There are so many positions the Bucs could pick at No. 13, Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik could barely go wrong.

Defensive end, offensive tackle, cornerback, safety, inside linebacker, tight end, outside linebacker, Joe could make an argument for either of those positions in the first round. But drafting a defensive tackle would not be one of them.

That didn’t stop Russ Lande of National Football Post from predicting Dominik will nab Utah defensive tackle Star Lotulelei with their first pick.

13. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Star Lotulelei, DT, Utah, Senior: Gerald McCoy is an elite talent on the verge of becoming a star, but with the Buccaneers seemingly ready to let fellow defensive tackle Roy Miller leave as a free agent opposing offenses would be able to focus on him. They decide to gamble that Lotulelei’s heart issue is not going to have a long term effect on his career and grab him to play next to McCoy.

Joe would fall flat on his back if Dominik picked a defensive tackle at No. 13. That’s not a need position. At all.

Yes, Roy Miller is a free agent. But what Miller is asked to do — and he does it well — is to eat up blockers, which enable both Gerald McCoy and Lavonte David to run free.

There are not a lot of 43 defenses that ask a defensive tackle to do what the Bucs ask of Miller. So his services are extremely limited on the free agent market.

If Dominik drafts a tackle at No. 13, that tells Joe Greg Schiano is completely overhauling his defense and Joe frankly doesn’t expect him to do that. Find some cornerbacks, you know, just a couple of average cornerbacks, and you have a solid defense.

There are far more uncertainties at defensive end than at defensive tackle. Will Michael Bennett be back? Can Da’Quan Bowers stay healthy for a year? Can Bowers stay out of a New York cage? Can Adrian Clayborn rebound from an ugly knee injury?

That is why Joe would expect a shivering Rachel Watson to show up at his door tonight in search of warmth and comforting before Dominik drafts a defensive tackle with the thirteenth pick.

Former Bucs defensive end Steve White (1996-2001) looks at the Bucs’ cupboard of cornerbacks and doesn’t see anything enticing.

In fact, White recently told Tom Krasniqi, of WDAE-AM 620, that it’s such a weak stable of corners that he wouldn’t feel comfortable releasing substance-abusing Eric Wright, a player White barely considers good.

“If [Wright’s] a guy that you can keep on your team, maybe reduce his salary or something like that, you keep him. Because like I said, you look on our roster, (laughs) it’s slim pickins, man,” White said. “The next best guy is Biggers. He’s a free agent, too. And then you got [Leonard] Johnson, I guess, who had some ups and downs this year. But you look on our roster, man, we need three good corners to be honest with you. We’ve got maybe one with Eric Wright right now. Even if you go out and get one off of free agency, that still only gives you two. It would be easy if we had other guys who I really felt comfortable on the roster already at corner to say, ‘Yeah, we let Eric Wright go.’ I just don’t feel like we’re in that position right now to have the luxury to let him go.”

White also said he would target Jaguars cornerback Derek Cox when the free-agency bell rings in 10 days, and he doesn’t believe Dee Milliner will be on the draft board when the Bucs’ number is called in April.

Joe would have a real hard time stomaching a Wright return. He’s not good enough, and his drug troubles gave the Bucs an opening to ditch his bloated contract without ramifications. They should take it.

The Bucs can buy a couple of starters in free agency, draft a cornerback, and re-sign Biggers and keep Johnson. There’s also a guy named Barber, who hopefully returns, that’s been known to play a little corner.

Yes, Joe will be there tonight at one of the premier events on the Derby Lane greyhound racing calendar. It’s the Sprint Classic, and the track is giving away $2,500 to five lucky winners.  Click on through below or above for information. And don’t forget to make a whole night of it at the Derby Club, and in Tampa Bay’s best poker room, open through the wee hours.

Joe was interested to learn yesterday that the Dixie Chicks washed their hands of hard-hitting cornerback Dunta Robinson.

