The Bucs’ 2011 fourth-round pick has been spotted contributing again.

Per Raheem Morris, tight end Luke Stocker was “running today for the first time in a while,” so Raheem told Pat Kirwan and Tim Ryan as they hosted their popular Sirius NFL Radio show Movin’ The Chains from One Buc Palace.

Raheem said Stocker “showed the willingness to block” before he was injured when training camp started and he’s excited to see him. Speaking of tight ends, Raheem said of Kellen Winslow: “He looks the best I’ve seen since I’ve been here in Tampa.”

Joe will have much more from NFL Radio tonight and tomorrow.

Eager to weigh in on Tyrone McKenzie telling The Tampa Tribune that he’s not been competing for the starting middle linebacker job since very early in training camp — and Raheem Morris saying the opposite — former Bucs quarterback Shaun King pointed a finger of blame at the media today.

Speaking on The King David Show on WQYK-AM 1010, King blasted PewterReport.com chief Scott Reynolds for hyping McKenzie needlessly for a long time and mainstream media outlets for raising McKenzie’s profile simply because he helped Josh Freeman coordinate offseason practices.

King said the current Bucs regime always hype a young player they like and McKenzie has never drawn that kind of praise from Raheem or Mark Dominik.

“Name one thing McKenzie has done at linebacker,” King said. “If he’s good enough, it’ll show up on tape. … The media can’t write you into a starting job.”

King also wagged a finger of suspicion at McKenzie saying he asked to leave the Patriots and now he’s speaking publicly about not getting an honest shot in Tampa.

Joe really couldn’t care too much about all this, but it’s turning into a fun sideshow as Joe prepares for a heavenly day of NFL Radio on location at Bucs camp.

So what did Mason Foster really do out there Friday?

Sure, every fan saw Foster fall on a fumble and aggressively drive a backup quarterback out of bounds on a third down. But what about the rest of the film? Raheem Morris filled in Bucs fans on The Steve Duemig Show yesterday on WDAE-AM 620. 

“[Foster] played about 10 or so snaps on defense. He played a bunch on special teams for us. He was able to go out there and he had two minuses: he missed one run fit maybe because of me and a call, and then the other one he missed something else and graded about 80 percent,” Raheem said. “He was able to go out there and get the fumble and made a big third-down stop on the quarterback. He had a pretty productive day. And he did the things you want to see him do on the first day — play physical and play fast. If you get those two things out on the first day, then you’ve got a chance.”

Raheem went on to explain that Foster was almost the opposite of Gerald McCoy playing early last year when McCoy tried to play “too smart.” Raheem said he ordered Foster to “make full speed mistakes” and got what he requested.

With a little bit of apprehension in his voice, Raheem said he’ll free up Foster to play in some nickel situations against New England on Thursday. So fans should see much more of him.

Hearing about Foster’s grade made Joe think of Barrett Ruud talking about his perfect scores. It’s unfair to compare the two, but it’ll be an interesting sport nonetheless through the season.

Joe hears it all the time, the wailing, the crying of Bucs fans.

“When is the national media going to talk about the Bucs!?”

Today is your day, Bucs fans.

One of Joe’s favorite days of the year, Pat Kirwan and Tim Ryan will descend upon One Buc Palace and for a full four hours during PM drivetime, the duo will discuss nothing but the Bucs on SiriusXM NFL Radio.

Now Joe is a sports fan and knows many will be listening to the Rays on WDAE-AM 620. But Joe knows not everyone is a baseball fan, despite the Rays still having a shot at the wild card.

Kirwan and Ryan will spend four hours dissecting the Bucs. Expect to hear extended, thorough interviews with Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik, Bucs coach Raheem Morris along with scores of players and perhaps an assistant or two.

This just geeks Joe up. Probably the most intelligent football show known to the free world will go all X’s and O’s on the Bucs for four hours while taking nothing but Bucs phone calls.

As close to heaven as Joe will get short of Rachel Watson becoming Joe’s special night time pillow.

Tyrone McKenzie claims he has lost the race for the starting middle linebacker gig to rookie Mason Foster. Coach Raheem Morris pushes the notion this is nonsense.

Well now, it seems the Bucs may have their first controversy of the season.

Per Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune, middle linebacker Tyrone McKenzie, who is alleged to be in a competition with rookie Mason Foster for the starting middle linebacker position, told Richardson there is no longer a competition. That Raheem Morris already has made up his mind.

