It seems eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune thinks the Bucs will continue to struggle this season.

Just yesterday Joe wrote how he thought if Raheem the Dream could squeeze six wins out of the Bucs, thus doubling his win total from last year, he would almost assuredly be brought back for the next season, whether that is in 2011 or 2012.

But eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune appears to be a bit more cautious in his expectations for the Bucs this fall. Responding to a query in the TBO Bucs question-and-answer feature, Kaufman is of the belief six wins would be a significant feat.

Q: Will the Bucs win 6 games in 2010-2011?

RJ Kerker, Brandon

A: Six wins would be a major step up for the Bucs, setting the stage for a competitive team in 2011 (if there’s football). Five or six wins appears reasonable at this stage, assuming Donald Penn returns to play LT.

— eye-RAH! Kaufman

Notice how Kaufman is qualifying his answer with the Donald Penn issue? Seems as though Kaufman isn’t buying what the Bucs are selling on Demar Dotson, who likely will fill Penn’s void if he sits out any games.

Former Bucs secondary coach Herm Edwards (left) believes former Bucs secondary coach Raheem the Dream (right) just needs some time to develop the Bucs.

Bucs fans have largely beat up on Raheem The Dream for the past year or so. At times it’s very sad to Joe because he can’t help but sometimes think the vitriol is somehow racially motivated, which truly disturbs Joe.

This year will be interesting for Raheem The Dream. If the Bucs, now void of the heinous Jim Bates Experience and loaded with highly-regarded rookies, can make progress, it will go a long way for Raheem the Dream’s job security.

Like Raheem the Dream, Herm Edwards is a former Bucs secondary coach. He believes Raheem The Dream has promise, he just needs a chance. That’s the clear message Edwards sent this morning during his daily early a.m. Twitter session.

@DatDudeEasy: What’s your assessment of Raheem Morris?

@HermEdwardsESPN: Young coach needs time, had a good draft.

Given the fact the Bucs are depending on so many rookies to contribute, never a safe move, Joe believes if Raheem the Dream can double his wins from last year, Raheem the Dream is safe.

Joe has written many times over — and it’s still June — that the Bucs are counting on way too many rookies to shine in order to have a decent record this season.

Though Joe hates being repetitive, one of the rookies Joe hasn’t included in previous missives is defensive back Myron Lewis, who is not expected to start.

It seems eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune is bullish on Lewis. So much so Kaufman, via the TBO Bucs Twitter feed, suggests Lewis could propel the Bucs secondary into elite status.

If Vanderbilt rookie Myron Lewis can handle the nickel back role, the Buccaneers could have one of the better secondaries in the league.

On face value, Joe believes Kaufman has a point. But just as soon as Joe was about to be warmed over by Kaufman, Joe realized it’s possible that eye-RAH! has been watching too much of that kickball tournament the Stalinists at BSPN are trying to brainwash right-thinking, red-blooded Americans with. And it’s possible that those shrill horns those third world denizens incessantly blow that make the St. Petersburg Grand Prix sound like Chopin may have gotten to Kaufman.

He forgot about Sabby the Goat!

Now Joe understands that Sean Jones is pushing Sabby the Goat for the starting role, which doesn’t make Joe rest all that well at night. Unless Sabby the Goat has made dramatic improvement in his play, so long as he is the starter, there’s just no way the Bucs secondary can be among the NFL’s best.

Raheem The Dream loves what he sees in his receivers room. Photo by Kyra Hallett, JoeBucsFan.com.

There was a twinkle in Raheem The Dream’s eye last week when he talked about new wide receivers coach Eric Yarber, the 46-year-old veteran coach the Bucs brought in to replace Richard Mann.

Raheem The Dream explained he likes the spirited teaching and cameraderie Yarber fosters among his charges. The head coach even went so far as to explain that Yarber is the polar opposite of Mann.

“Juice. Energy. Enthusiasm. He’s a fired up guy,” Raheem The Dream told the media when asked to give his impressions of working with Yarber. “I hate to call him a young guy. He’s old. He played with Doug Williams [in Washington]. So I like to give him crap about that. He’s running around like he’s 22. And he’s excited to coach his guys.

