Joe’s had enough of the can’t-drive-over-the-bridge BS. So Joe’s rolling out a great public service in a couple of weeks. Stay tuned.

Bucs running back LeGarrette Blount talks in this BSPN video about his rookie year with the Bucs, who on the team influenced him and how he has cash socked away to weather the upcoming NFL labor storm. Joe thinks it’s cool that Blount is also ready for baseball season, but the Pirates? Who knew that Blount was a Lyle Overbay fan? Can’t someone get Blount some Hellboy threads or perhaps Dirtbag gear? A David Price jersey maybe?

Joe wonders who new Bucs defensive line coach Keith Millard likes among this year's crop of defensive ends. Will he have a voice in the Bucs' process?

As a preview to his detailed position-by-position breakdowns, NFL Draft guru Justin Pawlowski, The Commish of WDAE-AM 620, serves up his top five potential draftees by position following the NFL Scouting combine. It’s all part of Joe’s exclusive daily draft coverage.

Joe’s got an idea. Pick up a pile of the best wings in Pinellas County from Mugs Grill & Bar in Clearwater, grab a cold one and enjoy. Pawlowski also answers your draft questions later today here in the Commish’s Inbox podcast.

By JUSTIN PAWLOWSKI

Quarterbacks
1. Cam Newton – Auburn
2. Blaine Gabbert – Missouri
3. Christian Ponder – FSU
4. Jake Locker – Washington
5. Ryan Mallett – Arkansas
5. Colin Kaepernick – Nevada

Despite poor throwing at the combine, I still think Newton has the most potential.  This class of QBs has a ton of questions.  An interesting stat on Gabbert was that his completion percentage on throws more than 20 yards down the field was 30%.  Yuck.  Ponder and Locker were great at the combine.  Locker’s lack of accuracy and Ponder’s elbow still have me concerned. Mallett and Kaepernick have the strongest arms, but Mallet’s character issues are too much for me to ignore.

Running Backs
1. Mark Ingram – Alabama
2. Mikel Leshoure – Illinois
3. Ryan Williams – Va. Tech
4. Daniel Thomas – Kansas St.
5. Demarco Murray – Oklahoma

Ingram did not show very good speed at the combine, but that wasn’t really his strength. Leshoure is a big back with great vision.  Ryan Williams consistent health worries me.  With all that being said, I think the gap between these three RBs has narrowed. Thomas is another big back who will have a lot riding on his pro day, since he did not work out at the combine.  Murray had a nice combine and is a nice balanced back that can do a lot of things well.

Wide Receivers
1. AJ Green – Georgia
2. Julio Jones – Alabama
3. Jonathon Baldwin – Pitt.
4. Titus Young – Boise St.
5. Torrey Smith – Maryland

Green is still tops on this list because of his outstanding production and hands while at Georgia. Julio Jones was simply outstanding at the combine and might have done it all on a broken foot.  He will have surgery and not work out again before the draft.  Baldwin’s size and ability to be a go-to receiver separates him from the speed receivers in Titus Young and Torrey Smith.

Tight Ends
1. Kyle Rudolph – Notre Dame
2. Luke Stocker – Tennessee
3. Lance Kendricks – Wisconsin
4. DJ Williams – Arkansas
5. Virgil Green – Nevada

Kyle Rudolph didn’t workout in Indy, but he still keeps his status as the top tight end in this class.  Stocker and Kendricks are balanced tight ends that can block and catch the football.  DJ Williams had a nice combine and can stretch the middle of the field, but Green’s combine was outstanding and could start to see his stock really rise as people go back and watch his film.

Offensive Tackles
1. Tyron Smith – USC
2. Gabe Carimi – Wisconsin
3. Nate Solder – Colorado
4. Anthony Castonzo – Boston College

5.Derek Sherrod – Miss. St.
5. Marcus Cannon – TCU (OG)

There wasn’t much separation at offensive tackle at the combine.  I thought all the top choices were good, but no one was outstanding.  Smith showing up at 307 lbs after playing at 285 lbs was maybe the biggest positive for any lineman, especially with his extremely long arms.  Castonzo was great in drills and still probably projects as the best potential left tackle in this class.  I like Carimi’s toughness and strength.  I really think he could be very solid at right tackle in the NFL for a number of years.