Now Robinson may not be the same player he was before he got dinged up the past couple of years. But as rotten as the Bucs were at cornerback last year, Robinson is still an upgrade.

Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune just stopped short of suggesting Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik was going to work out Robinson at One Buc Palace.

@RCummingsTBO: Bucs fans are wondering about team’s interest in CB Dunta Robinson. I can almost assure you Bucs will investigate him, at the very least

Now the numbers crunchers at ProFootballFocus are not enamoured with Robinson, basically saying he’s done and was torched far too often in 2012, so Twittered Pete Damilatis.

@PFF_Pete: Dunta Robinson allowed the 5th-most yds (835) and 7th-most YAC (300) of any CB this season.

Yet if you look at a defensive passing statistic that Pro Football Focus concocted, Robinson wasn’t as bad as the Adderall Twins, Eric Wright and Aqib Talib.

Per something called “Yards Per Coverage Snap,” Wright was No. 102 and Talib was No. 114, both in the bottom 15 in the NFL.

In fact, Talib was second-worst in the NFL in this stat. Who was worse? Why, it was none other than the wet dream of Bucs fans everywhere, the immortal Standord Routt.

Joe is not saying Robinson would be an All-Pro with the Bucs, but he certainly be an upgrade to what the Bucs trotted out last year as starting cornerbacks.

Joe is not a hatchet man, unless the intended victim deserves to be chopped up.

Earlier today, Joe posted an item from a former NFL front office executive who goes by the Twitter moniker of @NFLosophy. And while he said Xavier Rhodes was a dynamic cover corner, he essentially labeled him dismal as a tackler.

Joe wondered why such a highly-rated draft prospect was that bad. So Joe, in the spirit of fairness, turned to a couple of respected NFL authorities for their take on Rhodes.

The first was NBC and FOX football analyst Shaun King, one of only three quarterbacks to lead the Bucs to an NFC Championship game.

King, in his words, “couldn’t disagree more” with @NFLosophy.

“He misses tackles but not because he is afraid,” King said. Rhodes “makes a lot of big hits and is a factor in the run game. IMO he doesn’t project as a No. 1 corner, more of a No. 2 guy and will flourish in a system that plays more zone than man.

“(Rhodes) doesn’t play the deep ball Well enough vs. big, fast wide receivers. I’ve watched all of his games, even 2010, and he is a good player, but I don’t view him as a No. 1-type corner. Good size, physical, decent speed, average ball skills, but he is an upgrade over what Tampa has.”

Dion Caputi of the highly respected National Football Post seems to side with King, going so far as to rate Rhodes a sure tackler after watching film of Rhodes a second time.

‏@nfldraftupdate: FSU CB Xavier Rhodes re-eval: Niche is press coverage. Great at forcing ball carrier inside on stretch/off-tackle runs. Hard, sure tackler. … Allows receivers to cross his face too easily. A fit in zone-scheme. Redirects WRs well with hands.

Interesting that Caputi also noted something that @NFLosophy picked up on — receivers cross his face often.

This is just an example of what goes on in team war rooms throughout the NFL in meetings leading up to the draft. Scouts will see one thing in one player, others see something totally different.

Either way, Rhodes is going to be a wealthy young man in a few months. Joe sure hopes he has a great deal of succcess in the league.

The Falcons waved goodbye to John Abraham, Michael Turner and cornerback Dunta Robinson today, which isn’t exactly Bucs news, but it does impact their division rival and Bucs fans should take note.

One could make a case that the Bucs could use all three of these guys on their roster.

Obviously, Robinson would fill a huge need at cornerback. Abraham, who is hoping to rack up at least one more great season to help lock up a Hall of Fame entry, would be a sweet addition as a versatile pass-rush specialist. He’ll also come cheaper than Michael Bennett, which might intrigue the Bucs if they want Da’Quan Bowers to get more snaps then he would if Bennett is re-signed.

Michael Turner, well, Joe’s not lobbying for him. But if the Bucs want to upgrade their backup running back position and have a true short-yardage back, Turner would be perfect.

