A fun nugget Joe was able to learn today at One Buc Palace came via a chat with the agent of new Bucs defensive end Michael Johnson. He told Joe the Bucs were among six teams who pounced on the phones to Johnson at the start of the free agency “tampering” period on Saturday. [read more]

OK, the new Bucs players have not even snapped on a chin strap, have not taken a practice field, only stood and spoke before the Tampa Bay pen and mic club.

Here are some very quick observations Joe made from talking to a few of the new Pewter Pirates, Bucs general manager Jason Licht and Bucs coach Lovie Smith. [read more]

“There has to be a starting spot, a starting point, a starting person to go out there first, and that will be Josh [McCown],” Lovie Smith, speaking to JoeBucsFan.com this afternoon at One Buc Palace. [read more]

The Bucs still have a giant hole on their roster at No. 3 receiver, where former rockstar general manager Mark Dominik and Greg Schiano struck out badly with Kevin Ogletree and then rolled out Tiquan Underwood, who struggled to get open. [read more]

If the Bucs hadn’t signed a Pro Bowl cornerback right now, Joe would be in the market for a guy that hangs drywall because of the holes Joe would have punched in the walls of his house, after learning of the news the Bucs simply threw all-world cornerback Darrelle Revis in the nearest retention pond this afternoon.

It is simply unconscionable in Joe’s eyes to unload the best cornerback of our generation. It is very likely we will never see a cornerback this good to wear a Bucs uniform. [read more]

Josh McCown,your 2014 Bucs starting QB?

Today is not a good day for the Mike Glennon Mob. The Bucs announced this afternoon that their speed date with Josh McCown is now a full-blown marriage. The backup Bears quarterback is now a Bucs quarterback and could very well be the starter come this summer.

The fact the Bucs signed McCown — not a surprise — signals a variety of things. First, don’t lay awake at night expecting a signing of Michael Vick. Second, at worst, McCown is a stop-gap. If the Bucs find that Glennon is not the guy, McCown, 34, will be the bridge to (hopefully) a franchise quarterback. [read more]

Nobody’s going to convince Joe that Josh McCown was signed this afternoon as your newest Buccaneers quarterback to back up Mike Glennon.

It’s simply preposterous to think the Bucs would pay McCown $10 million over two years to hold a clipboard for No. 8, who is not up the task of leading the Bucs to what Lovie Smith says he desires immediately: to be “relevant.” [read more]

Adam Kaplan gives a breakdown on what the Bucs are getting with defensive end Michael Johnson in this BSPN video.

Adam Schein lauds the Bucs signing of DE Michael Johnson.

Goodness knows that anyone fumbling around with a white cane could see the Bucs needed a pass rush from the edge. Hell, the Bucs have needed this for seven years, since Simeon Rice left the Bucs.

Time after time after time the Bucs tried to find a reliable, two-digit sack guy. Time and again, the Bucs swung and missed. And when it appeared the Bucs developed their own double-digit sack guy (Michael Bennett), they let him walk away for no good reason. [read more]

No, the media hasn’t seen the fine print on the contracts of new Buccaneers DE Michael Johnson, TE Brandon Myers, CB Alterraun Verner and DT Clinton McDonald. It’s unknown how much these signing will count against the 2014 salary cap.

On the surface, it seems those deals ate up about $21 million of the roughly $25 million the Bucs had available this season entering free agency. [read more]

Bill Polian explains why Alterraun Verner is in the Dungy-Lovie mold

Yes, Lovie Smith doesn’t like being called a Cover-2, Tampa-2 guy. He’s evolved. The Bears defense evolved under his leadership. Times have changed.

That’s all very nice, except the Bucs are still going to be playing loads of Cover-2 this season. [read more]

Joe wants to say the Bucs won opening day in free agency, but really, when was the last time a team that won free agency made a legitimate run at a Super Bowl? The path to earning high draft picks is often taken by a team that went wild in free agency (yes, Joe is looking at you, Danny Snyder).

Aside from the Revis situation — Joe doubts he will ever get over that — it’s easy to argue the Bucs had a great day yesterday. [read more]

When your website regularly gets 25,000+ sets of passionate eyeballs visiting daily, it’s expected that a chunk of those people will think you’re a complete moron — along with those who think you’re a genius.

That’s how life is for Joe, who is constantly being called an idiot and a blessing. That’s just fine, but Joe feels the need to set the record straight this morning as it relates to soon-to-be ousted, all-world cornerback Darrelle Revis. [read more]

There lots of hunger for a Darrelle Revis return in New York. The Jets faithful don’t want Revis to land with their arch rivals in New England, where credible reports have him coveted by Bill Belicheat. [read more]

Enjoy this audio cut from your newest Buccaneer, Pro Bowl cornerback Alterraun Verner. The 25-year-old took to the SiriusXM NFL Radio airwaves last night to share his excitement for the Tampa Bay area and playing for Lovie Smith, who told him that he’s not just a Tampa-2 man.

“It’s a tough business, my son.”

After today’s free-agency madness, the Bucs could have a whopping 10 new veteran faces on the roster. And Lovie Smith and Jason Licht are just getting started.

If you’re playing the free-agency home game and keeping score, the 2014 Bucs bounty is as follows:. [read more]

A better poker player than John Elway

Don’t even get Joe started on this nonsense of throwing away all-world cornerback Darrelle Revis. Joe woudln’t give a damn if he made $20 million. It’s quite possible we will never see a Bucs cornerback that good again in our lifetimes.

Joe is trying to look at the bright side of yesterday’s moves (and there will be plenty more today), and that is the Bucs nabbed stud cornerback Alterraun Verner in the free agency frenzy. [read more]

It’s a four-year deal

He’s 25, lightning fast, a Pro Bowl cornerback, and now he’s a Buccaneer. The Bucs have signed former Titans CB Alterraun Verner, who hasn’t missed a game in his four seasons in Tennessee and had five picks last year and made his first trip to Hawaii. [read more]