Your 2011 starting middle linebacker for the Bucs will be Foster, so says McKenzie, via Richardson.

Naturally, Morris disputed this when asked by Richardson for his reaction.

“You have to earn the right to start,” Morris said. “You’re not given anything around here. You have to earn that in practice. You have to go out there and show me something that makes me start you.

“You can have the ability to do that every day with your work and how you maintain your defense and how you handle your business, so I’m not prepared to answer that question yet on how he handles being second (string) because he’s not second yet.”

McKenzie previously asked New England to release him when he believed the Patriots would not allow him to fight for a starting position, but he has no intentions of asking Tampa Bay to do the same.

This interests Joe in a number of ways. Of course, Joe would suspect if all things were equal, Foster would get the nod because the Bucs have a lot invested in the young man.

Although it’s a totally different situation, this reminds Joe of the incident last year when Sabby the Goat reacted angrily when he learned he would not start and lashed out at Morris publicly claiming his competition with Sean Jones for a starting safety gig was a set up, later referred to as “a sham competition.”

Joe must publicly apologize to both Foster and McKenzie. Any comparison of the two to Sabby the Goat is purely coincidental.

WTSP-TV sports anchor Dave Wirth tonight announced the broadcast times for Thursday’s Patriots-Bucs preseason game which will be blacked out locally.

Per the new contract the Bucs have with WTSP, the station will rebroadcast Bucs preseason games the station produces three times. Thursday night, immediately after the end of the game, roughly around 11:30 p.m., WTSP (Channel 10 in the Tampa Bay area) will have the first broadcast.

The next night, Friday night, the game will be broadcast for the second time at 8 p.m.

The third and final rebroadcast of the game on WTSP will air at noon Saturday.

Chris Myers and John Lynch will handle the play-by-play and analysis.

The game will also be broadcast on a tape delayed basis on the Man’s Channel, the NFL Network at 4 p.m. Friday.

Patriots at Bucs broadcast schedule

Thursday, 11:30 p.m. (tentative), WTSP (Channel 10 in the Tampa Bay region)

Thursday, 11 p.m., NFL Network

Friday, 4 p.m., NFL Network

Friday, 8 p.m., WTSP

Saturday, noon, WTSP

Frank Okam throws up reps on the bench press over 500 pounds. And his weight isn’t that far behind. Joe refers to other players as manbeasts, but frankly only Okam is the real deal.

Today, Raheem Morris showered Okam with love and admiration to the Bucs press corps, calling Okam a refrigerator in the most loving way possible.

“He’s been moving bodies. He’s different than we’ve ever seen in Tampa. He’s different than we’ve looked for over the past couple of years with the quickness and the quick-twitch. He’s kind of the, I don’t even know what his technique is. It’s just, ‘Get out of the way.’ It works for him. And I like it,” Raheem said.

“He’s certainly in the mix to play. He is 350. (laughs)  Maybe. He’s just a big man. He doesn’t get tired. Man, I don’t know. He’s one of those guys. Is he out of shape? Then you look at him and you’re like, ‘No. No. He just looks like a refrigerator.’

“There’s no stomach. Look at him. … He’s not fat. He’s just big.”

Listed at 6-5, 350 pounds, Okam’s in that mold of serious football player out of the University of Texas, along with Tim Crowder and Roy Miller on the defensive line. And Joe can attest that the man is a mountain and exceptionally articulate.

Okam’s another Mark Dominik scrap heap find snatched up last year who played very well in the Bucs’ final two games. Frankly, Joe’s not seeing how Miller is a better player.

The more Joe continues to grow — beyond his dreams, actually — the more friends he has.

One Friend of JoeBucsFan.com is NFL.com blogger Jenna Laine. Late last week, Jenna put fingers to keyboard and typed that Bucs fans who still somehow, someway still blame Team Glazer for not going to Bucs games, that they are simply living in La-La Land.

Jenna did some research and determined that compared to many other NFL cities, the Bucs are a good buy if not cheaper than most.

“We’re trying to make the team as accessible as we possibly can to all the people in the community,” said team co-chairman Bryan Glazer at Saturday’s second annual night practice, which included free parking, $1 concessions and a fireworks display.

