Joe hit the WDAE-AM 620 airwaves (also 95.3 FM) earlier to kick off the “JoeBucsFan Hour” with the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, Steve Duemig.

Joe and Duemig will attack all things Bucs every Wednesday at 5 p.m. The first half of the audio is below. Joe will post Part II later. Enjoy.

Bucs fans attending the first training camp practice tomorrow might want to watch the guys fielding punts during special teams drills. One of them will be the Bucs’ newest eight-figure earner, Mike Williams.

Joe had a chance to talk about all things special teams with new special teams coach Dave Wannstedt today, and Wannstedt said Williams will be in the mix in the “wide open” punt returner competition.

Last season, and during the Raheem Morris administration, Joe saw Williams practicing as a punt returner, but it was very limited work.

Williams has the good hands necessary to be successful. Whether he can be dangerous is unknown. Williams did not return punts at Syracuse.

There’s also another Buccaneer who was once a hell of a punt returner, but the New Schiano Order will never give him a shot. See the Darrelle Revis video below.

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 at 5 p.m. on WDAE-AM 620. The new, weekly “JoeBucsFan Hour” kicks off this evening. You don’t want to miss this.

Bucs Pro Bowl defensive tackle Gerald McCoy talks about married life, his favorite summer movies, his chats with Warren Sapp and how he thinks the Bucs are on the cusp of defensive greatness in this audio of his press conference today from One Buc Palace, courtesy of WDAE-AM 620.

Donald Penn is but one of three Pro Bowlers opposing defenses will have to tangle with when facing the Bucs’ offensive line.

Some people point to Bucs offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan and others as being the best Bucs assistants last season. Joe, for one points to former defensive front seven coach (currently pass rush coach) Bryan Cox.

But it would be hard-pressed to determine how any Bucs assistant did a better job than Bucs offensive line coach Bob Bostad.

Think about it: When was the last time an NFL offensive line coach lost two Pro Bowl players to injury, had a third starter benched and pretty much was shuffling the deck (aside from left tackle Donald Penn), plugging guys into holes and positions to try to find the best mix, and still have an above average offensive line?

Bostad is about as quiet a guy as they come. About the only time one can see any hint of emotion from Bostad is when discussing his offensive line.

On paper, with Carl Nicks and Davin Joseph back healthy, and the addition of former first round pick Gabe Carimi, the Bucs potentially could have the best offensive line in the NFL.

“Yeah, definitely we all have those expectations that we can be a very productive unit up front. Excited just to get them into the room and to have them out there with the work and to plan with all the guys on board, we sure didn’t have the time to do that before,” Bostad told Joe today.

“That’s a good group. I think they all get along together. They gel. They don’t mind working hard. I am really excited about it.”

Now the key is to keep every player on the offensive line upright. With three Pro Bowlers (Penn, Nicks and Joseph), along with underrated Jeremy Zuttah, the Bucs could have a lethal ground game with that top notch unit paving roads for Pro Bowl running back Doug Martin.

Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman was on an NFL quarterback rollercoaster last year. While at times he played exceptional football, there were times — too many times — where it seemed he completed nearly as many passes to the opposition as his own teammates.

Sadly for Freeman, the ghastly nine picks in the final three games is what is fresh in Bucs fans’ memory banks. This is not the Josh Freeman to expect this season, Bucs quarterback coach John McNulty noted when he chatted with Joe today at One Buc Palace.

In fact, McNulty said Freeman’s struggles last season were, in a way, somewhat expected.

“I think as much as anything there is decision-making that goes along with the system. This one puts a lot on the quarterback. It takes some time to get comfortable running that offense. It is similar to when I was in Jacksonville with Mark Brunell. It took a couple of years to get rolling with it. [Bucs offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan] “Sully will tell you it took a couple of years with Eli [Manning with the Giants] and he started to roll with it,” McNulty said.

“It takes some time. He has been exposed to a lot of different systems. He has got a lot of knowledge about football but to apply it with all the different reads and everything, it takes some time. I thought that he was making great progress through [2012]. He has kind of continued through that vein through the spring and the past couple of days for the quarterback school. “

This is encouraging information to Joe. Yes, Sullivan worked with Tom Coughlin and Brunell in Jacksonville, and when Brunnell turned the corner, he was one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL and led the Jags to an AFC title game.

