Joe knows favorite topics among Bucs fans are whining about how other people won’t spend their money so said Bucs fans can watch a Bucs game free in their living rooms, and Bucs franchise quarterback Josh Freeman.

Joe simply cannot remember a local athlete who had so many cheerleaders and detractors all at the same time. Both loyal to their causes to the point of near-civil unrest.

Joe just wonders if the same division among Bucs fans would exist if, three years ago, the Bucs drafted girlie-hairband-wearing Mark Sanchez?

It’s not as crazy as you may think. Consider what long-time Jets beat writer Rich Cimini, now working for BSPN, had to say about the goings-on in Jetsland in the spring of 2009.

First, a quick story about Freeman. The Jets’ scouts actually had him graded higher than Mark Sanchez before the ’09 draft, but they adjusted the grades after Sanchez’s personal workout and interviews. I wonder how things would’ve played out if the Jets had picked Freeman.

With Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik mandated to draft a franchise quarterback of the future, and Freeman off the board, would Dominik had pulled the trigger on Sanchez?

The Jets quarterback has his detractors. Many of them, in fact, hence why the Jets drafted Geno Smith, this Sunday’s starter. But Sanchez does have some major scoreboard over Freeman and that is Sanchez because led the Jets to two AFC championship games. Freeman has yet to lead the Bucs to one postseason appearance, and that is why many of his detractors have their panties all bunched up, and deservedly so.

Had Sanchez been with the Bucs, would he have guided the Bucs over the hump and into the playoffs in 2010, or led the Bucs down the stretch last season?

Only the zealots of the Mike Glennon Mob hate Freeman. Every Bucs partisan from Bryan and Joel Glazer on down to the loneliest Bucs fans living in China watching games online would love nothing more than for Freeman to rid himself of his non-playoff slump.

Greg Schiano talked a little defense with the New York media

Greg Schiano brought the Rutgers defense to Tampa and it hasn’t changed much. 

New Bucs linebackers coach Robb Smith, who arrived this season from (all together now) Rutgers, told Joe he’s made an easy transition because the defense is virtually identical to the Scarlet Knights’. Yesterday, Adrian Clayborn told Joe that aside from a couple of things, the defense in 2013 will be what fans saw last season but executed better. Clayborn believes his return plus Batman and Robin added to the secondary, plus familiarity, will make all the difference.

Schiano talked to the New York media yesterday and was asked about defending Geno Smith. Schiano got into some detail but ultimately explained that the Bucs will simply do their thing on defense, documented The Star Ledger.

Will you expect a lot of shotgun formations from the Jets?

I think he’s gonna do both. I think he can do all those things. There are a lot of things Geno did in college. He’s a gun-run quarterback. He did some things with shotgun pass game. Not in college a lot, but under center he’s certainly done a lot in the NFL. I think we’ll see the full gamut.

Does your defensive approach change with a rookie quarterback, such as more pressure or showing multiple fronts to confuse him?

Sometimes I think guys do that. I think it’s all a matter of where they fit in the system and how far along in the development you think they are. Some systems are more quarterback friendly than others — the Jets is a more quarterback friendly system. As I look at it, I see a guy who handles things pretty well. … I don’t think in this instance it will behoove you to do more or less but you’ve got to be who you are anyway. We do pressure. We also lay back. We’re gonna do what we do.

Expect the Bucs to blitz all over the place. Like last season, the Bucs’ top-ranked run defense will again be committed to stopping the run at all costs, run-blitzing and getting the most out of Lavonte David and Mason Foster in that area.

Why would they do anything different? Make Geno Smith bust out the 70+ percent passing he showed at West Virginia. If Smith throws/forces 15 to 20 balls to starting tight end DJ Toes On The Line Winslow, then the Bucs are likely in great shape.

Adam Schein

Earlier this week, popular sports radio and television personality Adam Schein decided to give his team-by-team predictions for the coming 2013 NFL season.

And while Schein is a big fan of Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik, and loves the order that Bucs commander Greg Schiano has brought to the team, and likes many Bucs players, there is one player that gives Schein pause.

