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Once again Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman decided to appear on “The Blitz” this morning, co-hosted by newfound Bucs fans Adam Schein and Rich Gannon, heard exclusively on Sirius NFL Radio.

Soitenly, Joe transcribed the interview. Bucs fans should expect no less.

Adam Schein: Joining us again is the hottest quarterback in the National Football League. The kid has a knack for playing his best when it matters the most. Congratulations on another fourth quarter win Josh.

Rich Gannon: Hey Josh, how is that thumb doing? It doesn’t seem like it is bothering you anymore.

Josh Freeman: I really don’t even know something’s wrong unless I push it the wrong way, then it will hurt but it’s healing really nicely.

Schein: Take us through that final drive. We read in the Tampa papers that you told your teammates in the huddle, and I quote, “We are about to win this game. We have 81 yards to go. We are going to win this game.” Did you say that?

Freeman: I’m not sure if I said it like that verbatim but that is the gist of it. The defense did a great job in the second half giving us opportunities to score points. I looked at everybody and they knew what I was going to say. I just told them, “Hey, it’s our time again. We need everybody to step up. I need you to make some plays.” Everybody responded and executed well. It was a very emotional win to come from behind.

Gannon: Where have you made the most improvement in year two from your rookie year?

Freeman: Understanding the ebbs and flows of the game. There are so many scenarios and ways to win a football game. What I have found is to play better, knowing when and when not to take a shot. Last year if we were down two possessions in the first half, I remember throwing balls up for grabs and taking unnecessary risks. You’re not going to get back in the game with one play. It’s not always about getting the big play, but getting points on the board and getting momentum and playing for the second half.

Schein: I love that quote, “It’s our time again.” You have now won seven games and five from behind in the fourth quarter. How do you play your best when it matters the most?

Freeman: It’s not just me. It’s our whole offense and the defense. They gave us the opportunity to win. It’s a mindset, a culture. We have a lot of confidence. We are young and a lot of people doubt us. We may not play our best for 3 1/2 quarters but if we have the opportunity, we will score. Why not? That’s our mindset on Sundays. We can drive down the field no matter how many penalties. It was our defense that gave us a chance to win.

Gannon: Talk about Mike Williams as an impact.

Freeman: You know, it’s not hard to get on the same page with a guy like Mike. He’s an extremely talented athlete and a good individual. His work ethic is tremendous. I remember after he was drafted I talked to him on the phone before he came down. When he got here, you could see he was hungry. He didn’t have a lot of reps with the first team but once he had, he had a feel for it. He stayed after practice. He worked on the different nuances of the game. Mike is a great guy. I have a lot of respect for him and a lot of confidence in him.

Schein: Raheem Morris says  you are the best team in the NFC. What’s your reaction to that and are the Bucs the best team in the NFC?

Freeman: A lot of people have said Raheem is talking crazy. But he is a passionate coach and he’s our coach. If he says it, we need to believe it in our hearts. We are 4-2 and it’s not going as we thought it would but we are finding a way to win games. If we play our best, we’re now 4-2, who knows? We are trying to find a way to make Raheem’s statement correct

Gannon: I thought your team changed when Raheem took over as the defensive coordinator. Talk about your defense pitching a shutout in the second half.

Freeman: The defense did a great job. But to win a game in this league, you will have to score points. But we were only getting field goals. Luckily, we have a good kicker. The Rams did a nice job in the first half. The Rams have some talent. The halftime corrections our defense made, wow. Raheem thought we played the worst half of football of the season in the first half. Our defense took it to heart and shut them down. They kept them in third and long. It was great to see such an entire team effort.

Schein: Tell us about LeGarette Blount. I think he has a bright future in Tampa Bay.