No, Joe isn’t trying to go all New York Giants on people today, but a Twitter offering this afternoon from a well-plugged in NFL insider suggests the Bucs may be eyeing a certain quarterback to offer competition/non-competition for Josh Freeman.

That could be Giants backup quarterback David Carr, so says USA Today’s Mike Garafolo.

@MikeGarafolo: A free agency note: NYG QB David Carr expected to hit the free agent market. TB + Mike Sullivan were interested last year, should be again.

Well, Joe has always thought David Carr was a decent quarterback. He started his NFL career OK with the Houston Texans but simply became shell-shocked from the porous offensive line he worked behind. Carr was pummeled so much it damned near killed his career and is still probably a bit gun-shy as a result.

Joe wasn’t aware the Bucs made a play for Carr last year. Interesting.

Shoot, the Bucs could do worse for a backup quarterback. You know, someone like Dan Orlovsky.

There has been chatter that the Bucs, who could benefit from an upgrade at the slot wide receiver position, may just make a run at Patriots’ Wes Welker.

This would be a good addition, but with the Patriots reworking various contracts, including that of quarterback Tom Brady, it appears the Pats are trying to clear cap space to keep Welker.

So, might Giants free agent tight end Ramses Barden be an easier, cheaper target?

The Giants seem to be washing their hands of him. A former third-round pick, he never could break into the starting lineup but was solid as a slot receiver. Nearly as important, he has no problem sticking his nose in the gut of a defender to help spring a ball carrier loose.

Barden was on SiriusXM NFL Radio Thursday and it seemed as if he wanted a chance to be a starter, not a slot guy, though that simply wouldn’t happen with Tampa Bay. But if Barden can be coerced into having an open mind, reuniting with his former Giants receivers coach Mike Sullivan might be a coup for the Bucs. He already is familiar with Sullivan’s offense.

And, in case Vincent Jackson and/or Mike Williams get dinged up, Barden could step into their roles.

Given Barden’s blocking, leadership, versatility, and his connection to Sullivan and his ability to be a productive slot man, Barden just may be on the Bucs’ short list of free agent targets, if Welker is locked up by Bill Belicheat.

Bucs captain Davin Joseph doesn’t want stats and media to distract and affect Josh Freeman

Channeling two major directives to players during the Raheem Morris administration — ignore media takes and “stats are for losers” — Davin Joseph spoke out yesterday and declared that Josh Freeman is a quarterback that has steadily improved and must only focus on that.

“I really think he’s improving in the right way,” Joseph said of Freeman on WDAE-AM 620. “He’s had some tough stints throughout his career where things [didn’t go] very bright for him. I think he’s really gone about improving one step at a time. For me, I know that Josh is getting better. And that’s the most important thing, as long as he’s getting better and not letting the media or, you know, stats and things of that sort get to him and affect his play, and continue to be a motivating factor for him, I think he’ll be just fine.”

Joe finds it intriguing that Joseph brought up stats and media as a potential distraction to Freeman. Are they? That would not be a good sign. Joe would feel more comfortable if Joseph had referenced all the Bucs’ losing not getting to Freeman, rather than numbers and media.

Joseph also went on to say the Bucs must improve around Freeman, noting Joe Flacco and Colin Kaepernick were not the best quarterbacks in the NFL but reached the Super Bowl.

Joseph also dove into takes on the New Schiano Order and how it transformed the team. “Really, what we lost [under Raheem Morris] at One Buccaneer Place was that hard-work ethic.”

Catch the entire interview below.

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How badly do the Bucs need cornerbacks? Well, if you walk up to One Buc Palace, you may just get a tryout on the spot.

With the draft being rich with solid cornerbacks through the first three rounds, it remains to be seen whether the Bucs draft a corner in the first round or, which will be very difficult to do, find a desperate team in order to trade down and perhaps nab Xavier Rhodes.

