Joe was out at the final training camp practice for 2012 this morning and jotted down some highlights, and not-so-highlights.

* Cody Grimm was seen working with the third team defense.

* A morning practice is not complete without Greg Schiano barking instructions with his bullhorn.

* Eric Wright the past week or so has really stood out on defense. Early in practice he breaks up a Josh Freeman pass intended for Vincent Jackson.

* Ronde Barber fakes a blitz up the middle but it wasn’t needed as the run was stuffed at the line.

* Jackson breaks open over the middle for a completion.

* Michael Smith is shifty, even in heavy traffic.

* Najee Goode grabs a pass at midfield and turns it into a pick-six.

* Josh Freeman rifles a pass to the left sideline for Vincent Jackson who taps his toes just inbounds for a catch.

* Michael Smith takes it to the house on a kickoff return, much to the delight of Bucs fans. The next play, Sammie Stroughter matches the score by running up the left sideline.

* Mike Williams grabs a pass over the middle with Leonard Johnson draped all over him.

* Dallas Clark extends high for a pass just out of the reach of Lavonte David.

* Eric Wright with some perfect defense on Vincent Jackson, preventing the Bucs wide receiver from coming down with a catch in the far left corner of the end zone.

* George Johnson gets his left mitt on a Josh Freeman pass using an inside stunt to the left, nearly picking off the pass.

* Robbery! Greg Ellingson clearly burns Myron Lewis for a touchdown on the left sideline but one of the scab refs claims he never got both feet in the end zone. The play happened right in front of Joe and Ellingson has both feet well inside the line with plenty of green to spare. There was no replay to be had.

* A field goal sails so long on the north end zone that it drills a car in the parking lot, triggering the vehicle’s alarm system.

* Second day in a row that during two-minute drills when Schiano pipes in crowd noise, the fans in the bleachers begin yelling at full throat. This time, the fans stood as one, stomping on the bleachers while chanting, “DEE-fense… DEE-fense… ” Joe’s pretty sure a training camp tradition is born.

* Eric Wright and Gerald McCoy would have easily sacked Josh Freeman if not for Freeman’s green no-hit jersey.

* Sammie Stroughter gets the best of Eric Wright over the middle for a completion.

* Mossis Madu with a good gain catching a pass from Josh Freeman in the left flat.

* The scab refs catch an offensive lineman putting Mason Foster into a sleeper hold.

* Eric Wright blitzes and would have beheaded Freeman. Michael Bennett was also in Freeman’s face.

* The defense has played as well as it has played in a few days.

* Eric Wright continues to shine, just missing a field goal block by laying out on a dive.

* Tiquan Underwood hauls in 39-yard pass down the right sideline from Josh Freeman. Joe is getting the sense that Underwood may be your Bucs No. 3 receiver.

* In a very public display of bonding with players about working out in the Tampa heat, Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik donned black garb, jogging down Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. joined by director of player personnel Dennis Hickey.

The Bucs are exactly two weeks from their final preseason game in Washington. And now it seems that there’s no shot that Arrelious Benn will make his 2012 debut in that game.

Greg Schiano said yesterday Benn is “probably a few weeks” away from returning from the knee injury he suffered July 27.

Perhaps the Bucs stick Benn on the physically unable to perform list to start the season? That would force Benn to miss the first six games, and buy the Bucs some time. Of course, the Bucs could surprise and keep six wide receivers including Benn, a move that would be unexpected to Joe given all the injury and depth issues on defense.

As Joe’s written previously, Joe just can’t wrap his head around the New Schiano Order gifting Benn a roster spot when he hasn’t earned a job. The Bucs have little financial commitment in Benn, and Schiano surely has no personal stake in the 2010 pick.

Partially because of the addition of wide receiver Vincent Jackson, Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune believes the Bucs have never had this talented of an offense.

Joe learned in Day 1 of journalism school an objective reporter is not to get emotionally involved in his/her beat.

That was when newspapers had a monopoly on news content and often the messages put forth. Now, in the age of the Internet, objectivity is too often a curse. Look at CNN’s ratings, a news outlet that prides itself in its objectivity.

Consumers crave opinion, whether they like the opinion or not.

So when Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune made a rare appearance — in studio, no less — with Joe’s good friend, the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, “The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig, to discuss his analysis of the Bucs, Joe was taken aback with Cummings’ perception of the Bucs.

