You could hear the smile/relief in Josh Freeman’s voice on WDAE-AM 620 Wednesday night.

Host of The Josh Freeman Show, Steve Duemig, asked Freeman about facing so many 3-4 defenses during the Bucs’ latest struggles, and Freeman responded saying he was looking forward to seeing more 4-3 defenses starting Sunday in Tennessee.  

“It’s going to be nice to play a traditional defense,” Freeman said. “The teams that play these 3-4’s, I mean they’ll play it, and they all have a guy that’s kind of like a hybrid. So they can stand him up at end, slightly shade the nose, and you kinda gotta, you’re very front-aware with what defensive front their in, knowing what pressures they bring from up front, and at the same time watch the secondary and be aware of their coverages. So it has really been overdrive as far as preparation for IDing fronts, the run points, the protection calls.

“It is [easier against a 4-3] because you look at the variables. …Where I was Friday in the Packers gameplan, I’m there right now [on Wednesday.]” 

Obviously, Freeman was ready to play against the Packers and notched a strong day. But if he feels more confident entering Sunday’s game because of the Titans’ 4-3 defense, then all the better for the Bucs.

Maybe they’ll even manage a first-quarter touchdown.

You know where Joe will be tomorrow at 10:45 a.m. That’s right — Mugs Grill & Bar in Clearwater.

The food at Mugs already is phenomenal and a great value, and now you can get it at half price. Check out the offer below and don’t blow your chance to save some money and feast.

Last week proved it, even in a loss.

The Bucs’ offense — to be kind — struggled without LeGarrette Blount, without handing him the rock. The fact that he had only 13 touches against Houston was simply unacceptable.

This puzzle even has eye-RAH! Kaufman of The Tampa Tribune perplexed. Using the TBO Bucs Twitter feed as a vehicle, Kaufman explained just how allergic the Bucs are to the run.

The Bucs proved again they have one of the NFL’s better run-blocking lines. So why are they tied with 0-10 Indy for fewest attempts?

This boils down to simply wasting talent. That’s the only logical explanation Joe can find. The Bucs’ best weapon is Blount, and this isn’t debatable. The Bucs passing game, for reasons unknown, is struggling this year. So why not rely on one of the league’s best backs?

And as last week showed, once Blount gets going, it opens up the passing offense.

This seems to be getting through to the Bucs braintrust as, per Scott Smith, the Bucs offensive coordinator is said to have promised to get the ball to Blount more often.

OC Greg Olson said today that the Bucs want to get the ball into LeGarrette Blount’s hands 25 times a game, if the circumstances permit it.

Let’s hope. The Titans are vulnerable to the run. Pound them with Blount.

Jason Horowitz and ubiquitous Pat Kirwan break down the upcoming Bucs-Titans game. Kirwan says it’s time to give LeGarrette Blount the ball “a ton” to take advantage of the Titans’ porous run defense. Kirwan also makes a bold prediction.

Sign of the times?

Sign of the team?

Sign of Team Glazer hearing the cries of fans?

It’s surely some combination of the three. But regardless, the Bucs have cut 2012 season ticket prices in many price ranges. The cheapo 300-level seats are now down to only $30 a head and you can pay over 10 months, per Buccaneers.com.

Many of the popular $35-season tickets will now be just $30 per game, and the previously $17.50 youth tickets for fans 16-and-under will drop to just $15 per game. A family of four would pay only $90 per game if they chose to sit in the most affordable seats. 

Season passes in the lower level will also be considerably more affordable. For example, 100-level end zone tickets have gone from $89 to $75 per game. With the new prices, a family of four seeking to sit in the lower level would save $560 from last year’s season pass prices.

Joe hopes this all makes a blackout-busting difference, though Joe sadly suspects otherwise.

If the Bucs can win out, or at least head to Atlanta in January at 9-6, then that might fire up the bandwagon. But otherwise it’s probably another opening day blackout without an opponent with a huge local following.

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

By JEFF CARLSON
JoeBucsFan.com analyst

For the first time in a long time the Buccaneers’ offense finally gave its players the opportunities to make plays — and the players did make plays.

Josh Freeman mentioned a couple of weeks ago how they did pretty well against zone last year, but against much more man-to-man this year they have struggled.  It isn’t that they have struggled, as much as they hadn’t even given their big, physical receivers a chance to win one-on-one battles.