Largely regarded as the second-best cornerback in the draft, Rhodes, though a very good cover corner, upon further review may not be a Buccaneer Man because he is allergic to tackling. This comes from a man by the moniker of “NFLosophy,” a former head honcho in an NFL front office who refuses to offer his real name but his Twitters are fantastic to read as he loves breaking down film and translates what he sees into easy-to-understand terminology.

In fact, NFLosophy is one of Joe’s favorite follows.

Let’s just say NFLosophy is scared off of Rhodes due to his resistance to tackling.

@NFLosophy: Xavier Rhodes is a terrible tackler. Much better ball skills than Milliner. Lets good WRs get across his face too much. Needs better jab. … Rhodes is really good at getting his guy to the sideline and getting his head around to the QB while staying in step with WR. … Rhodes is an outside CB only. He’ll never be able to play in the slot. Misses way too many jabs at LOS, doesn’t drive his WR from that. … Another ? for Rhodes: Not a max effort guy vs. run. Multiple plays where RB got outside and he didn’t chase. That’ll only get worse in NFL … I’ve seen mentions that Rhodes is better than Milliner…Not the case. Not even close. Rhodes is very good, but Milliner better all around.

This is downright troubling to read that Rhodes bails so much against the run. Joe has a vision of Bucs coach Greg Schiano watching Rhodes not make an effort against the run while studying tape and reaching for a bottle of Pepto Bismol.

Though Joe loves how Rhodes pays attention to the quarterback and the ball — how many times have you seen Bucs corners have a play at the ball if they only turned around to look at the quarterback/ball? — Joe will forever remember in Greg Schiano’s interview on SiriusXM NFL Radio at the NFL Combine last year. Schiano said 2011 Bucs film revealed a starting cornerback (Aqib Talib?) loafing on runs and said, in so many worss, that type of play is simply unacceptable and would not be tolerated.

NFLosophy claims that a defender who doesn’t want to dirty his uniform will only grow worse in the NFL.

Joe remembers a term former Bucs linebacker Scot Brantley loved using: “It’s all about want-to.”

Apparently, Rhodes didn’t want to.

Is that the makings of a Buccaneer Man? Joe doesn’t think so.

This morning, Bucs middle linebacker Mason Foster, who Joe believed was on his way to chomping pineapple for much of the season, stopped by to chat with Justin Pawlowski and Gary Shelton, co-hosts of the “Gary and The Commish Show” hearly locally on WHfS-FM 98.7.

Foster said he is still scratching his head to determine why the Bucs were no less than a sieve on pass defense, yet dominant against the run.

Justin Pawlowski: Why so good against the run and struggled against the pass?

Mason Foster: I really don’t know. We had a lot of good players across the board. Can’t really point to one reason why the run defense was good but the pass defense wasn’t that good. It’s just football. There are a lot of great players in this league, a lot of great receivers in this league. It just happens. You can’t point fingers at anybody, we have to go out there and compete. We are a team together. We have to improve. We have great coaches. That’s what offseason is for, to get better and get more wins.

Gary Shelton: What is the advantage this year of knowing Greg Schiano when neither side really knew each other?

Foster: It was tough. Didn’t know what to expect, coming into it blind. This year you know the coaches, know what they are looking for, know what to expect in the weight room, everything. I am excited coming into this next season with one year with Schiano under my belt. He is a great coach, great program, greet organization. I think we will keep progressing.

Joe can say right now what was wrong with the pass defense: The secondary was largely made up of guys off the street who received little to no coaching from their secondary coach.

The Bucs, sans E.J. Biggers, had no depth at cornerback (isn’t it funny how Myron Lewis stood on the sidelines with his hands on his hips while there was a parade of guys dragged off the street who saw playing time ahead of him?) and when your two starters, the Adderall Twins, were suspended/traded, the Bucs had no safety net.

It wasn’t as if the Bucs had Lester Hayes and Mel Blount at corner to begin with (Eli Manning is still completing 80-yard bombs at this moment) and after the Adderall Twins and Biggers, the talent level really fell off the cliff.

