When the Pro Bowl kicks off at 7 p.m. tonight, Joe knows there are still plenty of Bucs fans who will be wondering what voters Gerald McCoy paid off to get him there.

But thinking, sober Bucs fans know better than to doubt the validity of McCoy’s honor.

Could McCoy be a better player? Absolutely. Is McCoy worthy of the Pro Bowl? Joe will let Falcons head coach Mike Smith explain, via a new feature from Woody Cummings, of The Tampa Tribune.

Falcons coach Mike Smith, who like Rivera has the chore of game-planning twice a year for McCoy, has a nickname for players who consistently impact plays: Game Wreckers. Smith used the term repeatedly in talking about McCoy during a break in Senior Bowl workouts last week in Mobile, Ala.

“He’s the type of defensive tackle you would definitely call a game-wrecker, and as such he’s the type you have to make sure you have a specific game plan for,” Smith said. “He’s just so good at disrupting your plays. We have a number of them on film, both against the run and against the pass.

“He just creates so many issues for you, whether it’s forcing a back to start and stop and redirect or affecting the quarterback. What he does is slow everything down and disrupt things so that the linebackers and the other second-level players can come in and finish off the plays.”

Panthers coach Ron Rivera also goes into explaining McCoy’s value in the feature story. Joe heard the comments from opposing coaches all season — McCoy is a menace more times than not.

Now the real mystery was what McCoy was doing holding Doug Martin over his head at the Pro Bowl (see previous post below). That question is answered in this fun Hawaii video below from NewsChannel 8, whosecured footage of “The Dini” treating the Bucs’ rookie stud like a toy.

Yes, that’s Gerald McCoy carrying Doug Martin. … What happens in Hawaii, stays in Hawaii.

Joe would love to inject Raheem Morris and rockstar general manager Mark Dominik with truth serum and demand to know who they wanted more on opening day of the 2010 draft: Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy?

Suh went to the Lions with the No. 2 overall pick, and McCoy came to Tampa at No. 3. For some reason, McCoy felt the need to explain there is no bad blood between the two defensive tackles in this Buccaneers.com video from Pro Bowl practice in Hawaii. McCoy grabs the microphone and runs down Suh for a chat.

They get all affectionate and McCoy claims, “we’re takin’ over the league.”

Joe hopes McCoy is predicting the future. If McCoy gets another notch better next season, the entire Bucs defense will be impacted positively.

Joe remembers the San Francisco 49ers, in the early Bill Walsh days, were in a similar position as the Bucs, where there was such a void in the secondary, Walsh drafted four defensive backs in the Niners’ first five picks.

Three of those rookies (Ronnie Lott, the good Eric Wright and Carlton Williamson) started right away and helped the Niners win their first Super Bowl.

But it is rare that loading up so early on one position works. Based on that information, the Custodian of Canton, eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune, cautions Bucs fans not to expect Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik to pull a similar stunt.

Q: Do you think with the extra fourth-round pick that Tampa rolls the dice and picks up three cornerbacks in the first three rounds? One of them could also play safety in case Ronde Barber retires!

— George Hicks, Alba, Texas

A: I can’t see the Bucs using their first three draft picks on defensive backs. That strategy rarely works and the Bucs have other pressing needs like tight end, right tackle and along the defensive line. There’s no question the secondary needs a significant upgrade, but focusing exclusively on cornerback in the premium rounds of the draft is risky business. The Bucs will know whether Ronde Barber is returning before they start the draft, and you are correct in suggesting that decision will play a role in their overall strategy.

— eye-RAH! Kaufman

eye-RAH! is correct. The Bucs, though in need of corners, aren’t going to go nuts using half their picks on cornerbacks. That just isn’t going to happen.

If the Bucs trade down and land, say, Xavier Rhodes out of Florida State, that doesn’t mean the Bucs are going to go on a run of defensive backs.

Joe can see Dominik drafting two corners, no more.

Joe spoke with five prospects last week at the East-West Shrine practices and game that could be targets of the Bucs, three cornerbacks, one safety and one linebacker. The Bucs have a pattern for prospects: multiple years as a starter, played for a big-time program or conference, and served as a team captain. The Bucs rarely deviate from this pattern. Some have met all three qualifications for a Bucs draftee; some have not.

