Before Saturday’s preseason game against the Jaguars, Joe heard the Bucs’ defensive mastermind/head coach asked a question on the Buccaneers Radio Network.

Apparently, since Raheem Morris’ job is not in jeopardy, interviewer/host TJ Rives didn’t pass on any questions of the day. Rives asked Morris whether Josh Freeman would have played that night if the game was opening day of the regular season.

“The young man would have tried to play,” Morris said.

Joe’s not sure what to make of that; the head coach didn’t elaborate.

So just how close is Freeman to being ready?

Joe finds it interesting that none of the mainstream press had any quotes from Freeman out of Saturday night’s game. He is the franchise player, and his injury status is key to the entire season.

That makes it seem to Joe that Freeman was made off-limits to the media. And from Joe’s experience, that could be a strong sign that the Bucs aren’t confident in his opening-day return and don’t want Freeman to say anything that could reveal that now.

It’s all quite mysterious. Joe wouldn’t bet a nickel Freeman is the opening day QB.

Joe noted Saturday night that Jeff Bowden couldn’t have shanked more punts than Bucs punter Brent Bowden. But Joe wasn’t quite ready to sound the alarm on all Bucs special teams.

It seems eye-RAH! Kaufman is. The long-time Bucs beat writer for the Tampa Tribune believes the Bucs need major work on their special teams between now and when the season kicks off at the CITS in less than two weeks.

Tampa Bay’s special teams were among the league’s best in 2009, but kick coverage has been ragged in the preseason. A week ago, Chiefs rookie Javier Arenas returned a kickoff 54 yards to set up a TD drive.

Jacksonville rookie Scotty McGee brought back Connor Barth’s opening kickoff 47 yards Saturday night, but the Jags were limited to a 35-yard field goal by Josh Scobee.

Last season, the Bucs did not allow a kickoff or punt return longer than 37 yards.

Joe isn’t ready to jump off the Sunshine Skyway Bridge quite yet over the special teams play. Remember, the Bucs are using quite a few bubble players in different positions on special teams so naturally there isn’t a smooth flow, nor should one expect there be at this time of the year.

Now, by the time the Bucs host the Steelers, if special teams is playing overall lousy, then it will be a major concern.

Count Joe among the masses who thought the Bucs should have signed Antonio Bryant this offseason.

Bryant caught 39 balls in 2009, several of the spectacular variety, from three quarterbacks on a dreadful team. And he battled through injuries to play in 13 games. In Joe’s eyes, he was a special talent and was easily the best the Bucs had.

For Joe, re-signing Bryant was an absolute no-brainer, under one condition. The same condition that any team or fan would apply to any player, Bryant had to be healthy enough to play at a high level..

Now Joe wasn’t so sure the Bucs would deem Bryant healthy. After all, Joe was the only one to transcribe Bryant’s “bone on bone” knee description he laid out during an interview on the Buccaneers Radio Network last year. And how one recovers from bone-on-bone issues is surely unclear to Joe.

When the Bengals signed him in free agency, though, Joe assumed the Bengals’ doctors knew what they were doing. So Joe slammed the Bucs for not signing Bryant. Sure enough, Adam Schefter, of BSPN.com, tweeted about Bryant’s bone-on-bone issues about a month ago as if he had unearthed a revelation.

When Joe saw that, it was obvious the Bengals doctors flat out screwed up.

Mark Dominik made the right move in not signing Bryant. Still, Joe thinks it would have been the right move if Bryant were healthy.

Now Bucs beat writer Pat Yasinskas, BSPN.com beat writer for the NFC South, is trumpeting today that the Bucs should be lauded for passing on Bryant. Yasinskas also is spouting off that the Bengals cut Bryant today for reasons other than his knee, which kept him out of nearly the entire Bengals training camp and preseason.

They cut Bryant in part because he had some knee problems. They also cut him because they realized he just wasn’t that good and, maybe – just maybe – because Owens would be a better fit in the locker room.

Joe is appauled that Yasinskas is making such assertions, when his colleague James Walker, who covers the AFC North, follows the Bengals daily and never made such leaps. The archives are all there.

Plus, Joe has never seen such negative conjecture about Bryant in the Cincinnati Enquirer.

Joe thinks its shameful that Yasinskas essentially is putting it out there that Bryant stunk it up in Cincinnati and was a bad apple. Who’s your source, Pat?

Joe just wanted to get that out there before Yasinskas’ paragraph quoted above is magically deleted without explanation from Disney’s website. That’s been known to happen on the NFC South blog.