“He’s got a nice bounce about him on the practice field. He’s got a nice bounce about him in the meeting rooms. His meeting rooms are very entertaining. He brings back, for me being a head coach, when you walk in that room it kind of gets you back into that feel when you’re a [defensive backs] coach. You get to that room and the guys are there and they’re joking around and they’re working. You’re able to talk to the guys and they’re able to communicate back with you. You’re able to communicate with those guys. You’re able to learn from some of the older guys in that room. He’s able to comment. He’s talking about his experience from his playing days. It’s real nice. It’s a breath fresh air, you know, from what we had. Richard Mann was kind of the opposite. He was a set old back, laid back teacher, a fundamentalist core. You know, and he had a lot of great attributes, as well. But it’s a nice vibe when you go into that room and you see the guys really vibing, and really having that kind of energy chasing them down.”

Raheem The Dream was then asked if Yarber reminds him of himself. (Superior follow up question, actually).

“I don’t want to say that because he’s older than me. You know that’s kind of a smack at where he is [in his career] or whatever. I don’t want to take a shot at my guy.” Raheem The Dream said grinning. “I just see a lot of similar coaching styles that we have together that I would have loved to be a DB coach against him. Because I would have tortured him every day.”

Joe’s glad Raheem The Dream’s receivers are “vibing.” Hopefully, that will help the blocking icon Michael Clayton catch the ball, or perhaps request a trade because he isn’t feelin’ the “vibe.”

That said, Raheem The Dream is in a such a feel-good position compared to last year. Now he has a clue direction.

And he’s got his receivers coach, his defensive coordinator, his quarterback, his quarterback coach, and seemingly his stockpile of defensive draft picks and an offensive coordinator to vibe with.

All the excuses are gone. How refreshing.

Joe stumbled across a FoxSports.com video in which Earnest Graham, Ronde Barber and Barrett Ruud talk about what they like to do in their free time.

Ruud confesses to having been a big fan of “Saved by the Bell.”

Joe found this item to fall under the category of “too much information.” It’s unsettling news bordering on disturbing.

For those unaware, “Saved by the Bell” was some TV series centered around the lives of four high school kids, played by, you know, high school kids. One of the stars blossomed into a beautiful woman, Tiffani-Amber Thiessen, pictured above, played the character of Kelly Kapowski, who Ruud cited as his favorite.

The photo above is one of the very few Joe could find of Ms. Thiessen that borders on non-porn. The vast majority of other photos of Ms. Thiessen will surely get many of Joe’s readers fired. NSFW indeed!

Now Joe never watched the show, basically because it really creeps him out to think of ogling over 15-year old girls which is dangerously close to dirty old man syndrome.

Ruud is not alone in his liking of this show. Joe knows way too many guys who also are enamored by it. Joe is not among them. Just go to TheBigLead.com sometime and type “Kelly Kapowski” into a comment and watch what happens.

And what is it with TBS and these vapid teen angst shows? This “Dawson’s Creek,” how can anyone take a show seriously when Katie Holmes is known to regularly crawl though a guy’s window in the middle of the night? That’s about as absurd as the scene in “Animal House” with a flying woman.

Now Joe has to admit the thought of Katie Holmes entering Joe’s lair unannounced in the wee hours of the evening through a window piques his interest, but really?

At least Joe’s fantasies are somewhat plausible.

To see more of what gets Ruud excited and what Graham and Barber like to do on their days off, check out the video below.

"If I go to Hooters, I won't get any work done."

Perhaps finding inspiration over an overpriced steak and a $10 dessert, Raheem the Dream, in an effort to turn around the Bucs and maybe save his career, has turned to eating out with players, so writes Tom Balog of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune.

Raheem The Dream has even gone to dinner several times in the offseason with linebacker Barrett Ruud to bounce football ideas off of each other’s heads.

Head coach Raheem Morris, who doubles as his own defensive coordinator, said Tuesday he has been out to dinner with Ruud on three occasions this offseason, to set the course for the defense.

