Peter King of theMMQB.com suggests one reason for the horrid Bucs defense is that the roster built around S Mark Barron isn’t good enough.

Many national media types who hyped up the Bucs as potential playoff contenders are now grasping for reasons why the Bucs have been so godawful.

From a hand-picked quarterback who displays ghastly ball security, to injured and fumbling running back,s to a high-priced free agent defensive end as invisible as a ghost, to a secondary that couldn’t cover themselves with a blanket, to the failed health of the offensive coordinator, this season has unfolded in a nightmarish way that few if any could have predicted. [read more]

While Joe is ready for Lovie Smith to do the smart thing and declare Mike Glennon starting quarterback for the rest of 2014, that hasn’t happened yet.

And now Josh McCown is talking about preparing his wounded thumb for Sunday’s visit to Heinz Field in Pittsburgh. [read more]

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin believes Lovie Smith is “energized” by the 0-3 start from the Bucs

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin may not have coached with Lovie Smith, but if anyone knows Lovie who hasn’t coached him, it would be Tomlin.

After all, Lovie and Tomlin come from the same branch of the Father Dungy tree. Both were college coaches when Father Dungy plucked them to work as his defensive assistants; Lovie a linebackers coach, Tomlin a secondary coach. [read more]

It was the heated matchup many were awaiting. This evening, Joe sat down with the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, Steve Duemig of WDAE-AM 620.

Duemig was very unhappy with Joe moving all-in on Mike Glennon immediately — and permanently — replacing Josh McCown as the Bucs’ starting quarterback. [read more]

In a surprise move today, the Bucs cut wide receiver/kick returner Chris Owusu and re-signed Louis Murphy, who was cut before the season after suffering a back injury from a nasty preseason hit.

Joe believes this doesn’t bode well for the immediate future of Vincent Jackson. [read more]

Yes, Joe is tired of beating a dead horse of a dead horse. There is no question the Bucs played like horse manure last week in Atlanta.

It makes Joe wonder what was going on in Lovie Smith’s infamous suburban Chicago basement. He had hoped to have Jeff Tedford come in and run a multi-faceted offense, leaning on the run, but equally able to throw when needed to multiple targets all over the field in what they bragged was an “up-tempo” offense. [read more]

It’s gets pretty high energy when notorious chatty former offensive-minded head coaches Brian Billick and Steve Mariucci join forces for their podcast on NFL.com.

One of their topics today referenced Josh McCown, among other notorious backups who went on to flop when handed their own team. [read more]

Given how rotten the Bucs’ secondary has been, Ben Roethlisberger may have a field day Sunday.

The strength of a Tampa-2 defense is, when played correctly, taking away the pass. Well, it’s clear the Bucs are not playing that defense properly, as the secondary has been getting roasted.

The embers are still smoldering from last Thursday’s debacle in Atlanta.

And that was without Dixie Chicks stud wide receiver Roddy White. [read more]

A Steelers beat writer believes 5-9 cornerback Antwon Blake is ripe for targeting

Coined the second night of the draft, Bucs general manager Jason Licht boasted how the new Bucs receiving corps, Vincent Jackson, Mike Evans and Austin Seferian-Jenkins, all tall receivers, were going to turn the Bucs into an NBA team.

“The Dunkaneers!,” Licht chuckled.

Fans have been waiting ever since for those balls to be tossed as helpless small corners just watched in frustration, much like Jay Cutler did last night for the Bears. [read more]

NFL Network is reporting the Buccaneers’ offensive coordinator will leave the team.

[read more]

In the search for positives about this depressing Tampa Bay Buccaneers season, Joe keeps coming back to the trade for Pro Bowl guard Logan Mankins.

Bucs general manager Jason Licht tapped his old contacts, worked the angles, and brought in a reasonably-paid veteran who can play, and make those around him better. [read more]

So many fans love numbers. Take the “19-and-9” crowd, aka the early members of the Mike Glennon Mob.

These people yelled all around town this offseason about how Glennon was the second coming of Peyton Manning. “With a touchdown-to-interception ratio like that in his rookie season, how could Glennon be anything less than an emerging superstar?” they bellowed. [read more]

You could sense the hunger and optimism in Lovie Smith’s voice on his radio show last night.

Lovie was talking takeaways, as in the four quality ones his defense generated in Atlanta. [read more]

Did the Bucs swing and miss in their evaluation of Jeremy Zuttah, who now starts and excels for the Baltimore Crows?

Look, Joe has zero problems with Evan Dietrich-Smith. He was fine with the Packers and Joe thinks he will be just fine with the Bucs.

That doesn’t mean the Bucs’ center is mistake-free. After watching that NFL version of the WWE, where the Bucs played the part of the heel last wee in Atlanta, not one person who stepped on that field is blameless. [read more]

Joe understands how outraged Bucs fans were at last week’s seal-clubbing at the hands of the Dixie Chicks. Offense, defense, special teams, not only were the Bucs dominated at every angle but players didn’t seem to get help from coaches.

One former Bucs player is so unnerved by what he saw, he took to his website and stopped just short of calling the players “quitters.” [read more]

A report claims the Bucs worked out former Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor

Joe isn’t sure what this exactly says about Josh McCown. Or Mike Glennon. Or for Mike Kafka for that matter. But it sure is an antennae-raiser.

Per BSPN’s Field Yates, who has strong sources, the Bucs worked out a quarterback today. Not just any quarterback, but no less of a quarterback than Tattoo Terrelle Pryor. [read more]

No Jeff Tedford at practice today at One Buc Palace. [read more]

The Bucs didn’t block well Thursday night. They sure as hell didn’t protect the ball very well. They certainly didn’t tackle very well. Other than that, the Bucs played OK in the seal-clubbing by the Dixie Chicks.

Even Lovie Smith said he began scrutiny with the coaching. Everything is on the table, he said, as far as what changes may come. [read more]

Bucs big money defensive end Michael Johnson (who?) opened up to media at One Buc Palace this afternoon. [read more]

“Beats me why Lovie’s team is so unprepared. I’m still trying to figure out how the Bucs hired me five years ago.”

Yes, the chain-whipping the Bucs received at the hands of the Dixie Chicks really has driven Joe to a dark, dark place. That is the Raheem Morris era.

To this day, Bucs fans still continue to scratch their heads — if not their privates — as to how someone with so little coaching experience got a head coaching job in the NFL — not even 24 hours after Chucky was jettisoned from One Buc Palace. It was as if Team Glazer didn’t want to launch a coaching search and just decided to pull a name out of a hat of assistants already under contract. [read more]

Bad news from FOX Sports. [read more]