There was chatter, whispers, rumors and innuendo that the Bucs’ rush defense was soft.

Today, it may have been worse.

When the Bucs jettisoned Jimmy Wilkerson and Chris Hovan in the offseason — not terrible moves — it left the Bucs vulnerable up front. They were more than vulnerable today; they were a sieve.

With rookies Gerald McCoy and Brian Price in the middle, sometimes punctuated with second-year tackle Roy Miller, it was a risk Bucs general manager Mark Dominik was going to take. Without veterans up front, young players, specifically rookies, were going to get exposed while at the same time gain valuable experience. Historically, rookie defensive tackles do not shine, not even Warren Sapp was a stud as a rookie.

The defensive front was jostled, mocked and robbed today. Saints tackle Jon Stinchcomb literally would take out two players at a time on some running plays.

With youth up front, the Bucs need or needed a monster middle linebacker. Sadly, there are few middle linebackers that fit that mold. Barrett Ruud certainly isn’t that type of a linebacker.

And no, there are no linebackers like that walking the streets currently.

The NFL is a copycat league. Other teams will watch this tape and one can be sure future opponents of the Bucs will try to replicate what the Saints’ running game did today.

Lost by some in last week’s win was that Cedric Benson was gouging the Bucs rush attack time after time. Then, for some unknown reason, angry Marvin Lewis decided to throw the ball.

McCoy, Price, and yes, Miller have a lot of growing up to do in just a few days. If Benson can hammer the Bucs defense, if the immortal Chris Ivory can run for 158 yards on 15 carries, imagine what Steven Jackson might do?

One of the reasons, if not the reason, the Bucs jumped out to a 3-1 record in their first four games was the play of quarterback Josh Freeman.

Local scribes typed accolades. National talking heads gushed. Freeman is the real deal and he will lead the Bucs to the promised land.

Not so fast. Freeman is still a young quarterback but as Bucs general manager Mark Dominik noted last week on Sirius NFL Radio, Freeman has yet to start 16 games, a full season.

That showed today.

Freeman looked very much the young quarterback. He overthrew receivers all day. Too often, he and his receivers were not on the same page. Receivers would run hooks when Freeman expected them to run go-routes. Receivers would turn right when Freeman expected a break to the left.

Receivers were open. Freeman, for whatever reason, missed his targets.

Granted, the Saints were getting pressure on Freeman. But as he noted in his press conference ,which can be viewed on Buccaneers.com, he didn’t take the cop out and use limited time to throw as an excuse.

“That comes with a young team,” Freeman said of too common instances of miscommunication. “Fortunately for us we have room to improve. [Lack of time] wasn’t an issue.”

This is one of those games to forget. Go out, have a beer (or two), put it behind you and grind tomorrow morning at One Buc Palace.

The Rams come into the CITS next Sunday. In recent years, they have been an elixir to many teams’ woes.

Saints 31, Bucs 6

This was a beat down by the Saints. If today’s loss shows anything, it demonstrated the Bucs can take care of themselves against average or below average teams. Elite teams like the defending champs or perhaps the best team in the AFC (Pittsburgh), well, there’s some work to do. Maybe a lot.

The running game, which was dicey at best, is now thin. It doesn’t look like Kareem Huggins may be back soon after an ugly right knee injury. Earnest Graham has a hamstring injury and those things will nag at an athlete for weeks, maybe months.

Please check in early and often with Joe. He’ll have more later.

