Fresno State QB Derek Carr gets Chucky’s top dog blessing.

Lovie Smith isn’t the only guy who knows how to march into the playoffs with a subpar quarterback and a second-rate offense. On the backs of the No. 1 ranked defense in the NFL, Chucky and his 2005 Buccaneers won the NFC South with an 11-5 record.

Sadly, Tampa Bay and Chris Simms were exposed quickly in the playoffs on a cold January day in Tampa. [read more]

The Big Apple was a bust for Louis Murphy in 2013

Many Bucs fans tremble with anxiety when they think of journeyman wide receiver Louis Murphy as the No. 2 man on the Bucs’ receivers depth chart. And that might be exactly where Murphy fits in right now.

Yes, Chris Owusu, who wears the dreaded No. 80, and Eric Page worked a lot with the first-teamers in practice last week, but that won’t soothe any nerves across Tampa Bay. [read more]

“Jiminy Christmas! Don’t tell me Johnny doesn’t have it all. Just be freakin’ patient and teach the kid.”

Renowned yet overrated quarterbacks guru Jon Gruden is weighing in a lot deeper these days on the 2014 quarterbacks draft class.

To nobody’s surprise, Chucky loves lots of these guys (more on that later), and that includes often misunderstood Johnny Football. [read more]

“The Professor,” John Clayton, believes the only thing holding the Bucs back from a playoff berth is QB Josh McCown.

In NFL circles, players, team representatives, coaches, suits, you name it, all talk about how much better it is to play at home.

Conventional NFL thought is that teams player better at home and, if you have a good home record, it will set up your team for a chance of a playoff berth.

Well, this season, it may be different. [read more]

Bucs coach Lovie Smith said you cannot judge a player in his underwear. Joe is pretty sure he can judge this girl in her underwear.

For those who have never seen video of a minicamp practice or never saw a minicamp practice, there’s a reason why coaches call it “underwear football.”

A player’s uniform in these practices consists of cleats, socks, athletic supporter and cup (if they are smart), shorts, T-shirt, mesh practice jersey and the lone piece of equipment players are allowed to use, a helmet.

Former Bucs coach Raheem Morris used to joke about minicamps referring them to “underwear football.” New Bucs coach Lovie Smith took a page from Morris and when asked about judging the tight ends after three days of voluntary minicamp practice, Lovie waved off the breakdown. [read more]

Lovie Smith wants opponents to fear the Bucs.

Oh, what it was like to watch the old Bucs, hell, even back to the Lee Roy Selmon days.

And shoot, even the woeful years when Scot Brantley played. When teams faced the Bucs, they may have won but they paid a price, as their bodies were black and blue for days. [read more]

The veteran tight end the Bucs hotly pursued in free agency last month, Brandon Myers, isn’t walking around the Buccaneers locker room like the top dog tight end.

It took little time for him to learn he’s got a very talented teammate at his position. [read more]

With Clinton McDonald on board, drafting Pitt DT Aaron Donald would be a luxury pick at No. 7.

Last year the Bucs’ defensive line stunk. Oh, they were OK against the rush. But getting heat on the quarterback? Well, that inability led to large bar tabs each Sunday for many Bucs fans… and overly sluggish Monday mornings.

It was downright appalling how the Bucs simply could not get to the quarterback. That’s why Bucs coach Lovie Smith wasted no time loading up on the defensive line in free agency with defensive end Michael Johnson and DT Clinton McDonald. [read more]

Talk of Mike Glennon getting shipped out of Tampa has entered the national discussion of quarterback balance in the NFL.

No surprise there. It was Lovie Smith (not Joe, as some fans believe) who stripped Glennon of his starting role and asked him to take a backseat to journeyman Josh McCown. [read more]

Florida State fans might enjoy a flashback feeling here with this JoeBucsFan.com locker room interview of Lonnie Pryor, a fullback hopeful on the roster. Pryor weighs in on the fullback’s role in 2014.

Thanks to the Buccaneers and NFL.

The Bucs have a young, experienced defensive line. That’s by design. Newcomer and Super Bowl champ defensive tackle Clinton McDonald, 27, is the elder statesman by a few weeks.