That would be Bucs franchise quarterback Josh Freeman.

Last year in midseason, Schein famously stated he trusted Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder more than Freeman. And sure enough, come December, Freeman melted down whereas Ponder put together two clutch performances against playoff teams, at Houston and against Green Bay, vaulting the Vikings to the postseason while Freeman and the Bucs, once again, watched the playoffs on TV.

Schein strongly inferred that Freeman will keep the Bucs stuck in third place this year. Schein gave his take during “Schein on Sports,” found on the “Mad Dog Radio” channel heard exclusively on SiriusXM Radio.

“The Bucs: A third place team, winning about eight or nine games. I like the direction in Tampa Bay. I like what they did in the offseason. I like what they did with Darrelle Revis who should play this week, Week One against the Jets. I just don’t like their quarterback.

“I think at some point, Mike Glennon — in fact, if you want, mark the tape. I am just throwing that out there, if you want to, go ahead and mark the tape. — Mike Glennon is going to be the starting quarterback at the end of the year. Take that one to the bank.”

Before Joe’s readers spill their coffee on their keyboards and go hating on Schein, notice that Schein, a Mike Glennon Mob member, actually believes the Bucs could have a better record than what Joe predicted (8-8) for the season.

There are just too many questions marks on a team with a tough schedule in a brutal division and conference to believe the Bucs are playoff-bound.

Of course, if Freeman blows up, the playoffs aren’t that much of a pipe dream.

Rookie QB Geno Smith is starting for the Jets, and he’s going to run quite a bit on Sunday. Yes, almost every rookie QB tucks and runs a lot in his first start out of fear for his life, but Smith would be doing it anyway. That’s part of his game.

Smith was pretty much exclusively out of the shotgun when he racked up eye-opening passing stats last season at West Virginia, and Smith does not hesitate to take off, and he’ll probably have to a lot more in the NFL than against, say, Oklahoma in the Big 12.

Bucs linebacker Jonathan Casillas told Joe yesterday how the Bucs have been preparing regularly for the “gun-run” since spring. The Bucs’ next three opposing quarterbacks are Drew Brees, Tom Brady and Carson Palmer before the bye in Week 5, so surely that a big chunk of that prep was with Smith in mind.

Joe likes the Bucs’ odds if Smith starts tucking the ball repeatedly. The Bucs have plenty of speed in their front-7. Smith is no superstar runner. He should be easily contained.

Joe has been skeptical of the Bucs for not beefing up (at least a little) their defensive line in the offseason with at least some proven veteran among the handful that were available for the right shopping price.

Yes, the Bucs now have four defensive linemen on the roster that were third-day draft picks in 2013; that tells Joe how absolutely thin the defensive line was. To expect all four, much less one, to be a major contributor in making opposing quarterbacks eat grass is wishful thinking beyond reason.

Joe was concerned about the front line, in part, because that both Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik and commander Greg Schiano were confident Da’Quan Bowers could pick up where departed sack leader (and solid run-stopper) Michael Bennett left off.

Training camp came along and Bowers seemed to implode under the weight of the new responsibility. He was seen sucking major air on the sidelnes during practice and Schiano made a few not-so subtle jabs that Bowers had to pick up his game. Then, Bowers struggled in preseason games. Joe has been shaking his head for weeks how both the front office and coaching staff could swing and miss this badly in evaluating Bowers — at such a critical need area.

Well, Bowers, who really is a stand-up guy and as nice of a person you would ever want to chat with, mentioned something to Joe Wednesday that made all the sense in the world.

Bowers was going through his first NFL training camp.

When Bowers was a rookie, the Bucs as well as the NFL had an abbreviated training camp coming off the asinine lockout. Bowers also was coming off of knee surgery and was not a full-go for what passed as training camp. Bowers didn’t participate in training camp due to his torn Achilles suffered in April. So in his third year in the NFL, Bowers participated in his first, full-blown training camp and preseason.

Bowers discussed how Schiano has worked closely in getting Bowers ready to be an every-down player and how Bowers is responding to the intense coaching and practices.