“We’ve had a couple dinners together,” Morris said. “We talked about what we wanted to be and how we wanted to do it and a lot of things we want to do on defense. That’s my ‘quarterback.’ … As you know, you’re going to go as far as your leader takes you.”

Now Joe heard Raheem The Dream talk about this and the head coach claimed he and Ruud dined at swanky Tampa joints Grill One Sixteen, Iavarone’s and Donatello. 

Joe finds it interesting Bucs coaches think they can get more accomplished by chowing down. Chucky was famous for bringing players to Hooters, ostensibly to talk football.

Reams of words have been typed and spoken about the Donald Penn mess. But so much attention has been focused on Penn that another area has all but been ignored.

Two years ago as a rookie, Jeremy Zuttah filled in early in the 2008 season for an injured Davin Joseph at right guard. Zuttah’s name was rarely mentioned during Joseph’s absence, which is the highest honor an offensive lineman can have.

But playing on the left side for Arron Sears, Zuttah’s name was called more than a few times. In short, he struggled. Apparently, per eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune, via the TBO.com Bucs Twitter feed, the Bucs are much more worried about Zuttah then they may be letting on publicly.

The Bucs are concerned about third-year pro Jeremy Zuttah, who struggled while filling in for Arron Sears at left guard last season.

This makes the contract issue of Penn all the more alarming. If Zuttah continues to struggle on the left side of the line, and the Bucs have to rely on a basketball player with limited football experience at left tackle, the Bucs better hope Freeman continues to be fleet of feet.

Or has a good healthcare plan.

Photo by Kyra Hallett, JoeBucsFan.com.

Following yesterday’s final minicamp session, Raheem The Dream stood before the media to take offseason wrap-up questions. The Bucs reconvene for training camp’s opening day on July 31.

As part of answers to various questions, Raheem The Dream made it clear that he puts little stock in evaluating players during OTAs and minicamps when they’re not wearing pads.

“Training camp for me, as you know, is going to be about physical. It’s going to be about about violence. It’s going to be about playing hard. It’s going to be about putting your face on people. Training camp is a little bit different. To me, that’s when you establish the men. You take off your underwear, put on your big boy pads and put your face on people. And that’s what training camp is about. You know, then once you get toward the game, you start to prepare like you kind of done today. And that’s when your development shows up from the offseason.”

Joe’s glad to see the Raheem The Dream keep talking about “violence.” That gets Joe all fired up, and it’s good to see Raheem The Dream isn’t being censored by the word police again.

The Bucs are filled with young guys battling for minutes, especially on the defensive line, where Brian Price and Roy Miller will slug it out at nosetackle and defensive end Kyle Moore has an awful lot to prove.

Joe’s just hoping that all that training camp violence in the trenches doesn’t result in an injury. The Bucs are pretty darn thin on those lines.

Last year heralded first round pick Josh Freeman signed early, never coming close to a holdout.

This year the Bucs went heavy with defensive tackles early in their draft, and then dumped veteran tackle Chris Hovan. In short, the Bucs painted themselves into a corner as far as needing to avoid holdouts to have any prayer of a winning season.

Mike Florio, the creator, curator and overall guru of ProFootballTalk.com discusses in this video the innerworkings of how contract negotiations work out.

Breaking sports news video. MLB, NFL, NBA, NHL highlights and more.

In his strongest admission to date that he was overmatched in 2009, Raheem The Dream got in front of the microphone yesterday and explained why he’s ready to be a successful head coach this year. 

Raheem The Dream likened himself to his bride, Josh Freeman, who last year as a rookie was green and unprepared for success but has since grabbed a leadership role like Joe wishes he could one day clutch Carmella Garcia.

“I just think in Year 2 you get a better direction and sense of where you should be. You know, before this, before you become a head coach, you just think what you should do and hope it’s right,” Raheem The Dream said. “Now, I’m at a different stage. I’m at a different point. I’m like Josh Freeman, as a head coach. I’m at a different point where I got direction. I know exactly what we want to do, and now it’s up to me to demand that we execute, demand that we be accountable of it. From a players’ standpoint, a coaches’ standpoint and also a management standpoint.”

Now Joe loves the head coach’s candor. But it’s pretty ugly stuff for a fan to hear after a 3-13 season.