Offensive Guards/Centers
1. Mike Pouncey – Florida
2. Danny Watkins – Baylor
3. Rodney Hudson – FSU
4. Stefan Wisniewski – Penn St.
5. Clint Boling – Georgia

This was another position where not much happened.  I don’t see Pouncey getting out of the 1^st round.  I doubt the Steelers would pass at the opportunity to pair him up with his brother again.  Watkins was very solid and is tall enough to play guard or tackle.  Hudson and Wisniewski did enough to earn themselves 2^nd round grades.

Defensive Ends
1. Robert Quinn – North Carolina
2. Da’Quan Bowers – Clemson
3. Aldon Smith – Missouri
4. JJ Watt – Wisconsin
5. Cameron Jordan – Cal.
5. Ryan Kerrigan – Purdue

I figured I would go ahead and make the switch.  I like Bowers and think he is a very good player, but there are as many questions with him as there is with any other defensive end.  Quinn is more explosive than Bowers and that might end up being the biggest difference between the 2.  Aldon Smith did not disappoint, and, as predicted, his stock is going up.  Another guy’s stock going up is JJ Watt.  He is a monster and could be the top 5-technique for a 3-4 defense in this draft. I thought Jordan and Kerrigan both tested very well.

Defensive Tackles
1. Marcell Dareus – Alabama
2. Nick Fairley – Auburn
3. Corey Liuget – Illinois
4. Muhammed Wilkerson – Temple
5. Stephen Paea – Oregon St.

Another tight race at this position.  This is also another reason the combine is important.  When you watch the film, both Fairly and Dareus are very good. When they line up at the combine, Dareus is 30 lbs heavier than Fairly, but just as fast and has better burst of the line of scrimmage. Dareus could now be in the mix for the 1^st pick.  Paea was the strongest player at the combine, but I like the potential of Liuget and Wilkerson a little more than Paea.

Outside Linebackers
1. Von Miller – Texas A&M
2. Justin Houston – Georgia
3. Akeem Ayers – UCLA
4. Dontay Moch – Nevada
5. Bruce Carter – North Carolina

Von Miller was one of the top performers at the combine and will not get passed the Cardinals in the draft.  Justin Houston also confirmed what I thought before the combine that he was the 2^nd best linebacker in this draft.  He was outstanding and can play end or outside linebacker.  Ayers’ times weren’t good, but his production is enough for a 1^st round grade.  One of my favorite players form the combine was Dontay Moch with his 4.44 time in the 40 at 248 lbs.

Inside Linebackers
1. Martez Wilson – Illinois
2. Colin McCarthy – Miami
3. Nate Irving – NC St.
4. Greg Jones – Michigan St.
5. Kelvin Sheppard – LSU

Wilson confirmed what I thought of him and answered questions of his speed with an exclamation point. At 6’4’’ and 250 lbs, Wilson ran his 40 at 4.49.  Colin McCarthy is as safe at middle a]linebacker as anyone else in this draft.  He’s not the flashiest player, but does get the job done. The rest of this position is not very flashy.

Cornerbacks
1. Patrick Peterson – LSU
2. Prince Amukamara – Nebraska
3. Jimmy Smith – Colorado
4. Aaron Williams – Texas
5. Brandon Harris – Miami

The top of the corner class is big and fast.  Peterson is as safe a pick as anyone in this draft. The big surprise was Prince Amukamara, with questions of his speed, running in the 4.4 range.  Jimmy Smith has plenty of character questions, but at 6’2’’ and over 200 lbs he ran in the low 4.4 range as well. Aaron Williams has great bloodlines and could be in the mold of a physical corner like Aaron Ross.  Brandon Harris’ stock is starting to slip and there are plenty of candidates to take his slot in the top 5.

Safeties
1. Rahim Moore – UCLA
2. Quinton Carter – Oklahoma
3. DeAndre McDaniel – Clemson
4. Deunta Williams – North Carolina
5. Robert Sands – West Virginia

There wasn’t a more disappointing position this weekend than the safety position.  Yuck!  Moore is the best of a very mediocre class, but he ran his 40 at 4.62 and has just decent ball skills.  Carter and McDaniel both also ran in the 4.6’s, but both are decent tacklers.  Ahmad Black falls off my top 5 because of his size (5’9’’ 184 lbs) and his speed after he ran his 40-yard dashes at 4.78 and 4.74. That’s just not a good combination. Don’t be shocked if only one safety goes in the first two rounds of the draft this year.

