Who says the Bucs couldn’t trade down in the first round, adding some extra draft picks, and still get a decent corner like Mississippi State’s Johnthan Banks?

The cool thing about the upcoming draft, a three-day event which begins Thursday night, is there are so many options for the Bucs.

The Bucs, of course, could draft a corner, as many expect. The Bucs could justify drafting a defensive lineman at No. 13. Some think the Bucs will draft an offensive tackle, and the psychotic Bucs fans, apparently having no clue what offense the Bucs run or the makeup of the roster or how the salary cap works, are deranged enough to believe Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik will go all Matt Millen and draft a slot receiver, this Tavon Austin.

And there’s always the possibility, the elephant in the room, that Dominik will send the No. 13 pick to the Jets for corner Darrelle Revis. But what happens if the Bucs trade down in the first round? That thought was thrown out by Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune.

In fact, more than one mock draft has the Bucs taking Austin at No. 13. That seems unlikely considering their needs at cornerback, defensive tackle, tight end and offensive line, but the threat may work in their favor.

If Minnesota or some other team wants Austin that badly the Bucs could benefit by moving down and adding an extra early-round pick that could possibly be included in a package for Revis.

Though they appear willing to surrender the 13th overall pick in a trade for Revis, the Bucs would still rather hold that pick and get Revis for a package of second- and third-round selections or a package of 2014 picks.

If Dominik has a pattern with the draft, it is his wont to move around like a fantasy footballer after three Bud Lights. Dominik has traded up in the draft to land quarterback Josh Freeman, and last year showed he was some sort of a riverboat gambler, trading down in the first round to pick safety Mark Barron, then trading back up in the first round to get running back Doug Martin and trading up into the second round (from the third round) to grab linebacker Lavonte David.

If Dominik feels there is a corner late in the first round he could draft by trading with, say, Minnesota, which has two late first round picks, the Bucs could get Desmond Trufant or D.J. Hayden or Johnthan Banks.

What then, Jets general John Idzik, will you do?

Who needs custom-built Roy Miller when you have “White Lightnin’?”

That’s what Gerald McCoy calls Gary Gibson, the former Rutgers defensive tackle who’s one of the last NFL men standing that played in NFL Europe.

Gibson was a rotational guy on a small scale for the Bucs last season, but he had a big impact on Gerald McCoy. Last year, McCoy told Joe how Gibson helped teach him the nuances of the game.

“Gary, he’s a vet. He’s very smart. He teaches me little things, little things I need to focus on, little things I need to see, little things he sees that I can do that he knows I can do and need to go execute. And it helped me out a lot,” McCoy said.

Speaking at One Buc Palace this week, McCoy talked more about how Gibson set the tone early with the Bucs last year with his leadership and understanding of the Bucs’ defensive line stunts.

“Gibby was our best movement guy,” McCoy said, referring to Gibson’s technique on the line. “He’s a strong guy. He’s quicker than people think. He’s smart. He knows the game. I excited to see what he can do this year, you know, with more playing time.”

Now as much as Joe wants to be pumped up for all things 2013, Joe can’t get excited, like McCoy, to see more of Gibson. The guy’s a 31-year-old backup, and he fought a lot of nagging injuries that arose in training camp last season.

If Gibson can lead and teach and get a little spot duty, that’s more than fine with Joe. The Bucs need more depth and talent throughout the defensive line.

Don’t worry folks, only a few more days before the NFL draft hits and we won’t have to worry about who rock star general manager Mark Dominik might select.

Joe knows Gil Brandt, the famed retired player personnel director, thought the Bucs would select Alabama offensive tackle D.J. Fluker at No. 13. It seems others do as well, which prompted a question to Pat Yasinskas of ESPN in a recent NFC South chat.

Tyler (Toronto)

Hey Pat, do you think the Bucs could go with Fluker in the 1st round instead of Austin or the best available corner? The addition of Fluker would really solidify the OL.

Pat Yasinskas

Think that’s at least a possibility. Fluker would be upgrade at RT. But let’s wait and see what happens on the Revis front.

Yes, the Bucs could use a right tackle. But drafting a guy at No. 13 to fill a hole that isn’t a need position is equally as silly as this notion some try to peddle that the Bucs should draft a slot receiver at No. 13, Tavon Austin. The Bucs have many, many bucks tied up already on the offensive line. A general manager has only so much cash to play with. Using too much of a budget on one area all but forces a team to have another unit filled by lesser players, or in slang terms, slugs.

The Bucs desperately need a corner, and just behind that is depth on the defensive line. Drafting a right tackle at No. 13 is just as reckless as drafting Austin at No. 13.