“[Schiano] has invested a lot in me. He has believed in me. He has given me shots and I appreciate that. I owe it to this organization to be that guy who can play any down, anywhere and be dominant. Wherever they call me, it is my job to be the best I can. Coach has been leading me where I want to go. He is very particular in me elevating my game. It wasn’t easy; it hasn’t been easy; it still isn’t easy but we are working toward that goal.

“Just when you think you have arrived your destination changes and I don’t think that I have arrived. This is my actual first real training camp. I didn’t have a heavy load in training camp, this year didn’t have a training camp at all because of the Achilles tear. It is my [responsibility] not knowing the tempo, not knowing the pace of practices and not being ready for the heat. It is hard to play football in Tampa. It is hard to breathe but we use that to our advantage. I am good. My condition is great.“

Now this helps make sense of why Bowers may have struggled coming out of the gate in late July. What it doesn’t explain is why he didn’t start some preseason games and adapt through August, and how he is not listed atop the depth chart at defensive end.

The only thing Joe can figure is that Bowers was being asked to do a lot of new things, thus, has taken longer to develop than originally thought.

All kinds of coaches and players were available today when the Bucs had an open locker room, the first for Jets Week.

Included in the talking Bucs were cornerback Johnthan Banks, defensive end Daniel Teo’-Nesheim, cornerback Leonard Johnson, defensive tackle Akeem Spence, defensive end Da’Quan Bowers, cornerback Darrelle Revis, linebacker Dekoda Watson, defensive tackle Gerald McCoy and wide receiver Mike Williams.

Also, Jets coach Capt. Lou Albano and quarterback Geno Smith called in to field questions from the Bucs pen and mic club.

Lastly, the daily press conference from Bucs coach Greg Schiano and weekly press conference from offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan.

Naturally, audio courtesy of Joe’s good friends at WDAE-AM 620.

As usual, Joe dove into all things Bucs with the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, Steve Duemig, on WDAE-AM 620 this evening. It’s the JoeBucsFan Hour, which you can count on every Wednesday at 5 p.m!

Joe goes a little deep on Lavonte David early in the show, and then moves to other topics. Enjoy!

Greg Schiano acknowledged today that the team’s published depth chart was accurate as of Monday, when Leonard Johnson was labeled a starter at cornerback along with Darrelle Revis.

Schiano pointed out that things can change but “that’s what we saw on Monday.”

That leaves prized rookie Johnthan Banks as presumably the nickel cornerback. However, Schiano passionately said recently that the nickel position is far more difficult than many assume. Also, veteran cornerback Michael Adams told Joe today that Schiano has not yet told the team of a decision on nickel cornerback for the Jets game, a role Adams desires.

Schiano praised Adams through preseason, so there’s a decent shot Adams gets the job and Banks’ action will be limited.

Of course, it’s unknown how much Revis will be able to play, which could affect the use of Banks. Hopefully, the Bucs’ offense can grind the ball on the ground and keep their offense on the field. That would be a tremendous gift to the entire Bucs defense.

Bucs cornerback Darrelle Revis, scheduled to make his first start for the Pewter Pirates Sunday against the Jets at the New Jersey Swamplands, seemed puzzled if not irked by Jets rookie starting cornerback Geno Smith.

It seems Smith had recently mentioned to the New York Daily News that he spent the better part of the past two weeks studying film of the Bucs but has yet to watch one clip of Revis.

When asked for a reaction, Revis seemed dazed. Rubbing his non-Grady Wilson beard and pausing in thought, Revis said, “I don’t know why he wouldn’t watch” tape of [me]. “I’m going to be there. I’m going to be on the other side” of the ball.

“I know I’ve watched tape of him.”

Revis has been much like an assistant secondary coach this week, helping his teammates prepare for the Jets.

“I practiced against those guys every day,” Revis said, as he gave an improptu scouting report on some of the Jets receivers. Revis admitted he has been helping Leonard Johnson, Dashon Goldson, Johnthan Banks and Mark Barron with insider information on how to defend Jets receivers.

Revis even noted he has spent time with Bucs offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan as the second-year Bucs coach picked Revis’ brain for Jets intel.