Freeman: No doubt, no doubt. He’s doing a good job. The thing in college [slugging a Boise State player and trying to charge the crowd], it’s talked about but once in a while when we give him grief about it. He wasn’t here during training camp but when he was here, he’s done nothing but work to learn the offense. It’s not always pretty when he gets the bell but he is effective. He’s a great guy. We’re fortunate enough to have all the quarterbacks next to each other in the locker room and LeGarrette Blount’s next to us. He’s a good guy. He’s a tough guy, a hard-working guy. He fits in well with us.

Gannon: You’ve already won more games than last year, and you’ve won a few on the road. Your next five games are a brutal schedule but if you have success there, you position yourself in good shape. Have you talked about being a better road team?

Freeman: For sure, but being a better team in general. Winning three games in 16, that’s really bad. We took a look at where the team was going and why were losing. Playing on the road was a big thing. I feel as comfortable on the road as well as at home, though there can be some communication issues. I think we play tighter as an offense and closer as a team when we are on the road. I feel good about where this team is headed. If we win some games where we are not supposed to, it’s setting ourselves up for the fourth quarter of the season.

Schein: Raheem has told us that the turning point of this season was last year when you became the starting quarterback. You buy that?

Freeman: I do see that. Raheem has said that before. That’s why he drafted me. He told me, “When you are on the field, I don’t care who we are playing, I feel like we can win.” It’s great to have  coach who believes in me. That is huge. He lets me play my game and find a way to win. I try to make him right.

Gannon: When you saw Sam Bradford struggle at times, did it bring back memories of you last year?

Freeman: I guess it did. Sam is a great quarterback. You look at the passes he threw, there were not really any downfield. You could tell that by the playcalling they were trying to protect him but he was playing smart. He’s taking care of the ball. I was hoping Aqib Talib would get some balls but that didn’t happen. I told him after the game to keep working, that it only gets easier. It’s just a level of comfort that only comes with experience.

Schein: The Cincinnati game, was that your best NFL experience? I thought it was surreal.

Freeman: I don’t know. Every win we have had, there are a number of memories. It’s hard to rate them. But going on the road to Cincinnati, they played a great football game and caught us off guard with their blitz package. I got beat up that game. But winning that game, it was all worth it. Seeing Mike Williams step up and make plays and seeing Michael Spurlock make plays, for me, experiencing winning with my teammates, that is my goal. It’s hard to rate wins. The feeling is insane coming from behind. It’s a great feeling.

Gannon: You had an early bye. Where are the areas where you can be better offensively?

Freeman: All around. We leave too many yards on the field. We don’t capitalize enough. Really, it just comes down to making plays that are there for us to make. The Saints game, I overshot guys that should have been TDs.  That falls on me. If the offense is not playing well, that’s my fault. I have to convert on third down to keep these guys going. We play our best football when we are realized and we are more relaxed when we are prepared. I feel every week I’ve gotten better with that.

Were the Rams outcoached?

It seems Ronde Barber might think so. He chatted with talented NFL.com blogger Jenna Laine and offered up this nugget on the Bucs slowing the Rams running game in the second half.

In the second half, Jackson was limited to just 40 yards, with 13 different Bucs defenders taking him down. Barber and Ruud each recorded six tackles to help slow down the Rams’ new all-time rushing leader.

Barber was particularly effective in the box and helping the guys up front, especially in the the middle. Of the six tackles he made on Jackson, only one was made after allowing 4 yards or more.

According to Barber, his play up front, rather than playing deep was the result of Bradford and the Rams’ offense not utilizing enough passing plays.

“They turn around and hand the ball off 30 times and put up 200 and say, ‘You know what? We don’t need our rookie quarterback to beat this team. We’re going to let Steven Jackson do it.’ That was the feeling anyway,” said Barber, who finished the game with 9 solo tackles and an assist.

“There were a lot of short throws and a lot of safe throws for him. It worked to our advantage,” Barber added, also noting that Bradford looks “spectacular” on film for a young quarterback.