A more sensible draft at right tackle, as Woody Cummings of The Tampa Tribune suggested, and as Joe wrote about from the NFL Scouting Combine, would be Wisconsin right tackle Ricky Wagner in, say, the fifth round.

Anthony Becht

Can’t get enough draft talk? Can’t get enough Bucs talk? No worries. WDAE-AM 620 has you covered this morning.

Former Bucs tight end and current NBC Sports Network analyst Anthony Becht joins Pat Donovan to pick apart this weekend’s NFL draft and how the Bucs fared from 9 a.m.-noon today on “The Sports Animal.”

Like Johnthan Banks? Concerned with William Gholston? Have no clue who Steven Means is? Give Becht and Donovan a call and they will educate you.

The Bucs offense has a gaping hole in it. Or another way to look at it is opposing defenses show a weakness the Bucs can’t exploit.

In this latest edition of the JoeBucsFanTV draft series, draft guru Justin “The Commish” Pawlowski explores this phenomenon and who might be able to fix it. Watch the video below. It’s much more exciting than anything else on the tube tonight.

Would Utah defensive tackle Star Lotulelei be enough to make Bucs general manager Mark Dominik to briefly forget the gaping holes at corner?

Joe knows Bucs fans are hoarse from screaming for Bucs rock star general mananger Mark Dominik to draft a corner with the No. 13 pick. Their hands are bruised and raw from slamming their fists on bars so much and so hard.

And Joe understands their cries.

But with the Bucs thin as the toilet paper at the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway on the defensive line, Stephen Holder of the Tampa Bay Times believes Dominik must think twice about not drafting a defensive lineman at No. 13. There should be talented linemen available, so Holder typed in a Bucs chat today on his newspaper’s site today.

Comment From Guest: Any thoughts on d-linemen they’re looking at in the draft?

Stephen F. Holder: Yes… I think a really good one could fall to the Bucs, and then they’d have a tough decision to make (e.g. Star Loutelelei). That’s a deep position at the top of the draft.

IF the Bucs think there’s not much dropoff to the corners available in the second round, I think you could see them put the corners on hold and grab a stud DL with No. 13. That helps the secondary to an extent anyway, so the logic makes sense.

Sure the Bucs need a corner. Desperately in fact. But Holder’s argument surely holds water. And if the Bucs get a guy who can rush the passer consistently at No. 13, shouldn’t that help out the beleaguered secondary?

Joe sure senses a tough decision for Dominik Thursday night.

Joe doesn’t believe for a second that Ronde Barber starts his days with a bowl of Wheaties or an egg white omelet wondering whether he wants to play NFL football anymore.

That’s just silliness to think Barber doesn’t know, in mid-April, what he desires.

It’s clear to Joe that Barber wants to get a sense of his role and challenge with the 2013 Bucs before making a decision. If the Bucs land Darrelle Revis and draft a cornerback in the second round, for example, that could drive Barber’s competitive fire to return — or tell him the Bucs really have moved on.

Former Bucs tight end and current Buccaneers Radio Network color analyst Dave Moore talked on WDAE-AM 620 this week and wondered aloud not only whether Barber would want to potentially play a backup role but whether he could physically stay loose enough to be successful at it.

Moore also praised Eric Wright’s play as “a physical corner” when he wasn’t injured or suspended. And while Moore assessed Barber highly at safety, Moore seemed to convey that Barber would have trouble beating out a healthy Eric Wright for a starting corner gig. (You can catch the entire interview below.)

Joe wouldn’t bet against Barber beating out Wright for a starting job, especially if Revis is aboard and the Bucs can shade safety help Barber’s way. Also, Wright was signed, in part, for his versatility, which would serve him well as the No. 3 or No. 4 corner.

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Joe’s been hit with a the same question repeatedly since the Bucs released their 2013 schedule last night, “Hey, Joe, you think there will be any game blacked out from local TV this season?”

Joe’s answer is simple, “Of course.”

With or without Darrelle Revis, nobody should expect some sort of Bucs box office stampede before the season, or during the season, barring a shock-the-world winning streak.

Given that the Saints game in Tampa was televised last year, Joe surely expects the Saints-Bucs home opener on Sept. 15 to be on TV. Also expect to have the night games against Carolina (Thursday, 10/24) and Miami (Monday, 11/11) bust the blackout threshold and be televised.

As for the other games, Joe is hopeful annoying Eagles fans, Michael Vick fans and bearable weather will push that Sunday, Oct. 13 game onto the local airwaves. But that’s about it. Joe’s expecting blackouts for the Cardinals, Falcons, Bills and Niners. A Warren Sapp Ring of Honor Day, of course, could change that.