Though Joe apologizes for bringing this slightly dated story, it’s still a good read.

Virtually everyone connected to the Bucs, from general manager Mark Dominik to beer-soaked fans, is raving about rookie receiver Mike Williams.

Jason Cole, of Yahoo! Sports, seemed intrigued and visited One Buc Palace to determine why. He came away with information that it isn’t just Williams’ physical tools that set him apart, but his football intelligence as well.

“I really got the sense of how bright he was when we were going over this one route he ran in college,” said Tampa Bay wide-receivers coach Eric Yarber, who added that Williams is one of the best young receivers he has ever had at understanding the technical side of plays from the moment they are shown on a Power Point presentation. “It was an option route, where he could run a post or corner route. The way the safety had him shaded, he should have run a post. But he ran a corner, so I asked him to explain why.”

Williams explained that the safety on the other side of the field was shaded to the middle of the field, meaning that if he ran the post, the pass was either going to get intercepted or Williams was going to get hit hard when the ball got there. Either way, the chance for success was limited.

So Williams improvised. Instead of one fake, he gave two, showing the corner route, showing the post and then finally committing to the corner route after the first safety covering him bought the second fake. Touchdown.

Considering the Bucs got Williams in the fourth round, this is an absolute steal for the Bucs and, if injury-free, may become one of the best wide receivers in Bucs history.

But Joe’s trying to temper his excitement. It’s still August after all.

"Olie, man. It's time to make some chicken salad, if you know what I'm sayin'."

Reggie Brown dropped passes. Michael Clayton didn’t play. And slow-to-come-along rookie Arrelious Benn didn’t get much of a shot.

That all came out of the Bucs’ “dress rehearsal” last night against Jacksonville.

Sammie Stroughter looks good. Rookie Mike Williams has been spectacular. Maurice Stovall has a bum ankle. And Micheal Spurlock has done everything asked of him.

So who makes the roster?

Regardless of the final five or six, the receiving corps appears to be shaking out to be what many Bucs fans feared; It might be the worst on paper in the NFL. Joe hates getting all negative, but it is what it is.

On top of that, the Bucs struggled to run the ball.

Greg Olson has a massive undertaking on his hands. He’ll have to get creative, maybe try again to get Jerramy Stevens and Kellen Winslow on the field together, because the Bucs have no identity on offense.

Some Bucs fans believe feared blocking wide receiver Michael Clayton may not make the final cuts next month before Bucs prepare to host Cleveland in the season opener.

Judging by the venom on local sports radio and comments on this very site, Joe believes many Bucs fans pray Clayton doesn’t make the roster.

But Clayton is expecting to prove those fans wrong,so writes good guy Stephen Holder of the St. Petersburg Times. Clayton, though he didn’t play last night in the loss to the Jaguars, believes he will be in his familiar No. 80 uniform when Cleveland comes to town in two weeks.

“I have full confidence that I will be here,” Clayton said. “You never know what’s going to happen. With our youth, with everything that we’ve got going, I would say in my opinion, it would be beneficial that I would be here. That’s just my opinion. I know it doesn’t count.”

Clayton’s base salary of $3 million this fall is guaranteed, but the Bucs would entertain trading the veteran who disappointed the club last season after signing a $26 million deal. They might opt to release him despite the guaranteed salary, which will complicate those efforts to trade him.

Coach Raheem Morris said Clayton’s absence from the game was not indicative of anything, saying coaches wanted to take a longer look at rookie Arrelious Benn and some other receivers. Morris said Clayton would play Thursday night in Houston.

Will Clayton be on the final roster? Joe has always said yes, because Bucs general manager Mark Dominik will give Clayton one last chance to prove he’s worthy of his salary.

Say what you will about Clayton, but there are few nicer guys. Had Clayton been a pain in the arse or of questionable character, Joe would be confident Clayton would be gone already.

His work ethic and demeanor might just be enough to put Clayton over the top in what Joe believes will be a razor-thin call by Bucs management.

Like every Bucs fan, Joe knows the Bucs absolutely have to be able to run the ball successfully to have a prayer for a decent season.

Young quarterback + young receivers + crappy running game = a long, ugly season.

Minus an 18-yard Josh Johnson scramble, the Bucs’ rushing attack was just 14 carries for 24 yards on Saturday night. The Bucs’ defensive mastermind/head coach was about as depressed as Joe.