Joe, too, was surprised how conservative the Rams were with Bradford, although with a ball-hawking secondary like the Bucs have, it probably wasn’t a bad idea. Plus Aqib Talib could have had at least one interception anyway, and Bradford was hardly accurate on the short balls. So the hindsight probably is just that.

Joe wants to point out that Barber leads the Bucs with 33 solo tackles, which is pretty damn stunning for a guy his size and his age.

Don’t look for bruising, downhill-running, hole-finding, opponent-dragging LeGarrette Blount to start on Sunday in Arizona.

Blount’s job is to get in there and spark the running game if/when Cadillac can’t make anything happen, so said Raheem Morris on The Raheem Morris Show, on WDAE-AM 620 last night.

“Everybody wants to take LeGarrette Blount playing as phasing out Cadillac. These guys both got game balls [Monday]. I told Cadillac and Legarrette Blount both. I said ‘Cadillac is not only a mentor and a great person for LeGarrette Blount to follow and try to be like and mimic, but he’s also part-time his coach.’ He helps him out around the building. These guys help each other out. It’s no different what’s going to happen on Sunday. If Cadillac can’t get anything going in the run game when he’s going out there, then LeGarrette’s job is to go out there and try to pick us up.”

So there you have it. Blount is the clear cut No. 2 guy in Raheem’s mind. The guy who will jump start the running game if Cadillac stalls early, which he has done in every Bucs game outside of the opening series on opening day.

Joe would prefer the Bucs just give Blount the damn ball. Joe suspects good things would happen.

When Bucs fans think of the play of the game in the Bucs win over the Saints, naturally they will point to Josh Freeman’s one-yard pass to Cadillac Williams for the winning touchdown.

Understandable, but eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune begs to differ. Rather, he suggests looking at defensive end Tim Crowder’s lone tackle.

There was slightly more than five minutes left in the game. Steven Jackson broke loose for the Rams and was headed to a first down as the Bucs expected a pass.

But no! Joe will let Crowder describe the rest, via Kaufman.

“I beat the tight end to the inside and managed to wrap Jackson up from behind,” Crowder said. “He could have easily gotten that first down on that play. I looked toward the sticks because I wasn’t sure if he had the first down, but he was way short and we were off the field.”

Jackson’s 7-yard gain forced the Rams to punt instead of taking a few more minutes off the clock, giving the Bucs time to march 81 yards in a 16-play drive that consumed 4:35.

“That was one of those plays where you might not think it’s that big at the time,” Crowder said. “Looking back, it was huge.”

Of course, that forced the Rams to punt and the Bucs took over in what would be the game-winning drive.

Often, it’s unnoticed plays that go a long way to winning a game. Joe’s good with Crowder putting up such microscopic numbers as long as the numbers he puts up result in such key plays.

First it was Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune who decided to make a bold statement and suggest Raheem Morris is the coach of the year based on the results of the first seven weeks of the season.

It seems his colleague at The News Center, eye-RAH! Kaufman is of a similar mind. Take a break from gloating over his San Francisco Giants advancing to the Fall Classic, Kaufman Twittered on the TBO Bucs Twitter feed that perhaps no NFL coach is doing a better job this year.

No coach is getting more out of his talent base than Raheem Morris. Bucs could fly home from Arizona tied for the NFC’s best record.

As Richardson noted yesterday, with the possible exception of Kellen Winslow, there really is no one on the Bucs roster you could point to and say without blinking, that said player is a Pro Bowl lock.

Yet with a win Sunday at Arizona, the Bucs will be in a full-fledged playoff run.

Jay Glazer has a sitdown with Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman, via video conferencing, about why Freeman is such a clutch fourth quarter quarterback in this FoxSports.com video.

<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/video/?vid=08c4d0d0-12fd-4cca-82af-b8ce4f715d08&#038;from=IV2_en-us_foxsports_videocentral_player" target="_new" title="After Party: Josh Freeman">Video: After Party: Josh Freeman</a>

"Oatmeal-slurping, two-win predicting Peter King won't even put us in his top-15."