“I haven’t been this excited about a season starting probably since 2003, after the Super Bowl,” Cummings said. “That team was special. I don’t know if this teem is going to be as special of a team or have as much success but i don’t know if the Bucs have ever had a more talented of an offense than they ever had.”

Other cool tidbits from Cummings and Duemig can be heard by clicking the button below.

There’s a fun video up on Buccaneeers.com, behind the scenes from the Dolphins-Bucs game on Friday. If NFL Films type stuff gets you jacked up and ready to run through a wall, then you’ll enjoy it. Click the link. Tell your boss you’re doing it for him or her.

Among other stuff, you get a different look at the Tiquan Underwood bomb, Bryan Cox coaching on the sidelines, and the tipped pass that led to the Lavonte David interception.

Now Joe knows fans are irritated because the Bucs’ first preseason game will be blacked out Friday from a live broadcast.

Joe knows there is a lot of hand-wringing about this, but clearly, the public has spoken and buying a ticket (or tickets) to a preseason game isn’t high on people’s entertainment list.

What, should the State of Florida legislature pull an ObamaCare stunt and tax citizens a hundred dollars a year in order to pay for tickets to ensure sellouts? If people don’t want to go, they don’t want to go. It’s (allegedly) a free country.

This doesn’t mean the Bucs couldn’t someday be on TV more in the future.

Cricket-watching, scone-loathing Peter King of Sports Illustrated typed a piece yesterday where he mentioned that the high interest in the “look-ins” of team training camps broadcast last month on the NFL Network proved to be so popular, it has caught the eye of the NFL owners.

PEOPLE WOULD WATCH. “I would love to see NFL teams start to televise their training camps. The Pats have been averaging over 10,000 fans per practice this year. I know most teams don’t have that kind of following on a daily basis, but it seems to me that there’s an unmet need there. I’ve seen some coverage, but it’s been dominated by the Tebow and Manning shows. From a purist’s prospective, I would probably tune in occasionally just to see how my rookies, star free agents and previously injured players are doing. Not to mention that there might be a Fantasy Football draw as well.”
— From Ray, of Southboro, Mass.

The NFL has proven that it could televise anything and get ratings. As I’ve gone from camp to camp, I’ve noticed quite a few camps televised lived on NFL Network. Don’t think the league’s not thinking about it.

Yes, this could work. Joe would guess that Bucs fans would much rather watch a Bucs training camp practice than that glorified track meet known as the NFL Combine.

It’s actually a beautiful mix of needs and wants. Bucs fans would want to watch, all NFL owners want to make a shekel or two, and there are broadcast companies dying for content in the late summer.

Two years ago, the NFL Network-hostile Bright House Networks, which continues to hold local football fans hostage by denying them the greatest channel known to man while shoving every friggin’ shopping channel down consumers throats, broadcast live from the Bucs’ night practice but it was all interviews the entire night, no shots of the actual practice, likely because the cable outfit didn’t have the rights to broadcast the actual practice on the field.

Yesterday, Joe spoke with a prominent employee of Bright House Sports Network, who said the outfit is thirsty for content and programming this time of the year. There are only so many CFL, KHL and taped high school sports to regurgitate for 24 hours a day.

Same with Fox Sports Florida/Sun Sports. Outside of baseball, there is only so much fishing and poker playing that can be broadcast. Joe seems to recall Sun Sports broadcasting a controlled scrimmage from the Orange Bowl years ago between the Bucs and Dolphins, if memory serves.

The way the NFL continues to grow and grow and grow and grow, it wouldn’t shock Joe one iota if next year, a local cable network would secure the rights to broadcast Bucs training camp practices that are open to the public, and for the hundreds of thousands of fans that cannot take off work to come out to practice, they can DVR the broadcast for viewing later in the day.

It really makes too much cents sense for this to happen.

Joe’s good friend, sports director Dave Wirth at WTSP-TV Channel 10, the preseason TV home of the Bucs, just confirmed via his Twitter feed that the Bucs game Friday against the Titans did not sell out by today’s 7:30 p.m. NFL-mandated deadline and thus will be blacked out from live broadcasts in the Tampa and Orlando TV markets.