Week 6
Saints at Bucs
Kickoff: 1 p.m.
TV: Blacked out locally. Outside the Tampa/Orlando TV markets, the game can be found on DirecTV Channel 708.
Radio: Buccaneers Radio Network (in Tampa WFUS-FM, 103.5 and WDAE-AM, 620); Sirius Channel 158.
Weather: Per Accuweather.com, not a bad day to watch football, not bad at all. Temperature at kickoff is expected to be 83 under sunny skies with limited wind or humidity. It’s expected to gradually warm up throughout the game.
Odds: Per Bodog.com, Saints -4.5.
Outlook: The Bucs will be the darlings of the NFL if they can beat the world champs. This may be a difficult task. Sure, the Saints are a shell of their former selves, having been decimated by injuries in the backfield. Part of the problem with the Saints offense has been dropped passes. If Sean Jones’ back issues creep up again, that means Sabby and rookie Cody Grimm will have to stop Drew Brees who enjoys passing over the middle. Gulp. The Bucs have their own issues with injuries on offense as well. Mike Williams, Josh Freeman’s new favorite target, will be a game-time decision whether he plays. Jeff Faine is out, though Jeremy Zuttah did an admirable job filling in for him last week. It looks like the Bucs are going to have to win this game the same way they won previous games: force turnovers.
Video: All sorts of video available to get a break down of today’s game. NFL Films looks at the rivalry between the two NFC South teams, Joe Theismann, Sterling Sharpe and Brian Billick give a look-see into the Bucs chances (Sharpe is chugging the Josh Freeman Kool-Aid) and could there be a safety controversy with the Bucs? … Also, good guy Stephen Holder of the St. Petersburg Times takes a deeper look at the success of the Bucs. … Josh Freeman sounds off on the NFL Network about the Bucs quick start. Also, Mike Mayock of the NFL Network has a fascinating piece on the pros and cons of Freeman.
Sunday morning reading: Vic Carucci of NFL.com writes that the Bucs themselves don’t know if they are a good team.
Fun facts: Aqib Talib has a streak of three game with interceptions. … In nine career starts against the Bucs, Brees has a 100 passer rating. … New Orleans’ Lance Moore has seven receiving touchdowns in his last seven games against NFC South opponents. … When Cadillac Williams has at least 22 carries in a game, the Bucs are 13-0.

Joe suspects Lincoln Kennedy is still bitter the Bucs crushed his Raiders in the Super Bowl.

Or, Kennedy needs glasses.

Or, Kennedy was just making stuff up on FOX Sports Radio this afternoon, aired locally on WDAE-AM 620.

Kennedy briefly broke down the Bucs-Saints game on the air and was confident the Saints will bounce back in a big way.

All the former offensive lineman had to say about the Bucs was that “they look to be slow on defense.”

Now there’s a lot of negatives about the Bucs’ defense one could intelligently hurl out there, but “slow” surely isn’t one of them.

That’s got to be the most ridiculous, ill-informed Bucs commentary since yesterday, when a local beat writer downplayed the Bucs’ nine interceptions.

Joe once again brings you Derek “Old School” Fournier, lord of WhatTheBuc.net, and his weekly Bucs game preview.

A few days ago, Joe had the chance to chat with Bucs safety Sean Jones. The first-year Bucs player spoke about the Bucs defense, what he brings to the table as a safety, and the team’s relationship with head coach Raheem Morris.

JoeBucsFan: How much of a difference has it been coming from Philly to the Bucs? Is there that much of a difference between the X’s and O’s?

Sean Jones: Totally different. In Philly, we pretty much blitzed every play. Here, it’s pretty much a Tampa-2 and we play a lot of coverage zones to stop the run. It’s a different kind of scheme.

Joe: Are you still trying to become comfortable in this system? Or are you comfortable in this system?

Jones: I’m definitely real comfortable in this system. It’s similar to the system we played in with Cleveland. Our base defense in Cleveland was very similar.

Joe: So was coming here like putting on an old pair of shoes? What I mean by that is this was a defense you knew, you just sort of had to shake the rust and cobwebs off.

Jones: Yeah. This is a great defense. In this defense, we just have to be physical and make plays.

Joe: Raheem Morris is both the head coach and he also has the title of defensive coordinator. He used to be the secondary coach. How hands on is he with the secondary?

Jones: He’s very hands on for a head coach. He’s always in our meeting rooms. He’s always in our defensive backs room. He’s always giving his pointers. As defensive backs, we have a great deal of respect for him. We ball out to make him look good.

Joe: What are some things you learned from him?

Jones: Yeah, defense. X’s and O’s of our defense.

Joe: Give me an example of something you learned. You know like, ‘Oh, wow, that will help.’

Jones: (Laughs) No, man, I can’t do that.

Joe: (Laughs) OK. We won’t go there. What would you say is your strength is as a safety?

Jones: Hhhmm. I’d say my speed and I’m a good tackler. I just want to be an all-around player, be all over the field.

Joe: Now Kellen Winslow for example, he just raves about Morris. Says he wouldn’t want to play for another coach. Do the rest of the players have that kind of respect and admiration for him?

Jones: Most definitely. Rah is a great young coach. He’s full of energy. A lot of players can relate to him. We just want to go out there and win and play hard for him, each and every week.

