Joe is trying to keep an open mind when it comes to Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman. His detractors believe he is a mobile version of Trent Dilfer. His protectors believe he is the second coming of Ben Roethlisberger.

Even as a rookie, Roethlisberger never remotely approached the inconsistency of Freeman, who will be entering his fifth season as a starter this year. But there are times where Freeman does channel the Steelers two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback.

In Freeman’s touchdown pass to Mike Williams, Joe thought he was watching Roethlisberger, who can avoid traffic in the pocket and buy time like few other quarterbacks can.

Freeman danced around a would-be tackler, all while keeping his eyes glued to the end zone, just like Roethlisberger. Then, seeing a narrow window, Freeman rifled a Nolan Ryan fastball to Williams in the back of the end zone for six.

It was an absolutely beautiful play. Joe leaped from his couch, jabbed a finger in the air aimed at his HDTV screen and hollered, “That’s what you need to do all the time, Josh!”

But those plays, even on days when the “good Josh” shows up, were few and far between this year, a pattern, so writes Gordon McGuinness of ProFootballFocus.com.

The Ups and Downs of Josh Freeman

Watching Buccaneers quarterback Josh Freeman, I’m left with the same feeling of frustration I get when watching Baltimore’s Joe Flacco. At his best, Freeman can make every throw you need him to make and can take over a game. However far too often he makes the sort of mistakes that keep you from trusting him and, especially recently, we’ve seen more downs than ups.

His interception on 3rd-and-7 with 4:35 left in the third quarter was particularly bad, with a lazy throw allowing Atlanta corner back Asante Samuel to step in front of receiver Tiquan Underwood and secure the turnover. The decision to make the throw was dubious but the execution by quarterback and receiver was extremely poor and turned a short pass into a turnover. As they head into the offseason now, the powers that be in Tampa have to find a way to get Freeman playing with more consistency, so that they can start winning games because of him as opposed to in spite of him.

For many reasons, including his future contract, next season will be big for Freeman. A second year in Mike Sullivan’s offense should do wonders for him.

That’s why Joe is disturbed that Sullivan, the Bucs offensive coordinator, is interviewing for the Bears head coaching gig. It’s not surprising that Sullivan is interviewing; Joe predicted as much many times this past year.

But with Freeman in a freefall, to briefly bounce out of it Sunday, Freeman desperately needs another year with Sullivan. Otherwise, Freeman will be on his fourth coordinator in five seasons. Joe fears that will really screw with Freeman’s head, setting him back in his development yet again, and he may never realize his potential with the Bucs.

Josh Freeman is the only Buccaneer with ball security issues

The Bucs completed 311 passes this season, and not one was fumbled by the receiver. This, obviously, at least ties a league record, but it was simply a stunning display of ball security.

Doug Martin touched the ball 368 times (receiving and rushing) and only coughed up the ball once, a fumble that wasn’t really a fumble on the goal line in Carolina. Martin’s protection of the ball is almost always overlooked when his great rookie season is discussed.

The “culture change” jibberish is tossed around a lot by media, fans and Bucs brass. And while things have changed in the way the Bucs do things, Joe ultimately only cares about what’s changed on the field. Ball security was a fanatic obsession of the New Schiano Order and they truly were able to change that part of the culture. Fumbles and turnoveres just don’t fly anymore.

This is one reason to keep an eye on Josh Freeman, more specifically how the Bucs push him to improve his ball security. Freeman was tied for the fifth most fumbles in the NFL this season with 10. And Freeman tied for fifth in interceptions with 17. Rest assured Schiano will demand that Freeman gets with the culture change.

It is 2013 now on the west coast of the east coast and will shortly be 2013 for Joe’s friends in the Midwest, and so on as the night grows older.

Joe wants to wish a sincere, heartfelt thanks to all who read Joe’s articles the past year. A Joe hopes everyone has a profitable 2013.

Hey, maybe even the Bucs could play a playoff game after the 2013 season? Joe can dream, right?