In short, fans failed to lap up a minimum of 85 percent of the stadium’s non-premium seats.

@TBDave: Bucs confirm… Friday’s game
is blacked out, no 85%…

However, the game will be broadcast of a tape-delayed basis by WTSP three times, per the station’s website.

Friday night’s pre-season football game will be blacked out, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have announced.

10 News will air the game on a delay. The game will be shown on channel 10 beginning Friday night at 11:35. At approximately 2:35 a.m., we’ll broadcast David Letterman and Craig Ferguson.

The Bucs game will be re-aired Saturday from 9am to noon on 10.2. A third replay will be aired on 10.1 from noon to 3 p.m. The CBS sports spectaculars will air at 1 and 2 p.m. on 10.2.

The channels “10.1” and “10.2” are the station’s severe weather channel that is available on local cable carriers.

Add to that the NFL Network rebroadcasts, and Bucs fans who aren’t going to the game will have ample opportunities to see the game.

It seems the Bucs braintrust is uneasy about its depth at wide receiver and return specialists and is giving track star and former Florida Gators slash player Jeff Demps a look-see, so reports Scott Reynolds of the PewterReport.com.

Demps, who has run the 100-meter in a time as fast as 10.01, did not sign with an NFL team after going undrafted in April because he wanted to focus on training for the 2012 Olympics at the time. He is now a free agent and has several teams interested, including the Buccaneers, who have been touching base with Demps as far back as the early summer prior to the Olympics.

In fact, the Bucs came close to signing Demps this summer when he failed to qualify for the Olympics, finishing seventh in Oregon. He was added to the 2012 U.S. Olympic roster as a member of the 4×100 meter relay teams, as a replacement for Mike Rodgers who had suffered a stress fracture. Instead of signing with the Bucs in July, Demps wanted to focus on racing in the Olympics and then concentrate on football in August.

Demps raced the first leg of the of the second qualifying heat, helping the team to a time of 37.38, breaking a 20-year American record. Demps didn’t run in the final, but his teammates ended up finishing second, earning a silver medal. As part of the team, Demps received a medal.

What does this tell Joe? It tells him that Preston Parker and Sammie Stroughter better be watching their backs, and perhaps Arrelious Benn.

Now Joe doesn’t expect Benn to be cut, but it wouldn’t shock him, as Joe wrote earlier this training camp, Schiano is a stickler for many things, including showing up to practices. Benn, who has been nothing but injury-prone in his first two seasons, hurt his knee in a collision with E.J. Biggers and hasn’t practiced since the opening days of training camp.

Parker and Stroughter appear to be one of the odd men out if Demps is signed. Right now Joe would have to assume Tiquan Underwood is the No. 3 receiver the way he continues to make play after play in each practice, much more so than Parker or Stroughter.

Schiano loathes fumbles and penalties like Joe hates warm beer. Parker, last Friday against Miami, not only coughed up a punt, he got flagged for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, which is dumber than dumb and all but begging Schiano to cut him.

Stroughter has been struggling hanging onto the ball as well in return drills in camp, even letting a punt go through his arms this morning.

While Joe isn’t high on Demps — name the last time a track star did anything in the NFL, Willie Gault? That’s 25 years ago. The history of track stars in the NFL is paper-thin.

Hello, Renaldo Nehemiah.

Speed is great but in football, players are not running straight lines. While Demps might sell two dozen tickets to those wearing orange and blue glasses, Joe is very skeptical, based on NFL history, of Demps making a dent with the Bucs.

Remember, 31 other NFL teams thought so much of Demps, he was never drafted much less signed to a free agent contract as we near the halfway point of preseason.

Joe has come to the conclusion that Gerald McCoy is the new Barrett Ruud. Bucs fans always have to have a player (or coach) to hate and this year it is Gerald McCoy.

What coaches and front office types have told Joe about GMC is eerily similar to what Joe was told about Ruud: That he is doing exactly what is asked of him.

Like Bucs fans did with Ruud, GMC has turned many Bucs fans into an angry lynch mob where they slam their bottles of beer on the bar and have scared neighborhood cats away for fear of being dropped-kicked because GMC is not racking up sacks like Warren Sapp once did.

But if one talks to coaches and front office types, even the cream like Bill Polian, they state GMC’s disruption in the backfield is sometimes better than a sack because busted plays can turn into turnovers.