As Bucs fans have read and heard, Raheem Morris ripped the spotlight from his young team Sunday and stuck it on himself after uttering the now famous “best in the NFC comment” during his postgame news conference

He defended it abruptly yesterday with strong bravado during his Monday news conference. But Monday evening, Morris gave listeners to his radio show on WDAE-AM 620 a more thorough explanation of his thoughts and feelings behind the comment.

“I told everybody that, you know, ‘you guys are the best. You know, you’re the best in the NFC. You have the least amount of losses in the NFC right now.’ And I mean it. You know, it starts with a belief, for me anyway. Somebody’s gotta go out and be the best. Why not us,” Morris said. “I want our fans to believe that way. I want our team to believe that way. I’m not really interested in whether other people or outside entities believe it or not. I think it starts with us believing in ourselves first. No different than what we’ve done since we’ve been young. No different than what we’ve all done when our parents first told us we can be whatever we want to be.”

Joe found this comment interesting and a good glimpse inside Raheem, as many parents do NOT tell their kids they can be whatever they want to be.

The head coach continued and explained that he got a personal endorsement from Derrick Brooks.

“I want to show that I believe in those guys. Let everybody else deal with pressure. You know Derrick Brooks called me [Monday]. He said, ‘I like that. You know, you make everbody else deal with pressure and you keep it light and right around there.’ And that’s what I’m going to do,” Morris said.

Joe finds Raheem’s decision to put the “best in the NFC” line out there fascinating. It could backfire in a huge way. And surely it’s some juicy bulletin board material for all but one opponent left on the Bucs’ schedule.

Will Bucs players start repeating that this week?

It does throw gasoline on the us-against-the-world fire that Raheem, Ronde Barber and seem to be thriving on. Maybe that’s a good enough reason.

Like many of Joe’s readers, Joe’s good friend Justin Pawlowski of WDAE-AM 620, also known as “The Commissioner” who hosts the wildly popular “Blitz” on Saturday afternoons, was upset with the Bucs offensive line for anemic play.

But Justin has seen the light. After watching what LeGarrette Blount did Sunday against the Rams, Justin is now convinced the Bucs’ rushing problem was Cadillac Williams, so he writes in his weekly “What I Learned” segment on his blog located on his station’s website.

3. I learned (or at least had confirmed) that the Bucs lack of a running game was due to Cadillac Williams and not the offensive line.
Legarrette Blount finally got to prove what I have been saying about him since the draft. All he’s needed was a chance. Why in the hell did it take so long for the head coach to realize this? I don’t know. Hell, the head coach wouldn’t even commit to Blount for next week. Blount proved that a good back can run with efficiency in this offense. Cadillac should be reduced to passing downs only, and Legarrette Blount should become the Bucs new identity on offense. Blount is the lone reason the Bucs even had a chance to win that game on Sunday. Here’s hoping the coaching staff realizes what they have and USE HIM.

Joe understands that Raheem Morris is concerned about blitzes and that, in the long run, the Bucs’ biggest goal this season is to keep Josh Freeman vertical.

With the Bucs in a playoff push — strange, but true — it’s time to see if Freeman doesn’t need training wheels any longer. Time to help him by having a more balanced offense.

In other words, rush Blount.

Last night Tony Romo, the pride of Eastern Illinois University, the same higher institute of learning that produced such luminaries as former Illinois governor Jim Edgar, Kevin Seitzer, Kevin Duckworth, Sean Payton, Mike Shanahan, Brad Childress, crazy John Malkovich and Joe, broke his collarbone.

Joe is chagrin that this would happen to any athlete, but if it would have to happen to anyone, it should be the starting quarterback at Dallass.

Sorry Tony.

It seems a running back failed to block a blitzing linebacker. Ross  Tucker of Sirius NFL Radio, twittering last night, suggested a blocking back is more important than a running back.

