting Josh Freeman hurt. The image of a sprawling on-the-turf Tony Romo was all anyone needed to see.

But it was right about then some changes started to happen. Keydrick Vincent, the starting left Guard the Bucs picked up from Carolina for his allegedly great tenacity in run blocking, couldn’t run block!  Normally, the team would have gone with its backup, but Jeremy Zuttah was busy backing up Center Jeff Faine who was out with a triceps injury.

In came Ted Larsen who played football 40 minutes away when he was in high school at Palm Harbor. Then a week or so later, Jeremy Trueblood goes down, and James Lee finally gets action after waiting since 2008 on the Bucs roster; that’s three new O-linemen.

In the first five games of the season, the Bucs averaged 64.8 yards per carry from the running backs. Two weeks later with Penn, Larsen, Zuttah, Davin Joseph, and Lee at the front, the Bucs over the next five weeks averaged 111.6 yards per game. That’s no small difference, that’s the kind of variation a team hopes for going from one season to the  next; must less separated by a mere two games (or changing three linemen).

Getting 46.8 yards per game more out of your running backs has to be  explained, so how do you do it?

Ok, Let’s say it WAS Blount – simply put, he is a better runner than Cadillac. Ok, I can take that in, but how many of those Blount runs were through holes you or I could have gained a few yards through? I think of Cadillac’s early season runs for no yardage and see him hitting a ton of opposing uniforms for the most part.

Later in the year with the improved line (which also substituted Derek Hardman for Joseph), Cadillac’s average greatly increased too. From 2.5 ypc, Williams was averaging about six yards over the final six games. 

Better productivity due to the new linemen? Could be, but there is a window of about two or three games where the Bucs running attack improves before Cadillac’s numbers go up. too.

Was it the THREAT of a Blount boosting Cadillac? Or did things improve behind a better group of O-linemen who were also better at pass protecting, which provided better passing numbers, opening more holes for Cadillac?

If this is getting confusing, don’t worry, your probably not alone; and I have bad news – I don’t have the answers. I’m not even sure there are any. But one thing is for certain – either LeGarrette  Blount is one heck of a better runner than Cadillac Williams, or the  of Penn, Larsen, Zuttah, Joseph and Lee are better than Penn, Vincent, Faine, Joseph and Trueblood.

There is one other option: They are both true. And if that’s the case, a 10-6 season in 2011 might be looked at as greatly underachieving.