Nevermind. Bucs fans seem to have made up their minds on GMC, no matter who speaks logic.

With this in mind, J.P. Peterson, former (and soon to be?) local sports personality, has tried to keep an open mind and while weighing input from both sides of the GMC debate, Peterson has tried to offer a reasoned analysis of GMC after watching the Bucs beat the Dolphins last week in Miami on Peterson’s TampaBaySportsCentral.com site.

If Gerald McCoy could finish plays in the backfield he WOULD BE Ndamukong Suh! He is getting great penetration but fails to finish too many times. As a sidebar, I spoke with McCoy today out of pads and he looks much leaner…almost too small for a DT in this league. He’s built more like an end. He is such a great guy I wish him much success and HEALTH! He deserves it… we ALL want to see what he can produce with a full season. I liked that he said he is not focused on sacks but rather the Schiano mantra “do your job”… as he should be.

If a player performs and completes the tasks asked of him by his coaches, what more can be said? It doesn’t seem to matter to Bucs fans though that Greg Schiano boasts about McCoy, like the way he spoke of him earlier this year.

“He plays defensive tackle the way I like. He comes off the ball with a flat back, he’s a penetrating guy who can change direction. We’ve got to get him back healthy and keep him healthy. I think he can be a dominant force if we can just get some miles underneath him, some plays.”

Despite the accolades McCoy gets from Schiano, Polian and the likes, the torches seem to be lit.

Joe was out at camp today, what may have been the hottest to date. Here are the sights — and sounds — Joe noticed.

* Davin Joseph called for holding. Joe waits to hear Greg Schiano’s ire but a word is not spoken from the Bucs coach. At least, not a word that Joe can hear.

* Sammie Stroughter calls for a fair catch on a punt and the ball goes right through his arms. Joe is confident the priests at Jesuit High School could have heard the groans from the fans and the shrieks from the coaching staff and players.

* Eric Wright rolls on the ground writhing in pain of some sort but bounces back on his feet and doesn’t appear any worse for wear.

* Bucs having the case of dropsies on punt returns today. This time it is Michael Smith’s turn.

* Interesting: Dekoda Watson playing down lineman in 11-on-11 drills.

* Sammie Stroughter catches a slant from Freeman for a big gain.

* Mike Williams beats Anthony Gaitor along right sideline and Gaitor whips his arms around in disgust.

* Cody Grimm blitzes from Freeman’s blind side and would have had Freeman on the ground, save for the no-hit jersey.

* First errant pass Joe has seen Freeman throw since last week. Tiquan Underwood had a step on his defender but the pass was way overthrown/behind Underwood.

* “Situation, situation: 1:38 left. Field goal ties; touchdown wins. “

* Freeman flushed out of the pocket by three defenders and cannot connect with Mike Williams.

* Fans at practice join in to add hollering to piped in crowd noise. Never seen that before. Pretty cool.

* Same play as before, this time on a pass over the middle, Mike Williams takes away interception from Mark Barron.

* Fans on their feet in the bleachers, screaming for the Bucs defense.

* Josh Freeman screen right to Muscle Hamster for 30 yards.

* Josh Freeman telegraphed a pass to Mike Williams and his perfect pass is off Williams’ hands. Williams was standing flat-footed over the middle, wwwiiidddeee open.

This morning was the Bucs last open practice to fans for this summer’s training camp, which concludes after tomorrow’s practice.

Despite this, the fans — a fair amount — that attended on this roasting morning may have started a training camp tradition of sorts, an act Joe has never noticed before.

Almost all camp, Bucs honcho Greg Schiano has employed piped-in noise when running two-minute drills late in practice. A giant speaker is placed on a golf cart and the golf cart is always parked at the line of scrimmage.

The noise is so loud, it sounds like a jet about to race down a runway.

Today, Bucs fans joined in the noise. When Schiano first barked the situation and had an assistant flip on the volume, most of the fans in the bleachers at practice raised to their feet as one, screaming, hollering, whistling, trying to add to the noise pollution.

In fact, in subsequent plays, fans were chanting “Defense… defense… defense… ” even with the Bucs first team offense on the field.