That means offering free events, like Saturday’s, which may be the only chance some Bucs fans get to see the team in action this year, along with some of the most affordable ticket prices in the league, with some sections starting as low as $35.

According to data from SeatGeek, a website that tracks secondary market prices for all 32 NFL teams, the average cost of Bucs tickets is $80.10 -– $33.07 lower than the league average, $113.17.

Jenna points out that figure ranks 21st in the NFL, meaning 20 other NFL teams had a higher average price.

If some Bucs fans are whining that they are being raped for tickets, quite simply, they are whining just to whine.

The numbers geeks just can’t leave their calculators alone.

In a recent study published by an outfit called “Business Journals,” some bored accountant decided to play around with Excel spreadsheet software and determined the Tampa Bay area is the fourth-most extended sports market in the country.

Joe has major flaws with this “study.” Unlike the numbers guys, Joe looks at common sense.

This study suggests that the three cities more overextended with sports is, in order, Cleveland, Denver and Pittsburgh.

Joe will be upfront: Joe pays no attention to the filth that is the non-basketball association. If Joe hears the acronym “NBA” he can’t turn the channel/station fast enough. Not even the NBA’s strippers cheerleaders can get Joe’s attention.

(And no, Joe’s not calling cheerleaders “strippers.”)

Cleveland has zero problems selling tickets to the godawful Brownies and when the Indians are winning, Clevelanders sell the joint out. Cleveland had a years-long streak recently of selling out Indians games. It was impressive.

Pittsburgh at No. 3 is an absolute joke. The Penguins are the model franchise of the NHL and have little trouble pulling in crowds. The Steelers have about as much of a chance of a blackout as the Tampa Bay area has of a blizzard in August.

The Pirates, despite playing in an absolute palace of a baseball stadium, have sucked for decades. The Nutting Family is as awful of an outfit as Hugh Culverhouse. There has been a generation of Pittsburghers that have been born and advanced to adulthood without knowing a winning baseball season. Notice this year when the Pirates began to win, which likely stunned the good people of Pittsburgh, the Pirates were drawing very well?

The fact Pittsburgh is on this list is beyond laughable.

Then there is Tampa Bay. The Bucs win and can’t sellout. The Rays win and can’t draw flies unless the Yankees, Red Sox or Cardinals come into town. The Lightning, on the other hand, have the past decade been a pretty good draw, win or lose.

If anyone looks at the local housing market and what a dump that is, one really needs to go no further as to why local teams are struggling to get people to walk through a turnstile.

There are other questionable cities listed, but Joe won’t bore you further. Just click the link.

Hat tip to WTSP’s Noah Pransky.

Bucs rookie Anthony Gaitor

It seems the Bucs are falling in love with another seventh round pick. This time it’s rookie secondary man Anthony Gaitor.

As Myron Lewis is hurt again and rookie Ahmad Black is sidelined for who knows how long with a high ankle sprain, Gaitor is shining on all levels, so said Raheem Morris yesterday.

“To stand up on his first third down [in Kansas City] and get a knocked down pass for his first time out. Come out and get a sack. Run around looking really fast, dynamic. Having fun. I don’t think anyone has more fun than Gaitor, ” Raheem Morris said yesterday. “He’s fun. He’s smart. He’s probably our only rookie learning two positions.”

Joe has to wonder about Black’s status with the Bucs if he can’t play during the rest of the preseason.

Joe has made no secret for his distaste — no, vile hatred — of the Soviet mindset of BSPN.

But when Joe sees this four-letter outfit do something good, Joe will recognize it.

(Once again, Joe applauds ESPN’s coverage of college football which is simply the gold standard. If BSPN covered other sports with the passion, love, research and — dare Joe say? — the objectivity ESPN covers college football, the network would truly be something to behold like it was in it’s first decade.)

Joe saw the E:60 feature on Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman and it is a job well-done. Damnit, this outfit has the tools and finances to pump out such pieces on a daily basis yet it prefers to wallow in filth that is the non-basketball association and the Yankees and Red Sox.

One thing Joe learned about the innerworkings of the Bucs selecting Freeman: Raheem Morris, who for one year was the defensive coordinator of Kansas State where Freeman played, thought for a moment he was too high on Freeman and may have his judgement clouded because of his association with Freeman.

So Morris called in longtime Bucs cornerback Ronde Barber and played tape of Freeman in college to Barber. Before playing the tape, Morris asked Barber, “Tell me if I am wrong.”