Later today, Joe will soak himself in beer and sun at his annual tradition of the Outback Bowl at the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway. (Don’t worry, Joe will still be working.) Joe hopes you have a pleasant day, wherever and whatever you wish to do.

Word out of the Chicago Sun-Times and various other sources has Bucs offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan scheduled to interview soon for the Chicago Bears head coaching job. Former head coach Lovie Smith was fired today.

Sullivan’s West Point/Army Ranger military background, his Super Bowl rings coaching with the Giants, and his measurable yet limited success with the Bucs offense, make him a prime head coaching candidate.

Joe wrote about this many weeks ago, though some readers here scoffed at Joe’s logic.

Is Sullivan head coaching material? Joe can’t vouch for that, but he’s surely a sound candidate and Joe would expect he’ll get other looks, as well.

Sullivan’s departure would not be a good thing for Josh Freeman. The last thing Freeman needs is change that likely would rattle his confidence.

Will Greg Schiano ask Team Glazer to step up and lock up Sullivan to stay in Tampa? That’s an important question as the clock ticks into 2013.

Joe’s hardly one to agree consistently with former Bucs guard Ian Beckles, but Joe will side with Beckles’ take on Demar Dotson.

This morning on WDAE-AM 620, Beckles had high praise collectively for the Bucs’ offensive line this season minus Dotson.

“I’m not sure if he’s the answer, ” Beckles said of Dotson.

Dotson struggled against St. Louis and didn’t have his best game yesterday. His pass blocking must improve. Greg Schiano talked about craving competition at all positions today, and Joe believes serious competition at right tackle is a critical offensive priority this offseason.

Jeremy Trueblood will not return, barring some strange act of God. And while Joe does not expect the Bucs to invest more serious money on the offensive line after last offseason’s commitments to Carl Nicks and Jeremy Zuttah, there should be enough money laying around to score a starting-caliber right tackle.

Rockstar general manager Mark Dominik has talked openly about shunning drafting offensive linemen — he’s only picked one in four drafts — preferring the free agent or practice squad route in order to first see how the lineman adapts to the pro game because college spread offenses have made it harder to scout a guy’s potential at the pro level.

Dotson is signed through 2013 at about $1 million per year. He’s a good guy and Joe exects him to return. Joe just thinks the Bucs should try to upgrade.

Former Bucs quarterback Jeff Carlson wants to the see the Bucs bring in a beast of a big slot receiver and use him on every offensive snap next season.

Essentially, the Bucs should ditch the fullback, Carson said on 98.7 FM this morning, and spread open defenses with a third receiver. That would give Josh Freeman more angles and openings but, more importantly, let Doug Martin run from a single-back set against more spread out defenses, ala Marshall Faulk or Thurman Thomas.

It’s an intriguing change of approach, especially if Davin Joseph and Carl Nicks return healthy. Joe’s unsure how much of a philosphical stretch this would be for Mike Sullivan, as the Bucs offense does use the fullback more than most teams.

Joe likes the idea as it would force the Bucs to upgrade at receiver, which would give them more depth at the position. Tiquan Underwood had a career year and did some great things, but his hands proved questionable and his desire over the middle seemed to have been affected by getting his clock cleaned in Carolina. Arrelious Benn? Well, he’s a project at this point.

What fantastic deals right now at Ed Morse Auto Plaza in Port Richey!

And they’re not just about trucks. This is where Joe bought his pre-owned Ford Fusion 22 months ago. Not a problem since!

It sure smells as if struggling Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman may get a decent backup to help push him to be his best self.

In this morning’s press conference, Greg Schiano made it clear to the Tampa Bay pen and mic club that he believes competition at all positions is beneficial to a football team and did not duck the notion it could also help Freeman.

“I will meet individually with josh. Again, it was an up and down year but you look at 4,000 yards and records all over the place. A lot of positives there. Certainly when an expectation level is set and you don’t make it, there is disappointment. Josh is probably his own toughest critic so I don’t know if anything I am going to tell him is going to shock him. I think perspective and sequencing what he has to do until we get back together April 15 , first thing he has to do is get away from the game a relax a little bit. Then there is a sequencing of things that I think has to happen for him and we will discuss that and part of that will come out of the evaluation.