So that’s half a home season on TV, under that scenario. It still sucks, but it’s an improvement. Hopefully, the Bucs can get another game on TV — a home playoff game.

One of the most unpredictable drafts in history keeps throwing more curveballs as more teams leak their interest in trading up in the first round.

The Vikings are now in the trade-up mix, via ProFootballTalk.com and NFL Network yesterday, along with the hated Dixie Chicks (aka Falcons) and others. After sending Percy Harvin to Seattle, the Vikings allegedly are interested in the West Virginia wide receiver the Bucs don’t need: Tavon Austin.

So what’s the Bucs’ 13th overall pick worth?

Last year offered a great benchmark. The Eagles traded up three spots to the No. 12 pick in order to select Mississippi State DT Fletcher Cox. Philly sent its first-round pick (15th), a fourth (114th) and a sixth (172) to Seattle to get Cox.

Minnesota, with this year’s Nos. 23 and 25 overall picks, surely would have to give up a bigger ransom to the Bucs than just a first, fourth and sixth round picks. Perhaps a first, third and a fourth would be enough for rockstar general manager Mark Dominik to pull the trigger?

That would give the Bucs a big stable of picks (they already have two fourth-rounders now) to potentially trade back into the first round, up in the second round, or dangle in front of the Jets.

Joe watched the entire Jets pre-draft news conference this week, and Team Idzik went on and on and on about the depth of this draft. Perhaps, if the Bucs pulled off a trade-down move like this with the Vikings, Dominik could squeeze out Revis for a second round pick in 2013, two-third-rounders and a fourth rounder.

Joe has banged the drum repeatedly to proclaim Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik should hold Jets general manager John Idzik hostage to make it less likely Dominik will get raked over the coals for a ransom in return for Jets star cornerback Darrelle Revis.

Dominik, in Joe’s eyes, has all the leverage in the world, which only strengthens by the day. So Joe is glad to see others jumping on the bandwagon.

Take Woody Cummings of The Tampa Tribune. He Twittered out yesterday Dominik should play very hard to get for the next week or so.

@RCummingsTBO: If I’m Bucs GM Mark Dominik I’m keeping my 2013 13th pick, spending it on what I want or need most and forcing the Jets to play by my rules

Exactly! The Jets need to trade Revis more than the Bucs need Revis. There is only one team out there willing to tackle Revis’ salary and that is the Bucs.

Since the Bucs are the lone suitor, Dominik gets to set the market for Revis, not Idzik.

Yes, Joe will write this again: Every day Dominik waits, the vice on Idzik’s private parts gets tighter.

Yesterday, Joe brought word, via Rich Cimini of ESPN, that NFL draft guru Mike Mayock would go all out to acquire Darrelle Revis if he were Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik.

However, Mayock also noted the Bucs have many holes that Revis can’t just repair alone. He detailed what the Bucs should and shouldn’t do if they trade for Revis, or if they do not.

“Because if I’m Tampa Bay and I’m looking at my depth chart at corner, I’m going, ‘Okay, I just resigned Eric Wright at a reduced number. How long is he going to be here? E.J. Biggers is gone. Then I have a bunch of young guys that for whatever reason probably aren’t going to be starters.’

“So from my perspective in Tampa, and I’m all over trying to get Darrelle Revis. If I get him, obviously my first round pick is gone. So now we’re looking at an entirely diffearent equation there. But I think they need a vertical tight end at some point. Whether or not that’s Tyler Eifert in the first round at 13 or whether it’s down the road a little bit because you traded and got Revis. They need a vertical tight end. They need a SAM linebacker, and I think they need some tackle depth.

“So the whole thing hinges on what happens with Revis. To me, they could use more than one corner. Even if they get Revis, they need to draft another corner at some point.”

This is why Joe wouldn’t bet the farm on landing Revis. Sure, it would be great to have Revis on the roster, but at what price? As Mayock pointed out, there are several holes on the Bucs roster, not counting defensive line.

The Bucs simply are not a Revis away from a Super Bowl. Hell, the Jets made the playoffs a couple of times with Revis and they weren’t lifting any hardware. It’s not like Revis is a magic wand and all of a sudden, another Vince Lombardi Trophy appears in the lobby of One Buc Palace.

The entire transcript of Mayock’s teleconference can be found here.

The first look at a complete Bucs season schedule is almost better than unwrapping a glorious new Christmas present. There’s nothing quite like the excitement.

Here it is!