After poring over the tape, Barber said to Morris, “No, you are not wrong.”

In short, Freeman’s success is all about what he calls “The Plan.”

Joe knows there are still some misguided fans running through the streets of Tampa screaming in agony for the Bucs to spend money on free agents from other teams.

Well, perhaps these folks will be somewhat soothed to learn the Bucs are still out there combing the free agent pool looking for help. Today Tampa Bay signed former Buffalo Bills cornerback Ashton Youboty to a two-year deal, so reports Buccaneers.com.

The Bills originally selected Youboty early in the third round (70^th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft.  He became a restricted free agent in 2010 but was re-signed by Buffalo to a one-year deal.  Youboty is the second unrestricted free agent Tampa Bay has added from another team in 2011; on July 29, the Bucs signed former Atlanta punter/kickoff specialist Michael Koenen. 

Youboty (5-11, 189) played in 43 games with seven starts during his Bills tenure, contributing 60 tackles, one interception, seven passes defensed, two sacks and one forced fumble.  Last year he appeared in 13 games, playing primarily on special teams.

With defensive backs as his specialty, Joe suspects Raheem Morris will shed some interesting light on Youboty later today. But Joe suspects this guy’s likely here as a special teams guy.

“Run, Micheal, Run” Spurlock is no doubt one of the most interesting figures on the Bucs. Talk about a guy who has persevered. The former Ole Miss quarterback turned receiver/returner was on the couch when Mark Dominik called him to return to the Bucs late in the 2009 season. On Sunday, Joe talked to Spurlock about being the Bucs emergency quarterback, the new kickoff rule change, and more.

JoeBucsFan.com: Raheem has spoken a couple of times recently about you being the emergency quarterback and the team having more flexibility with the rule change that allows a third quarterback or an extra man to be activated. Talk about how much you know to play QB in this system and your readiness in that area.

Micheal Spurlock: I think the biggest thing for me, I’ve played the position already, so just certain little calls and stuff I know because as a Zebra, the third receiver in the slot, you have to make sure things to pick up on defenses. So for me it’ll be more time spent in the run game and learning if I have to get under center and call the snap count and things of that sort. As far as the coverages and what we like to run against what, it’s not a big thing because for me playing receiver I try to prepare and think like a quarterback because it makes my job a lot easier when I’m on the run trying to figure out coverage or where the quarterback is going to check this play, or if it should have been checked. I don’t think it’s going to be that hard. It’s just put on me to really focus on the run game.

Joe: Are you already working more on QB duties because of the rule change?

Spurlock: I think so. I’ve always considered myself a student of the game. When I played quarterback you had to know everything and then it just helped out at receiver and I had to shut off certain sensors because I wanted to hit a whole play rather than just what I was supposed to do on a route. That’s when you really grow into the game and become a student of the game — when you think like a quarterback. As for as just taking snaps for me is the only difference. I don’t think the playbook is that hard.

Joe: Do you want to play quarterback?

Spurlock: I mean, it’s always a good little itch, you know, but I think we have a great quarterback right here.

Joe: I’m just kidding you, man.

Spurlock: No. No. I understand. Everybody asks because of the simple fact I played quarterback [in college]. ‘Oh, do you still want to play?’ That urge is there, but I enjoy receiver just because it’s a different challenge.

Joe: This was a weird offseason to be a restricted free agent. Was that disappointing for you to not really have any market for restricted free agents? Not that you wanted to leave the Bucs, but what did you think of that?

Spurlock: This was the first time that I felt at home after a season. You know last year I had an alright season and to come back here … was coming back home. This is home. This is what home feels like, and I’m grateful. I was happy when they sent me the letter that I was restricted. I was like, ‘Hey, let’s go with it. Let’s run.’ But I think always in this game you want that big contract, but everybody’s not going to get it. So let’s enjoy what you get and make the best of it.

Joe: You didn’t return kicks in Kansas City. What was up with that?

Spurlock: They were getting other guys work. But man, it was crazy seeing our guys booming the ball out of the end zone. I think we got a punt after a safety and that was it. But it was crazy to just look around the league at all the guys taking it out of the end zone five or six yards deep.

Joe: What do you think of the new kickoff placement?