Joe has never seen a training camp crowd react like that. It was as if the Dixie Chicks had the ball at the Bucs-20 with seconds left in a five-point Bucs lead.

Joe thought that was pretty cool and hopes it evolves into a training camp tradition. Somewhere, Joe is sure, Schiano was smiling at the audience participation.

Joe applauds Tampa Bay Times Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud for what perhaps is the most outlandish Bucs analysis of the decade.

In a story on Gerald McCoy, Stroud wants us to believe that McCoy’s change in social media habits is evidence he’s a more driven football player.

If anything, McCoy’s sunny disposition has been confused for something else. You can’t live soft and play hard. That has been the popular refrain regarding McCoy.

This season, he seems even more focused. He has 30,000 followers on Twitter but has posted only one tweet since June 25.

Where does Joe begin with such nonsense?

Maybe if Michael Clayton had cut back on texting he would have caught more passes. Perhaps Facebook is what kept Stylez White from a 10-sack season. Surely, it was video games that led to Geno Hayes’ inconsistency.

Stroud knows sending a Twitter message takes less than one minute. If McCoy wants to sit on the toilet and rip off a handful Tweets while delivering a movement, Joe’s quite confident that has nothing to do with football focus and performance.

Former Bucs DE Steve White (1996-2001) has studied film of the Bucs-Dolphins game and weighed in on the defensive line play.

White, who doesn’t sugarcoat, came away encouraged, so he told Ronnie Lane on WDAE-AM 620. And White says fans shouldn’t worry about Gerald McCoy’s performance, if he can stay healthy.

“[I saw] what I’ve seen for the last couple of years, especially last year before he got hurt, he’s got that phenomenal get-off and he’s getting penetration in the backfield and he’s cleaned up some things with his pass rush,” White said. “Once again, it comes down to this, if he plays 16 games, he’s going to be a great player for this year. If he gets hurts, then it’s all for naught. But he’s got everything you want for a 3-technique right now when you watch him on the field.”

White also was encouraged by Michael Bennett mixing in more speed rush, and “I think Wallace Gilberry’s going to stick and I think he’s actually going to get some good playing time,” White said.

Gilberry, a defensive end, had 2 1/2 sacks and forced two fumbles for Kansas City last season. He didn’t miss a game for the Chiefs over the past three seasons in a reserve role.

Joe’s pleased to hear good things from White, but Joe’s sort of numb to all talk when it comes to the defensive line as a unit. It’s been so long since the Bucs have stopped the run or generated a pass rush that isn’t at the bottom of the NFL. Joe has to see it happen in a few real games to become a believer.

Joe’s drooling at the thought of watching the Rays tomorrow night while enjoying this amazing deal at Hooters on 4th St. in St. Pete, and at the Tyrone Square Hooters in St. Pete.

What a great way to feast and watch baseball! Don’t miss it! Click here to get the exact locations.

Yesterday, the Bucs, in another attempt to lessen the number of home TV blackouts this season if not to outright eliminate them, announced a new weapon:

Fans can purchase half-season tickets. The Bucs have two five-game season ticket packages to offer.

But whether yesterday’s announcement will have an affect on tonight’s deadline remains to be seen. For the first home preseason game to be broadcast live locally, 85 percent of the non-premium seats at the stadium on Dale Mabry Highway must be sold by 7:30 p.m.

Given Bryan Glazer’s recent statement claimed 2012 ticket sales are good, though he confessed he didn’t want to provide false hope of no blackouts. That suggests to Joe that Friday’s game against Tennessee will be blacked out.

Again, this is Joe reading the tea leaves; nothing official.

For fans who cannot afford full season tickets, the two five-game packages are “The Red Plan” which includes games against Tennessee, the home opener against Carolina, the throwback game against New Orleans as well as Washington and San Diego.

“The Pewter Plan” includes the Ring of Honor game against Kansas City, Philadelphia, New England, Atlanta and St. Louis.

Once it is determined tonight whether the game Friday will be blacked out or not, WTSP-TV Channel 10, the preseason broadcast partner of the Bucs, will announce broadcast times for the game.

Joe does know the game is scheduled to be rebroadcast in its entirety on the NFL Network Sunday, Aug. 19 at 10 a.m. and Wednesday, Aug. 22 at 1 p.m.