Joe talked to Lovie Smith about McDonald yesterday, and Lovie already has a feel for what McDonald is delivering to his linemates. [read more]

Here’s an interesting side note to the end of the Bucs’ three-day voluntary minicamp this past week at One Buc Palace. While hard-hitting safety Dashon “Hawk” Goldson seemed unavailable for media, he found time to talk a lot about fines with FoxSports.com.

In this Ross Jones interview, Goldson (rightly) bemoaned how good defensive football has changed, and he talked about the New Schiano Order, new Bucs coach Lovie Smith and the overhaul of the roster. [read more]

It must be great fun around the NFL Network makeup room. Bucs icon and NFL Network analyst Warren Sapp is telling everyone that Louisville QB Teddy Bridgewater is his No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, but esteemed draft guru Mike Mayock now says Bridgewater is a bad option in the first round.

Joe cares about this because, without question, the Bucs should draft their quarterback of the future in less than two weeks. [read more]

Hooray! It’s another locker room interview from Joe — with practice footage! Click and watch below.

Self-proclaimed “tough guy” and “edge-setter” blocking tight end Steve Maneri, a gargantuan newcomer to the Bucs, talks about his game and attitude.

Thanks to the Buccaneers and the NFL.

Former Bucs TE and BSPN yakker Anthony Becht would select Central Florida QB Blake Bortles (and his model girlfriend) at No. 7, and trade backup QB Mike Glennon.

Joe believes this is as obvious as the tan on Rachel Watson after she’s been on Siesta Key for a full weekend afternoon of sun and frolicking on the beach: If the Bucs draft a quarterback at No. 7, it will be a matter of hours until Mike Glennon is an ex-Bucs quarterback.

The Bucs have already chosen a starter and already he has the team eating out of his hand. So if former Bucs tight end and BSPN analyst Anthony Becht were sitting in Bucs general manager Jason Licht’s chair, barring an unforeseen freefall of a couple of studs on the first night of the draft, Becht is going with Central Florida quarterback Blake Bortles at No. 7.

And before the night is over, Becht would ship off Glennon. [read more]

So what would happen if the Bucs drafted former University at Buffalo beastly linebacker Khalil Mack in 13 days?  This morning, Joe was able to confirm from a high-ranking Bucs official that the organization is very confident Mack can rush the passer well off the left edge, as well as the right side. [read more]

Joe will let the video do the talking here.

Joe saw this for the first time yesterday courtesy of a reader. It’s Bucs head man Lovie Smith talking about Johnny Football. [read more]

At 6-7, 280 pounds with next to no fat on him, new Bucs tight end Steve Maneri can’t help but stand out in the Bucs locker room.

It’s easy to see how he had no problem bulking up and playing tackle for the Texans, Patriots and Chiefs before switching back to tight end in Kansas City, where he took great pride in his 2012 role. [read more]

Bucs CB Mike Jenkins hopes playing in Lovie Smith’s defense revives his career.

Joe knows when the Bucs signed Mike Jenkins it ended a years-long crusade of many Bucs fans to have the Pewter Pirates obtain his rights.

Joe never understood why. The guy had a chequered career with the Cowboys, probably more bad than good, though Jenkins’ good was pretty good, albeit brief. [read more]

Read this and you’ll understand why Josh McCown is the unquestioned leader of the Bucs offense

There’s a reason the Bucs didn’t look like a brand new offense with a free agent quarterback during their first practices under the Lovie Smith regime this week.

That’s because the entire offense — yes, everybody — was together multiple times on local ball fields between the time Lovie and Jeff Tedford passed out playbooks on April 7 and the opening minicamp on Tuesday, which was the first time coaches could work with players outside of meeting rooms.

Practices are allowed by the NFL if players gather on their own time — at their own location. The unquestioned leader of the Bucs offense, Josh McCown, is single-handedly driving the team to beat the learning curve of their offense, much like the Bears offense did with first-year coach/offensive guru Marc Trestman last year. [read more]

Bucs OLB Jonathan Casillas talks Bucs defense.

On Tuesday, Joe had a chance, along with other members of the Tampa Bay pen and mic club, to get inside the Bucs locker room and speak with many players who were not getting taped up or tending to some type of trainers needs or other football-related responsibilities. [read more]