“I am not all in with myself yet so how can I be all in with Josh Freeman or any other player? I need to evaluate. What I can say is, [Freeman is] a 4,000-yard passer, a [team] touchdown record [holder]. There are things you say, ‘Wow!’ Does he frustrate me? Yeah. But those things frustrate him too. Quite frankly I really like Josh Freeman. [I have] to evaluate every single thing for what is best for this organization Do I think Josh Freeman will win Super Bowls in this league? Yeah, I do. I hope that happens here. But I have to evaluate everything before I can say, ‘That is what I am doing.’ I do believe in competition at every spot including the quarterback. I want to have as many good football players on our football team as we can at every single position. As much competition as we can create throughout the football team rises the level of everything. It’s human nature when there is competition the level rises.”

Now there is a rule of thought that Freeman getting pushed may just rattle him and unnerve him and he may regress.

This is the quandary the Bucs find themselves in with their quarterback. His contract runs out after the 2013 season. Should he hit the lottery or should the Bucs sign him to a team-friendly, salary cap-smart pact?

Maybe seeing how Freeman reacts to being pushed will give the Bucs an idea about the details of his new contract.

Just about anyone old enough to comprehend how the business end of the NFL works knows that Adderall-popping, spa-relaxing Eric Wright all but wrote his ticket out of Tampa Bay this offseason, short of reworking his contract to make it Team Glazer-friendly.

After getting busted for Adderall and being sentenced to a four-game suspension, a clause in his contract kicked in where Wright’s second year of guaranteed money with the Bucs was voided.

Offered a chance to publicly state Wright is a Buccaneer Man, Bucs coach Greg Schiano passed this morning, which was basically saying Wright very well may go bye-bye.

“I can’t tell you what his future is with the Bucs because that has not been determined yet,” Schiano said.

Schiano offered no additional information about Wright.

Infer what you want with Schiano’s words, but it is pretty clear Wright is, at best, on thin ice with Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik not to mention Schiano himself.

The leader of the New Schiano Order updated the status of some Buccaneers on injured reserve this morning at One Buc Palace and said a cloud of uncertainty remains around Quincy Black.

Black suffered some sort of complex nerve/neck injury in November that knocked him out for the season and left him with physical limitations. Today, Schiano said Black has seen specialists around the country and offered no specifics on Black’s condition.

The Bucs have finished paying guaranteed money to Black, who signed a five-year, nearly $29 million deal before the 2011 season. However, the Bucs could be on the hook for the rest of Black’s contract if Black can not play football again.

Schiano reported no snags in the comebacks of Carl Nicks, Davin Joseph and Adrian Clayborn.

Butch Davis, the special assistant/consiliere/psychic to Bucs coach Greg Schiano, is not leaving the Bucs for Florida International.

There had been many rumors of late that Davis was linked to the opening at FIU after the school parted ways with Mario Cristobal. Davis’ agent, Jon Sasser, Twittered Joe over the weekend to refute a FoxSports.com report that Davis’ settlement with the University of North Carolina, his previous employer, was an obstacle for him to take the FIU gig.

Sasser also reached out to Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune to offer the same information.

Below is what Sasser — unsolicited — Twittered Joe, and Sasser encouraged Joe to use this message as a direct quote from him.

‏@JonSasser: Butch Davis did not even sign a settlement with UNC upon his 2011 dismissal. … UNC’s obligations to Butch Davis are governed by the contract in time at his termination.

In other words, Davis is just abiding by his contract with North Carolina and not coaching for the time being.

So Schiano gets to keep his consiliere, which isn’t a bad thing.

League tiebreakers officially landed the Bucs a last-place finish in the NFC South, despite being tied with the Saints and Panthers at 7-9.

Based on that finish, below are the Bucs’ opponents and game locations for the 2103 season. The detailed schedule is released in April.