Also in the interview, Foster said flat out, “I need to get better at everything. I just turned 24 [Friday]. I need to be a student of the game.” Foster plans to celebrate his birthday tomorrow by working out in the weight room.

Foster also spoke about his former teammate at the University of Washington, Desmond Trufant, one of the top cornerbacks in April’s draft.

The entire interview can be found here.

Former Super Bowl-winning coach Brian Billick suggests Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik may pull a Mike Ditka and draft nothing but cornerbacks in April’s draft. Billick joined Charles Davis and Laura Okmin to discuss the Bucs’ draft needs in this FoxSports.com video.

Bucs beat writer Stephen Holder didn’t offer much detail in his morning TampaBay.com report that claims Roy Miller and the Bucs have stopped talking about a new contract. Miller will be an unrestricted free agent March 12.

Miller’s agent implied his client is eager to see what fruits the open market will bear.

It’s unclear what the team is offering Miller and his contract demands aren’t known. But Miller’s agent did nothing to dismiss the notion that Miller is destined to play in another uniform in 2013.

“Roy is excited to see what’s out there for him in free agency,” said his agent, Mike McCartney. “He has a lot to offer after an excellent season, helping a team that was last against the run (in 2011) go to No. 1 against the run last season.”

Joe really can’t give an intelligent opinion without knowing the finances. This all sounds like agent-speak right now.

Miller is a two-down nose tackle, and while he was stout in his role as a run-stuffer in the Bucs’ No. 1 rush defense, it’s hard to imagine he’s not replaceable.

Joe also knows that Miller, in past years, has been plagued by knee issues, weight issues, and back problems. Those could be factors in the Bucs’ approach.

Martellus Bennett doesn’t seem to be a big fan of the Tampa lifestyle

Legions of Bucs fans would love to see beastly, soon-to-be-free-agent tight end Martellus Bennett wearing pewter and red next month and playing alongside his brother Michael.

Joe wouldn’t mind that either. The younger Bennett is a beastly blocker and emerged as a versatile pass-catcher last season with 55 receptions in the Giants offense, which just happens to be very much like the Bucs’. And Martellus is a very candid Twitterer. The dude puts it out there.

Martellus Bennett was in Tampa yesterday working out hard, “grinding for the love of the game” per his Twitter account, with Gerald McCoy, Michael Bennett and Roy Miller. But it seems Martellus may not like how we country folk go about things. ‏

Joe tries not to lose his cool over idiotic things, but there is one subject that just drives Joe up a tree.

This utter, imbecilic nonsense of the Bucs moving — to Los Angeles of all places!

Once again, this subject was brought up in an ESPN NFC South chat and someone that should know better didn’t exactly throw water on the flames.

Corey (greensboro)

Pat I was wondering why are keep hearing of Panthers moving to LA. But yet we don’t hear anything about the Bucs moving to LA when the Bucs are not able to sellout games.

Pat Yasinskas

Bucs aren’t looking for a new stadium or renovations — at least not yet. That’s when LA stuff always surfaces.

Now Joe isn’t Donald Trump or Bill Gates but he is a businessman; small, yet a businessman. So let’s do some simple Economics 101 to determine why a few thousand non-premium seats short of a sellout most weeks is, frankly, irrelevant (unless you’re an NHL team that gets a majority of its revenue through ticket sales, or if your mind is still stuck in the 1970s, when ticket sales, not luxury box sales or concessions, meant everything to all sports, and you can’t figure out why your rabbit ears won’t pick up “Happy Days” on the 29-inch console TV any longer)?

Let’s say the Bucs are 5,000 short of a sellout each game and, to use round figures, each ticket is $100. That’s $500,000. Multiply that by 10 home games (including preseason) and it is $5 million.

Sounds like a lot, right?

Well, just on revenue from national TV and radio broadcast rights alone, per Forbes.com, the Bucs and every NFL team will receive $200 million annually starting in 2014.