Name: Nick Moody
School: Florida State
Position: Linebacker
Size: 6-2, 237
Started: Three years
Captain: Yes.
Have Bucs representatives spoken to him?: Yes.
Background: A versatile player who is built like a Roman gladiator, Moody was a three-year starter who appeared in every game for the Seminoles as a redshirt freshman. Moody was a safety and this past year moved to outside linebacker. At safety, he was sort of a John Lynch-type player in that he made opposing ballcarriers pay with punishing hits. That may have been why the Seminoles tried him out at linebacker his senior year with modest success. But it is that versatility that raises the eyebrows of NFL scouts, including the Bucs who have talked to Moody. His sophomore season was his best mainly because he was injury-free and had 44 solo tackles. In the last four games of the 2010 season against Maryland, Florida, Virginia Tech and South Carolina Moody racked up 40 tackles.
Sales pitch to Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik: “I bring a lot of athleticism to the position, I am physical and I am willing to learn and I love playing the game. Linebacker or safety, I don’t care. I can play either one. I just want to be in the NFL.”
Profile: Though from Pennsylvania, Moody grew up a Bucs fan and if he were granted a wish, it would be the Bucs who draft him. “I would love it. There is a tradition of FSU linebackers here but on top of that, I love the Tampa Bay Bucs. I would be proud to be a Buc.” Moody is an absolute rock of a physical specimen; chiseled. It is that blend of physicality and speed which makes NFL scouts take notice. It is his ability to be able to play linebacker and safety that Moody claims would be perfect for the NFL game. “Versatility is important. When you look at tight ends, they do so many multiple things. They can go wide, they can run receiver routes and you see a lot of that as the game has become more of a passing game now.”

Below is a clip of how Moody laid wood to people when he was a sophomore.

Newcomers around here may have realized that Joe never sleeps when it comes to the Bucs. JoeBucsFan.com is a 24/7 operation. No matter the day or month, Joe hammers away.

Loyal readers know Joe makes his annual trek to media day and assorted events to gather all kinds of Bucs-related interviews and news, snap photos of talented ladies, and mingle with various movers and shakers in the world of the NFL. Joe enjoys such travels, and Joe gets all sorts of juicy insider perspective and info. (unfortunately, much of the good stuff is off the record).

This year is no exception, Joe will embark for New Orleans on Monday. Beer and fantastic food will be consumed in mass quantities.

Joe thanks you for your patronage. Readership continues to grow around here, and Joe pledges to press on in his quest to make you the most informed and entertained Bucs fans on earth.

Joe actually was interested in watching the Pro Bowl on Sunday, but now Joe is a bit freaked out by the thought of seeing Muscle Hampster, Doug Martin, getting put in unfamiliar positions, which could raise the possibility of an injury to the Bucs’ franchise running back.

Rookies at the Pro Bowl play plenty of special teams, and Martin explained to Buccaneers.com that he was practicing there this week and it was all new to him.

Please, football gods, please don’t let Martin bust up his neck making a tackle or blow out his knee getting clipped on the punt return team.

The legendary player personnel man of the old Cowboys teams (1960 to 1988), Gil Brandt, still grinds away as a draft guru and player analyst for NFL.com, and he hosts an excellent show on SiriusXM NFL Radio. The man was on the cutting edge of scouting for years.

So it was very troubling yesterday when Brandt pumped out a written ranking and analysis of NFL quarterbacks under 30 years old. (Jay Cutler was not included because he turns 30 before the 2013 season).

Brandt stuck Josh Freeman at the bottom of his “C” level tier at No. 14, and if you consider all the NFL starters 30 years old or older, it’s clear that Brandt believes Freeman’s inconsistency and 24-32 career record as a Bucs starter can not be brushed off. Freeman even checks in below Alex Smith and Ryan Tannehill. The horror!

11) Alex Smith, 28, San Francisco 49ers

Smith was playing well in 2012 before a concussion sent him to the sideline, clearing the way for Kaepernick to take over. The comparatively older Smith is better than advertised as a player, but there are still question marks about him. Would he have been able to bring the Niners back from a 17-0 deficit in Atlanta last Sunday? Like I alluded to above, it’s highly questionable.

12) Ryan Tannehill, 24, Miami Dolphins

Tannehill has the size, arm strength and athletic ability to eventually jump into Group B. It will help if the Dolphins can surround him with a more talented cast. He’ll also benefit — more than any other player in Group C — from having a year of experience under his belt.