Like Raheem The Dream had “hope” he was doing what was best for the Bucs in 2009, Joe hopes that Raheem The Dream was one helluva student who learned from all those mistakes and the handful of successes.

Beyond a shortage of proven talent, Raheem The Dream has no excuses for 2010.

It’s been more than a week since Bucs general manager Mark Dominik stated he would begin fining Donald Penn if the embattled Bucs left tackle didn’t show up for mandatory minicamp because of his contract dispute.

Joe smelled something fishy immediately. Not knowing the intimate details of CBA nuances, Joe thought it was inaccurate that a team could fine a player who isn’t even under contract.

How is that possible? Joe argued with a reader in the comments section that the Bucs could lower their salary offer to Penn but couldn’t “fine” him. But when no other media outlet disputed the fine aspect of the story, Joe just shrugged his shoulders figuring he was wrong or misguided.

In fact, Joe was on to something. But Joe made the mistake of not following the scent of a story. Joe has a strong dialogue with super agent Ralph Cindrich, and Joe could have easily texted him to get the right answer.

But Joe didn’t, partly because he likely got distracted by a nasty four-letter word called “work.” Still, that is no legitimate excuse. Joe should have made time to follow up.

The rest of the local media surely had no such excuse for not following up on this story — because it is their job. This has Steve White outraged.

The former Bucs defensive lineman who writes a weekly “Bull Rush” column for Joe, sounded off about the issue on his blog. In short, White wonders why the local fourth estate: print, radio and TV, swallowed Dominik’s explanation whole without checking the ingredients first?

Well it turns out the story was bulls[p]it. Absolute unequivocal bulls[p]it. And not one member of the local media fact checked the assertion before the deadline passed. Obviously if Penn’s agent had fallen for the ploy and urged him to sign a tender based on false information it would have been on him for falling for the okie dokie. But how sickening would it have been for him personally to sign the contract because of that threat only to subsequently find out he had been played? Better yet what kind of apology would any of those members of the media been able to offer for their role in perpetrating what could have been a VERY costly lie?

Its crazy because all of a sudden today all of the same media outlets are simultaneously reporting that they “discovered” that the assertion wasn’t true. As if they all at the same time decided to do some fact checking. I will leave it up to you to decide how they all came to this revelation at once but the question remains, why in the hell didn’t they fact check it to begin with when the assertion was made and before they “reported” it?

And that in a nutshell is the problem I have with members of the media and in this case specifically the sports media when it comes to reporting on NFL players. Instead of reporting nowadays they are instead doing more repeating than anything else. Hell if I was Dominik and I knew nobody would call me out for spreading false information I might do it too. What exactly is the downside for him if the media is willing to be his happy accomplice? People this is why I keep telling you to make up your own mind about these situations. I’m not saying you should back the players on every issue, but at least be open to the fact that you may not be getting the whole or correct story.

Joe raises his hand acknowledging his sins. Just like it is refreshing to hear players speak humbly if not honestly, it would also be refreshing if the Bucs media brigade also acknowledged they were at fault.

Joe knows at least one member of the fourth estate whose ego won’t allow him to do the right thing.

Which Buccaneer could go down as a legend at his position?

Ronde Barber? Maybe Aqib Talib if he can continue to improve?

Joe could toss out plenty of speculation. However, Jeff Faine already has an answer. And it wreaks of bribery, corruption and media manipulation. Or maybe Faine just lost it for a moment.

In speaking about the Donald Penn situation to Rick Stroud, aka The Mad Twitter of The St. Pete Times, Faine said Demar Dotson could be one of the best left tackles to ever play in the NFL.

“I think a lot of us take it for granted. I think he’s a very, very bright star with a lot of potential and has a great attitude and a great work ethic. He wants to learn. He wants to keep improving and I think if he puts it all together, he could be one of the best to ever play the game. Now that’s a lot being said and it’s a pretty good ways away, but he has a chance.”

No doubt Faine is enamored with the sheer size of Dotson, who is 6-9, 315, and has no sign of a weight problem. But surely Faine has to know that it would take nothing short of a miracle for Dotson to emerge as a stud left tackle on any team, let alone turning into Jonathan Ogden.