Gregg Rosenthal is absolutely chugging the Josh Freeman Kool-Aid in this NBCSports.com video.

Joe sniffed around tight end stats on NFL.com and saw Kellen Winslow parked at No. 17 on the list of receptions among NFL tight ends.

Winslow has no touchdowns.

Yeah, the Bucs are winning. Yeah, Winslow has made huge third-down catches. And Raheem Morris says stats are for losers. But Joe knows Winslow has got to have bigger numbers for the Bucs to be successful. He absolutely has to.

Winslow’s knees are suspect. There’s no reason to save him. This is his prime.

Joe hasn’t seen or heard anything that would lead him to believe Winslow is having trouble getting open. He appears at the top of his game. Mike Williams is now having problems with his foot.

Joe hopes Greg Olson starts feeding the Bucs’ most talented receiver.

Click here for more info. Buy your tickets up until 10 p.m. Saturday night!

Can’t afford to enjoy Sunday’s Rams-Bucs game at the stadium?

Can’t stand watching the game on your computer?

Joe’s got a solution for you. You can travel with diehard Bucs fans to  Lee Roy Selmon’s in Fort Myers to watch the game there on a 6-foot HD screen, and catch the other 1 o’clock games at the same time.

Roundtrip on the bus, plus a FREE draft beer and a FREE plate of wings is only $24.95.

It’s known as The Blackout Tour. Joe can tell you it’s a comfortable luxury bus ride and a great time with diehard Bucs fans.

Get your tickets now for Sunday’s Blackout Tour. More than 75 Bucs fans have enjoyed themselves on The Blackout Tour to date. Get your tickets now.

Now Joe is sure all his readers fly to Vegas to wager legally, versus placing bets with the guy whose cell number changes every week. 

Regardless of how or why you wager, Joe knows there are many aspiring handicappers reading. So to please the gambling crowd, Joe has turned to superpicker Bob Fox. A writer for various sports publications over the years, Fox flashed his stellar picking skills back in 2008 on JoeBucsFan.com, when Joe had a contest here among sports media members.

Fox will be here weekly to give you a few games. Fox is 6-2 over the past two weeks.

By BOB FOX
JoeBucsFan.com analyst

Wisconsin Badgers 23, Ohio State Buckeyes 20

No. 18 Wisconsin always plays well under the lights at Camp Randall Stadium when the the top ranked Ohio State Buckeyes come to town. In 2003, the Badgers beat the defending national champion Buckeyes 17-10 — and also stopped OSU’s 19 game winning streak — in Madison. In 2008, it took a Terrelle Pryor touchdown run in the last minute for the Buckeyes to beat the Badgers. Like most Badger teams of recent history, the 2010 team has an explosive running game led by the 2009 Big Ten offensive player of the year John Clay and freshman phenom James White. The two have combined for 1,177 yards and 17 TDs. The Buckeyes play the run very well, at least so far. Pryor will once again be they key. He’s a threat to pass and run, although he was hampered last week by a left leg injury and didn’t run much Bottom line, I see the Badgers being able to run on the Buckeyes with their two-headed monster, plus I don’t see QB Scott Tolzein making the mistakes he made last year in Columbus. I see Pryor making some big plays, but it won’t be enough.

Minnesota Vikings 27, Dallas Cowboys 21

Anyone who thinks Brett Favre won’t be able to continue his consecutive starting streak that started in 1992 (289 straight regular season games) because of elbow tendonitis, would get a reaction from John McEnroe. As in, “You can not be serious.” Favre will play, and he will play well, even with the Jenn Sterger story hanging out there, much like his text messages to Sterger. Favre has never won a game against the Dallas Cowboys in Dallas, but he has also never lost a game against the ‘Boys at home. This game is a desperation game for both teams. Both squads come into this game with 1-3 records, and a loss here might dig a hole too deep to get out of for the loser. Favre has struggled, as he only has a 67.0 QB rating and has tosseed five touchdown to seven picks. But in the second half of the Jets game last week, he finally showed some of the magic he displayed in 2009 for the Vikes, although he once again threw a late pick to seal the game for the Jets. ,QB Tony Romo meanwhile, has a 92.7 QB rating and has thrown seven TD passes to five interceptions, and his big weapon is WR Miles Austin. Still, somehow I see Favre, Adrian Peterson, Randy Moss and company doing enough to win a badly needed game at the Humpty Dome.