Sunday, 9/8, 1 p.m, @Jets
Sunday, 9/15, 4:05 p.m., SAINTS
Sunday, 9/22, 1 p.m., @Patriots
Sunday, 9/29, 1 p.m., CARDINALS
BYE WEEK
Sunday, 10/13 1 p.m., EAGLES
Sunday, 10/20 1 p.m., @Falcons
Thurs., 10/24 8:25 p.m., PANTHERS
Sunday, 11/3, 4:05 p.m. @Seahawks
Monday, 11/11, 8:40 p.m. MIAMI
Sunday, 11/17, 1 p.m., ATLANTA
Sunday, 11/24, 1 p.m., @Lions
Sunday, 12/1, 1 p.m., @Panthers
Sunday, 12/8, 1 p.m., BILLS
Sunday, 12/15, 1 p.m., SAN FRANCISCO
Sunday, 12/22, 1 p.m., @Rams
Sunday, 12/29, 1 p.m., @Saints

Joe likes the schedule a lot. Aside from the two glorious night home games (blackouts be gone), on paper, the Bucs should be able to get out to a solid start.

Closing the season with two on the road has the potential to really test the mettle of the New Schiano Order. Hopefully, those games will mean something, which means Myron Lewis won’t be on the field, and LeQuan Lewis won’t be called off the couch to replace him.

The Bucs, with or without Darrelle Revis, will head to the armpit of the nation to play the Jets on opening day, according to USA Today.

The full schedule will be released by the NFL at 8 p.m.

What a circus it will be if Revis is wearing pewter and red, or what a glorious thing it would be if Vincent Jackson torches Revis in green.

This morning, Joe floated a theory that the schedule —  and the TV schedule — of the Bucs-Jets game might be a window into the likelihood of a Revis-to-Bucs deal. If the Jets and Bucs are playing at night on opening weekend, then it sure would smell like the powerful TV suits know something the masses don’t.

There are few football minds Joe respects more than Mike Mayock. No, he is not God and nobody is 100 percent. But Mayock puts in the work, the study, the research and doesn’t gin up draft prospects just to get pageviews and change his thoughts every two weeks and plug players into teams where they don’t fit (hello, Todd McShay).

Today, in a marathon conference call, Mayock stated he would do whatever it takes to grab Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis if he were Bucs rockstar general manager Mark Dominik, documents Rich Cimini of BSPN.

However, if Mayock were Jets general manager John Idzik, he’d lock up Revis.

“I’m not trading him. End of story,” Mayock said Thursday on a media conference call. “I’m going to find a way to make it work. I think sometimes we get too carried away with all these draft picks and I’m sitting there saying, ‘Man, corner is a position of need. They’re hard to find.’ This is the best corner in football, and he’s going to be one of the best of all-time, and he’s 27 years old. If I’m New York, I’m not going there.”

From the Bucs’ viewpoint, Mayock said the prospect of acquiring Revis is “pretty exciting. I’m giving up [the 13th pick] to get him, and I’m also talking about some of those other picks. … My perspective from Tampa, man, I’m all over trying to get Darrelle Revis.”

Now Joe has written this time and again: The Bucs are not one star player from a Super Bowl berth. Revis on the Bucs roster does not equate Super Bowl. It just doesn’t.

Of course Revis would help, but at what price? If Idzik was reasonable, Joe could see a trade. Thing is, Idzik doesn’t realize Dominik has Idzik’s privates in a vice that gets tighter by the day.

Adam Schefter has an afternoon update on the trade talks (?) between the Jets and Bucs for cornerback Darrelle Revis in this ESPN video.

What could be funnier than Scott Pioli lecturing on employee relations? The former Chiefs general manager is notorious for tactics that would make KGB agents blush.

Audio below from SiriusXM NFL Radio has Pioli doing just that, but it’s in the context of the Jets potentially trading Darrelle Revis to the Bucs.

Pioli talks about the distraction Revis has caused, and is causing, in New York. And he explores an important question to Bucs fans, one that Pioli says GMs across the NFL are asking., “Is this player ever going to be happy?”

No, Joe’s not calling for the New Schiano Order to sign a drunk-driving, weed-obsessed, alleged-rapist tight end to catch passes in the red zone. That wouldn’t happen.

But the allure of someone with Jerramy Stevens’ football talents might be a good idea for the Bucs next week, so says former Bucs tight end and current radio analyst Anthony Becht.

Speaking on WDAE-AM 620 yesterday Becht said the Bucs might be wise to take a long, late-round look at UCLA tight end Joseph Fauria. Becht is very tuned into this year’s draft class at the position. He spent much of the offseason training top-tier TE talents, including Tyler Eifert, at IMG Academy in Bradenton.