In Green Bay, Josh Freeman got the ball out quickly and threw down the sidelines, allowing Mike Williams and Arrellious Benn to use their bigger bodies and fight for balls. They also threw back-shoulder, which is key to taking advantage of man-to-man. Williams and Benn aren’t going to create much separation or beat very many down the sidelines in foot races (unless they employ a Jordy Nelson-like move, which opened him up for the put-away touchdown), but the way they did it last Sunday can be successful week-in and week-out. They just have to be willing to put it out there.

I don’t think it was a coincidence that the LeGarrette Blount TD run came immediately after a long throw down the left sideline. Blount made a great run, but when you make a defense defend more of the field, more space is created for everyone. The offense “attacked” more than they have all season and they need to continue the concept.

Like its offensive counterpart, the defense gave Rogers more to think about than in any of their previous games. Most of the season, the Bucs defense has been very static, giving the opposing QBs a pretty simple pre-snap read. Not that they haven’t brought linebackers from different launching points, but far enough away to allow the QB, linemen and backs to adjust and pick them up.

Expecting our banged up secondary (many nickel and dime packages) to play “man” against the talented WR’s of the Packers all night and hold up without a number of big plays was totally unrealistic, so Nelson’s late score was a disappointment, but certainly not a surprise.

While Aqub Talib quipped, “There ain’t no moral victories”, I actually think in this case there definitely was one.

A team reeling with a lack of confidence played quite well and gave the defending Super Bowl champions and only undefeated team this season a good run, and the kick in the pants they needed to get back on track. The Tennessee Titans — and possibly Jake Locker — come at just the right time.

Joe wants to wish all his readers a Happy Thanksgiving. Today is the ultimate FGU day, and Joe plans to take full advantage.

From turkey to mashed potatoes to yams to stuffing to cranberry sauce to pumpkin pie to several glasses of Tanqueray and Schweppes (with a twist of lime) and four football games (including Texas-Texas A&M tonight), today is a celebration of American gluttony and football.

Of course, as much as Joe hates Dallass, he plans on taking a nap during that game. Joe annually skips the Dallass Thanksgiving game.

(Oh, and for those poor souls who tire of football  — can you imagine? — there is a Godfather marathon on AMC all day and tonight.)

Joe has to be thankful too on this day and that’s because of you, every one of Joe’s readers. Last month, October, Joe for the first time broke one million pageviews for the month. It’s an astonishing figure Joe never, ever thought he’d reach in his wildest dreams when this site was launched a little over three years ago.

Joe truly, sincerely, thanks you all. Without readers, this site is nothing. Don’t think Joe doesn’t appreciate the loyal (and growing) following whenever he logs on in the morning.

Thank you, thank you all. Enjoy today. May you need to use an additional belt hole tomorrow!

And on more than one occasion today and tonight, Joe will raise a glass to his readers. (Do not fear, Joe still has much Bucs news and nuggets to serve up today.)

Joe, among many others, was taken back when Frank Okam was cut the other day in favor of Afa and Sika Daniel Te’o-Nesheim, the new signee from the Eagles practice squad.

There’s no question Okam was a fan favorite and a favorite of Joe’s. When you’re around 375 pounds and you can play, it’s hard to not be beloved. And in Joe’s mind Okam is better and more versatile than Roy Miller.

Okam was on the field last year balling at the 3-technique when the Bucs were playing well at the end of the season. And Okam had strong moments in his backup role this season.

Well, now Okam is back with the Bucs and on the practice squad, Joe has confirmed. And Okam is Twittering his excitement tonight. A man who hasn’t made a fortune yet playing football, Okam seems to appreciate that he’ll keep collecting a paycheck.

@98nightmare– Glad to be back. More fuel for the tank

Joe’s not sure whether Okam is referring to his gas tank or his food bill, but it doesn’t matter. Welcome back, Frank.

Of all the plays in the Bucs’ loss at Green Bay, the one that was truly a sledgehammer to the gut of the team and fans everywhere was Kellen Winslow dropping a 2-point conversion in the fourth quarter that would have tied the game at 21.

Without that drop, Raheem Morris surely (maybe?) forgoes the second onsides kick late in the game because the score would have been tied at 28. What could have happened after that is anyone’s guess.

Speaking on The Donald Penn Show yesterday on WDAE-AM 620, Penn talked about Winlsow being furious with himself for long after the dropped 2-point conversion, Penn said Winslow holds himself to an extraordinary standard and he tried to talk him down from the ledge after the Green Bay game.

