Former Vikings coach in talks to join Lovie Smith and the Bucs.

Former Vikings coach and Rip Van Freeman victim Leslie Frazier’s name is being bounced around NFL circles tonight as a potential new Bucs defensive coordinator. This coming from USA Today scribe and former Vikings beat writer Tom Pelissero.

@TomPelissero: Nothing done for Leslie Frazier to join Lovie Smith as DC with Bucs, I’m told, but sounds like it’s on the table. [read more]

New Bucs head coach Lovie Smith hired Bucs icon Hardy Nickerson — out of the Buccaneers radio broadcast booth — as his linebackers coach in Chicago back in 2007. Nickerson only lasted a season before getting out of the business, but he wants to back into NFL coaching.

Nickerson made his first return to Tampa in December as a guest of the Buccaneers organization (interesting timing) and shared his thoughts on WDAE-AM 620. [read more]

It seems college QB guru Jeff Tedford will be Lovie Smith’s offensive coordinator with the Bucs.

So one questions many Bucs fans had about a potential hire of Lovie Smith as new head coach was what he’ll do about the offense? Smith is about as much of a Father Dungy clone as you will find, meaning offense is an annoyance to him, hence why Smith hired such noted offensive wizards in the likes of Ron Turner and Mike Tice as offensive coordinators.

The results were painfully predictable. [read more]

He’s yearning for the new Bucs head coach

It was one of the most confusing things Joe had ever seen. Last offseason, the Bucs, in need of a pass rush like Joe needs a cold beer on a July Friday afternoon, let their leading pass rusher and solid run-stopper Michael Bennett walk away for peanuts and claimed the transaction was because Bennett was damaged goods.

Also at the time, Bucs types claimed former second-round pick, defensive end, Da’Quan Bowers, was ready to pick up the baton from Bennett and the Bucs all but anointed Bowers a starter in the offseason. [read more]

Lovie Smith might want the shopping money ditching Revis would provide

So how would lockdown cornerback Darrelle Revis fit into new Bucs head coach Lovie Smith’s notorious Tampa-2 defense?

It’s hard to imagine paying $16 million for a cornerback in a zone-based system. The Bucs could part ways at any time with Revis without a salary cap penalty, a move that would provide massive flexibility to a new regime.

This is a very intriguing situation. [read more]

Team Glazer went back to the future and is hiring former Bucs linebackers coach (1996-2000) and longtime Bears chief Lovie Smith to be the next Buccaneers head coach, NFL Network is reporting.

Wow! [read more]

Tampa Tribune scribe Roy Cummings is reporting tonight, via an unnamed source, that Lovie Smith interviewed for the Bucs’ vacant head coaching job yesterday.

But Lovie has not been hired, it seems, as reports out of the Detroit Free Press say Lovie is heading to Detroit for a wooing in the Motor City. [read more]

The simple answer to the headline question is, “another Super Bowl.” But Team Glazer isn’t so simple.

Joe’s confident Team Glazer has other clear desires and goals in place, just like when Greg Schiano was given a “mandate” in 2012.  [read more]

The Bucs missed Mike Williams in 2013. Somewhat surprisingly, he tried to — and was allowed to — play through a difficult hamstring injury and was lost completely for half the season on injured reserve.

Many fans were down on No. 19 after his 2011 campaign (Joe was never in that camp.), but Williams bounced back in 2012, scored a big contract and proved to be a massive loss for the Bucs’ historically anemic offense this year. [read more]

Joe hopes Bucs fans were watching the Chicken Bowl last night on BSPN. Johnny Football was Johnny Football. Needed escapability? He did that. Touch passes from the pocket? He did that. Rifle shots from the pocket? He did that. Needed to make chicken salad out of chicken s(p)it for a touchdown? Oh, he certainly did that.

Johnny Football put on a show that Joe truly hopes resonated with Team Glazer. It was nothing Johnny Football hasn’t done all through his two years in college where he threw for over 7,000 yards. [read more]

Former Bucs general manager Rich McKay, the Glory Years architect who bolted for the Atlanta Falcons front office in 2003, had his name widely floated Monday by various national sources as the possible next Bucs GM.

Joe initially thought McKay wouldn’t walk from his team CEO gig in Atlanta, but now Joe’s not so sure. [read more]

A report emerges of trouble in Minnesota

Now that the dust is starting to settle after the MRSA-like delousing of the Bucs football operations leadership at One Buc Palace, things are starting to seep out about why Bucs commander Greg Schiano may have done things that essentially led to his demise.

In particular, Joe’s referring to the mess with former Bucs franchise quarterback, leaky Rip Van Freeman. [read more]

Yes, it is the year 2014. For some reason, Joe always is able to type even-numbered years better than odd-numbered years. Eh. Joe knows it is 2014 because his new neighbors in southwest Hernando County began shooting off fireworks at 6 p.m. last night.

Joe hopes all his readers have a prosperous new year. Already it is busy for Joe with the Bucs’ comings and goings. Then there is the East-West Shrine game, Super Bowl Media Day and other things Joe will bang on his keyboard about to keep us all busy for the first few weeks of 2014. It should be a lot of fun.

Joe also hopes to debut a neat feature he has been working on for some months. More about that as the time nears.

Anyway, enjoy all the college football today. Joe will be at the Outback Bowl as has been his custom since 1998. Happy New Year, all!

It’s New Year’s Eve, a time of hopes and dreams and alcohol and girls and parties. In other words, it’s Johnny Football time!

Johhny Football takes the field tonight at 8 p.m. for the Chik-Fil-A Bowl against Duke.

Joe will be watching.

The NFL will be watching.

Joe sincerely hopes Team Glazer is watching.

Feel free to comment below on all things Johnny before, during and after the game.

Expected free agent Greg Hardy swallows quarterbacks whole

The Bucs have an edge rusher in Adrian Clayborn, but Greg Schiano, Butch Davis, Bill Sheridan and Dave Wannstedt, the Bucs’ old defensive braintrust, thought Clayborn was deficient off the edge.

That’s why Clayborn was moving around from side to side. That’s why he was standing up so much. That’s why he was rarely double-teamed. That’s why he couldn’t capitalize nearly enough for playing alongside a manbeast, disruptive defensive tackle like Gerald McCoy. [read more]

“The best coach nobody talks about,” says a former NFL GM.

Former Redskins and Texans architect Charley Casserly, now of NFL Network, dove into his general manager experiences and NFL study to talk all things Bucs, including the process of hiring and more on WDAE-AM 620 today. 

Casserly called Lovie Smith an “outstanding candidate” for the Bucs but delivered more names on his short list. [read more]

Lost in the chaos of Team Glazer doing a MRSA-like delousing of their football organization is the fact the Bucs now know who they will be playing both at home and on the road in 2014.

So, courtesy of NFL.com, here are the Bucs’ opponents next season. [read more]

Don’t worry, some claim, Lovie Smith will fix it.

Joe’s been stunned to read that some Bucs fans don’t believe Tampa Bay’s NFL-worst offense has massive deficiencies. 

Jiminy Christmas! What are these fans missing?

Here are the facts: [read more]