Spurlock: I don’t like it. They say it’ll keep guys healthy, but this is a contact sport. You know, when you get that contract and you sign for those X number of dollars, you know what you’re putting on the line. Worst come to worst, you’re putting your health on the line, your overall health when you’re 40 and 50 years old, but that’s why you get paid so much money to do that. It’s not like it’s something in the dark, where ‘Oh, I didn’t know I could get hurt out here.’ It’s football. I hope that we don’t take aspect away from the game because you look at [Devin] Hester, that’s how he came on the scene doing kickoff and punt returns. So I just hope they don’t take that aspect away because it’s a game-changer. And those are guys’ livelihoods, those are guys jobs that we’re kind of taking away. We’ll see what happens.

In what shouldn’t be a surprise to any Bucs fan paying attention, Thursday night’s preseason home opener against New England is not sold out and will not be shown on live television in the Tampa Bay area.

Official word of the blackout should come from the Buccaneers later today. WTSP-TV Ch. 10 will air the game broadcast replay starting at 11:30 p.m. Thursday. JoeBucsFan.com has confirmed the blackout with the station, whose online broadcast schedule reflects the tape delayed broadcast.

Joe sincerely hopes the blackout conversation doesn’t dominate sports radio and the newspapers. It’s simply wasted breath and ink.

Team Glazer has lowered many ticket prices significantly, offered no-interest payment plans, killed seat deposits, cut concessions and parking costs, and fielded an exciting 10-6 team. There’s not much left for them to do, short of eating tickets. Fans that can afford it are going to have to step up and get out to games, if there’s any hope of regular season home games getting on TV.

(Please don’t tell Joe Nnamdi Asomugha would have sold a significant amount of tickets. Yeah, all those Bucs fans watching Raiders games at 4 o’clock would have been on the phone buying season tickets. Ridiculous. Joe would wager that Asomugha could walk through International Plaza and not be recognized.)

At last year’s preseason home opener, the first Bucs blackout since the 1990s, announced attendance was 41,386. To avoid a blackout, only non-premium seats must be sold, but even if the Bucs had sold all the premium expensive seats — which they didn’t –that attendance figure still would have left them with about 15,000 unsold tickets and a blackout.

If the Bucs season ticket base has increased, say, 20 percent, they’re still miles from selling out in the preseason. And don’t expect opening day against Detroit to sell out, either, so Joe was told Sunday by a Bucs official.

The opening day projection hardly surprises Joe, considering there are too many people happy to watch unlawful Internet feeds of blacked out games, plus the swelter of a 1 o’clock September game is a major turnoff to the casual fan. For years the NFL didn’t allow September day games in Tampa because of the weather. That rule was there for good reason.

That’s about all Joe’s got to say about blackouts. For Joe, the subject is burned out and old news.

Hopefully, the return of Monday Night Football to Tampa against the Colts on Oct. 3 will be sold out. If not, then Joe’s got to seriously question whether this is a true football town.

Joe is a boring guy. He doesn’t do fantasy football; he doesn’t gamble. Joe loves, craves football for the pure joy of the game. Joe doesn’t need to have cash riding on a game to get worked up for football and doesn’t need to play fantasy sports to force feed him to like a game.

And yes, Joe has been known to watch Hawaii football at 2 a.m. on his DirecTV college football package. Not often mind you (usually by that time the multiple beers Joe has inhaled throughout the day finally catch up with Joe), but it has happened from time to time.

One thing Joe does do is that he is a sports radioholic. Joe falls asleep listening to sports radio (SiriusXM NFL Radio usually or perhaps Sirius College Football radio) and wakes up to sports radio (if there is a commercial, Joe will quickly turn to the King of All Media, Howard Stern).

As you can imagine, if it is a Saturday and Joe is not watching college football or at a college football game, Joe is listening to his good friend Justin Pawlowski of WDAE-AM 620, if the station can somehow find the time to squeeze in his show on a football Saturday.

Justin was not a fan of Barrett Ruud, to put it mildly. Joe can still hear to this day Justin, almost yelling, “Would you shed a freaking block?” when the subject of the former Bucs middle linebacker came up.

Joe doesn’t think he will hear Justin say that about Bucs rookie linebacker Mason Foster this year. Because Foster told Joe he learned how to shed blocks in college.

Foster took some time to chat with Joe and other reporters after Sunday’s Bucs practice.

JoeBucsFan: What has been the biggest obstacle you have had to overcome coming from an outside linebacker at the University of Washington to a starting NFL middle linebacker?