Tampa Bay Bucs 20, New Orleans Saints 17

The 3-1 Tampa Bay Bucs face their biggest test of the young 2010 season, when the defending Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints come to the Ray Jay. The 3-2 Saints have been inconsistent, evidenced by the loss last week in Arizona to the Cardinals. The Bucs have been winning “ugly” as some would say, plus they always seem to play the Saints tough. In fact, the last loss of the 2009 season for the Saints came from the hand of the Bucs in New Orleans. Josh Freeman has done what he has needed to do this year, although he only has a 84.8 QB rating, along with five TD passes and three interceptions. Drew Brees, meanwhile, has 95.7 QB rating and has thrown nine TD passes and five picks. Brees has many weapons to use, but the Bucs’ pass defense this year is ninth in the NFL. The Saints are ranked in the top 10 in both offense and defense, while the Bucs are ranked 20th in offense and only 18th on defense. On paper, the Saints should win the game. But games aren’t played on paper, and the Bucs will once again find a way to win “ugly.” The win will look beautiful though to the throng of rabid Buc fans at Raymond James Stadium, even if the game isn’t a sell out.

New England Patriots 17, Baltimore Ravens 14

The Pats (3-1) host the Ravens (4-1) in a game that will pit QB Tom Brady and his now Randy Moss-less passing offense against the third-ranked defense in the NFL. But Brady still has weapons like Wes Welker and the recently reacquired Deion Branch, plus Brady leads the entire NFL with his 109.0 QB rating. QB Joe Flacco has many weapons as well, with receivers like Anquan Bolden, Derrick Mason, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, not to mention RB Ray Rice. But Flacco has struggled, as he only has a 72.1 QB rating, as he has thrown just five TD passes, compared to six picks. Flacco should be able to do something in this game, though, as the Pats are only ranked 28th in pass defense. The Pats will squeak by the Ravens at home.

Jason Horowitz and Pat Kirwan break down the Saints-Bucs game Sunday in this CBSSports.com video. Hint: Kirwan explains why he loves Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman. But Sabby at safety? Kirwan doesn’t think that much.

What do you think of Kirwan’s full comments?

Joe hears it. Joe reads it. Bucs fans are screaming that their team is 3-1, yet the Bucs are getting scant attention compared to the current dregs of the NFL, Minnesota and Dallas.

Well, that’s what you get for watching BSPN (which Joe is proud to admit he has blocked on his DirecTV along with NBA TV, the glut of shopping channels, and LOGO).

Leave it to eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune to explain this to the masses Kaufman, in a recent TBO Bucs question-and-answer feature, details why network TV producers are not (yet) aroused by the Bucs.

Q: Why are the networks so high on teams that have losing records (Dallas, Minnesota, etc.) and pay little or no attention to the Bucs who are 3-1? I’m getting tired of watching Sports Center and only seeing highlights of big-name teams even though they keep losing! How can a team that is up and coming like the Bucs gain fan support if the media doesn’t help them?

Angelo Kotz, West Palm Beach

A: The networks are fixated on stars, and the Bucs don’t have much national buzz because they lack stars like Brett Favre, Adrian Peterson, Tony Romo and Demarcus Ware. They aren’t America’s Team like the Cowboys and they are not a traveling circus like the Vikings. Their time will come in the network spotlight if they keep winning. The league’s flex schedule could give them some nationally televised games down the stretch. Meanwhile, enjoy their impressive start under the radar.

— eye-RAH! Kaufman

Bingo. As Joe once heard a high school basketball coach tell his team whose players thought they were being ignored by local papers, “Win and the media comes around. It’s that simple and it’s all in your hands.”

If the Bucs win, so too will the glare of the national spotlight.

Beating the Super Bowl champs tomorrow will be a big leap forward in that respect.

The Commish, Justin Pawlowski, of WDAE-AM 620, delivers his weekly bizarre/informative fantasy football report in this video.

Joe’s idea of fantasy football involves delivering pizza to a ladies-only, Bucs cheerleader pool party, but Joe does understand lots of readers enjoy the other kind of fantasy football. Check out the video. It’s unique and special.

If you don’t want to get fired up about the Bucs, then you best not click this link.

Nothing quite like the NFL Network for breaking down film. Mike Mayock (offense) and Brian Baldinger (defense) look at some good and a little bad from the Bucs’ performance in Cincinnati.