The odds of Dotson even getting a shot at seeing a regular season start are slim.

One of the most intelligent Buccaneers hands down, Faine rarely wastes words and loses track of his message. Joe can only assume Faine went a little overboard in praising Dotson by request.

Because he's missed workouts due to a hamstring and classes at UCLA, Anwar Richardson says defensive tackle Brian Price is lagging behind his fellow rookie teammates.

Anwar Richardson, of the Tampa Tribune, decided to drop in on a local radio show with a name only a gonif would not like, “The King David Show,” with Shaun King and Toby David on WQYK-AM 1010 Tuesday.

The Bucs beat writer discussed a wide variety of Bucs subjects including what’s going on with Bucs rookie defensive tackle Brian Price.

“[Tuesday], practice looked better. It’s hard to judge linemen in minicamp. Aqib Talib continues to excel. And we’ve seen a little more from Arrelious Benn.

“The guy who is looking really improved is Mo Stovall. I know his knock is he is always looking good in the preseason.

“Freeman feels this is his team. He’s not an in-your-face, yell at you motivator. He has more of a calm demeanor but he is all business.

“Ronde Barber, with all these years in the league, is still balling hard and fighting for balls. If anyone relaxes, he will take off on him.

“We won’t know much more [about the Bucs] until training camp.”

Shaun King: Tell us about how Sammie Stroughter is playing at wide receiver?

Richardson: He looked good and I talked to Sammie. He feels much more comfortable in the slot. They tried to put him out on the outside. He’s a smaller-framed guy. Sort of like a Wes Welker. He can choose his spots and bounce off of linebackers and do it that way. If you are talking about lining him up outside and up against the premiere cornerbacks in the league, I’m not sure he is built that way. If you keep him in the slot, you have a couple of safety valves: him and Kellen Winslow to choose from.

Now as far as a long ball, you still need to have someone to emerge as THE receiver, like Antonio Bryant. You have to have someone to step up and emerge whether it’s Mo Stovall or Mike Williams or even Michael Clayton. They claim they do not have a No. 1 guy now, and they will need to find out who that will be.

King: What’s the battle like between Sabby Piscitelli and Sean Jones?

Richardson: It’s as even as it can be. Each guy on each day was the No. 1 guy that day. When they are alternating, that is clearly letting you know they do not know who is No. 1 at that position. But it also tells you how hard Sean Jones has come in and worked hard and made up ground. They will give him every opportunity to take Sabby Piscitelli’s job.

Toby David: Talk about your interview with left tackle Demar Dotson.

Richardson: I just wanted to know where his head was at as he may be a starting left tackle in the NFL. He was very honest. He is not there now. He wasn’t cowering in the corner. He was just realizing that he is only playing football in his third year and now you are talking about me going against the premiere right defensive ends in the game?

At the end of June, is he ready to be the starting left tackle? No. He is just being realistic that he knows what it takes to be a starting left tackle and that he could still learn from Donald Penn.

David: Will Penn miss any regular season games [in a holdout dispute]?

Richardson: I don’t think it will go as far as missing regular season games. That cuts into your paycheck. What I think he will do, if he holds out, and misses most of the offseason and signs right before the season, it will take him a couple of weeks to catch up.

Why not put a weight clause in his contact? Doing research, a weight clause is not an uncommon thing. So they can put a weight clause in his contract and pay him but it comes down to they don’t want to pay him.

Every day he is not in a uniform is another day he won’t be in a Bucs uniform next year.

King: Any rumblings? Has there been progress?

Richardson: It seems like they are not interested. They are not any closer. Donald Penn’s agent has offered up a lot of different contracts and a lot of different options and he wants to be a part of this organization. He loves Raheem Morris. Donald Penn wants to be part of [the Bucs rebirth], but the Bucs are not interested in paying him long-term money and the signing bonus.

Offering to pay only 110 percent of last year’s salary, Dominik is drawing his line in the sand.

King: Talk about some of the rookies.