Mason Foster: Probably the playbook. Physically, it’s definitely tougher and faster but you have to be on top of everything because you are the quarterback of the defense. Here on the NFL level you are playing with guys who have been on the NFL level for a couple of years now. They are looking at you now to make the checks so you have to be on top of everything and make sure you know what everybody is doing. I think I have adjusted well but I am still learning. Now I am trying to hit it every day as hard as I can.

Joe: This year rookies have been behind the eight ball because, in a normal year, rookies had months to learn the playbook whereas this year (because of the asinine lockout), you have just a matter of days. Can you talk about that?

Foster: Yeah, it’s like getting thrown in the middle of something where everybody else knows what they are doing. You are coming in from scratch. But luckily, I was well-coached at “U-Dub.” We had a pro linebacker coach [Mike Cox] come in and coach me the last two years. So I was ready. It’s different terminology but at the same time you have older guys like Geno [Hayes] and Quincy [Black] and Adam Hayward that will help you out. It makes things a little easier and they have helped me out.

Joe: Is there an element that you learned from Cox that you have been able to use here?

Foster: Definitely, how to shed blocks and how to use your hands to beat blockers. That is something that he really harped on that has really helped me out here.

Now this is beyond interesting to Joe. Doing a bit of research on Cox, it shows he was a defensive line coach as well for the Rams. What is the biggest thing defensive linemen have to use to get rid of blocks? Handwork.

So Joe is inclined to believe Foster is well-schooled with how to throw off offensive linemen in order to get to the ball, given the fact he was coached up by a former defensive line coach.

Joe’s just geeked to learn this.

When another reporter asked Foster what other obstacles were in his transformation from a college linebacker to the NFL, Foster laughed and said, “It is definitely hotter here than it is in Seattle for one. That is the biggest difference.”

For Bucs fans who are known to have an adult beverage or two watching a football game or distracted from the game by an attractive lass pouring drinks — Courtney the Bartender is known for such things — fans may have missed something Friday night.

In the Bucs first preseason game of the season, defensive end Kyle Moore played. Really. And he got a sack!

Correction: Moore had two sacks.

Moore was one of Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik’s first draft picks as a general manager. Selected in the fourth round of the 2009 draft, Moore has been pretty much been more rumor than a football player. By a combination of injuries and subpar play, Moore is still looking for his first NFL sack.

When Dominik drafted Adrian Clayborn and Da’Quan Bowers with his first two picks this past spring, the gauntlet was laid down for Moore: Produce or pack.

Whether that was motivation for Moore or not remains speculative. But Moore did a very smart thing and during the summer, he decided to work out with beast defensive end/outside linebacker Tamba Hali and his former college coach, Larry Johnson at Penn State.

Moore spoke on the Bucs radio network after the game and noted how much he learned from Johnson while spending time at Happy Valley. It showed Friday that he must have learned something per Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune.

Although he did not start, Moore came off the bench and had two sacks, two tackles, two tackles for loss and two quarterback hurries.

“He’s healthy for the first time being here,” Bucs coach Raheem Morris said. “He went out and executed the game plan that his coaches gave him. He made some great inside moves, some great outside movies.

“He rushed inside, he rushed outside. He was on it. He played fast, he played smart and exactly how coaches wanted him to.”

This tells Joe two things:

1) Motivation can do wonderful things.

2) If Moore had to reach out to a college coach to get better, that just cements to Joe just what a rotten job former Bucs defensive line coach Todd Wash did in (not) developing players.

If Moore can be the surprise of the defensive ends this fall thanks to Johnson’s tutoring and the coaching he gets from current Bucs coaches, this could be critical for the Bucs as the squad very well could be sickly deep with guys rushing from the edge.

As most fans know, Raheem Morris pulled the plug on rookie Mason Foster making defensive calls as a starting middle linebacker shortly before the preseason opener Friday.

The concept was simple: free Foster’s brain to let him play fast, plus the plan was for him to be off the field on most third downs anyway. Quincy Black got the headset to take over the playcalling duties.

So how did Black do? Raheem was extremely pleased, so he told reporters Sunday.

“He did a great job. First time out of the box to call the calls and really be on point. And plus with the two messed up personnel [situations on the field], you know, he handled that really nice,” Raheem said.