@RossTuckerNFL Fans don’t like hearing about things like RBs picking up LBs in pass protection but that stuff can decide football games & even seasons. Ask Dallas.

This is the conundrum that Raheem Morris faces. He and offensive coordinator Greg Olson have hinted this is why LeGarrette Blount has not received much playing time because he has yet to master blocking.

While Joe gets this, Joe thinks the opposite is putting Freeman in physical danger. The Bucs have… no… running… attack with Cadillac Williams. As a result, the offense is woefully imbalanced and defenses don’t need to load up eight in the box, and can kamikaze Freeman with attacks.

With Blount getting more carries, it will keep the defenses honest, and open up the Bucs’ passing attack.

Bucs beat writer Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune appeared on the too-Jewish sounding “King David Show” with Shaun King and Toby David heard on WQYK-AM 1010 this afternoon. Richardson talked Bucs and Raheem Morris’ loud pronouncement that the Bucs are the Kings of the NFC.

Shaun King: I think there’s no better coaching job in the NFL so far this year than Raheem Morris.

Anwar Richardson: Raheem is doing the best coaching job in the NFL. Name one Pro Bowl player on the Bucs. At least every team has someone that is really good at something. They don’t have a teammate that is great at anything, He has infested this team with swagger and confidence. You talk about a guy turning around a bunch of castoffs. A lot of these players are guys off the street, nomads. They had three wins last year and they are at four wins now? It’s a no-brainer.

King: As much as Raheem was criticized and ridiculed last year, all I am saying is give credit where credit is due. But they have a lot to work on.

Richardson: They are finding a way to win. It’s not a pretty team and they are not winning with pizazz. They don’t beat guys like, by, 17 or 21. They just hang around and hang around and in the fourth quarter they find a way to pull it out. The average margin of victory is not that high. Hey, it’s all about the record. They are 4-2. Dallas is 1-4. Doesn’t matter if they are glamorous wins or not. You can use all the excuses you want, they are 4-2. Dallas can use all the excuses it wants. They are 1-4.

Toby David: Was yesterday LeGarrette Blount’s coming out party?

Richardson: I agree with Shaun, that Caddy remains the starter but the best running back is Blount. The team has come to grips with it and with this offensive line, you need LeGarrette Blount. This offensive line is not a dominant group but they do create creases. Blount is able to take that crease and make it an eight-yard gain. Young running backs do that well. They don’t have the wear and tear on them. That’s why running backs always fall off when they hit their 30s. Young running backs play like there’s nothing to lose and everything to gain. You will see more of [Blount] but he won’t be the starter. Raheem is tied to Cadillac as a starter. But you will see a lot more of Blount. … They are not as good as the top level teams. They are not as good as Pittsburgh. They are not as good as New Orleans but they may be good enough to win 10. They are in a race to 10.

Joe doesn’t care much about what the flimsily informed national NFL pundits have to say about the Bucs.  But it does matter, especially when TV networks are considering what teams get to play football in prime time.

With the Bucs now 4-2, they have a shot at getting a “flex game” on Sunday Night Football later in the season. In weeks 11-17, the NFL can pull the scheduled 8:30 p.m. game in favor of a more attractive matchup.

Curious Joe took a peek ahead and sees a reasonable chance for the Bucs to get “flexed” only in Week 14.

Yes, NBC has the Eagles-Cowboys game on the schedule, two big markets with star players. But Dallas is 1-4 and has a brutal schedule between now and then. Even if the Cowboys are sitting at 5-7, that might not be the most attractive game to the network.

The Bucs are in Washington that Sunday. A 6-6 or 7-5 Bucs team against a Redskins club with the same record and Donovan McNabb likely would have much greater playoff implications and interest. Keep in mind, while Dallas (No. 5) and Philly (No. 4) are big TV markets, Tampa Bay (No. 14) and Washington (No. 9) are no slouches.