13) Andy Dalton, 25, Cincinnati Bengals

Dalton is a very solid, hard-working player who most likely won’t win much on his own. He did take Cincinnati to the playoffs his first two seasons in the league, but he seems to need the help of an outstanding supporting cast to get anywhere.

14) Josh Freeman, 25, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

After a great 2010 and an awful 2011, Freeman was inconsistent in 2012. He did lose weight last offseason, and it seemed to give him a boost in the early going … before he fell back late. He possesses everything needed to do the job; why does he run so hot and cold?

Here’s the full list:

Aaron Rodgers
Matt Ryan
Joe Flacco
Colin Kaepernick
Russell Wilson
Cam Newton
Robert Griffin III
Matthew Stafford
Sam Bradford
Alex Smith
Ryan Tannehill
Andy Dalton
Josh Freeman
Jake Locker
Christian Ponder
Blaine Gabbert
Brandon Weeden
Matt Flynn

Joe doesn’t agree with the list. Joe would have a seizure if the Bucs traded Freeman for Alex Smith or Ryan Tannehill.

However, Brandt’s evaluation does make Joe wonder what other NFL personnel types think of Freeman and how that might factor into any future Freeman-Bucs contract talks. Regardless, Freeman truly is in a make-or-break year. He’s run out of excuses.

OK, so we learned All-World cornerback Darrelle Revis of the Jets may be on the trading block. It makes all the sense in the world for the Jets. Revis is a free agent after the 2013 season and has a clause in his contract he cannot be franchised.

So if the Jets are going to get something for him they may as well trade him rather than watching him walk away Scot free.

Now that brings up the Bucs, who are desperate for a cornerback like a man stranded in a desert with scant water. Even if the Bucs drafted a corner in the first round, it takes a year or two for a drafted corner to reach his potential. Revis is one of the best. Now.

OK, so Revis is coming off a knee injury which is scary and actually gives Joe pause. But as former Raiders Super Bowl quarterback Rich Gannon, who co-hosts “The Blitz” on NFL Radio with popular sports radio personality Adam Schein, said Thursday morning that any team interested in Revis will certainly work him out and at that time it will be very clear if Revis’ knee is healthy or not.

Joe is all for getting Revis, provided the price is right. But Joe would pretty much demand the Bucs sign Revis to a long-term contract first. Renting him at this point is a joke. The Bucs are not one player away from a Super Bowl. This isn’t like trading for Chucky when a Super Bowl window is about closed. For a Super Bowl window to be open, a team first must at least take a snap in a playoff game. The Bucs right now have no Super Bowl window.

Trading, say, next year’s first round pick, a second pick (any year) and/or the fourth pick from the Patriots for cabbie-slugging, Adderall-popping, helmet-wielding Aqib Talib is OK with Joe, again, provided Revis signs a long-term pact. Keep this year’s first round pick. If the Bucs trade for Revis, the Bucs could also trade down in the first round and recoup one of the spent picks and still get another first-round corner to pair with Revis for the foreseeable future.

As Schein said Thursday, “Should be the Bucs be interested in Darrelle Revis? Of course. Should they make a play for Revis? You damned right.”

Joe agrees, only if the price is right and only if Revis agrees to a contract extension. No contract extension, no Revis, that simple.

Look, Joe knows Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik covets draft picks more than Joe covets the warm embrace of Rachel Watson. So Joe cannot believe Dominik would trade a first-round pick just to rent a player for one year where there are still so many areas that need an upgrade. Such a move would be reckless.

Joe spoke with five prospects last week at the East-West Shrine practices and game that could be targets of the Bucs, three cornerbacks, one safety and one linebacker. The Bucs have a pattern for prospects: multiple years as a starter, played for a big-time program or conference, and served as a team captain. The Bucs rarely deviate from this pattern. Some have met all three qualifications for a Bucs draftee; some have not.