“Ronde lined up at SAM [linebacker]. [Quincy] lined up at mike [linebacker].And [Quincy] looked over and laughed and they giggled about it later.”

Raheem went on to say Black will continue to wear the headset and make defensive calls for the forseeable future. Raheem also said mental mistakes were very minimal with his first unit defense and he was extremely pleased.

At this point, Fosters’ priority is to play the run like an animal. Pretty much exactly what many pundits said Barrett Ruud wasn’t asked to do.

Joe finds this all very intriguing.

Joe caught up with fourth-year Mr. Everything on the Bucs offensive line, Jeremy Zuttah, after practice today. Zuttah talked about playing in Kansas City, how it’s frustrating to be perceived as a backup, and more.

JoeBucsFan.com: How do you think you played the other night in Kansas City?

Jeremy Zuttah: I thought I played pretty well. I’m getting used to center against a 3-4 defense still, so just trying to get better every day.

Joe: As far as blocking against a 3-4 when you don’t go up against that in practice, what’s that adjustment like?

Zuttah: Right now we’re just focused on getting better. We go over the schemes in the meetings, but we’re not really scheming now for the first preseason games. We’re just going out there to try and play fast, and you get used to it as you go.

Joe: You’ve successfully started at three positions and you’re a very valuable guy. Is it ever frustrating that you’re probably looked at more as a valuable backup than as a starter?

Zuttah: Yeah, it’s definitely frustrating. I mean nobody’s goal is to be a backup in this league. So I’m just going to keep my head down and try to get better and hopefully things will work out for me one day.

Joe: Is there a key to your preparation to be ready at three different positions?

Zuttah: I think the way we prepare I think it’s easier to know everything than to try and focus on one position. It’s not too hard to learn one position, so why not learn them all and know what’s going on around you at all times.

Joe: Has much changed for the offensive line yet with the new O-line coach?

Zuttah: We still have the same offensive coordinator, and the type of plays we’ve had are pretty much still the same. I mean I’m not sure if when the season starts we’ll start calling more toward one area or another, but we still have everything.

Joe: Is zone blocking still around?

Zuttah: Oh, yeah. We used that [in Kansas City].

Joe heard sweet music today from Cody Grimm out at One Buc Palace. A massive key to the Bucs defense, specifically the run defense, Grimm is feeling great.

“I’ve made a ton of progress,” Grimm said with a smile.  “I really needed to run on it [in training camp]. The ankle’s a lot looser. I feel great.”

The Bucs practiced in shorts today under the broiling sun and practice ended a bit early. There was also plenty of national media swirling around.

Dezmon Briscoe continues to be a big target with great hands. And Joe was thoroughly impressed by Ronde Barber running sprints after practice and staying on the field to tutor youngsters and relative no-names.

Check back with Joe tonight and tomorrow for more from today’s practice at One Buc Palace. Joe’s got a couple of great interviews with Micheal Spurlock and Jeremy Zuttah to share.

You’ve all read THE PESSIMIST, who spews his Bucs-related anger like no other. But Joe brings you THE OPTIMIST. 

THE OPTIMIST is Nick Houllis, a Bucs fan and an accomplished writer whose steadfast allegiance to the team 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.

No doubt it was a sad sight last night seeing beloved Cadillac Williams in a Rams uniform scoring a touchdown and looking pretty darn quick during an 11-yard run.

When Cadillac officially went to St. Lous early in August, Facebook was on fire with differing opinions about the man who carried a big load for the Bucs for the past couple of seasons, and going back to 2005. It’s hard to say who is right or wrong.

Cadillac was adored by many Bucs fans who love toughness out of their football heroes. We were crazy for our No. 40, Mike Alstott, and were able to overlook his fumbling problem for a few years because he scored touchdowns, was the definition of class, and with his Brad Pitt looks gave back to fans as fans gave to him.

We feel the same about No. 24; but is Cadillac Williams still a strong football player? Sure, last year showed us as much when he is not relied upon to be the main guy. Cadillac thrived in all areas as a third-down back. But much as Alstott had a downside, Williams two knee surgeries obviously had taken their toll.

People say Cadillac should be kept because he is a leader, yet most who played with him say he was quiet in the clubhouse. He wasn’t a team captain. He may be a leader to by his example, but experience doesn’t make one a ‘leader.’ One only needs to view the whole Cadillac Williams tribute Video on BucStop.com to see the way No. 24 ran in 2005 when he was a rookie. It wasn’t the same as in 2010, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, first and foremost, are a business.