Joe thinks the only other shot would be Week 16, when the struggling small-market Bengals and Chargers are scheduled on Sunday night. But Joe can’t yet imagine the Bucs in the playoff hunt that deep into the season. That’s a bit too much fantasy football for Joe right now.

Jim Mora, Charles Davis and Dick Stockton discuss the Bucs win over the Rams in this FoxSports.com video.

<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/video/?vid=dca3af7c-8d7a-443b-9ba4-a28f19824ee5&#038;from=IV2_en-us_foxsports_videocentral_player" target="_new" title="NFL on FOX: Bucs battle back">Video: NFL on FOX: Bucs battle back</a>

"Yes. We are the best."

Speaking now in his Monday news conference, Raheem Morris is standing very tall behind calling his team the best team in the NFC following yesterday’s comeback win against the Rams to give the Bucs a 4-2 record.

“Right now, we have the least amount of losses,” Morris said. “We’re the best team because of that.”

Pressed later about the statistical shortcomings of the Bucs in relation to being the “best team in the NFC,” Raheem fired back that “stats are for losers,” and that the Bucs are “counting wins.” This exchange sent the questioning reporter into a stammering mess.

Joe’s not sure if all the bravado is a good thing. But surely Raheem couldn’t walk away from yesterday’s strong statement. Joe knows that if the Bucs win next week in Arizona, they might very well be the best team in the NFC.

Almost as predictable as Joe not going to bed with Rachel Watson last night, the Bucs today announced they have rid themselves of troubled wide receiver Jerramy Stevens this morning after he was charged with several drug-related offenses.

Stevens was arrested by Tampa police when he was blasting his music too loud from his pickup Saturday night, so reports eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune.

A Tampa police officer stopped Stevens’ 2006 Ford pickup Saturday night after hearing loud music coming from the truck, according to a Tampa Police Department news release. After smelling marijuana, the officer searched the vehicle and found 38 grams of marijuana, police said.

Stevens was arrested on felony charges of possession of marijuana with intent to sell and possession, along with a misdemeanor charge of possession of drug paraphernalia. He didn’t play in Tampa Bay’s 18-17 victory against St. Louis Sunday at Raymond James Stadium.

Stevens played 49 games for the Bucs, catching 72 passes and scoring seven touchdowns. He was supposed to be a threat in the red zone, but after his scoring reception in Week 2 of the 2009 season, Stevens failed to catch a touchdown in his final 18 games as a Buccaneer.

Stevens came to the Bucs with a rather less than angelic past. This latest incident likely means his NFL career is over.

A dead car battery had more energy than the Bucs’ rushing attack through the first 5 1/2 games this season.

When the Bucs hoisted Cadillac Williams and his sub-three yards a carry average as its answer to Adrian Peterson, any sober Bucs fans knew the running game would be in trouble.

The begging, pleading for someone, anyone to start other than Williams by Bucs fans so unnerved Bucs offensive coordinator Greg Olson that he pronounced the Bucs had no one on the roster better than Caddy.

LeGarrette Blount yesterday, finally, proved Olson’s remarks to be wrong or at least misguided.

The Bucs have a real shot at a playoff run. Strange and awkward as that sounds, it’s true. So the time has come to stop clowning around with the running game. Enough with the touchy, feeling emotions of keeping Cadillac in the game only to drag down the offense. Start Blount now, demands Tom Balog of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune!

The Buccaneers rushing statistics in their 18-17 victory over the St. Louis Rams on Sunday tell you one thing: rookie backup LeGarrette Blount needs to be the starting running back.

Blount busted a 47-yard run that was nullified by a blocking in the back penalty against tackle Jeremy Trueblood, which had nothing to do with springing him on what would have been the best run from scrimmage the team has had from a running back this season.

Not counting fullback Earnest Graham’s 61-yard run against the Bengals in Cincinnati, of course.