Bucs cornerback Michael Adams played in a Super Bowl with Arizona and won a couple of division titles there.  A seven-year veteran, Adams has been through his share of training camps and preseasons, and he can had no problem today telling Joe how life is different under the New Schiano Order.

“A little more intense,” Adams said of the Bucs versus his Cardinals teams. “We’ve got young guys with a fire just ready to get after it, a physical team, a team that’s actually taken on the mindset of its head coach.”

Joe’s asked other new Buccaneers about the mindset of the pre-opening-day Bucs versus other teams’. Joe got lots of bland answers, though Peyton Hillis, a former member of the Chiefs, Broncos and Browns, says the Bucs stand out for their work ethic.

Hillis, though, was quick to point out that many NFL teams are as driven and all that really matters is performance on Sundays. Joe can’t argue with Hillis. Country club atmosphere or not, Joe was all in favor of the yungry Bucs going 10-6 under Raheem Morris.

Greg Schiano updated the condition of some wounded Bucs today, including Carl Nicks.

The Bucs are holding on to hope that their stud left guard can make a heroic start against the Jets on Sunday after his well publicized MRSA infection in his foot, and recovering from his offseason foot surgery.

“We feel like he can play,” Schiano said, though he explained that Nicks is still being evaluated and did not practice.

Joe asked offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan about his depth at left guard, and Sullivan was quick to say that he was hopeful Nicks will return.

Joe would be stunned if Nicks is back on Sunday.

Schiano said fullback Erik Lorig was limited in practice, along with rookie running back Mike James. Cornerback Rashaan Melvin (hamstring) did not practice, per Schiano, and Joe saw no sign of tight end Tom Crabtree.

It was difficult, but Joe chose not to jump off the Sunshine Skyway Bridge after the listless effort the Bucs produced in the preseason. Why? Because the preseason is a bunch of bunk, to be polite.

In a mere four days, the Bucs will face the Jets at the New Jersey Swamplands to kick off the 2013 season.

What can Bucs fans expect? Joe’s not sure because, in part, the preseason is like watching a magic show. A lot of stuff you see isn’t real. Bucs defensive end Adrian Clayborn believes the Bucs finally have their defensive puzzle together, which will confuse if not overwhelm Jets coach Capt. Lou Albano and rookie quarterback Geno Smith.

“We’ll see Sunday, but we’re going to have all of our pieces finally and it should be good,’’ Clayborn said. “We’ll see. It’s all about getting all 11 guys who are supposed to be starting on the field at once.’’

One of those pieces, obviously, is Darrelle Revis. But so too is Clayborn, coming back from knee surgery. Dashon Goldson will be another puzzle piece.

Joe knows the Bucs braintrust stayed up at night the past eight months trying to figure out how to breathe on a quarterback without signing a proven pass rusher. Perhaps, Sunday Bucs fans will see what type of riddle or concoction Bucs commander Greg Schiano has in store to accomplish that.

Jets coach Capt. Lou Albano spoke to the Bucs pen and mic club this morning and, of course, the subject of Bucs cornerback Darrelle Revis came up.

Few coaches in the NFL know Revis better than Albano ,who was his head coach with the Jets. Albano noted that Bucs foes will soon learn “Revis Rules.” In particular, Albano spoke about Revis Rule No. 1:

“You better not throw it from the far hash marks to the outside numbers or he will pick it,” Albano said. “That’s one of them. Bucs opponents will learn that about him. He doesn’t let you catch the ball in the locker room. He’s one of those rare guys.”

Now, Albano finds himself in a weird position; he has to figure out how not to let Revis beat you.

“How do you attack him? It’s about how you defend him. You have to look at him different than any other corner. We had Revis Rules you don’t break. He is rare. Guy like him comes around once every 15-20 years, if that.”

Joe is often asked to describe the vibe or feel around the Buccaneers, as if Joe can somehow magically take an accurate pulse of the team.

Joe surely understands the question, but in many ways it’s a silly one before the Bucs have played a game. (No, preseason doesn’t count.)

Tampa Bay Times Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud, however, says he has a feel about the 2013 Bucs.