Joe doesn’t doubt that Winslow is broken up. While one surely can question the body language Winslow has displayed on the field this season, Joe knows Winslow’s teammates often refer to him as a perfectionist and as a guy committed to being the best he can be. His durability following numerous knee injuries is a testament.

Penn went on to praise Winslow’s growth as a blocker in the run game and say that he gives Winslow grief about the failed hurdle shown above. It’s good to know Winslow can take some locker room ribbing.

Joe’s not sure how to refer to the latest pluck from rockstar general manager Mark Dominik. His name is Daniel Te’o-Nesheim, which Joe has learned is an ancient Samoan name meaning large man with big motor.

He was scalped from the Eagles practice squad yesterday when Frank Okam was cut, seemingly because Michael Bennett has a sore groin, so reported TampaBay.com. Per the rockstar, via the Bucs Twitter feed, the new guy has a feel for what the Bucs do on defense.

@TBBuccaneers: GM Mark Dominik says new Buc DE Daniel Te’o-Nesheim is a high-motor end who practiced in a scheme similar to the Bucs’ while in Philly.

Joe wishes the new guy well. Joe’s also wondered many times what’s up Tim Crowder, a favorite of Joe’s who also has a high-motor and was a special teams ace in past seasons. Crowder’s been buried on the bench and inactive for two games this season.

Update 4:22 p.m. – Raheem somberly said Okam getting cut was a tough business decision, “strictly an injury deal” relating to Bennett.

Check out what Joe’s friends at Ed Morse Auto Plaza in Port Richey have set up for Friday.

OK, time for a sappy, yet true,  Thanksgiving post.

Yesterday while browsing the Interwebs, Joe came across a post on Buccaneers.com about how the offensive line gathered together to help needy families for Thanksgiving, helping distribute Thanksgiving meals to those who many not have a Thanksgiving meal sans Ramen noodles, hot dogs or perhaps mac and cheese.

It just seems like this unit is the best of the Bucs, both personally and professionally.

Joe knows for a fact Davin Joseph has donated thousands of dollars to Blake High School in Tampa to help the school’s athletic program.

If that isn’t helping the community, Joe doesn’t know what is.

A couple of weeks ago Joe got to talk to Joseph about the offensive line. No one needs to be reminded of the Bucs’ losing streak and you can see the pain in the body language and the way the offensive linemen speak about how bothered they are.

You could point to players recently who were loafing, but those players do not play on the offensive line.

“We have a strong unit and we have played together for a very long time, long for the NFL,” Joseph said after the Houston loss. “Obviously we are not doing enough to get wins and to get the big plays so we have to get better.”

Most offensive linemen get off on run blocking especially when the guy toting the rock is breaking off chunks of yards. Joseph admitted how much he loves to run block but quickly pointed out his responsibility to block, no matter the play.

“We don’t call the plays,” Joseph said. “What plays are called it is our job to block better. Whatever we can do to help our team, that’s what we have to do. If it’s a pass, I’m with it. We have guys who can pass protect very well.

“We can pass rush, we can run block. Whatever we can do to help the team win we will do.”

Joseph is playing at a Pro Bowl level this season. Donald Penn is simply locking up anyone who plays right defensive end. Jeff Faine has been healthy for the most part and doing solid work. Jeremy Zuttah is really becoming a force at left guard.

Mired in this losing streak there is one unit that the Bucs can brag is strong, both off the field and on the field.

That’s the offensive line.

Donald Penn says Raheem Morris calling out players in front the entire team lit a fire.

First, hats off to the Bucs’ offensive linemen and the team for spearheading the “Turkey Time with the O-Line” drive last night at One Buc Palace, which hooked up 650 families with a pile of holiday food.

Speaking last night on The Donald Penn Show on WDAE-AM 620, formerly The Gerald McCoy Show,  Penn said he and Davin Joseph launched the charity drive back in 2007 and it keeps growing and includes similar efforts around Christmas.

As for football, Penn said he believes the Bucs’ offense turned the corner against Green Bay and is poised to have a great finish. Asked by host Dave Moore whether the Bucs’ two physical, padded practices last week made the difference, Penn said, No.

Dave Moore: Watching the game the body language was completely different. Now do you attribute that to kind of last week we talked how Raheem made a point to put you guys back in pads for practice? Do you think that paid off for you?