Name: Terry Hawthorne
School: Illinois
Position: Cornerback
Size: 6-1, 193
Started: Three years
Captain: Yes.
Have Bucs representatives spoken to him?: Yes.
Background: A physical corner with good size, who also returns kicks, Hawthorne was impressive to Joe at practices in that when he played close to the line, receivers often found themselves on the ground before they could start their routes, which in Joe’s eyes is the best cornerback defense: put the receiver on the ground. “I am pretty big, aggressive corner that loves to get up there and I get a chance to get my hands on you at the line, it will be a busted route for you,” Hawthorne said.
Sales pitch to Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik: “I am a guy with great character and a guy with a great passion for the game and just love to get out there and help out my teammates.”
Profile: Hawthorne comes from Bucs front seven coach Bryan Cox’s hometown, East St. Louis, Ill., which if anyone has ever been there, knows that the goal isn’t bonding with expatriates, but to get the hell out. Just doing that is impressive. Hawthorne was hurt much of his junior year after drilling a Wisconsin ballcarrier, missed a game and probably wasn’t the same since. In 44 career games and 26 starts for the Fighting Illini, Hawthorne had 163 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, a sack, six interceptions and two pick-sixes. Probably had his best game this season against undefeated Ohio State when Hawthorne had 10 tackles, including career-highs in solos (nine) and tackles for loss (two), recorded his first career sack and had a career-best six kickoff returns for a career-high 158 yards, including a career-long 45-yarder. Hawthorne also played some nickel and his a self-professed filmroom junkie.

Below are some highlights of Hawthorne against Ohio State this year. Joe likes how Hawthorne can shed blocks.

Tuesday night, Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik spoke with Alex Marvez, co-host of “Late Hits,” heard exclusively on SiriusXM NFL Radio, to discuss the state of the Bucs. Included in the topics were Josh Freeman, Gerald McCoy and how the Bucs haven’t talked to Ronde Barber about his immediate future. Oh, and in case Bucs fans were unaware, Josh Freeman is 24 (just turned 25, actually).

Alex Marvez: Your team showed some good improvement in the first year of Greg Schiano. Obviously, you fell short of where you want to be. You finished the season not quite where you want to be. How do you look back at the 2012 season?

Mark Dominik: I thought there was a lot of progress in our football team. Our record was not where we want it to be Alex, we finished the season 7-9 but there were a lot of bright spots. No. 1 team against the run, standout performances by some young guys and some veterans stepped up. Set some offensive records in rushing and receiving. Doug Martin came in and had a great season, capped off the Senior Bowl from last year. It is all about wins and losses and we are not quite where we want to be.

Marvez: I am glad you brought up The Muscle Hamster, Mr. Doug Martin, who is headed to the Pro Bowl, he was an alternate and Frank Gore is now going to the Super Bowl. Take us back here to the Senior Bowl last year. You obviously scouted him extensively before the Senior Bowl. What did he do that caught your eye here last year to form that opinion of him?

Dominik: Well a lot of it was his practice and his effort. All the pieces we had, like you said, going into the Senior Bowl, just like Lavonte David here last year. This is a really important event and we got two great football players from this event who started all 16 games for us last year and we look forward to this event. Hopefully we can have the same success. Those two players are really who we are building around for our future.

Marvez: Mark, I know you had to put a lot of [digits] on a check to get Vincent Jackson to come to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from the San Diego Chargers. I think he was worth every penny, what an outstanding season. Talk about what you learned about this man and how he joined your team, what he brought to the Tampa Bay Bucs.

Dominik: Vincent was quickly a captain of our football team. An outstanding human being, both on and off the football field. Really immersed himself into the Tampa Bay area and got involved with the military as well. He has been a great mentor for our young players like Mike Williams and Arrelious Benn. He has helped the entire offense grow and he is a phenomenal football player when you think about all the passes he caught and he averaged almost 20 yards every time he touched the football. He has been a great weapon for Josh Freeman and that is why we put those two together. We are excited about Josh being 24 and all that he is doing and you match him up with a massive playmaker, and Mike Williams came off a big season so we are excited about what we have going on with our offense in Tampa. I think we will get everything going together. The NFL is tough but the NFC South is certainly tough and we have our work cut out for us.

Marvez: Josh had an incredible stretch at one point during the season and then dipped off a little bit toward the end, I know you had injuries on the offensive line and some other issues. How would you assess the positives and the potential negatives in the 2012 season for Josh?

Dominik: I thought Josh actually had — he set club records for passing in a single season and he is our all-time touchdown passing leader in Tampa Bay history being only 24 years old. There are a lot of positives I have for Josh going into the 2013 season and into the future. Again, he is going 24 years old. We are excited. Sure, he went through some tough spots during the season but our team did too. All flowed together really well. We finished the season on a high note when we played a really good football team [Dixie Chicks] that day and that was important. We finished a couple of drives and stopped a couple of drives at the end and that is important. We missed out on some wins because we didn’t finish. We finished the season with a win and hopefully we can build on that for the 2013 season.