“A very good receiving tight end, big target, reminds me of a Jerramy Stevens type guy,” Becht said of Fauria. “He’s a guy that if you can get late, he can definitely make some hay into the passing game. He’s 6-7, a big tall guy, red zone, a lot of production at UCLA.  He could be someone that could help you, if you’re going through the draft to find somebody.”

Fauria caught 46 balls, including 12 touchdowns, last season, but he lacks the speed to be a threat down the seam, and that’s why he’s projected as a late-round pick or an undrafted free agent.

Typically, if the Bucs coveted a West Coast or California guy like Fauria, they’d draft him in the seventh round rather than run the risk of signing him as an undrafted free agent, ala Sammie Stroughter in 2009, or Erik Lorig in 2010. The odds of luring an undrafted kid from the West Coast across the country to Tampa is tough, unless he has no other options. And if that’s the case, that’s a red flag.

As for the Bucs’ need for a giant red zone target? It can’t hurt, though Chucky, and later Greg Olson, never figured out how to maximize Stevens’ ability. Perhaps Mike Sullivan is more of an offensive genius.

The famous $9.95 roundtrip chauffeured luxury bus to Tropicana Field is back for its third season!

Get your seat on the No Excuses Tour chauffeured luxury bus to Tropicana Field, courtesy of Paradise Worldwide Transportation, Lee Roy Selmon’s and Joe, departing from Selmon’s locations in Carrollwood and near International Plaza.

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Man, Joe was so scarred by what passed as pass defense last year for the Bucs, he still can’t shake the memories of receivers running like wild African antelope evading hungry cheetah.

Guess this is what experts refer to as “posttraumatic stress disorder?”

Even if the Bucs somehow keep the No. 13 pick this year, and trade for Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis, Joe wouldn’t be shocked if the Bucs grabbed a corner in the first round of next week’s draft.

Good guy Peter Schrager is of the same mind. The FoxSports.com columnist and tireless NFL beat worker believes NFL warden commissioner Roger Goodell will call out the name of Desmond Trufant when (if?) the Bucs select at No. 13.

13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Desmond Trufant, CB, Washington

Tampa Bay hit the jackpot with its first three draft picks a season ago, nailing home runs with Mark Barron, Doug Martin, and Lavonte David. Trufant has the right blood lines — two brothers who played in the NFL — and the production at the college level to be worthy of a top-15 pick. A lock-down guy, he was a star at the Senior Bowl and ran an eye-popping 4.31 40 at the Combine. This is higher than a lot of other mock drafts will list him, but I don’t think Trufant escapes the Top 20. I think he’s a better fit than Xavier Rhodes, too. Of course, this all changes if a certain guy named Revis joins the team in the coming weeks.

Joe likes this pick. From what Joe has read, expect a rush at corner early. As many as six of the first 10 teams drafting have a need for a corner. That’s why Joe didn’t blink when he read a draft mocker suggest the Bucs trade up to get Xavier Rhodes.

There is nothing to dislike about Trufant, though Joe has heard some quibble he’s not physical enough.

Right now, the Bucs just need a corner who can cover lamppost, please.

Pat Yasinskas and Scouts, Inc.’s Steve Muench talk about the Bucs and the draft in this BSPN video.

The NFL rolls out the 2013 schedule tonight. Joe wants to see whether the TV suits consider the Bucs at Jets game worthy of prime time spotlight.

Joe’s been accused of reading too deeply into things and seeing things, at times, that aren’t really there. One could say this is the foundation of Joe’s romance with Bucs icon Rachel Watson. However, Joe and Rachel did finally rendezvous this summer, so perhaps that’s a bad example.

That written, Joe’s extra eager to see the 2013 NFL schedule unveiled tonight at 8 p.m.

Specifically, Joe wants to see whether network television executives are tapping their inside intelligence and investing in showing a Jets-Bucs game in prime time, specifically at night. The Bucs are pegged to travel to the Meadowlands to take on the Jets; this is the Bucs’ year to play the AFC East (also @New England, plus home for Buffalo and Miami).

Joe must believe the networks would want to air a Bucs-Jets gave in prime time if Darrelle Revis is wearing red and pewter.

Revis is a popular and polarizing guy, and the networks likely would love to show his return to the angry fans of Gotham. But the TV suits decision wil have had to be made already — to be rolled out tonight.

Joe will speculate that if the Bucs-Jets matchup is not chosen as a night game, then the TV honchos were advised a Revis-to-Bucs deal is no lock.