Eli Manning’s reversal of fortunes will go down in history and may very well get him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Now will Freeman lead the Bucs to an NFC title game or get two Super Bowl rings? Well, that’s a monster leap right now. But it is very encouraging that Sullivan has experience turning around quarterbacks.

Talk to any Bucs representative — a suit, a coach, a player — and they absolutely crow about the chance the Bucs have for a roadgrader of an offensive line with the return of Pro Bowlers Carl Nicks and David Joseph, starting guards who were felled last year with injuries.

Nicks barely made it to midseason with a nasty turf toe that Joe himself saw in the Bucs locker room and it was indeed gross. Joseph suffered an ugly knee injury in preseason.

But Woody Cummings of The Tampa Tribune, with his own eyes, got a peek at The Toe as players reported to One Buc Palace in the small hours of the morning today. Cummings cast a shadow on just how healthy Nicks may be..

@RCummingsTBO: Bucs LG Carl Nicks showed up for camp this morning with his left toe still heavily bandaged. He missed most of 2012 with that toe injury.

Doesn’t sound good, does it? The thing is, Joe has been doing his homework with trusted Bucs sources the past week or so and none of them suggested Nicks would not be ready to go for training camp.

Bucs coach Greg Schiano offered guarded words about Nicks, stating each player coming back from an injury will have a personally-crafted workout regime that may or may not include lining up for snaps starting tomorrow morning.

Schiano said that with veterans who have proven their mettle in NFL wars (Darrelle Revis, Joseph and Nicks), there is no need to throw them into the fire right away because their past merited a pass. The immediate No. 1 goal, Schiano said, is to ensure guys coming back from an injury are ready to take the field at the New Jersey Swamplands Week 1 against the Jets.

So let it be known, until further notice, this is the season of The Toe.

There is an injured Buccaneer as training camp opens. That would be Luke Stocker, who’s been plagued by nagging ailments throughout his career.

Greg Schiano said today that a tweaked muscle will cut Stocker’s action this week.

“Luke has a little calf,” Schiano said.

 Joe’s only down on this because of Stocker’s history. He’s got to stay healthy.

One name to watch among the many tight ends in Bucs camp is Zach Miller. He caught 45 balls for 470 yards and five touchdowns with Jacksonville from 2009-2011. But a shoulder injury sent him to injured reserve early in the 2011 season, and hamstring and chest muscle injuries got him waived before the start of 2012.

Joe chatted with Bucs tight ends coach Brian Angelichio about Miller today. The scouting report? “I think he brings an element in the passing game, has a good catch radius, can get down the field. I think he’ll continue to get stronger and get back the more he gets playing and in the system. But he’s a guy who’s played football.”

Man, it’s a massively busy day at One Buc Palace. Players are showing up. Assistant coaches are talking. Contracts are being signed. Football is upon us, folks.

Embattled Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman took a few moments before a team meeting to talk turkey with the Bucs pen and mic club and Freeeman confessed, yes, there is room to improve. When asked about his rash of late-season interceptions in 2012, a ghastly nine in three games, Freeman said that notorious mark is “unacceptable.” He noted the offense needs to improve on third downs.

“The way you do that is to get better on first and second downs,” Freeman said.

No one seems more geeked about the Bucs’ offense that defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, who has to go up against the Bucs defense each and every day. GMC just shook his head when asked about the potential of the offense.

“Even at their third level, they are tough to stop,” GMC said.

Will Darrelle Revis, aka The Boy Wonder, play during the preseason?

“I haven’t decided yet,” Greg Schiano said late this morning at One Buc Palace.

This is intriguing. Can Revis really be ready to jump into opening day after all that time off?

Tanard Jackson pulled it off two years ago, though that seemed to be the only good game he played.

Schaino went on to say Revis is healthy and will participate in training camp tomorrow as part of a specific schedule tailored to getting him ready for Week 1.

Nobody’s messing with the New Schiano Order this season.

Greg Schiano has announced that the Buccaneers roster got a 100 percent score on Schiano’s dreaded conditioning test, given to players this morning after they reported to camp. Of course, some players were excused from the famous 110-yard sprints — 16 times — such as Davin Joseph, Carl Nicks and others returning from injury.

Attendance was perfect, as well.