We don’t like to think of it as such, but we’re reminded of it every time one of our favorite players is bid adios by the organization. It was hard to swallow when Derrick Brooks was let go, but the Bucs needed to move on one day, they just felt 2009 was as good as any. Looking back even farther, Joe Jurevicius, Warren Sapp, Hardy Nickerson, all at some time had to sit at the desk of someone telling them they were great in their time, but time did, after all, move on.

And no, the decisions weren’t always correct. John Lynch was let go even after offering to take a pay cut. The Bucs felt Lynch had his best days behind him, with his shoulder and neck issues. Tony Dungy (Colts), Herm Edwards (Jets) and Lovie Smith (Rams DC) all passed on him, too. Denver took a crapshoot, and hit big. Lynch played at a pro bowl level for several more years.

Up until this decade, Bucs fans have never really known what it’s like to lose local sports heroes. Oh sure, Jimmy Giles was cut and picked up by the Lions, as was Kevin House, and Doug Williams left for the USFL, but it wasn’t the same as when our Pewter guys were let go. But were now feeling what it’s been like for other team’s fans.

I can promise you Buffalo Bills fans weren’t too thrilled to see Thurman Thomas close out his careerin a Miami Dolphins uniform. Or Dallas Cowboys fans watching the NFL rushing leader Emmitt Smith play his days out with a Bird on his hat. I won’t even get into the Green and Purple stuff.

But life goes on for the NFL, its fans, and its teams.

Someone else will move forward to play second string to LeGarrette Blount, and he will do just fine. There was a time when Cadillac Williams had to be taken off the field on thrid down because he could not pass protect better than Michael Pittman. In time, that job became Caddy’s.

We wish Cadillac well, and share our fond memories, and remember his courage and tenacity when we run into hurdles in our lives.

Before Joe heads to Bucs practice today, Joe enjoyed a warm yet sad feature on Adrian Clayborn in the St. Pete Times.

Rick Stroud did a nice job sharing thoughts from Clayborn about his brother’s murder and more. Here’s one excerpt quoting Raheem Morris sharing a take from Donald Penn on Clayborn’s alleged Erb’s Palsy limitations. 

“Penn asked me the other day, ‘Which one of those arms don’t work again?’ ” Morris said. “He said, ‘He just punched me with both of them and they both hurt.’

“He’s a different guy with hand usage with technique. He has different things about him, his inside move, his outside move, his speed rush, his lean, his anger; it’s awesome.”

Joe suggests you click through above and read the story. Joe hasn’t watched Friday’s Bucs-Chiefs game a second time yet, but Joe was glad to see Clayborn get loads of snaps. Joe’s guessing it was at least 25.

Joe can still here the bawling of Bucs fans when one brings up the name E.J. Biggers. For many of these Bucs fans, Biggers should have been flogged in public and cut from the Bucs because — cue the tape, please — “WWHHHAAA!!! ‘Megatron’ beat him!”

Who is “Megatron?” Joe is told that is Calvin Johnson. (Honestly, Joe has never heard Calvin Johnson referred to this aside from on this very site in the comments and from Raheem.)

So for the Biggers haters, even though he’s a damned fine cornerback and likely will start next season after Ronde Barber retires, if he retires, Joe has good news for you via Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune.

Seems rookie cornerback Anthony Gaitor is opening some eyes.

Q: With Aqib Talib possibly in some legal trouble, or facing a suspension. Have you seen any upside to E.J. Biggers, Myron Lewis, or Anthony Gaitor this summer.

Jason Charity, Yokota AFB, Japan

A: E.J. Biggers has definitely come on the last couple of years and is proving himself capable of being an effective starter. He’ll likely be the Bucs third corner this year, which means he’ll cover the right corner in nickel downs when Ronde Barber moves into the slot. Lewis has been a little bit slower to develop, but the Bucs have high hopes for him. We’ll get a better read on Gaitor during the preseason. He’s a player worth watching.

— Woody Cummings

While Joe is a big Biggers fan, Joe, like Cummings, is intrigued by Gaitor. This very well could be something to watch the next three weeks if Gaitor continues to play well.

Joe isn’t convinced Elbert Mack’s position is rock solid on the club.