The Jaguars allowed more than 600 rushing yards in their last four games of 2009.

“The only thing that was discouraging was the lack of ability to run the football in the first half with that first crew. And there’s really no excuse with who was in there,” Raheem Morris said. “You know, we missed Davin [Joseph] today with the hip flexor. He was out today. But we really gotta be able to  go in there and run the football against anybody.”

Joe was hoping to see Keydrick Vincent mashing the opposition. That wasn’t happening. And Jeff Faine appeared to be getting blown up too many times. And, of course, Jeremy Zuttah is no Davin Joseph. Zuttah filled in at right guard.

Joe’s not seeing how the Bucs just flick the running game switch in two weeks without a big-time back.

Veteran St. Petersburg Times sports columnist Gary Shelton believes the regular season is coming too quickly for the Bucs. Shelton explains in this video.

Joe lets former Bucs defensive end Steve White break down all things D-line in his popular Bull Rush column on these here pages.

Why would Joe take on such a task when White is the absolute best in the business?

And Joe can’t wait to read what White has to say about the incredible amount of rotation the Bucs were using all across the defensive line during the first half, when Jacksonville was playing its starting offense.

Perhaps this had a lot to do with the Bucs’ troubles getting off the field, which is a whole other sad story in itself.

One big kudo has to go to Stylez White for coming up with a big rush on a key third down late in the half that drew a holding penalty on starting left tackle Eugene Monroe. White beat him and Monroe tackled him.

That play led Jacksonville to a much longer field goal that they did, in fact, convert. But surely the timeliness of Allen Iverson’s White’s play didn’t go unnoticed.

What the hell kind of punter did the Bucs draft in the sixth round?

Yeah, this Brent Bowden kid has talent. Yeah, the kid punted lights out last week. Yeah, he plays a mean guitar.

But for those who will be watching the Bucs game for the first time on WFLA-TV, Ch. 8 this morning, Joe advises you to head for the bathroom quickly when Bowden lines up to punt. And, if you don’t head for the bathroom, you probably will after you see a couple of his clunkers.

Joe’s being hard on Bowden, but the Bucs can not afford to have a crappy punting game. If not for the Bucs’ stellar special teams, they might have won just one game last year.

Bowden absolutely has to turn it around.

Brice Price and Barrett Ruud were not the only Bucs defenders who played well Saturday night. So too did Bucs first round draft pick Gerald McCoy.

The rookie defensive tackle had nearly as good of a game as his fellow rookie tackle, Price. Speaking on the Buccaneers Radio Network after the game, GMC said he is still learning.

“Yeah, our motto is that the quarterback needs to feel us and that’s what we did today. That’s what we gave fans a chance to see.

“Lightning delay? We can’t use that as an excuse. [Jacksonville] had to do the same thing. You can’t use anything as a crutch. If we were playing basketball, we wouldn’t be worried about the weather.

“I’m grasping the defense. I’m learning and I’m having fun. Camp went well. Things are going well. I’ve learned things that I didn’t know. I need to learn each game and build off of that. This game I was staying in the quarterback’s face. I want to build on that. I will get better.”

The way Price can play when healthy, alongside an improving and highly talented GMC, these two very well could cost NFC South offensive coordinators quite a few sleepless nights foryears to come.

Joe’s had about enough of this Sabby Piscitelli character.

During the Bucs’ loss against Jacksonville at home last night, this Sabby celebrated a late third-quarter tackle he made, which was a three-yard gain, as if he just registered a sack in a playoff game.

There was Sabby dancing around like a Mark Gastineau. Funny how none of his teammates were at his side to slap him on the ass.

And you’d think Sabby might have been a little humbled by the moronic 15-yard penalty he incurred on punt coverage minutes prior.

Joe, for a brief moment, was embarrassed to be a Bucs fan.

Late in the game, Sabby suffered a mild concussion while solo-tackling a Jags wide receiver along the sideline.

Apparently, taking a good angle, for a change, can be dangerous.

It was the second series of the game for Jacksonville and Joe had barely begun to enjoy his cold adult beverage when Joe became so excited he nearly chugged the $7 (yeah, cheaper prices!) cup of beer in one helping.

That was because Brian Price was playing like an absolute beast.

Talk about disruptive, Price was getting in the Jags’ backfield so quick it was as if he was the intended ball carrier.

On one pass play Price was the victim of a holding penalty. It was a must foul, meaning had he not been tackled, he would have leveled “America’s Quarterback” (per Adam Schein).