“They’re all here and they’re all in shape,” Schiano said.

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Greg Schiano says new Bucs offensive lineman Gabe Carimi, a former Bears first-round pick, looks in great physical condition.

The Bears considered Gabe Carimi a bust with physical and off-field issues.

Greg Schiano isn’t buying it — because of what he’s seen from Carimi, and because of what Bucs offensive line coach Bob Bostad told him. Schiano explained to Steve Duemig of WDAE-AM 620 that Bostad simply didn’t believe Carimi was not a Buccaneer Man.

“But when you talk to Bob, and you get the insight of ‘Hey, unless this guy’s made a 180-degree change in the person that he is, which he hasn’t, this is one of us,'” Schiano said. “That’s why it’s exciting for us. Because physically he looks great. He had the knee [injury], but he’s doing really well now. So we’re excited and, you know, you give up a sixth-round pick, that’s not much of a risk.”

Joe’s most excited by Schiano’s claim of Carimi looking great “physically. If this, Carimi’s third year, is his time to shine at right tackle, then the Bucs, if healthy, should have the best offensive line in football.

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 at 5 p.m. on WDAE-AM 620. The new, weekly “JoeBucsFan Hour” kicks off this evening. You don’t want to miss this.

WFLA-TV Channel 8’s sports raconteur Dan Lucas sits down with Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune to talk about Bucs news as players report for training camp today in this TBO.com video.

When Bucs players report to training camp this morning, one will be wearing both an unusual smile and have an additional task to take care of, different from the rest of his teammates.

All the hang-wringing and angst over Mike Williams and his contract negotiations can now end. He and the Bucs have agreed to a six-year, $40.25 million deal.

So that added responsibility Williams has today? Signing his contact when he shows up at One Buc Palace.

“Mike has earned this contract through his hard work and production,” Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik said in a team statement.

In Joe’s eyes, the cash couldn’t have gone to a better teammate than Williams. Good dude who produces.

So the Bucs report to camp this morning and hit the practice fields tomorrow. In essence, the football season is upon us. With the possible exception cornerback and defensive tackle, where rookies Akeem Spence and Johnthan Banks are expected to start unless they completely meltdown in training camp and preseason, there really is but one defensive position that is sort of wide open.

The notorious strongside linebacker position.

Now Dekoda Watson, a superior special teams player, seems to be the favorite to win the position. It appears the job is Watson’s to lose, so writes Stephen Holder of the Tampa Bay Times.

The third linebacker in a 4-3 defense is becoming a less-prominent role. But the Bucs have an opening at strong-side linebacker, a role that is critical on early downs, particularly against the run and short passing routes.

Fourth-year veteran Dekoda Watson is expected to get a chance to show he’s ready to take the next step in his career, getting the first crack to replace injured Quincy Black. “It’s early right now,” said Watson, who has started three games in three seasons. “I’m not going to sit here and say that I’ve got the position or anything. All I’m saying is that I have the opportunity.”

But Watson must hold off another young, hungry player, Jonathan Casillas. A free-agent pickup from the Saints, Casillas is a formidable foe. He feels he could be a fit.

Joe asked Bucs types the past week or so about this position and while Joe was told strongside linebacker in the Bucs defense may not be the most vital position in the Bucs defense, Joe was quickly told it’s not like they can throw a slug out there and win games.

Last year, Quincy Black finally began living up to his contract (imagine what coaching can do for a player?) until the injury and nerve damage in his shoulder and neck area likely ended his career. Joe doesn’t believe in coincidences. Middle linebacker Mason Foster, who Joe thought may have been eating February pineapple with his play in September, began to fade late in the season. One reason, Joe believes, was because the Bucs didn’t have anyone remotely worthy to fill Black’s void.

When a bad player is on the field, he tends to drag others around him down.

It’s a good thing that Casillas is pushing Watson. This might give Bucs fans reason to relax; Watson is so rocked up he looks like he could do TV ads for exercise equipment. Watson certainly looks the part of an NFL linebacker.

In a move that may signal the Bucs are not all that happy with depth at defensive tackle, the Bucs gave former Bears defensive tackle Tommie Harris a spin around the block this morning, so reports Pat Yasinskas of ESPN.com.

Why does this tell Joe the Bucs may not be happy with defensive tackle depth? Harris has been out of the league since 2011.