The leader of the New Schiano Order shrugged off the first depth chart of the season last week as some sort of “league-mandated” detail that nobody should read much into.

Then Greg Schiano proceeded to say what’s worth noting is how subsequent depth charts change.

Well, the new official “unofficial” Bucs depth chart was released this evening and nothing has changed that isn’t related to transactions, per an in depth JoeBucsFan.com staff analysis. For example, injured Da’Quan Bowers moved up a notch with the release of Jayme Mitchell.

So either Greg Schiano still sees LeGarrette Blount as the No. 1 running back and fumble-prone Preston Parker as the top punt and kickoff returner, per the depth charts, or Schiano isn’t ready to invest more of his precious daily 1440 minutes into meaningless paperwork.

Bucs wide receiver Vincent Jackson was surrounded by a gaggle of members of the Tampa Bay pen and mic club today. Joe transcribed all that Jackson had to say.

Tell us about how the team has progressed since OTAs.

Stuff that we were working on from our OTAs we really built a foundation so we can come to camp to tune things up, sharpen them up so when we hit Sept. 9 we can run full speed.

Was there more pressure on you in San Diego?

Oh, no. In San Diego, We were so balanced. We had so many good players coming in and out of there. We had defensive players that were great and we had multiple players on offense, guys like Darren Sproles, so yeah, we were a little more flashy as far as names go, but I think we are just as talented here all the way across the board. We have tight ends and running backs and of course, Josh Freeman. He’s a quarterback that should be mentioned among the top five of the league. For me, not looking for me to shine any brighter than anyone else. I am here to do my job and show my role on this team, whatever that may be.

What about leadership? Think you are more of a leader now?

The way I go about it is leadership really speaks volumes. You just lead by example. Coming out here these young guys just want to see a veteran guy who has been around different teams and different players. I have seen some success in the playoffs and things like that. I come out here and work hard each and every day. I listen to my coaches. I take the coaching very well. I want to get better. When they see somebody in my shoes, has a contract or whatever, seeing [me] do the fundamental drills work on the small details just to get better, I think that shows other guys they have to step up their game and work hard.

You think you have learned some things?

Yeah, it’s all about coming out here and being a professional. You just come out here and work on football and listen to the coaches and do what you are supposed to do each and every day. It’s all about being accountable. Coach Schiano talks about that all the time: trust, belief and accountability. You have believe what this organization is all about and what this organization stands for. You have to go out there each and every day and put on your hard hat and bring your lunch pail to fulfill your job.

Are you a big believer in accountability?

Absolutely. Absolutely. It’s about guys not trying to do too much. Sometimes guys want to make plays and do more than they need to do. All work together, all 11 guys on offense, on defense and on special teams. If each and every guy just focuses on his job and his detail of their own job, then things work perfectly, but when guys get out of their zone and do more than they need to do, that’s when you have mistakes.

The Bucs have never had receiver that looks and runs like you. Are you going to go over the middle?

Oh, absolutely. I think that is one of the strengths of this offense. I was able to do a little bit of that in San Diego but here, Coach Sullivan is giving me that freedom to work in the slot, work in the tight end position as far as running three wide receiver, four wide receiver sets. So I am not going to always be that guy standing on the outside always stretching the field and working the sticks. Down and distance things, intermediate routes, those are the type of things, different looks that makes it hard for the defense to match up.

Do you think you can stretch the field?

Of course, but as a wide receiver, you have to have that confidence, that belief that your fundamentals and body position, so yeah, when we have the opportunity, we will take our shots. I love doing that, but it is all about being fundamentally sound running the ball well and short down and distance intermediate routes, to keep drives going. Everybody loves the big play and taking the top off the defense but again, it is all about being consistent and putting points on the board.

Do you see the big play being used here and trying to stretch the defense?

I think we will take our shots but we will be very balanced offense. I will be moved all over the field but I think there will be an opportunity for that.

Challenging week going into third week of training camp. Seems like the team was not as sharp collectively this morning.

You know what? I don’t know if you can put your finger on one thing but there is always room for improvement. We came out her today with a mindset of getting better. We played a game now. We have things to build off of that now, a lot of game film, some teaching technique. Things we can learn from. Was today as crisp as we would want it? Not as crisp but I think each and every day we set the goal high enough that we won’t accomplish it. You have to strive and believe there is room for improvement.