AWAY

Rams
Seahawks
Patriots
Jets
Falcons
Panthers
Saints
Lions

HOME

Cardinals
49ers
Bills
Dolphins
Falcons
Panthers
Saints
Eagles

It’s not exactly a blackout-busting group coming to Tampa. Hopefully, the Bucs showed TV executives enough to grant a night home game to the Tampa Bay faithful.

Let the speculation begin!

The Bucs tied with five teams at 7-9, and strength-of-schedule tiebreakers left them wth the 13th pick in April’s draft. Here’s the current known draft order, via NFL.com.

1. Chiefs
2. Jaguars
3. Raiders
4. Eagles
5. Lions
6. Browns
7. Cardinals
8. Bills
9. Jets
10. Titans
11. Chargers
12. Dolphins
13. BUCS
14. Panthers
15. Saints
16. Rams
17. Steelers

Yesterday Joe appeared, as he often does, with his good friend Bobby Fenton on the Bucs Postgame/Postgame Show heard locally on WDAE-AM 620.

Fenton had an interesting rant about the Bucs season. He said in no uncertain terms the Bucs season was a failure. If a team doesn’t make the playoffs, Fenton explained, then said team has failed.

Fenton also noted that for any Bucs fan to suggest that the Bucs had a good season because they won three more games than last year is “a loser’s mentality.” This attitude, he believes, stems from a now 10-year absence of a playoff win.

Joe believes Fenton is on point, especially since the Bucs were in the driver’s seat for a playoff berth and fell face first in the dirt losing five straight and finding themselves on the couch for January football, as opposed to playing meaningful January football in the playoffs.

Sure, the Bucs made some inroads, improved in some areas (the rush defense in particular), but each team’s goal is to get to the playoffs.

The Bucs failed to do so. As a result, Joe, like Fenton, cannot see how the 2012 season can be called a success.

Veteran sports columnist Gary Shelton shares his views on the Bucs win over the Dixie Chicks in this Tampa Bay Times video.

First it was rockstar general manager Mark Dominik calling Dakoda Watson a Pro Bowl caliber special teamer.

Then days later Watson earned a Sabby and cost the Bucs the game in Dallas by burying the Cowboys punter on what was a sure punt block, a play Greg Schiano called a 10-point swing. But then Watson redeemed himself and won the NFC Special Teams Player of the Month award for November.

Today, Watson capped off his strong season on special teams with a massive bull rush that drove a Falcons offensive lineman into the Falcons punter and blocked a punt.

It was a very special play, and one that shows the driving will that Watson brings to all his special teams play.

Watson didn’t have enough as a linebacker to beat out coach-pusher Adam Hayward and replace Quincy Black, but Watson is a very valuable member of the Bucs.

Still just 24 and perhaps the Bucs’ No. 1 gym rat, Joe’s excited to see how Watson can raise his game in 2013.

Fan favorite E.J. Biggers breaks up a pass intended for Julio Jones Sunday.

Joe made a big deal of how the Bucs were on the cusp of a horrific mark of giving up the most passing yards in the 93 years of NFL history. Matty Ice only needed 252 yards yoday for the Bucs to achieve this football version of a scarlet letter.

Well, Matty Ice came 14 yards short of pushing the Bucs into NFL history.

Holding Matty Ice to just 238 yards isn’t bad. Really. And aside from a blown assignment by Anthony Gaitor that allowed the Dixie Chicks an easy score, which prompted Greg Schiano to blow up on his defensive backs on the sidelines, the secondary played well today.

Leonard Johnson had key breakups in the fourth quarter. So too did E.J. Biggers, who, despite his legions of haters, actually played decent this year if not OK at times. And as Joe has documented, Mark Barron made the play of the game on fourth down in the fourth quarter against Tony Gonzalez that may have saved the Bucs win.

Joe believes for the Bucs to improve the secondary, Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik must land a free agent (use the cash that was going to go to Eric Wright and add more to get a decent guy in here) and draft a corner. Of course, to expect a rookie corner not to struggle in his first year in the NFL may be a stretch.