Most NFL teams don’t normally bring veterans out of mothballs unless they are borderline desperate.

In 2011, Harris played his one and only season with San Diego racking up 13 tackles, all solo. Previous to 2011, the former 2004 first-round pick played seven seasons with the Bears.

Raheem Morris used to call Adrian Clayborn “BoyDog,” half man/half beast.

And Clayborn played his rookie season like a German Shepard in a K-9 unit (a unit of one, unfortunately.) Clayborn’s motor was stunning, never letting up as he learned the pro game and led the Bucs in sacks.

Clayborn lost nearly all of last season to a blown knee, but nearly every piece of chatter out of One Buc Palace pegs Clayborn as a man who has transformed his body (now a Rottweiler?) and is drooling to attack offensive linemen and quarterbacks.

Speaking tonight on WDAE-AM 620, Greg Schiano stood strong for his defensive line and told Steve Duemig that Clayborn is “as tough as they come.”

Schiano also raved again about backup DE Daniel Te’o-Nesheim and praised Gerald McCoy emerging as not just a Pro Bowler but a leader.

Many believe the Bucs’ defensive line is a major question mark and a weakness. It certainly seems like Schiano disagrees.

Greg Schiano says he likes competition, and now he has more.

The Bucs signed troubled running back/fullback Peyton Hillis, per Schiano’s comments to Steve Duemig on WDAE-AM 620 this evening.

Schiano said Hillis looked great in his workout today and is chomping at the bit to get back on the field. Since his standout season in Cleveland back in 2010, Hillis has stood out for his bad attitude. And he’s also a fumbler.

Schiano said he’s excited about what Hillis will bring to the running backs corps that also added veteran third-down back Brian Leonard, a former Schiano guy at Rutgers, as well as rookie Mike James out of Miami. But Schiano made it clear that Doug Martin is not being threatened.

No subject gets Bucs fans worked up more than Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman. At times, he looks like the second coming of Ben Roethlisberger. Other times, he looks like the second coming of Rob Johnson.

At his best, Freeman is among the elite of the elite quarterbacks in the NFL. At his worst, he makes Bucs fans run to the nearest liquor store and demand the return of Trent Dilfer.

Some fans have had enough of the Freeman rollercoaster and simply want to turn the page. Well, for said fans, Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune has bad news for you. Barring a complete and utter collapse by Freeman and the Bucs this season, a Walter Football-type collapse, Freeman will return as your Bucs starting quarterback in 2014, and very likely, beyond, as Cummings told Howard Balzer and Dan Leberfeld, co-hosts of “Press Coverage” on SiriusXM NFL Radio.

“Josh had a pretty darn good season last year if you break it down. He had two or three bad games and they came at the end of the year which scarred the whole thing. He threw for most passing yards – more than 4,000 yards – in Buccaneers history and threw for 27 touchdowns. He was really moving along very well until very late in the season.

“If he has that kind of a season again the Bucs will be in a tough situation. He is certainly capable of putting together 15 or 16 superb games. It is a matter of consistency. I think the fact he is in a system, the same system for a second year in a row for the first time in his career, truly the same system. I think that will benefit him. He now has four years of experience. He is a very confident kid. It is very hard to predict how this is going to go.

“I can say this: If he just does his job he will do just fine. He has all the ability in the world. At the end of the day, after putting in so much effort, time and of course, money, into developing Josh Freeman, I have a hard time believing that no matter what kind of season he has unless he has 14 horrid games and this team goes 4-12 or something, I have a hard time believing this team will let him go. I think at the end of the day he will remain a Buccaneer. His play will determine for how long he will remain a Buccaneer whether it’s a one-year deal, maybe a two-year deal or a $100 million five-year type deal. At the end of the day, I think [the Bucs] probably stick with Josh Freeman and you know what? At the end of the day, I say he will earn that right.”

Well of course, if Freeman earns the right to return as Cummings suggests, Joe is of the belief the Bucs would have been fighting for a playoff berth or in fact will be playing in the postseason this January.

Even if Freeman has an average year, Joe’s pretty sure Freeman will be franchised if his agent tries to play hardball with Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik.

If Freeman plays more like his 2011 season than his 2010 season, and the Bucs fail to make the playoffs, all bets are off.