What stood out for your Friday night?

The ability to finish drives. The ability for us to sustain long drives and get first downs. The defense did a good job of getting some three-and-outs and doing such a good job on third down, that’s a huge job in this game getting out on third downs. As many things as we did well in that game that stood out to me.

Impression of Mike Williams?

He’s done a great job. He’s been a sponge, you know what I mean? He is open to the coaching and has taken to the criticism as far as things he was taught wrong in the past, not his fault. He has become such a better receiver in the last few months just watching him and his ability to put in the work and believe in the system and buy in and it will be fun. We are very deep at receiver, deep at running backs. So it is fun to be part of an offense like that.

It has now been three days since Bucs scatback Michael Smith gave fans a glimpse of what he can do on the football field.

The seventh round draft pick out of Utah State had two sparkling returns Friday in the preseason debut with a 34-yard kick return and a 74-yard return.

Not shabby for the first time in an NFL uniform.

Smith could hardly contain his excitement speaking after practice Monday.

“I was excited,” Smith said. “I was blessed to be able to put the pads on. I was excited, nervous at first. I had butterflies. I expected goosebumps. I’m still excited. I just have to keep working hard every day to show them I want to be here.”

Some believe Smith could be the Bucs version of New Orleans’ Darren Sproles, who comes off the bench to provide a spark in the rushing attack while also returning kicks.

Smith isn’t sure where the Bucs will use him specifically. There’s this little obstacle of making the team first, he pointed out. With a repeat performance of Friday, Smith could virtually lock up a roster spot.

“I will do running back; I will do special teams,” Smith said. “I am just working hard to show my speed, strength and effort that I want to be here.”

The 74-yard return on a punt was electric. Smith broke three tackles though was caught from behind as he was about to take it to the house.

That may not happen again, Smith remarked.

“I thought I was gone but you have to keep running hard. Next time I will run harder.”

A threat of lightning from an approaching storm forced the Bucs to cut practice short roughly 20 minutes. It was Alumni Day for former Bucs players, dozens of which were on hand. As the team scrambled off the field, most of the alumni then left, which Greg Schiano later confessed disappointed him. He had looked forward to slapping flesh and shooting the breeze with the former Bucs in attendance.

* Greg Schiano loves his bullhorn. Even without piped in crowd noise he used the bullhorn early in practice.

* Outside of the snap of blocking sleds early, the sound that punctures the muggy morning is the encouraging, loud voice of P.J. Fleck. “Good job Sammie!”

* Josh Freeman sure looked crisp throwing balls over the middle.

* There’s a lotta hollering going on at lineman drills.

* LeGarrette Blount runs for a nice gain up the one-hole. Next play, he runs up two-hole, finds traffic and spins right for a good gain. Blount was running too well in fact as Schiano barked at the defense to “attack the ball.”

* Muscle Hamster runs through a massive hole on the left side. But a similar hole later was not to be found when linebacker Daniel Te’o-Nesheim shot the gap and dropped Martin for a loss.

* Not sure why but after a group meeting Schiano bellows “Get off the snap” and then throws a towel as he walks off the practice field. With a sloppy start to practice, Schiano is not having a good morning.

* Linebacker Jacob Cutrera levels running back Robert Hughes for a loss. But Hughes turned the tables on the defense on the next play as he dodged a few tackles for a big gain.

* Schiano wasn’t all fire and brimstone. After one play, though Joe doesn’t know who Schiano was speaking towards, he yelled for all to hear, “Great job, great job!”

* Schiano is big on dealing with the heat and not succumbing to fatique. He encouraged the offense, “Hands off your hips men!”

* Blount tries to bounce outside to the right when holes don’t open up and is corralled by Quincy Black.

* Watching Frank Okam try to chase down Michael Smith springs to mind Dick Vitale. “It’s an M&Mer, baby!”

* Smith later shows good patience in waiting for a hole to develop, and runs for a good gain.

* Halfway through practice, there is an Arrelious Benn sighting. He had pants on, but not shoulder pads, and was wearing a practice jersey.

* Freeman rifles a pass over the middle perfectly to Vincent Jackson who beat Ahmad Black.

* Tiquan Underwood spins around Anthony Gaitor for a catch along the right sideline.