Whether or not Michael Bennett re-signs, another pass-rushing specialist sure would be nice and perhaps the Bucs can land a defensive end in the first round?

Yes, the Bucs’ porous pass defensive played OK today. But that doesn’t mean the Bucs don’t need massive upgrades in the offseason in order to repair the unit.

Josh Freeman got rattled far too much this season, and his rollercoaster play and body language led every Bucs fan paying attention to wonder whether No. 5 has the mental makeup to be a winning quarterback.

That debate absolutely can still be had, but Joe’s very happy that today Freeman spared himself an entire offseason of Bucs fans and media brutally attacking at his viability as the Bucs starting quarterback. A loss and/or a crappy performamce by Freeman in Atlanta would have delivered just that — from now through his next bad throw in the 2013 preseason. And frankly, Joe doubts that Freeman could have handled that pressure. But Freeman delivered a win and had a decent day today.

Bucs fans have come to know “Good Josh” and “Bad Josh,” and against the Falcons it was more “OK” Josh. He threw an ugly interception and flashed his typical spotty accuracy, but Freeman delivered 2010 playmaking and appeared in command.

Yeah, Freeman set all kinds a Bucs single-season passing record today, as well as franchise career touchdown mark. But Joe only cares about winning when it comes to quarterbacks.

Freeman’s got a running game, quality receivers, solid pass protection that should improve with Carl Nicks and Davin Joseph returning, and he’s got an offensive coordinator that knows how to get the most out of a quarterback.

What more does he need?

Sure, the Bucs could get No. 5 even more toys this offseason, but they shouldn’t have to. Freeman just needs to develop his head, and more weapons won’t help that. The lone “best friend” Freeman is missing is a smothering defense. And that’s got to be where the Bucs pour their resources.

The always affable, talkative and no-nonsense Bucs left tackle Donald Penn offered his thoughts on the Bucs radio network after the game on the up-and-down season, and specifically, the running of the Muscle Hamster, who was spinning his wheel today for a touchdown and 142 yards.

“It’s a great feeling to go into the offseason with a win,” Penn said. “We were hoping [the Falcons] played all of their starters. We wanted the full Falcons, not the half-Falcons.

“All the bad stuff that happened last week got out of our system and all we could do [today] was good. We did things right. We ran the ball good and when we run the ball, we are a good team.

“My hat’s off to Doug [Martin]. He does a lot of stuff that makes [the offensive line] look good. He has improved all year. I’m looking forward to next year. We have a good offense.

“My hat’s off to Josh Freeman. A lot of people been down on him but he came in working hard every day, came in here smiling like he always does and played well.”

The Bucs sacks leader, Michael Bennett, who perhaps may have played his last game for the Pewter Pirates today, spoke on the Bucs radio network after the game. He seemed as if he wants to return to the Bucs when he hits free agency in March.

“Coach trusted the four-man rush today,” Bennett said. “The past four games, we were doing a lot of games [stunts on the defensive line] but today, we showed what we can do. Gerald was a beast today and Da’Quan showed what he can do. Da’Quan had two sacks that didn’t count.

“I grew with this team. It was the first full season that I played with Gerald. It was an up and down season but we get AC [Adrian Clayborn] back so you can see what kind of defense we can have. We played really good today.”

Joe might stop calling rockstar general manager Mark Dominik “rockstar” if Eric Wright returns to the Bucs in 2013, especially if Wright returns with the same bloated contract that is set to pay him $7.75 million next season.

There’s no reason for it. Dominik must see that.

Wright was healthy and very well rested entering today’s game following a four-game substance abuse suspension and a California spa/beach getaway.

Wright practiced all week but was not activated today. The FOX TV cameras caught him sitting on the Bucs bench in street clothes.

Joe sincerely hopes that’s the proverbial writing on the wall. Joe can’t fathom how Wright is what Greg Schiano calls  “a Buccaneer Man” and how his return is in the team’s best interest. Take Wright’s money and put it toward another veteran cornerback without a background in pills and funny business.