This is before one luxury box is sold, one corporate ad is sold, one ticket is sold, one car is parked in a dust-choked lot, one jersey is sold, one cap is sold, one beer is sold.

Upgrades to the stadium you say? They are coming soon. Per the voter-approved referendum to build the stadium, some upgrades were written into the lease. Oh, and if anyone would just do a modicum of research, the lease between the Bucs and the Tampa Sports Authority is public record. Read the lease and it’s clear the Bucs are going nowhere.

Why is Joe so confident? Well, let’s take the far-fetched, moronic notion the Bucs will move to Los Angeles. Team Glazer isn’t building a stadium nor are the citizens of Southern California. Rather, it is big-moneyed businessmen. These movers and shakers are not financing a $1 billion stadium for charity. They are going to want to either own the Bucs outright or a chunk of the Bucs. How many times has Team Glazer stated that the team, not even a piece of the team, is not for sale?

Where would the Bucs play, in the parking lot of the Staples Center? No, don’t start with the Rose Bowl or the Coliseum. Neither of those stadiums are fit for an NFL team and to renovate them would cost nearly as much as a brand new stadium.

You think Team Glazer is going to pay for that when they have a sweetheart deal here? And Joe hasn’t even factored in the business-hostile taxes in California that have driven many companies to relocate out of the state.

No, this isn’t the 1970s any longer. Economics have changed. It doesn’t matter how many thousands of tickets are sold, so long as corporate partners are still paying for ads and more importantly, eyeballs are glued to TVs to watch the NFL.

It really doesn’t take an economics professor to figure this out if Joe can run the numbers.

Though Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik believed it was too early to rank these future tight ends, NFL Network draft guru Mike Mayock believes three tight ends are virtually tied and all could be drafted from the first to the second round.

The three? Notre Dame’s Tyler Eifert, Stanford’s Zach Ertz and San Diego State’s Gavin Escobar.

If the objective is to get Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman more toys than FAO Schwarz on Black Friday in order for him to consistently succeed, then an upgrade to a pass-catching tight end would surely fit the bill.

This is no knock on Dallas Clark, the Bucs’ incumbent and free agent tight end, but Clark has seen his best days in the NFL come and go.

One huge unknown to many Bucs fans is Escobar, who played in obscurity at San Diego State but is already an NFL-caliber pass catcher some liken to the Packers’ Jordy Nelson (yes, Joe knows Nelson is a wide receiver).

Escobar, who is entering the draft after his junior year, believes his lack of blocking or perhaps need to improve his blocking is overblown, Escobar said at the NFL Scouting Combine over the weekend.

“I think some people look past my blocking ability because of my pass catching ability,” Escobar said. “It’s something I’m willing to do and I’m always working hard to get better at.

“The feedback I’ve been getting from most teams is they like my pass catching ability. They’re a little concerned
with the run game. I’ve been trying to tell them I’m willing to do that and I’ve been working hard at that, and over time I can only improve.”

Of course, lighting up defenses in the Mountain West will be a bit different than trying to expose the seam route in the NFL, but playing in that conference didn’t hurt Doug Martin or Andy Dalton.

Could Escobar be there at No. 45 when the Bucs pick in the second round? Perhaps.

This is why this draft is so intriguing to Joe. Without knowing what the Bucs will do in free agency, Dominik could draft at virtually every position other than quarterback, defensive tackle, wide receiver, running back, guard and center in the first round, and it would make sense.

Again, if Dominik drafts a pass-catching tight end who to improve his blocking, Joe trusts offensive line coach Bob Bostad can rectify that issue.

Bucs coaches need to fix Josh Freeman’s front-shoulder mechanics asap, writes former Bucs QB Jeff Carlson. A good start would be studying Joe Flacco.

Former Bucs quarterback Jeff Carlson (1990 & 1991) writes The QB Blast column here at JoeBucsFan.com. Joe loves when Carlson fires away. Carlson is often seen as a football color analyst on Bright House Sports Network, and he trains quarterbacks of all ages locally via his company, America’s Best Quarterback. Plus, he’s a really cool dude.