“It is sort of this, for lack of a better term, there is sort of this house of cards feeling to things,” said Stroud, while co-hosting The Sports Page on WDAE-AM 620 this morning.

That sounds alarming, though the last time Stroud expressed a “house of cards” take on the Bucs was before they went 10-6 in 2010. So fans shouldn’t freak out.

If Joe was forced to state his feel about the Bucs, then Joe would say the team now seems to have taken on the identity of its head coach right now — very intense but not relaxed, aka wound a little too tight. Maybe that’s good. Maybe it’s bad. Regardless, a victory Sunday will do wonders for the “feel” coming off an ugly preseason.

(You can hear Stroud’s take below, via 620wdae.com audio.)

Ross Tucker

Princeton man and seven year NFL offensive lineman Ross Tucker, morning host on SiriusXM NFL Radio, is not high on the Buccaneers.

In fact, Tucker ranks the Bucs as the 23rd best team in the NFL. Ugh.

Tucker says Josh Freeman’s inconsistency and a weak defensive front prevent him from believing the Bucs are better than the “six-to-eight win realm.” Tucker breaks down every last NFL team is his latest power-rankings podcast below.

Joe just shook his head yesterday. No, it was not because he was savoring the fact he just demolished the greatest sandwich in the free world — an authentic Primanti Brothers behemoth.

Joe shook his head in amazement of what may very well be an NFL record. With recent roster moves since the original final 53-man roster was announced, the Bucs now have four guys on the defensive line who were third-day draft picks in 2013.

That just blows Joe’s mind. Three is amazing and does say something about the prowess of Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik. But now four? That tells Joe the defensive front was much, much thinner than those outside of One Buc Palace imagined.

But the wild card here, so believes Pat Yasinskas of ESPN.com, is that Darrelle Revis will help the pass rush. Yes, a cornerback. Yasinskas brings ammo to this discussion, based on what the Jets and their coach, Capt. Lou Albano, did in rushing the passer with Revis in the secondary.

Revis has the ability to shut down one side of the field. In theory, that should allow the Bucs the opportunity to bring extra pass rushers. That’s something that worked quite well for the New York Jets when they had Revis.

From 2008 through 2012, the Jets brought five or more pass rushers on 40 percent of dropbacks by opponents, according to ESPN Stats & Information. That figure ranked third in the NFL. The Jets held opponents to a 55-percent completion rate, which ranked No. 1 in the league, and an average of 6.4 yards per attempt which ranked second in the league.

This is an interesting thought. It’s hardly a state secret the Bucs are uncovering every rock imaginable (short of them signing a proven pass rusher as a free agent in the offseason) to find a way to get at the quarterback.

If the Bucs blitz two guys, as Yasinskas hints, perhaps both David and/or Barron, there simply won’t be enough blockers to stop six (seven?) pass rushers. It’s simple math.

The way Dashon Goldson can play centerfield, it should allow Barron to rush the passer on clear passing downs. Joe’s of the belief that Barron’s going to have to live up to his high draft status or Bucs fans will start kvetching louder about Dominik passing on linebacker Luke Kuechly for Barron.

The folks at BSPN carved out a 10-minute feature on the pre-Bucs life of Darrelle Revis. The segment aired tonight. Revis tells tales of growing up in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, and much more. Enjoy.

One of college football’s most interesting characters was the Buccaneers wide receivers coach last year, P.J. Fleck.

Fleck, 32, is the youngest head coach in Division I football at Western Michigan, and he has an intensity and leadership style that is unique and impressive. The man’s nuts — in a good way.

Joe couldn’t wait to drop a few nickels on WMU as a four touchdown underdog at Michigan State last weekend. They lost 26-13 and did Joe proud.

Fleck chatted with The Star Ledger in New Jersey recently and shared what life was like as a Rutgers coach under Greg Schiano.

What were those two years like working for Schiano at Rutgers?