Mayock is sold on Josh Freeman. Baldinger likes a couple of the Bucs’ pass rushing packages.

Everybody is excited about the Bucs. Joe’s enjoying the hype.

Rick Stroud called the Bucs a house of cards back in May. And now he likens their 3-1 record to a mirage.

Rick Stroud of the St. Pete Times just can’t believe what he’s seeing from these Buccaneers.

Stroud thinks their 3-1 record is largely an illusion because statistically the Bucs are so poor that the wins don’t add up, so Stroud told J.P. Peterson on 1010 AM this afternoon. (Yes, that’s the same Peterson who is shunned by the Rays).

Stroud bellowed on about how the Bucs have a poor pass rush, can’t stop the run, have a poor running game, etc, while explaining why the Ws don’t add up.

“Everything I know about the game tells me this is more of a mirage,” Stroud said.

The St. Pete Times beat writer went on to say the Bucs are surviving on winning the turnover battles with nine interceptions and protecting the ball.

But then Stroud tossed an ice cold bag of cold water on those nine interceptions, “some of them, let’s face it, they’re sort of the jump-the-route variety,” he said. “And they did it with Josh Freeman making some unbelievable throws and Micheal Spurlock and Mike Williams coming up with unworldly catches.”

Uhh, that’s football, Rick. You make plays and you win. And since when does jumping a route devalue an interception? This is news to Joe.

Initially, Joe was surprised by Stroud being so negative. But Stroud is the same guy who called the Bucs a house of cards during a TV interview before the season started. So maybe it all makes sense.

Some suggest Peter King has the best gig in the country. He gets flown to New York to feed his face on Dick Ebersol’s dime in Manhattan each Sunday while watching all NFL games at once and then gets to babble about them hours later.

That’s not Joe’s kind of fun, sans the free grub. Joe can’t even watch the Red Zone Channel (way too ADDish for Joe). Joe can handle watching two games at once on his two TVs, but six (in one screen) or bouncing from stadium to stadium every 20 seconds makes Joe want to inhale Dramamine.

Today on SI.com, King explained what he will be watching Sunday on his many TV screens at 30 Rock. One of those screens will have the Saints-Bucs game.

10. The Bucs try to slay the Big, Bad (and Flawed) Saints. In the last eight quarters, the Saints watched teams quarterbacked by Jimmy Clausen and Max Hall outscore them 44-36. Now comes 22-year-old Josh Freeman, who is Johnny Unitas in experience compared to those two guys. And Freeman won’t be scared of anything Gregg Williams throws at him. Amazing to think Tampa Bay could be a game-and-a-half up on the Saints, with a tiebreaker edge too, by 4 p.m. Sunday.

Joe believes the Bucs will have to play their best game of the season to win Sunday. If someway the Bucs win, all you Bucs fans who curled up into a fetal position sucking your thumb wondering why those outside the Tampa Bay region wouldn’t waste 20 seconds on a sad sack team better watch out.

With a win Sunday, the Bucs will become the talk of the NFL.

Yeah, Joe’s a boring guy. Friday morning he was home watching the Documentary Channel. Sure, Joe understands this is no way to lure Rachel Watson.

There was a film shown this morning about the NFL draft, “Two Days in April.” It was a fascinating look at a handful of players that had their lives chronicled from their final college game through the Senior Bowl (if selected), through the combine and up to the 2006 draft.

At the NFL combine, one of the players featured, Derek Hagen, who later was drafted in the third round by the Dolphins, was being interviewed in a hotel room by then Bucs general manager Bruce Almighty and his right-hand man who is the current Bucs general manager, Mark Dominik.

Dominik, largely, sat silent on the couch to Bruce Almighty’s left. Bruce Almighty did the vast amount of the talking, with the exception of Dominik asking Hagen, “What kind of coach do you like, a guy that pats you on the back or guy that gets on you?”

When Hagen answered he liked both, that he liked a “mellow” coach who also would motivate a player, Bruce Almighty laughed and said, “We don’t use the word ‘mellow’ very much around One Buc Place.”

But what Bruce Almighty said a bit earlier in the interview may speak volumes about the draft philosophy the Bucs had under Bruce Almighty (and Chucky, who was also in the film). Bruce Almighty told Hagen, “Look, you are all good players here. What we are looking for are good teammates.”