Richardson: As far as [Brian] Price, he’s had a hamstring injury and he was in classes at UCLA and unable to go to a lot of the OTAs so he has fallen behind. Now OTAs are a lot more important for rookies than an OTA is going to be for Ronde Barber. Price will need to catch up on a lot of ground.

Good guy Stephen Holder, of the St. Petersburg Times, and his comrade the Mad Twitterer discuss what progress the Bucs made in the offseason works, and what fans should expect at training camp some five weeks from now in this Times video.

There are some things Joe does daily: eat, sleep, groom himself and watch the NFL Network.

In this piece from One Buc Palace, NFL Network’s Scott Hanson reports about how Bucs second-year quarterback Josh Freeman is different entering his second season with the Bucs and his first full season as the starting quarterback.

In short, reports Hanson, Freeman had trouble remembering both plays and teammates’ names last year.

Hanson also brings word about what Freeman’s schedule will be like after this week’s mandatory minicamp. In short, Freeman is going to one of the most beautiful cities in America.

Hanson even knows what Freeman is going to do at said city. Let’s just say it’s some damn fine reporting, and it’s unlikely Joe would be doing the same thing in said city.

One of the reasons the Bucs loaded up on wide receivers in the draft — other than the fact it was clearly the weakest link of the team — was that the Bucs wanted to get some physicality on the field.

Sure, blocking icon Michael Clayton is physical, but there’s that nasty little issue about, you know, catching the ball.

When the Bucs picked up Illinois wide receiver Arrelious Benn, it seemed as though the Bucs may have gotten the guy they wanted. Benn, if one was to read between the lines, was to catch short passes and turn them into long gains due to his ability with YAC.

Benn made a play this morning, per Stephen Holder of the St. Petersburg Times, though his Twitter feed, that showed Benn already has some veteran physical moves.

Arrelious Benn gets vertical w/40 yard TD from Josh Freeman in 7 on 7. Used body to shield off CB Elbert Mack.

Bingo: Using the body as a shield to get position on the ball. The fact a rookie wide receiver in his first minicamp is doing this against a guy with a couple of years of NFL experience under his belt puts a smile on Joe’s face.

The one thing that Joe is impressed about Raheem the Dream is the dude is high on life.

When Raheem the Dream’s not chestbumping his players, the guy is bouncing around, shaking hands with fans, chatting them up, laughing, slapping backs, high-fiving. Joe imagines he would walk on the same cloud if somehow Rachel Watson answered his e-mails.

Yesterday, however, Raheem the Dream was anything but giddy. Per Tom Balog of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Raheem the Dream scolded his players, yelled at them for being sluggish.

It was not the false start and offsides penalities that got under his skin.

He gathered the players in the middle of the field for an intense water break, using some choice words, raising his voice to remind them what they apparently failed to understand and carry out from the team meetings.

 ”We have to increase our urgency in practice, on how we get on and off the field in those situations,” Morris said. “It’s easy to sit in a meeting and say it’s going to be a game-like situation. Then you have to put your mindset where you’re in a game-like situation.”

Now before Joe gets going here, please do not try to play detective and to read anything more into this next sentence: Could it be, after a horrid 3-13 season watching a football version of a track meet known as the Jim Bates Experiment, that Raheem the Dream senses he needs to start pushing buttons and kicking arses in order to make sure he has (at least) a third season as Bucs head coach?

Just a few short weeks ago, Doug Williams left the Bucs, a franchise that meant so much to him as both a player and a front office executive.

Now it seems as though Williams has bounced back on his feet quite nicely.

Per Mike Florio, the creator, curator and overall guru of ProFootballTalk.com, Williams is the new general manager of the Norfolk Whateverthehelltheyarecalled of the United Football League.

Norfolk is an expansion team in the UFL and will play in the same division as the world renowned Florida Tuskers.

Joe wonders if Marcus Vick will be the starting quarterback for the Whateverthehelltheyarecalled?

In sort of a throwback to Chucky’s edict of scoop and score, Raheem the Dream seems to have a phrase he wants his defense to live by:

“Get the ball back!”

That’s the word from dapper Rick Brown of the Lakeland Ledger. He claims Raheem the Dream is drilling that into the heads of his troops. It’s a far cry from the moniker of the heinous Jim Bates Experiment which, best as Joe could tell, was, “Watch and chase.”