Donald Penn: You know, the pad thing, you know I don’t think it’s a big thing. But I think definitely what [Raheem] did in the Monday meeting [after the Texans loss], putting everybody up on the board in front of the whole team, showing those mistakes. You definitely don’t want to be called out. That’s what good players do and a good team do. We responded. We’re going to keep responding and keep building. You know Green Bay’s a great team. We played them very hard. A couple of breaks would have went our way it would have been a different story.

It’s an interesting take from Penn. Was this the first time this year Raheem called out players on video in front of everyone? Probably not. Hopefully not.

Penn went on to talk about the confidence Greg Olson showed in the O-line, putting new runs in the gameplan for Green Bay and using them. 

He also talked about how Josh Freeman will learn from his first interception in Green Bay when he could have pulled the ball down and run and set the Bucs up for a field goal. Penn said fans don’t realize Freeman is typically at One Buc Palace at 6:30 a.m. working with coaches and constantly studying his play.

The A-Train weighed in on the Bucs, including concern for LeGarrette Blount's genitalia.

Joe loves to hear and share various takes on the state of the Bucs from former Buccaneers, especially guys connected to the red-and-pewter era.

Yesterday was Bucs icon Mike Alstott’s turn to weigh in during an interview with the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, Steve Duemig, on WDAE-AM 620.

Alstott was adamant that the young Bucs individually are simply making mistakes that young players have to make on their own to experience and correct. Coaching, Alstott said, is not an issue. He called Raheem Morris “a stickler” to detail from everything he knew of Raheem when Alstott was a player and Raheem was an assistant coach.

Alstott said that while limiting padded practices under the new labor agreement will extend careers, overall he’s no fan of how their loss affects a team.

The A-Train said Father Dungy consistently used the carrot of skipping padded practices as a reward for peak performance in a game. Alstott said that was a great, effective teamwide motivator  but Raheem doesn’t have that luxury, or the benefit of the practices themselves.

On LeGarrette Blount, Alstott expressed some concern for Blount’s genitalia when he hurdles defenders. Alstott would prefer Blount run over the players that take him on low.  (Joe was glad to hear the groin take, since Joe has been harping on this since Blount started flying. The potential helmet to, um, helmet contact is a level of bravery no man should risk.)

But Alstott was very upbeat on Blount, praising his technique against the Packers — “getting skinny in the hole” — and called it arguably the best game of Blount’s career.

Joe hopes you and your loved ones enjoy happy, healthy lives, but as we all know too well, help is often needed to get through medical challenges big and small.

But who can you trust in a time of need for yourself, or for mom or dad, or another loved one?

Joe’s asking you to count on Advantage Home Assisted Care, a 20-year local company that takes great pride in its reputation, reliability and quality of care. Click on through to their website below today to learn more about their company. And Joe’s going to tell you more about Advantage Home Assisted Care in the coming days.

Joe can remember once upon a time when just about any car with a Florida license plate had some form of Bucs gear on it, whether that was a flag, a bumper sticker or a window decal.

Getting inside the stadium on Dale Mabry Highway was a tough task. If you weren’t a season ticket holder or you weren’t given a ticket, you had to pay through the nose for a ticket from a scalper outside.

Those anecdotes seem like another generation ago. Veteran sports columnist Gary Shelton typed a piece late last night that suggests there is a disconnect between the team and the fans.

In short, Shelton believes that there are players on the team that fans don’t like, so he wrote in the St. Petersburg Times.

Still, I have to tell you, it was puzzling that Jackson not only was active his first game, but started. And he not only started, but was introduced. And he was not only introduced, but was introduced last and carried the team flag as he entered the field. It was a hero’s return to the field, not the return of a guy who had let down his team by being suspended for drugs.

Now Joe sees where Shelton is coming from and he has some valid points. Joe, however, sees a lot of likable people in the Bucs locker room.

Josh Freeman is a helluva guy as is Gerald McCoy, Brian Price, Mike Williams, Arrelious Benn, Adrian Clayborn, Larry Asante, Davin Joseph, Donald Penn, Corey Lynch, Ronde Barber… Joe could go on and on. Every one of these guys are good people. Stand up people.

Are there a couple of bad eggs on the Bucs roster? Sure, but the few are not reflective of the whole.

As far as Tanard Jackson starting in his first game back, Joe has said it before and will write it again: That move simply demonstrated the vast hole there was on the roster at the safety position.

Now this is a headscratcher for Joe.

The Bucs today cut defensive tackle big Frank Okam, per Buccaneers.com.

Okam originally joined the Buccaneers almost exactly a year ago. He was first signed to the team’s practice squad on November 17, 2010, then promoted to the active roster one week later. He had played parts of the 2010 season with Houston and Seattle before coming to Tampa.