Marvez: Ronde Barber seems ageless. Playing at a high level. What is his status on the 2013 season? Have you had a chance to talk to him yet as a staff to see what his future holds?

Dominik: We haven’t. We haven’t had the chance to sit down with Ronde yet but we probably will sometime in early February and we will sit down with Greg, myself and Ronde and try to figure out what he wants to do and we will go from there. He played at another high level this year making the transition to safety and I think people tend to forget he is 185 pounds and he hasn’t missed a start in 215 consecutive games. It’s an incredible stat. It is a testament to who he is and how he keeps his body in condition so to be mentioned as an alternate to the pro bowl with a position change is really impressive what this guy has done in his football career.

Marvez: Love to see the development of Gerald McCoy, he’s a great young man and has finally been able to stay healthy and show what he can do. What did you see from him in 2012?

Dominik: Lot of disruption again for us. He set a career high in sacks for us which, I know he can continue to build upon. In terms of negative yards, he was the driving force in why we were so strong against the run. We just have to improve again on the pass but Gerald was really disruptive big man. He’s 6-5 and 305 pounds. He can really get upfield. He has great getoff. When you look at our defense, if we can get all of our guys healthy for next year, especially on that defensive front, I am excited about all of our defensive players.

If you’re young and you can rush the passer, you get paid in the NFL. It’s really that simple.

So it’s no surprise that Bucs rockstar general manager Mark Dominik is planning to slap a significant restricted free agent tender offer on Daniel Te’O-Nesheim, who filled in at defensive end for Adrian Clayborn and proved solid against the run and pass. Snatched by Dominik from the Eagles’ practice squad, Te’O-Nesheim is was the Eagles third-round pick in 2010, and recorded 40 tackles and four sacks in 14 starts for Clayborn.

Tampa Tribune beat writer Woody Cummings delivered news of the Bucs’ postseason approval of “Te’-O.”

Dominik indicated this week that he may offer Te’O-Nesheim a second-round tender – or maybe even a first-round tender – to ensure he retains a player who has proved to be a valuable member of the defensive line rotation.

Joe’s all good with this. Te’O stayed healthy and has a big motor. He’s just fine to rotate in, and he should have more upside at 25 years old.

Last year, a second-round tender paid $1.9 million. If the Bucs slap that tag on “Te’-O,”  another team would have to pay him at least that much and give the Bucs a second-round pick. Joe can’t imagine any team paying that high a ransom for a solid reserve.

Rockstar Bucs general manager Mark Dominik and Greg Schiano always say they’ll leave no stone unturned when it comes to considering improving their roster.

So it’s safe to assume the New Schiano Order will examine the possibility of the Jets’ reported willingness to trade cornerback Darrelle Revis. Assuming Revis recovers from his ACL injury, he’s a gargantuan upgrade from anything the Bucs have on the roster. The wounded stud corner has one year left on his contract at a flimsy $6 million, before he demands a ransom in free agency. Consider Eric Wright gobbled up $7.5 million last season, minus losing 25 percent of that for his drug suspension.

For Joe, the Bucs’ analysis of Revis must come down to how close they believe they are to making the playoffs and competing for a Super Bowl.

Joe suspects Dominik and Schiano see themselves as ready to add a few offseason pieces and win immediately, given all the emerging talent on the roster and a turning-point season lying ahead for Josh Freeman.

How much could the Jets really fetch for Revis coming off a knee injury and only signed for a year? Joe can’t imagine the price tag could be too steep. A second-round pick? A third-round pick and a backup offensive lineman, an area in which the Jets are sorely in need of depth?

Remember, Dominik has gone on record many times boasting about how his medical staff knows knees. Dominik took pride in how the team managed Cadillac Williams and Kellen Winslow, and brought back Arrelious Benn from an ACL in 2011, and scouted DaQuan Bowers’ troubles, among others.

If the Bucs determine Revis is healthy, Joe doesn’t think it would be farfetched to see the Bucs try and work a deal.

How many more games do the Bucs win last year with Revis on the field?

Thankfully, these eyesores otherwise known as tarps, like those used at Jags games, will not desecrate the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway any time soon.

Joe received e-mails from quite a few Bucs season ticket holders who were asked to move the location of their seats.

Said fans, and Joe, were scared. Why?

Joe was convinced Team Glazer had decided to break out those hideous-looking tarps to cover sections of seats in order for the seating capacity of the Stadium on Dale Mabry Highway to be lowered as part of a cheap stunt to help games meet TV blackout plateaus set by the NFL  — selling 85 percent of non-premium seats.