By JEFF CARLSON
JoeBucsFan.com

Joe Flacco has one more season of experience on Josh Freeman, but five more playoff seasons and now a Lombardi Trophy on the shelf and a Disney Parade, too.

He is now expected to become the highest paid QB in the league while the Buccaneers ponder what they should do about Freeman’s future with the team. Flacco isn’t a better passer than Freeman because of his team’s fabulous finish, he has been a very accurate passer over his career because of very solid passing mechanics and great balance.

His alignment is better than most in the NFL. Josh Freeman’s alignment is one of the worst.

Freeman rarely, if ever, gets his front shoulder on the line that he wants the ball to travel. That is one of the reasons he throws quite side-armed so often. He pulls his left shoulder and left hip off target earlier than he should, causing the ball to be released further back, while Flacco (as well as Aaron Rogers, Tom Brady, Matt Ryan, Eli Manning, Drew Brees, Andrew Luck, RGIII, Russell Wilson and others) keeps himself lined up and allows himself to reach out straighter to his target, thus creating more accuracy on his throws. Inaccuracy is a key criticism of Freeman.

There are quite a few other things that I would like to see new Buccaneer QB Coach John McNulty clean up with Freeman’s mechanics, but improving the alignment of his shoulder and hip to his throws is probably the most impactful thing he can do for improving his accuracy all over the field.

To keep it simple, Freeman’s mantra moving forward should be, “Just throw like Joe.”

Yes, when Bucs defensive end Da’Quan Bowers got collared in New York for packing heat in LaGuardia Airport, one of the worst places in the nation to be pinched with a loaded rod, many Bucs fans believed the arrest and possible incarceration of Bowers would force Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik’s hand to make moves at the defensive end position.

A like-minded Bucs fan raised this subject in a recent BSPN NFC South chat.

MJ (Palm Beach, FL)

Pat,With the unfortunate circumstances of Bowers mistake, does it now almost guarantee Bennett will be a Buc whether it be the franchise tag or a long-term deal? Also, does this scenario help us create a brotherly family reunion in Tampa?

Pat Yasinskas

I think they already had planned to make a hard push to re-sign Bennett. And, yes, it could help put his brother in Tampa Bay.

Now Dominik is on record as saying it would be naive to think Bowers’ arrest wouldn’t have the Bucs performing a second review of their draft plans. Joe thinks there’s no need to make a rash decision when one doesn’t need to be made (yet).

There is little to no evidence to suggest Bowers will miss any time in the 2013 season, unless it’s at the hands of the NFL’s long arm of the law, warden commissioner Roger Goodell. Like Goodell did with cabbie-slugging, helmet-wielding, pistol-whipping Aqib Talib, Goodell likely will wait to decide Bowers’ suspension fate until after Bowers goes to trial, if he goes to trial. It’s unlikely Bowers would have his fate sealed by a jury before 2014..

It is still unknown how this charge will shake out. Bowers may not have to serve any sentence in a New York cage. Only time will tell.

Besides, Joe has gone on record many, many times saying Dominik likely will pull the trigger — pun unintended — with the 13th overall draft pick on a defensive end, if he’s one the Bucs think can make an immediate impact.

If there is a winner in all of this, it may be Bennett, though Joe is confident Dominik won’t spend much more cash on the free agent than is already budgeted.

The Bucs can’t fix their heinous secondary with one new face, but adding Darrelle Revis to the defensive backfield would deliver an immediate impact felt across the NFC.

Per the New York Daily News, new Jets general manager John Idzik was shopping a trade of Revis at the NFL Scouting Combine, which ended yesterday. Idzik worked about 10 years in Tampa alongside Bucs rockstar general manager Mark Dominik, the Bucs desperately need a cornerback and have the available cash to pay Revis, and Revis played for Dave Wannstedt in college, which means he’s probably in the “Buccaneer Man” mold Greg Schiano often references.

