The failing Tampa Bay running game was one of the topics Pro Bowl left guard Logan Mankins addressed on Friday with the Tampa Bay pen and mic club. [read more]

The Buccaneers’ rookie first-round pick didn’t fully participate in a practice all last week, but it seems his groin is good enough to test in live competition this afternoon against Baltimore. [read more]

The Bucs will feel the loss of Mike Evans, says a Super Bowl-winning coach.

Ray Lewis and Ed Reed are long gone from the Baltimore defense, but there’s still plenty of nasty/stingy play on the field.

The Playbook crew on NFL Network last night were happy to blubber about the NFL’s top red zone defense. [read more]

Michael Johnson should be drooling

It’s always bad when your left tackle apologizes four days after a loss.

It’s even worse when he’s an undrafted rookie coming off a steamrolling. [read more]

“The Road Warrior,” WTSP-TV traffic reporter Holley Sinn, has tips on how to get to the Bucs game quicker.

Driving to a Bucs game can be a major pain in the posterior. Just getting late to a tailgate is enough to ruin your day.

Leave it to WTSP-TV, Ch. 10 traffic reporter, “The Road Warrior,” Holley Sinn to help. She knows all the tricks to get you past the congestion and to your tailgate (or the game) quicker. Life is not made to be stuck in traffic. [read more]

What a helluva aafternoon huh?

TCU chokes away a 21-point fourth quarter lead and Baylor wins at the end. Mississippi State tries to give the game away early to Auburn but still wins. Texas dominates Oklahoma, except for special teams and defense and loses.

Not sure how we can top the afternoon games, but here come the Gators. Oh yeah, Penn State is up next in the Brady Hoke Goodbye Tour.

Bang it here for all your thoughts.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers haven’t played a lot of disciplined football this season.

Heck, Louis Murphy was even fined — not just flagged — for saying bad words, per NFL Network. [read more]

There is no more laid back, chill hour of radio than “Hawk Radio,” the nickname for the weekly Dashon Goldson show with Ronnie Lane on the Buccaneers Radio Network.

Hawk and Lane are like a couple of dudes smoking good cigars and sipping cognac. [read more]

Regular readers here know Joe isn’t a huge fan of the stat geeks, but some of their data is relevant and worth noting.

And considering the Bucs have grown their in-house team of football numbers crunchers this season, the spreadsheet data is more deserving of the spotlight. [read more]

A Bucs icon checks in on No. 8

Man, if Mike Glennon is getting average grades for his starts from esteemed football men, Joe can only imagine where Josh McCown’s GPA would be. [read more]

And the broadcasters are …

Bucs fans who don’t live on the west coast of Florida, or within a 60-mile or so radius of Baltimore, very likely will have to find a sports bar to watch the Sunday, unless you have NFL Sunday Ticket.

The CBS telecast, (WTSP-TV Channel 10, locally), is deemed so low down the totem pole by the Tiffany Network, that roughly 96 percent of the nation won’t have access via their local over-the-air CBS affiliate. [read more]

Derrick Brooks weighs in

The worst defense in the NFL last season belonged to Monte Kiffin, Rod Marinelli and the Dallas Cowboys, a nearly identical defense to the Bucs’.

But this season, the Cowboys are making big plays defensively, forcing turnovers and are sitting with a 4-1 record. [read more]

Lovie Smith explains

The Bucs offense was horrible the first three games. The Bucs pass defense has been miserable. And aside from one game, quarterbacks had as much time to themselves as if they were in a confessional to throw the ball.

Just last week against the Saints, Drew Brees went back to throw 57 times and not once did Brees hit the ground. Granted, Brees is Houdini-like in his ability to escape, but geez. [read more]

Even though the Bucs are 1-4, a virtual lost season, there are things to look forward to. Sunday may be one of them.

The Baltimore Crows aren’t as strong as they once were, but are dangerous. Still, WTSP-TV Channel 10 sports anchor David Wirth thinks the Bucs can learn from the Saints loss last week, and give the Crows a run for their money Sunday, if…  [read more]

Johnthan Banks (27) believes if he can play with the MRSA, he can play with a sore neck.

One of the walking wounded in practice this week has been starting corner Johnthan Banks. The second-year pro hurt his neck in the loss to the Saints.

A neck injury is nothing to fool with. Those can be dangerous and, in some cases, have ending playing careers. Banks doesn’t seem concerned. [read more]

Don’t look for Johnthan Banks on Sunday

The Sunday prognosis for Johnthan Banks is not good.

Banks “hasn’t been able to do much this week,” Lovie Smith said today. [read more]

Crows quarterback Joe Flacco is sneaky good.

When NFL talking heads discuss about the top quarterbacks, rarely is Joe Flacco mentioned. For reasons Joe cannot figure out, Flacco is the NFL’s version of Rodney Dangerfield. No respect.

In Flacco’s now seven years (including this season), he has guided the Crows to the playoffs five times and a Super Bowl title. Yet Flacco is all but dismissed by experts. [read more]

Joe sure hopes Sunday’s game against Baltimore ends with fans evoking comparisons of Michael Johnson to Simeon Rice, rather than a bowl of black beans and rice.

Starting at left tackle for the Ravens is undrafted rookie James Hurst. [read more]

It’s the JoeBucsFan weekly podcast! Joe joins with the smooth-toned pipes of Buccaneers Radio Network and WDAE-AM 620 voice Ronnie Lane.

A bunch of topics are touched on in advance of Sunday’s Bucs-Ravens game. [read more]

In these unsettled times of devastating Bucs losses, constant change and growing pains, Joe thought it would be wise to bring back THE OPTIMIST.

THE OPTIMIST is Nick Houllis, a Bucs fan and an accomplished writer whose steadfast allegiance to the Buccaneers goes back to the 1970s. Houllis is the founder, creator and guru of BucStop.com, a place Joe goes to get lost in time via Houllis’ stunning video collection.

THE OPTIMIST will shine that positive light in your eyes. Some will love it. Some won’t. … Of course, THE OPTIMIST’s opinions are his alone and are not influenced by Joe. [read more]