“What the hours meant was you would do your job until your job was done and until you made sure the flaws were now strengths. We worked a ton of hours. There were times we didn’t go home for a few days and worked right through the night…We did what we had to do to solve some problems we thought we had. At the time there were some disadvantages and we had to work through them and it took us longer than probably most would have…He was there just like us. He was there longer than us. He was there before you. You knew that he wasn’t just telling you and he’d go home and go to bed. He was there. Solving the same issues and problems. He had a hand in every aspect of that program. He wasn’t just the football coach, he was everything. He was the marketing director. He was the fundraiser. He was the recruiting coordinator. Greg could do anything. He did do everything. That’s what I was able to see at times just by working there those two years. Then, believe it or not, he took me with him to Tampa and that was an extreme compliment because I was, I believe, the youngest position coach in the National Football League. He took a chance on me again. He saw what maybe others hadn’t seen.”

Joe just wanted to share. Life for coaches and players under Schiano is anything but typical. Joe’s got no problem with any of it, as long as it works.

Cornerback Danny Gorrer’s preseason started great with an interception of Joe Flacco, but Gorrer blew his groin that night and surgery a couple of weeks ago has lost him for at least half of 2013.

Today the Bucs put Gorrer on the fancy injured reserve/designated for return list, which means he must sit out half the season. Defensive tackle and Rutgers man Gary Gibson returns to the roster in his reserve role.

Nothing really new or exciting here. The Bucs remain thin at cornerback. Leonard Johnson, per the unofficial/official opening day depth chart released today is a starter along with Darrelle Revis.

If Lavonte David cranks out another nine seasons like the one he turned in last year, the Bucs linebacker will be talked about in the same breath as Derrick Brooks. David was that good.

What’s interesting in the Monday locker room interview of David below is David explaining that his intensity level preparing for a regular season game is the same as in preseason. But then David goes on to talk about how his teammates have upped their intensity now that the Bucs are in real-game mode. Most great players operate the way David does.

Hopefully, the Bucs collectively will be able to flick the proverbial switch. (Listen to all of David’s comments below, via WDAE-AM 620.)

What happens when you put Tampa Bay sports radio icon Steve Duemig and Joe in the same studio to talk all things Bucs for an hour?

Find out tomorrow at 5 p.m. on WDAE-AM 620. The Wednesday “JoeBucsFan Hour” rolls on. You don’t want to miss this. And now the JoeBucsFan hour follows Duemig and Bucs icon Derrick Brooks talking all things football at 4 p.m. It’s must-listen radio for football fans!

There’s a stink that keeps swirling around national media about Greg Schiano having locker room issues.

On NFL Network, former NFL fullback Heath Evans talked about the feedback he got from “older veterans” on the Buccaneers last season and his concern about the “college mentality” of the New Schiano Order.

In a recent, FOX Sports NFC South preview video below, former NFL linebacker Scott Fujita says his sources from the Schiano locker room have painted a picture troublesome to Bucs fans.

“Here’s my concern about the Buccaneers. I’ve talked to enough guys who have spent time in that locker room who have raised questions about the head coach,’ Fujita said. “The sense I get sometimes, is that players aren’t buying in. And if you don’t have buy-in in this league, you don’t have a shot.”

For what it’s worth, Evans and Fujita were both Saints teammates of Carl Nicks. Fujita also works alongside Ronde Barber on the new FOX Sports 1 studio.

To be fair to Schiano, it does take a new coach time to weed out players unresponsive to a new regime. However, Joe must hope that a mega-millions acquisition like Nicks or a team-first icon like Barber were not guys off the Schiano bandwagon.

Joe has no problem with not everyone liking the head coach. All that matters is the on-field performance.

With a potential shot at the playoffs alive, the Bucs didn’t show up when they got smoked 41-0 by the Saints in New Orleans last season, and the Bucs were humiliated at home by an average Rams team the following week. But Schiano did manage to get an extraordinary buy-in from his team to close the season with a victory in Atlanta. Schiano was able to right the ship to close the season.

Joe’s not concerned by these rumbles of locker room issues, though they are worth monitoring.

Also, in the FOX video below, the Bucs are ranked as the 20th best NFL team to start the season and are predicted to finish third in the NFC South. It’s a pretty common prognostication.