Initially a fifth-round pick by the Texans out of the University of Texas in 2008, Okam played in eight games over his first two seasons in Houston. With the Buccaneers in 2010 and 2011, Okam played in nine games with four starts, recording 31 tackles and a fumble recovery.

Defensive tackle isn’t exactly a position of strength, which is why the Bucs took a desperate stab at Albert Haynesworth.

Let’s see: Haynesworth, though he has played well, is not in the best of conditioning. Brian Price, while very talented, is a bad move away from missing the season with his strange, painful injury. Roy Miller… what’s the point?

This is just strange.

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Former Bucs quarterback Shaun King returned to the local airwaves after a two-week vacation Monday to join his co-host Toby David in the “too Jewish“-sounding “King David Show,” heard on WQYK-AM 1010.

King went on a rampage at Bucs management, all but saying the suits at One Buc Palace are letting Bucs coach Raheem Morris twist in the wind because of this season’s failures.

King, one of only three quarterbacks to lead the Bucs to an NFC Championship game, continued to point a finger at the Bucs for not filling the roster with ample talent for Morris to work with and, in so many words, said if the Bucs fail to make the playoffs the blame is on the front office, not Morris.

“If you don’t like Geno Hayes, if you don’t like Quincy Black, who you gonna put in the game? … Like if we had a new defensive coordinator Quincy Black would all of a sudden become a Pro Bowl weakside linebacker? … Hold on, hold on, my bad: so Myron Lewis and E.J. Biggers would be legit man-to-man corners? My bad people, I’m sorry.”

To enjoy King’s full rant, please click on the little button below.

(Oh, and please spare Joe the nonsense that because King doesn’t have a bust in Canton he doesn’t know football. Feel free to look at Sean Payton’s NFL numbers and try to claim he’s a lousy coach as a result.)

Audio courtesy of WQYK-AM. Hat tip Justin.

No, the Bucs are not out of the playoffs yet. Don’t believe Joe? Just turn on the NFL Network where they show the playoff race for the NFC. Yup, there the Bucs are.

To have a shot at the playoffs, the Bucs have to win six straight. Going 9-7 likely won’t get the job done.

But Martin Fennelly of the Tampa Tribune isn’t convinced this will happen, despite how 2010-ish the Bucs played at Lambeau Field Sunday.

We have no idea. We really have no idea which Bucs will show up on Sunday, though with five losses in six games we’re beginning to get a sneaking suspicion.

They’re an inconsistent team, often an undisciplined team, riding emotional waves with their coach, one crazy ride.

I don’t think the Bucs have the talent or the discipline to run off six straight wins, though the schedule, by some accounts, now turns easier. But those games with Carolina suddenly don’t look very easy, not since we learned Cam Newton can play . As for Jacksonville, since when does 4-6 get to look down on 3-7?

Could the Packers game be a springboard for the Bucs to run off six straight?

Time will tell, of course, but who saw the Rays in the playoffs in mid-September? Who saw the Cardinals winning the World Series in August?

Last year the Bucs shocked the football world when, coming off a pathetic three-win season, Bucs coach Raheem Morris boasted the Bucs were in a “race to 10” wins.

And the Bucs did just that, winning 10 games but losing in a tiebreaker to the eventual Super Bowl champion Packers.

This year things haven’t been as rosy. But all hope is not yet lost. Frank Pastor of the St. Petersburg Times documents that Morris wants a return to the “Race to 10.”

Morris said Sunday’s 35-26 loss to the unbeaten Packers, in which the Bucs were as close as two points with four minutes remaining, as well as wins over the Falcons and Saints earlier this season show that his team “can compete with anybody.”

And, despite squandering a 3-1 start with losses in five of their past six games, Morris believes the Bucs’ goals remain in reach.

“We’ve got six more (games) and we’ve got to go out there and knock off one at a time,” Morris said. “There’s still time to get hot. We can still finish with the record we had last year.”

To have a prayer for the playoffs the Bucs cannot lose another game. Sadly, the Bucs do not have key tiebreakers against teams ahead of them, including Detroit and Chicago.

But there may be an opening. Bratty Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is out for the remainder of the regular season with a broken thumb. The Lions are proving to be beatable and have a rough schedule the rest of the way.

If the Bucs gave the Packers a scare at Lambeau Field, the Titans on the road shouldn’t be that difficult of a task.