This Raheem the Dream mindset is part of the reason why the Bucs signed free agent safety Sean Jones: to get the ball back.

“For the most part, I’ve been doing that for most of my career, and right now, I think I’m reaching the pinnacle of my career,” Jones said. “I think the sky’s the limit. I think my best years are ahead of me.”

Up the middle for the Bucs defense was a sieve worse than a BP oil leak in the Gulf of Texaco. Defensive tackle Chris Hovan is gone. Embattled middle linebacker Barrett Ruud was seemingly piling up tackles seven yards downfield which he claimed were game-savers. Sabby the Goat… well, there’s a reason the Bucs signed Sean Jones.

Despite drafting a pair of rookie defensive tackles and signing Jones, there are still a lot of question marks for the Bucs defense. If somehow Raheem the Dream can shore that up, it will go a long way to getting the Bucs to flirt with a winning record.

THE PESSIMIST is a diehard Bucs fan whose negative writings appear occasionally on JoeBucsFan.com. His views surely do not necessarily reflect those of Joe. However, Joe sure gets a kick out of them.

Back in the old days of 2009, when the Bucs had to tangle with the dreaded (for them) salary cap floor, Mark Dominik invested $20 million+ of guaranteed money in banged up Kellen Winslow.

Winslow wasn’t a foodaholic and was a “long-term goal guy,”  so Dominik paid him big — and a year before he had to — despite Winslow’s chronic knee pain after five knee surgeries.

So what’s the holdup in signing left tackle Donald Penn to a long term deal? Penn surely plays a position far more important to the Bucs than Winslow.

Oh, yeah. THE PESSIMIST almost forgot. The holdup exists because the productive and chronically healthy Penn couldn’t control his appetite in 2009, Dominik explained to fans last week.

THE PESSIMIST has emerged early for the 2010 season to proclaim that not signing Penn to a long term deal is the biggest pile of horse crap the Bucs have served up since they announced a “sellout” for their last home game.

Didn’t Penn already lose the 40 pounds of blubber wedged under Dominik’s skin? And since when are offensive linemen supposed to be Denise Austin?

It sure seems to THE PESSIMIST like svelte Mr. Dominik despises fat people.

THE PESSIMIST knows that Joel Glazer told everyone that “money will never be an issue,” so it can only be last year’s fat that is standing in the way of the Bucs locking up their very solid left tackle for the next several years.

But the kicker here to Dominik’s line of fat-loathing baloney is that there is no Plan B. There’s no other legitimate left tackle in the mix. The Bucs have no bluff. The fans and Penn see the Bucs’ cards, and Demar Dotson doesn’t beat a pair of threes.

Why this Dominik is such a fat hater that he’d rather let Josh Freeman get clobbered from behind every week than give a reformed out-of-control eater the contract he’s earned.

THE PESSIMIST laughs at fans who say Penn will never hold out of training camp and would never pass on the Bucs’ $3 million, one-year tender offer. On the contrary, THE PESSIMIST is quite certain Penn has the sack to squeeze the Bucs.

Any active ballplayer with enough drive to gain 40 pounds during a football season, and then turn around and work it off a handful of months later, is not someone lacking resolve.

By NFL standards, Penn is a low-risk guy when it comes to investing in a young player. He’s proven. He’s healthy. He’s got good feet. And he’s worked hard through the ranks, rather than relying heavily on physical gifts or the special favor that comes with being a high draft pick.

Yet Dominik won’t let the year-old moths out of Team Glazer’s vault, all because Penn was too fat. Yeah, that’s past tense.

Maybe THE PESSIMIST has had too many Twinkies dipped in maple syrup, but THE PESSIMIST  just can’t find any sound on-the-field logic for Dominik to risk losing Penn for a chunk of 2010 and for years to come.

So stop gambling, Dominik. Pay the former food junkie and restore a shred of common sense to your regime.

Good guy Stephen Holder, of the St. Petersburg Times, and his colleague the Mad Twitterer discuss today’s morning session of first day of Bucs minicamp in this Times video.