Good news from One Buc Palace moments ago, Lovie Smith said offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford was back at work today “full-time” and fulfilling his duties. [read more]

Among the nuggets coming out of Lovie Smith’s news conference today is that big-money defensive end Michael Johnson was injured early in the loss to the Panthers.

“Michael Johnson hurt his ankle about the third play of the game, rolled it,” Lovie said, as part of discussing how his defensive line wasn’t good enough. [read more]

Anthony Collins and the Bucs offensive line wasn’t as horrible as many Bucs fans want to believe. Even former Bucs TE Anthony Becht agrees.

Joe took all sorts of heat from fans who trashed Joe for suggesting the offensive line didn’t play that bad — it didn’t play great, no doubt. It wasn’t like the offensive line was the reason the Bucs lost.

In fact, a guy who knows something about blocking, former Bucs tight end Anthony Becht, part of the Buccaneers Radio Network and a columnist for Buccaneers.com, saw positives as well. He didn’t think the offensive line was that horrible, but certainly needs work. [read more]

Gerald McCoy weighs in on the defensive struggles

Gerald McCoy had heavy praise for the blocking schemes and performance of the Carolina Panthers yesterday.

Jiminy Christmas! The more Joe listens to Buccaneers talking, the more Joe is believing the unthinkable, that Mike Shula outcoached Lovie Smith. [read more]

As he is wont to do, pedestrian-bumping, olive oil-lapping, popcorn-munching, coffee-slurping, fried-chicken-eating, oatmeal-loving, circle-jerking, beer-chugging, cricket-watching, scone-loathing, college football-naïve, baseball box score-reading, NPR-listening, filthy-hotel-staying, fight-instigating, barista-training Peter King, of theMMQB.com and NBC Sports fame, did his drive-by visit to training camp at One Buc Palace this summer.

He was so charmed by many of the Bucs, including suits, coaches and players, he came away convinced Tampa Bay was going to be one of the great turnaround stories of the season, that Lovie Smith would sprinkle his pixie dust on the team and it would turn into a playoff contender. [read more]

Greg Olsen made it look too easy against Tampa Bay yesterday. Why?

Ahh, an Achilles heal of Lovie Smith’s old school Tampa-2 defense, a smart tight end combined with a decent running game.

Former Bucs tight end Dave Moore has seen it before. [read more]

TampaBay.com Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud, who doubles as a morning show host on WDAE-AM 620, got to the stadium on Dale Mabry Highway early yesterday and talked to healing offensive coordinator Jeff Tedford.

This morning, Stroud shared good news and bad on the radio. [read more]

A former Buccaneer says he’s ready for Mike Glennon if Josh McCown continues to play like he did yesterday

Yes, Joe realizes a Bucs victory next Sunday against St. Louis will bring a calm over the Tampa Bay area. Man, Joe doesn’t want to think about the alternative — followed by quick-turnaround, Thursday night game in Altanta.

Bucs fans need that calm, because it’s crazy out here in the real world of Bucs fandom. There’s mass rage and crazy talk. [read more]

Stats are a funny thing. Some think they’re “for losers,” as Raheem Morris claimed. Others swear by them, and teams even employ “analytics” departments (Bucs included) to spreadsheet every last thing to search for an edge.

But stats are also worthless at times, jibberish junk food for the brain. Lovie Smith evoked one of those yesterday. [read more]

A long look at the Bucs yesterday, today, and what to expect tomorrow and beyond.

Towards the end of the third quarter, Joe could not believe what he was watching. Joe has seen some awful Bucs quarterbacks in person.

Trent Dilfer still gives Joe nightmares he was so awful. Maybe Joe should seek therapy?

Witnessed Son of Bob, who was a pick-six waiting to happen. If you laid cash on a pick happening every time Son of Bob threw to the sideline, you’d have more cash in your pocket than you did when you started wagering.

Joe once watched Rob Johnson, who Chucky tried and tried and tried to find an excuse to start at quarterback over Brad Johnson. Yet even stubborn Chucky could see how awful he was.

Yes, even last year, mostly against teams with strong defenses, Mike Glennon looked lost.

But in none of those games, none, zero, did Glennon look as out of place as Bucs starting quarterback Josh McCown did yesterday. This is supposed to be the leader of your offense, a guy who treated the football as if it was contaminated with the Ebola virus?

Time and again McCown was headed for the ground and he simply just lolly-popped the ball in the air in a fit of panicked desperation. It was fortunate he only had two picks.

An 11-year NFL veteran? Joe has heard people say McCown looked like a rookie. No, he looked like a high school sophomore. Joe was so blown away he even Twittered after that ghastly fumble/interception late in the third quarter that McCown needed to be pulled. Somebody had to settle him down or get someone in there (Glennon?) who wouldn’t treat the football like a bocce ball. [read more]

Bucs fans were told Josh McCown is a superior leader of men.

Bucs fans were told Vincent Jackson is a leader and would be asked to make greater strides in that area this season.

Gerald McCoy acknowledges he’s had success but not yet as a leader who makes those around him better. [read more]

A Yahoo! Sports report suggests Bucs G Logan Mankins’ knee injury “not serious.”

Joe could just feel the air being sucked out of the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway yesterday when coveted guard Logan Mankins, fresh off the boat from Boston, blew a knee early in the game.

Mankins, though he walked off the field, needed assistance and later went to the locker room. Bucs fans feared the worst. [read more]

One of the most interesting nuggets to emerge from the downtrodden Bucs locker room goes to 5-11, 260-pound fullback Jorvorskie Lane.

The Bucs newcomer, who was out of football last year, ripped off a 54-yard run on his lone carry of the afternoon against the hated Panthers. [read more]

Careers, seasons, perceptions and more can change on one play.

Just ask Danny Gorrer (2012) or Lavonte David (2013), among endless examples. Safety Dashon “Hawk” Goldson had one of those choke moments this evening at the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway. [read more]

Joe has to give Lovie Smith credit. The Bucs head coach made no excuses for the terrible performance of his team, specifically the offense, for the first three quarters of today’s debacle loss to the Stinking Panthers.

In particular, Lovie was none too pleased at the careless if not irresponsible way Bucs quarterback Josh McCown handled the ball. He looked more like a skittish high school sophomore than a 35-year old veteran of the NFL battles. [read more]

Mark Barron plays the run well but as far as defending tight ends, he leaves something to be desired.

Now Joe may be many things, but he’s not stupid enough to call Bucs safety Mark Barron a bad player. Hardly.

However, Barron is not an elite player. And when a guy is drafted seventh overall in the draft, he should be an impact player at his position. Barron is not an impact player. [read more]

As loyal readers know, Joe lined up his shot glasses and ordered a case of Tums shortly after the Bucs signed veteran cornerback Mike Jenkins and it became clear Lovie Smith desired Jenkins to play a major role.

Jenkins got his shot today, and gave a lousy effort, one that Lovie noted after the loss to the Stinking Panthers. [read more]

It was near the end of the third quarter. The Bucs offense was dreadful beyond words. Josh McCown had been so careless with the football that even Brett Farve was screaming from his Mississippi home about McCown’s inability to protect the ball.

The stunts McCown pulled would have resulted in a high school sophomore quarterback getting his arse chewed out if not benched — and for good reason — much less a 35-year old veteran of NFL circles. [read more]

The Dunkaneers didn’t throw one alley-oop

Perhaps the saddest part about the Bucs’ offense was that their anointed leadership didn’t show up in the first half, or for much of the game. Captains Josh McCown and Vincent Jackson were at the top of the ugly list.

Vincent Jackson had two first-half drops, and Joe will have to check the video tape on whether he had a third. [read more]