Balog went on to write that no less than quarterback Josh Freeman had more yards rushing than Williams.

Look, Joe gets that Williams is a great guy. Joe loves him too. But the NFL is about results. This isn’t high school. Cadillac simply hasn’t been getting it done. That’s not a knock on the man; he’s got two man-made knees for crying out loud.

Joe also gets that Cadillac may be the Bucs best running back at picking up blitzes. But to continue to start him at running back and futilely watch him not read holes and run right into the backs of offensive lineman, the Bucs can no longer justify Williams’ blocking ability with such feeble rushing results.

That’s no different than continuing to trot out Michael Clayton as a starting wide receiver because he can block. Williams is a running back. Keyword: running.

Bring Williams in on obvious passing situations where he can pick up blitzes and catch passes out of the backfield. That’s fine, that’s great, that’s probably a smart thing to do.

But to keep Williams as a starter when his productive days are past, and keep a buy like Blount on the bench when he has proven he can produce yards, with the Bucs having a clear shot at a playoff run, well, Joe believes that’s inexcusable.

The debate about why the Bucs aren’t selling tickets could rage on endlessly. Some blame the poor economy and high ticket prices. Some blame Team Glazer. Some say it’s a lack of star power on the roster. Some say it’s a dislike of the head coach. And some blame a combination of real or perceived issues.

But for Joe, a new question has emerged, what’s with all the unused tickets?

The Bucs’ reported attendance (aka tickets sold) yesterday was 42,020 and actual in-the-house attendance was 36,008, per the St. Pete Times. That means there were 6,000+ unused tickets, about 15 percent of those sold.

Joe finds that to be a pretty darn high no-show percentage, especially on a beautiful day for a 3-2 football team.

Surely the economy isn’t preventing people from attending a game for which they’ve already purchased tickets, or from giving the tickets to someone who would use them.

Joe gets that there’s always unused tickets. But 15 percent? That would be the equivalent of 10,000 empty seats at Heinz Field.

Joe finds it hard to call the Tampa Bay area a football town when residents won’t use NFL game tickets already paid for.

Joe’s still shaking his head in disbelief, and it is not from the copious amounts of adult beverages he threw down yesterday after the Bucs beat the Rams.

How did this happen? The Rams had their foot on the Bucs throats in the first half. It was looking like a third straight brutal loss at home.

It’s really amazing. Seems as though Tampa Tribune columnist Joe Henderson is also shaking his head in wonderment, trying to figure out how Josh Freeman once again pulled out a fourth quarter win.

For two quarters the Bucs were about as bad as can be as they fell behind 17-3. Actually, they were boring and that’s worse than bad.

We’ve seen it before with this team, though. They hang around, grind out a little something, make a play or two, and the next thing you know Freeman has the ball late in the fourth quarter with a chance to win.

If we have to keep talking about how they won a game that logic says they shouldn’t have, maybe it’s time to shift the focus somewhere else.

The Bucs got gouged on the ground (again) by Steven Jackson. They imploded with penalties.

Once again, this is the NFL. Wins are wins. Style points are for college football. Count your blessings with a W, raise a beer and look to the next opponent.

No need to apologize for taking advantage of being left to hang around in a game.

Paul Severino and Cris Carter look back at the Bucs win over the Rams in this BSPN video.

Following Sunday’s thrilling victory against the Rams, Joe had some one-on-one time with Donald Penn. The Bucs’ left tackle talked about the running game, playing next to rookie guard Ted Larsen, his weight loss and more.

JoeBucsFan.com: Knowing you had a rookie first-timer in Ted Larsen next to you at guard who got in trouble with some penalties, did you have any words of advice for him during the game?