Why, Price was held so much, it was the type of embrace Joe fantasizes about making with Rachel Watson in the wee hours of the morning.

Sadly, not long after, Price limped off the field. Joe’s assuming it was his gimpy hamstring.

Folks, as good as Mike Williams has flashed as a wide receiver, Price is as good or better at defensive tackle… when he’s healthy.

Joe’s starting to wonder about Earnest Graham, and he hopes it isn’t just preseason follies that are playing games with Joe’s mind.

Joe has gone on record several times about how he thinks the Bucs’ running backs are mediocre, and Earnest Graham is one reason why Joe thinks this.

Now before any Bucs fans start frothing at the mouth and banging on a keyboard, Joe loves the guy. He’s one of Joe’s favorites. But Joe really is starting to wonder if Graham has seen his better days. After all, he is 30, which is senior citizen age for a running back.

Last year, Joe was at the Tennessee preseason game and saw holes open up on the left side for Graham to run through but he never took advantage of those holes. Now whether he lost a step and didn’t hit the holes quick enough or didn’t read the blocking, Joe’s not sure.

This cropped back up tonight. On the play before his touchdown reception from Josh Johnson, Graham ran the ball to the left sideline. For football freaks and former players, the 1-hole was open, or a hole between left guard and center. Graham tried to run through the 3-hole, or between the tackle and guard. There was nothing there but a scrum.

Now Joe isn’t sure if the Bucs encourage their running backs to run to daylight, or if they are instructed to remain disciplined and run to and hopefully through a specific hole. Again, Joe is not sure.

But it’s starting to make Joe pause and wonder if Graham is able to read blocking, has lost too much of a step, or if these instances are just preseason mirages.

There was a Barrett Ruud sighting! And it had nothing to do with tackles four yards downfield.

Ruud made the play of the game, and one that was likely unnoticed, in the second quarter of the Bucs loss to the Jags Saturday.

Joe was sitting in the stands in the 200 level and let’s just say Ruud is not a fan favorite. Fans sitting around Joe were hounding him, heckling him, mocking him. “Hey, where’s Barrett Ruud? He’s four yards downfield!” Joe heard one fan cry.

Ruud shut the haters up when he stepped in front of a Jags receiver in what would otherwise have been a Jags touchdown. Ruud took the ball down the left sideline to set up a Josh Johnson-to-Earnest Graham touchdown.

“It was a standard go route,” Ruud said on the Buccaneers Radio Network after the game. “I ran well for 60 yards.”

Ruud had  a convoy in front of him but the piano on his back caught up with him.

“I ran out of gas. I thought I was going to take it to the house. My front guy [blocker] got bulldozed and after I had to jump over him my legs ran out.”

But it was a simple yet needed play by a middle linebacker that opened Joe’s eyes. On that same drive, Jacksonville had second down and 10 yards to go when the Jags called for a run to the right side. There was a hole but Ruud came from his left, plugged the hole, and got a tackle for no gain – at the line of scrimmage no less!

It is simple, yet basic plays like that, not so much interceptions, that will keep fans off of Ruud’s back.

He was juking Jacksonville defenders. He was cutting. He was breaking tackles.

His name is Derrick Ward.

Why some might say Ward looked like he was chasing down a scantily clad Kardashian through a crowded Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Barring a shocker of a trade, Joe’s quite certain Ward will be on the Buccaneers come opening day. They need him, assuming there’s more left in his 30-year-old tank.

Ward, playing against the Jaguars’ starters, ripped off 19 yards on four carries, including runs of nine and 12 yards. During the latter he broke three tackles, made three cuts and finished off the run hard.

If Ward were Kareem Huggins, Bucs fans would be out of their minds excited right now.

Huggins, again, didn’t get a shot to line up behind the Bucs’ starting offensive line. As Joe has written through the week, Joe’s just not seeing how the Bucs are that serious about Huggins.

He’s a great kid, but that hasn’t gotten him much of a shot.