* More strip drills.

* Freeman hits Dallas Clark right between the numbers on the left sideline. Clark hauled in the pass just ahead of a charging Ronde Barber. Joe is not sure if he has ever seen Freeman throw with such precision for a full practice. He has been razor sharp all morning.

* Donald Penn is jogging around the practice field.

* Mason Foster swallows up LeGarrette Blount for a loss.

* Mossis Madu gathers in a Freeman pass in the left flat and scores.

The Bucs ran an 11-on-11 drill early in practice on this muggy morning at One Buc Palace. In a word, the start was sloppy.

There was a fumble. Then a penalty. Then another fumble. Bucs coach Greg Schiano had seen enough. He blew his whistle and then he blew off some steam. Loudly.

In no uncertain words, Schiano scolded the offense and tongue-lashed them for practicing with their heads somewhere other than the practice field.

“Start over,” Schiano hollered just before the snap of the next play. “That’s two fumbles and a holding penalty. Wake up! The urgency is out the window. There is only one way! We are not going to compromise!”

So angered was Schiano that he walked off the practice field and threw a towel. But it wasn’t just the offense’s lack of attention to detail that got under Schiano’s skin. So too did the defense. Not long after lecturing the offense, Schiano yelled at would-be tacklers, “Wrap up!”

The New Schiano Order was on full display. And Joe loved it.

For you folks that can’t get enough Bucs football, the Man Channel (aka NFL Network) is replaying the Bucs-Dolphins game at 1 p.m today.

In past broadcasts, each team’s broadcast feed is used for a half. Joe isn’t sure which half will be the WTSP broadcast.

Much like how the New Schiano Order gave players a clean slate when the regime began this winter, it seems former Bucs quarterback and current NBC Sports Network analyst Shaun King has a new attitude toward LeGarrette Blount.

In December, King predicted Blount would not be on the 2012 Bucs roster because of his deficiencies on third down, work ethic and he was “one offseason from getting fat.” Now King seems to be a cheerleader in Blount’s corner.

“I think I’m on the other side of the coin when it comes to LeGarrette Blount. I think he’s a lot more talented than people give him credit for,” King said. “And I think this year Buc Nation’s going to get an opportunity to see his abilities. You look at last year, when given the opportunity he was outstanding.”

King, one of only three quarterbacks to lead the Bucs to the NFC Championship game, went on to do defend Blount’s deficiencies in short yardage, despite his size and strength. “I think that’s something that you develop as a runner. You think he came from a spread-type system in Oregon where they never really were in a heavy three-tight end, fullback, tailback” set, King said, adding that the entire team’s short-yardage mindset will change under Greg Schiano’s commitment to being physical.

Catch the entire WDAE-AM 620 interview with King below. King delivers many takes on all things Bucs.

Former Bucs DE Steve White talks about the Bucs’ offensive identity

One reason Joe has some hope for the 2012 season is the departure of Greg Olson. The guy couldn’t figure out how to play to the Bucs’ strengths or was just too damn stubborn to do it, especially after he led the Bucs offense to an impressive second half of the 2010 season.

Think about it. The Bucs opened last season eliminating slant passes to Mike Williams and barely handed off to LeGarrette Blount, hallmarks of the 2010 success.

Former Bucs DE Steve White, one of the most through Bucs analysts on the planet was a fierce Olson critic, as well. That led to White having moments of pure joy watching the Bucs offense play smashmouth football Friday.

“We start off the game with a Power-O and Iso-Weak. I can’t even tell you how happy I am. I was giddy. I was like, “Wow.” This is what we need,” White said on WDAE-AM 620 yesterday.

“And not only that, now we’re double-teaming guys instead of trying to do that crazy zone blocking that we weren’t built for. So now that’s why you’re seeing all that push up front. We’re getting guys off the ball on the front line, and then ‘hey linebacker, you go ahead and try to tackle this huge manchild we got in the backfield in LeGarrette Blount, or you try to tackle this little mighty might we got back there in Doug Martin.” But you know who’s not going to make a play, defensive linemen who are getting double-teamed.”

Now White cautions everyone about getting too exciting or down about anything in a first preseason game, but an identity can at least be legitimately identified. This is not Greg Olson’s offense. That’s worth a raising an ice cold beer.