Donald Penn: I just told him to keep fighting, man. That’s been the motto of our team. This year and last year. You know, last year we lost a lot ofgames and we were down [by a lot of points] a lot. But one thing us as an O-line did was fight ’til the end. I think that’s one thing that’s helping us. It helped us in the Cincinnati game and against the Rams. You know, we always keep fighting. So when we do have a chance to win now, it’s easier now because you’re in the game, not losing and trying to push yourself to fight hard. Now you have a reason to push yourself hard because the score isright there and the team is winning so it makes it easier. I just told him to keep fighting.  I was tyring to help him a little bit (physically) but I was getting power rushed. But he told me at halftime, ‘Do you. Do your thing, I got it.’

Joe: Xs and Os-wise how were you trying to help Larsen?

Penn: I was sitting tight and trying to give him a hand. And then my guy was power rushing me and I wasn’t able to get off. You know, because I was trying to help him too much. I adjusted and the coach adjusted in the second half and brought the center with him so I could do my thing on an island. In the second half I played a lot better. I played pretty bad in the first half, the whole team did.

Joe: What else can you say about the O-line helping Larsen and his performance?

Penn: I told [Larsen] a little story. It’s a quick story. ‘I got in the game. I never got out since. It’s up to you to do it.’ He was like, ‘Thanks.’ It happens that fast, you know. I experienced that. I love seeing a young guy like that. I stayed in his ear. Coach stayed in his ear. [Jeremy] Zuttah and Davin [Joseph] stayed in his ear. He got tossed in that fire, man. It’s hard, especially in the middle of the season. It’s real tough. You know he wasn’t here all camp. So he’s still learning. My hat’s off to him, man. He came in and played his butt off. He got those penalties, came in the huddle and said, ‘My bad,’ and bounced back.

Joe: What was the difference [Sunday] being able to run the ball?

Penn: I can’t even say, man. In the second half, we came out and opened it up and I think it helped us. You know, we got this win. At halftime people didn’t think we were going to get this win and we came out and we were still close enough into the game where we didn’t have to pass, pass, pass. You know we got two good backs. It’s looking up, man. I keep telling everybody we’re working, we just need to get more consistent with the runninggame. We just have to get more consistent. The last couple of games we’ve been down, so it’s hard to get the running game down when you’re losing. We got to build off this.

Joe: Talk about LeGarrette Blount and Cadillac Williams.

Penn: I’m proud of Blount. And he’s got a great teacher too in Cadillac Williams. You know Cadillac’s a vet, and he’s a great teacher. He’s helping [Blount] every day in practice. He’s standing by Cadillac every day in practice and Cadillac is coaching him up and helping him out. We got some veterans and some young guys, but the good thing is the veterans are helping the younger guys and it’s starting to show. …We’ve been making it real hard on Cadillac, you know. I guess today we opened it up a little bit more. I think any running back that would have been back there would have made the same runs [Blount] made, you know, because we opened it up. That’s why I say it’s all up on the line. We gotta do better.  The last games, I feel bad for Cadillac. A lot of people are on him and on him and it’s not Cadillac’s fault. Cadillac can’t do nothing without us. You know, so we take that responsibility 100 percent.

Joe: You were on the playoff team in 2007, one of the few guys with playoffs experience on the roster. Does this feel like a playoff team?

Penn: Of course. I always have that feeling. I had that feeling last year. …We’re just being patient. We’re being humble. We’re going onto the next week in Arizona. We just have to keep winning, keep winning and keep getting better. You know we can’t do this the way we played the first half against another team. It might not go the same way. Luckily, it went our way.

Joe: You lost a lot of weight in the offseason. Do you feel better playing at this weight? And how did you lose the weight? Are there specific foods you gave up? What was the difference?

Penn: I just changed the way I was eating. That was the biggest thing. And I hired a trainer in the offseason. You know I never hired a trainer before. It’s hard to do it yourself. It’s hard to motivate yourself when you’re working out. It’s easy in a game when you have something to lose. So I have a trainer that was with me and is there for me. It’s working good. I feel great out there. I feel tremendously quicker. And that’s the biggest thing I needed.