You think the Bucs were a part of those trade talks? Joe sure does.

Revis is coming off a blown knee and surgery. He’s supposed to be on schedule to return before training camp. Joe would give up just about anything — not Rachel Watson — for a healthy Revis, but that knee injury has to significantly cut Revis’ value.

Even though guys return to top form faster and faster from major knee surgery, Joe would vomit if the Bucs coughed up more than a first round pick and an insignificant player.

Will he stay or will he go? That’s where the fate of Ronde Barber stands with the Bucs.

One of the greatest cornerbacks to ever play the game, certainly the best to ever wear a Bucs uniform, graybeard Barber is a free agent. So far, the Bucs and Barber, who will turn 38 in April, haven’t had formal talks about next season.

This subject came to Booger McFarland’s mind. The former Bucs defensive tackle and current on-air personality for WHNS-FM 98.7 gave his two cents on Barber’s future, if there is any with the Bucs.

“Ronde Barber. He isn’t talking, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers aren’t talking. It is a simple game of chess or is it a we-are-going-to-take-our-time-to-get-into-it? Does Ronde Barber deserve his own say? Can the Tampa Bay Buccaneers force him out the way they forced Derrick Brooks out, the way they forced Warren Sapp out? Or does Ronde Barber deserve to be treated any differently? Right now they are not talking so we don’t know. It is still a business. Just turn the tape on. If he can play, you bring him back. If he can’t, you let him go. Either way, he’s a Hall of Famer.”

Well, as Bucs coach Greg Schiano told Joe in an exclusive one-on-one interview from the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis last week, this is the way the Bucs planned it. They wanted Barber to step away for a while and discuss his future with his family.

It sure seemed by Schiano’s answer and body language he would like Barber back. But perhaps Barber, who only suffered one serious injury to close the 2011 season, may just count his blessings and step away?

No, this isn’t like Brooks or Sapp. Barber is a free agent. Brooks was cut. Sapp was conned by Chucky, and Sapp wound up signing with the Raiders as a free agent.

Joe doesn’t sense any shenanigans whatsoever between the Bucs and Barber. Joe is confident the combine took priority. Now that it is over, perhaps Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik and Schiano will break bread with Barber this week, over team-pre approved pasta, and find out if the two can come to an agreement or not.

If Barber doesn’t come back, then obviously the Bucs will be in the market for a safety.

I was for competition for Freeman before I was against it, before I was for it again

Poor, Greg Schiano.

He has such a hard time with his message when he talks about competition for Josh Freeman.

At the NFL Scouting combine last week, Schiano backpedaled off his January call for competition at all positions including quarterback, a story that became national news as it related to Josh Freeman. Schiano said those comments about Freeman were overblown by media and, he said, “I have been busy and I hadn’t had a chance to clear that up.” (Didn’t have 90 seconds to instruct your PR staff, coach? Yeah, right.)

Now Buccaneers.com has released footage of Schiano, filmed in Indianapolis shortly after that combine backpedal. Interestingly, Schiano again talked emphatically about competition for Freeman.

“My whole thing is I believe in competition. I think that’s what our country was founded on, right?,” Schiano said. “So that competition at every position is important to me. But I don’t want to make anybody have any other thought. Josh is the guy that I believe in as our quarterback, and I know our organization does, and we believe that he can take us to all the goals that we want to achieve. But is he going to have competition? Sure he is. We’re going to do that across the board.”

Joe finds it interesting that Schiano never mentions backup QB Dan Orlovsky, who remains on the Bucs roster. And it’s always been strange to Joe that Schiano wants competition for Freeman, yet Freeman took 100 percent of the first-team snaps in practice last season.

If Joe were advising Schiano, Joe would tell him to stop talking about competition altogether. The whole notion is a bit of a farce at the NFL level. There are plenty of guys on every team that essentially are guaranteed starting jobs based on their salaries or draft position.