You’ve all read THE PESSIMIST, who spews his Bucs-related anger like no other. But Joe also wants you to know THE OPTIMIST. 

THE OPTIMIST is Nick Houllis, a Bucs fan and an accomplished writer whose steadfast allegiance to the team goes back to the 1970s. Houllis is the founder, creator and guru of BucStop.com, a place Joe goes to get lost in time via Houllis’ stunning video collection.

THE OPTIMIST will shine that positive light in your eyes. Some will love it. Some won’t.

So you’re probably asking yourself by now, ‘why are the Bucs winning?’ How is it this team that is pretty much the same club that won only three games in 2009 has the same amount of wins already in 2010, and has gone 5 dash 2 (Gulp) in the last seven games?

Well, for starters, there is never only one reason that anything gets done. One is the way different players were added; and it’s the primary difference between this regime, and the last one.

These Bucs know how to draft players. Good college teams know how to recruit, and good NFL teams know how to draft; these are your core players you build your team around. These players can be on your roster for a decade, as opposed to free agents who tend to stay on a roster for only a couple years, maybe four.

There is no mystery to why this team is being run by a Morris and Dominik instead of a Gruden and Allen; the prior regime would not or could not develop young talent, instead relied on expensive (short and long term) free agents.

Take a look at players who made major contributions in the win over Cincinnati as well as victories over Cleveland and Carolina this year.

Sammy Stroughter, a seventh round draft pick, is the third-down specialist who had a few key first downs Sunday, as well as others.

On third down with 10:00 left in the third quarter Sunday, still down by three, Cincinnati threatened with a possession near the 50. They threw deep down the left sideline for Ochocinco, but the pass was excellently defended by E.J. Biggers, another 7th round draft pick that is looking to be the heir apparent to Ronde Barber. That’s two seventh-rounders from the 2009 NFL draft, while the Gruden/Allen regime were supplying the team with names like CB Marcus Hamilton,  S Hamza Abdullah, or the more infamous CB Alan Zemaitis, who was a FOURTH round pick!

What is the current leadership doing with 4th round picks? They’re doing their homework and taking the likes of Mike Williams WR from Syracuse, and DE Kyle Moore who laid a smashing hit on Carson Palmer in the second half to end another threat.

You can go down a list, and find players drafted by Mark Dominik and crew, guys like Cody Grimm who is shoved into the starting lineup and after two games and has more touchdowns than John Lynch already! Arrelious Benn made some nice catches and will continue to grow each week and get better. to the point where 19, 18, 17 won’t sound like a countdown to the end of a season, but what it is instead, roster numbers of the Bucs up-and-coming lethal weapons.

Almost every player taken in the ’09 draft had a part in the win over Cincinnati; From No. 1 pick Josh Freeman on down. Compare that to the starters from the 2008 draft, Gruden/Allen’s last; CB Aqib Talib and LB Geno Hayes, and third round pick Jeremy Zuttah is starting for Faine now, but is a backup across the line. Mind you this was probably the deepest draft of Gruden’s days here.

More names from Bruce Allen and Jon Gruden draft War Room; WR Aaron Lockett, TE Tracy Winstrom, C Zach Quaccia, DE John Stamper, WR Marquise Walker, T Lance Nimmo, LB Marquise Cooper (RIP), FB Casey Cramer, WR Lenny Williams, TE T.J. Williams, CB Justin Phinisee, and TE Tim Massaquoi.

Before the season, knowing the team had 10 draft picks to use in a very deep draft, I heard a lot of criticism on the radio, saying basically do we trust these people who gaffed in years prior to bring in quality bodies, to be responsible for laying the foundation for the franchise for years to come. Acknowledging that a lot of the same people are still in the building, be it Dominik, or director of college scouting Dennis Hickey, perhaps the voices were correct in their concern.

Or maybe the problem was not the picking of the talent but the development of it.

I’ve said this on many occasions to people who want the Glazers to spend more money and bring free agents NOW rather than later to augment a developing team: when you bring in a free agent and plug him into a position, you prevent a young player from also playing that position and developing there. You must either sacrifice development of a young player who may take over that position and keep it for a decade (say Mike Williams) or plug in the veteran for a few years (Anquan Boldin, or Brandon Marshall), only to find you need to replenish it again. You can’t have both.

Clearly, the Bucs under Dominik and Morris have got it right, or at least that’s the view from 3-1; Because that too, may change.