Joe’s assumption, thankfully, was wrong. Jose Patino Girona, of the Tampa Tribune, spoke to Bucs officials and learned that, yes, fans are being moved, but those heinous tarps will not be used to block off any seats.

The change will impact about 400 seats. Team officials have been calling the owners of those season tickets and sent an email Tuesday to those they haven’t been able to reach.

Ford said the change is intended only to free up certain sections of the stadium to accommodate groups. The team has no plans to remove or cover seats to make it easier to sell out or reach the 85 percent attendance threshold that would avoid a blackout of home games, he said.

“In no way is this repurposing an indication that we will be removing or tarping seats,” Brian Ford, the team’s vice president of business administration, said in a prepared statement.

Thank goodness!

The first time Joe saw tarps used to block off sections was for Pirates games at the old Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. And they were a complete and total eyerake. Joe has been to a few Jags games and the tarps there are nearly as ugly.

Yes, the Rays use tarps in their upper deck. Just one of many things that makes the Fruitdome onerous.  

Joe applauds Team Glazer for not stooping to this level. A quarter-full stadium with tens of thousands of empty seats looks far better than those ugly-arse tarps. Yick!

Those tarps scream “bush league.”

Joe spoke with five prospects last week at the East-West Shrine practices and game that could be targets of the Bucs, three cornerbacks, one safety and one linebacker. The Bucs have a pattern for prospects: multiple years as a starter, played for a big-time program or conference, and served as a team captain. The Bucs rarely deviate from this pattern. Some have met all three qualifications for a Bucs draftee; some have not.

Name: Xavier Brewer
School: Clemson
Position: Cornerback/Safety
Size: 5-11, 190
Started: Three years
Captain: Yes, one year (only seniors eligible).
Have Bucs representatives spoken to him?: Yes.
Background: Fits the mold of what the Bucs want: A versatile guy who can play both safety and corner, a veteran starter who often faced athletes, whether it was against Florida State, Miami,  and Virginia Tech, or Clemson’s annual games against SEC schools including Auburn and South Carolina. In short, Brewer is battle-tested. Also, Brewer boasts that he grew up a Bucs fan.

Sales pitch to Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik: “You should draft me because of my understanding of the game. I have played safety. I have played corner. I have played nickel. I have played in dime packages. I’m going to help you in special teams. I will you all I have all the time. I have good speed, good skill, good speed, good quickness and can play any position in the secondary.”

Profile: Joe liked the way Brewer was a second skin on receivers in the East-West practices, especially guys who had a distinct size advantage on him. Brewer made bigger receivers work and he seemed to always find a way, an angle, a position, to make it difficult for receivers to gain an advantage, almost like boxing out in basketball. Even some receivers had six inches on Brewer and not only did Brewer not let that stop him, he found a way to either get the ball or jam the receiver up physically. In other words, Brewer has football smarts.

Against one of the better SEC teams this season, South Carolina, Brewer had such a good game he was named “ACC Defensive Back of the Week.” The Jacksonville native had a career-high 12 tackles, including nine individual tackles. He had three more tackles than his closest teammate. He also had two tackles for loss, a sack, a pick and three total passes defended. Brewer became the first Clemson player to record a sack and an interception in the same game since Rashard Hall did it against Boston College in 2009. In the Chicken Bowl in December against LSU, Brewer had six tackles, three of which were solo.

Cool thing about Brewer is, he never tried to hide from Joe how much of a Bucs fan he was as a kid.

“I always looked up to Ronde Barber,” Brewer said. “What a great opportunity it would be if the Bucs picked me to come and allow me to play to the best of my ability.”

Here are a couple of Brewer’s highlights facing South Carolina last fall.

Joe tracks every last word from Greg Schiano and rockstar general manager Mark Dominik, and based on numerous interviews and other sources, it’s clear the 2013 Bucs secondary is taking shape.

Dominik and/or Schiano have taken multiple opportunities to praise cornerbacks Danny Gorrer, E.J. Biggers and Leonard Johnson, plus Ronde Barber and Mark Barron have gotten all kinds of love, and rookie CB/S Keith Tandy got his share of kudos.

Joe’s also adding weed-free Ahmad Black to the love list after Dominik’s comments yesterday, via PewterReport.com.

“We were very happy with the way Ahmad Black played,” Dominik said. “He was a big part of why we won the Oakland game.”