Preseason Week 3
Jaguars at Bucs
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m.
TV: Blacked out. The game will be broadcast in its entirety Sunday morning on WFLA Ch. 8 at 11 a.m.
Radio: Buccaneers Radio Network (in Tampa WFUS-FM, 103.5 and WDAE-AM, 620); Sirius Channel 127.
Weather: Per AccuWeather.com, bring the rain gear. The game is supposed to kick off amid thunderstorms and end amid thunderstorms with temperatures falling from the mid-80s to 80 near the end.
Odds: Per Bodog.com, Jags -3.
Outlook: Yes, the game is blacked out. This has been well-documented. Joe will be at the game, in the stands, cold $8 beer at his side, hoping to dodge raindrops while developing blisters on his thumbs from Twittering on his trusty blackberry. Sorry, no live chat for this game. … Joe is hoping to see continued development from quarterback Josh Johnson since Josh Freeman is on the shelf with a bum thumb. Let’s just say Joe isn’t overly optimistic he will be back by Week 1 of the season. No inside information, just Joe being his paranoid self. Last week Johnson played perhaps his best game as an NFL player. Sure, it was a preseason game but Joe still liked what he saw. Johnson needs to continue to play well and show that last week was not a fluke. … With a strong game, Kareem Huggins could cement a roster position, and with a(nother) weak game, Derrick Ward could cement a position on a couch watching NFL games with a Kardashian. Joe would love to see the defensive line play well. Knock… knock… knock… are you home Stylez White… Brian Price… Gerald McCoy? Joe’s not knocking those guys –two are rookies and the third is more of a regular season kinda guy — but it would warm Joe’s heart to see one of if not all three blow up tonight. … Since the game is blacked out, follow Joe on Twitter (no need to sign up; it’s free) and enjoy gawking at Jaguars cheerleader Kelli above.

Fear not Bucs fans, Stylez White is making progress.

That’s the message the Bucs are pushing in light of recent criticism of the Bucs favorite movie character defensive end Stylez G. White.

Bucs coach Raheem Morris likes to needle White for being the Bucs answer to Allen Iverson, noted non-basketball association point guard who disdained practice. But it seems some have begun pointing fingers at White for not showing up in preseason games either.

But all is good. Both Raheem and defensive line coach Todd Wash are saying White is coming around, so writes Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune.

If White does not make any big plays tonight against Jacksonville in Tampa Bay’s third preseason game, you can bet Morris will talk about practice.

“Stylez is my Allen Iverson, and he’s not going to change,” Morris said. “He’s gotten better. He’s gotten better the last couple of days and practiced (better) throughout training camp than he has in the past, but he is Allen Iverson.”

Morris gave White that label last season because of his practice habits. White, 31, has been known to pace himself during practices, to the frustration of his coaches. While they have worked hard to push his buttons, White does not always leave everything out on the practice field.

Later in the same story, White defends himself claiming that the criticism is “overblown,” and Wash also defends White for not “cruising.’

Joe sides with Stylez on this but also understands why Raheem may be using the fourth estate in an effort to motivate White.

Interesting that in the past week, a man thought to be such a player’s coach is suddenly chatty about players not performing up to their reputations. Perhaps Raheem is trying to channel his inner Tuna?

Derek “Old School” Fournier, of WhatTheBuc.net, has a few things Bucs fans should look for in tonight’s game. Or watch for on tomorrow’s WFLA-TV broadcast.

Joe can’t help but wonder how the Bucs’ braintrust might adjust its decision making for Josh Freeman if Josh Johnson looks spectacular tonight and in limited time next week against Houston.

Obviously, the goal is to get Freeman on the field for opening day against Cleveland, but Joe can surely envision a scenario that has the Bucs going with Johnson simply to give Freeman more time to heal. Joe’s no doctor, but it’s reasonable to assume that more healing time for Freeman’s broken thumb would be beneficial.

But on the flip side, the organization is absolutely desperate to win on opening day. And Freeman, like every player, has to learn to play with pain.

Joe thinks this could be a tough call on, say, Sept. 8, four days before opening day, if Johnson lit it up during the final preseason games, and Freeman is still adjusting to gripping the football.

For now, Joe’s hoping Johnson lights it up tonight and breaks off a couple of big runs, just to give the Browns a helluva lot to think about.

There’s a blacked out preseason home game tonight, which means Joe will be at the game and will start pounding out relentless coverage right here shortly after the final whistle.

You can also get quick takes from Joe during the game on Twitter. Click here to follow Joe. It’s free and easy, and you don’t have to sign up for anything.

Joe knows most readers will be listening on the radio, on WDAE-AM 620, or waiting to watch the Sunday rebroadcast on WFLA-TV, Ch. 8 at 11 a.m. However, Joe treats a blackout like any other game.

Last week, following the preseason home opener (also blacked out) Joe was hammering out loads of information and takes for you into the wee hours. And you should expect nothing less tonight.