The praise of Black takes Joe back to the alleged desire to have the best players on the field at all times. Last season, Joe believed it would have been wise to Barber playing more cornerback in order to give Black more plays. And Joe wonders whether that scenario might play out in 2013.

Anthony Gaitor, Myron Lewis, LeQuan Lewis, Eric Wright, Brandon McDonald, Sean Baker and Cody Grimm all seem to be likely castaways, though most (but definitely not Wright) likely will be among the 90 players coming to training camp.

If the Bucs add first- and second-tier free agent cornerbacks and, say, a second-round cornerback via the NFL Draft, Joe would expect they would join Biggers, Johnson and Gorrer on the opening day roster, alongside Barron, Barber, Black and Tandy, and possibly Grimm for the final season of his contract, if he can prove he’s healthy.

On paper, it should be a big improvement.

The reckless charge issued by former Raiders receiver Tim Brown, claiming that former coach Bill Callahan “sabotaged” the game and threw the Super Bowl to the Bucs, backed up by Jerry Rice on BSPN, brought both laughter and disgust to former Bucs great linebacker Derrick Brooks.

Brooks appeared with Joe’s good friend, “The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig, of WDAE-AM 620 Wednesday, and didn’t hold back on what he thought about Brown’s irresponsible charges.

“We beat them!” Brooks said between guffaws.

Brooks’ took a more serious tone later when he admitted he and his Bucs teammates were offended by Brown’s words.

“No one gave us anything. No one, as far as I’m concerned, sabotaged anything,” Brooks said. “We went out and we earned that victory and we’re celebrating 10 years later. If you look at our offense, their defense didn’t stop our offense at all!”

The full interview can be heard by clicking the button below.

Well, well, well. It sure smells like Tim Brown’s lawyers told him, in a manner of speaking, “Shut the hell up.”

The former Raiders receiver, who has been spouting off the past few days that then-Raiders coach Bill Callahan “sabotaged” the Raiders gameplan — in common-speak, this is known as “throwing a game” — so Callahan could hand Chucky and the Bucs a Super Bowl win, is doing major league backpedaling today.

In an interview on “The Dull Patrick Show,” Brown now claims that then-Raiders owner Al Davis “likely” had Callahan change the Raiders gameplan, Brown now claims he never said Callahan “sabotaged” the Raiders!

Talk about talking out of both sides of your mouth!

Clearly, Brown’s lawyers got to him, thankfully. Brown has been spreading so much manure, and is now backtracking big time, Joe seriously thinks Brown should be tested for CTE. He’s crazier than Barrett Robbins.

Below is Brown’s full interview with Dull Patrick.

Back in the old days of 2005, before social media madness turned news coverage into real-time lunacy, Tim Brown spit out the same take on former Raiders head coach Bill Callahan playing to lose the Bucs-Raiders Super Bowl, so Brown said on the “Booger and Rich” show on 98.7 FM Tuesday afternoon.

Brown made it clear to co-hosts Rich Herrera and former Bucs defensive tackle Booger McFarland, a former teammate of Brown in Tampa, that the “sabotage” allegations against Callahan are nothing new and were those expressed by many Raiders in the locker room following the Bucs’ Super Bowl victory.

“The facts are the facts and I’m never going to back away from that,” Brown said. “I’ve been saying this since ’05, when I was on my FOX show when I first got out of the league I made these comments. So why there are coming out the way they are now, I have no idea, man. It is what it is. But I’m not going to back away from anything I’ve said. I’ve never done that.”

For Joe, Brown having said this years ago, assuming he’s being truthful, doesn’t make the claims any less stupid or troubling, though it would sort of punch a hole in the theory some have that Brown was trolling for headlines to advance his career and/or chances during next week’s Hall of Fame voting. Brown is a finalist for the 2013 Hall class.

Ahmad Black is inhaling and exhaling comfortably these days.

Hillsborough County Court documents reveal that the first-degree misdemeanor charge of marijuana possession Black was slapped with in late October following a Tampa traffic stop was dismissed Jan. 7.

In December, Black’s attorney filed motions to “suppress illegal stop” and suppress statements made to police by Black, in addition to a motion to dismiss the case.

Following a Jan. 7 meeting with Judge Eric Myers, an assistant state attorney, and Black and his two lawyers, Myers dumped the case.

Joe hopes Black celebrated responsibly. And hopefully, the only green he has his hands on next season is an Eagles jersey.