THE OPTIMIST shares his lockout thoughts and reminds fans that nobody comes to watch owners play football. (Though Joe would love to see Bryan Glazer kick Arthur Blank's ass.)

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.

Thank goodness I’ve been busy last three weeks working day and night on the new Bucstop.com, because there really isn’t too much in NFL news these days that is NOT lockout related.

To be honest, it’s kind of hard for an Optimist like myself to be optimistic, especially having lived through 1982 and 1987 — ’82 was hard, there was just nothing going on for weeks at a time, but truth be told the ’87 strike wasn’t much better.

Oh sure we had something to watch at least, but was it really worth watching?

It makes it a lot easier if you can take a side, but which one do you choose? Do you side with the millionaires? Or the billionaires? 

The owners take $1 billion of the pie before it’s divided up 60 percent for the players and 40 percent for the owners. That sounds pretty fair, but now if the owners want to take another $1 billion out before they divide up the pie, the players’ new share would come out to about 48.5% of the whole pie. Not exactly half.

But who says an owner of a business has to give out half his revenue? There is no doubt the players are the driving force of the NFL. We don’t go to the stadium, or tune in to TV to watch Jerry Jones or other owners. That’s not to say that the players are the end-all/be-all either; that job belongs to us.

But so far, all we are hearing is posturing. The owners cannot take TV money out early, so the new stadium owners are going to hurt sooner. Players can decertify the union, making them no longer union members, but just plain old people.

If there is no union, they don’t work for the NFL anymore. They work for their teams, which means you now have 32 bosses, with 32 sets of rules, and that is more likely to land the NFL in some kind of trouble with the age-old exemption from antitrust.

None of that labor stuff is new of course. That info hasn’t changed a single bit from the last 30 years.

The only thing really new is the current issue like the 18-game schedule, rookie salary cap, and health care for players after they retire.

The health care is something that both sides should find a way to get done; Players only keep their health insurance for five years after they retire. They usually feel fine during that period. But once a player gets 10 or 15 years past their playing days, well that is another story.

Then you have the hypocrisy of the 18-game schedule. Listen, I don’t feel bad football players have to work on Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. They are getting paid millions to entertain us. Roger Goodell tells us we the fans want an 18-game schedule. Well, that’s not really the truth. We just are tired of the four preseason games that cost the same as a regular game. If you’re going to add two more games to the schedule, you need to make sure your paying these players for the games, and make sure your taking care of them for the damage an extra two games a year will do.

Last but not least, veteran players, owners, fans, want to stop seeing an unproven college kid from strapping a team for years of salary cap room because of what he did his senior or junior year.

Over the last couple years, you’ve noticed that teams do not even think about trading away their No.1 pick, because no one is able to do it! A lot of teams could use more than just one player, and throughout history would do just that. But not now; because now a No.1 draft pick is going to cost a team about 50 million dollars, and that goes against your cap (when it returns).

But if you’re going to get rid of that messed up system, and save yourself a lot of dough, you can’t just take that entire savings and put it back in your pocket! Some of that has to go towards players who actually DID deserve it via performance.

It’s a touchy subject, where there is so little black and white.  Whose side do we take?

Well how about football’s side. Please figure it out guys, no matter if its 16 games or 18, free hip replacements or free cold tablets. Our 3-13 football team turned into a 10-6 excitement capable of offensive fireworks, and we want to see them grow some more in August and September.

Make sure we get ALL 16 this time!

Seems as though someone at the National Football Post likes the pirate ship.

Joe Fortenbaugh of the NationalFootballPost.com decided to rank his favorite NFL stadiums and lists The CITS as the ninth-best in the NFL, via video star Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune. This also seems to please the Bucs.

Recently, a poll of more than 1,600 players from the NFL’s 32 teams revealed the field was regarded as the second-best grass playing field in the league behind University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.

“We’re pleased that Raymond James Stadium has been recognized as one of the league’s top places to enjoy a game and also that its playing surface has also earned high praise,” Bucs spokesperson Jonathan Grella said. “Couple those distinctions with an emerging young Bucs team that plays a thrilling brand of football and it’s clear Tampa Bay has a lot to be proud of and look forward to.”

As a former season ticket holder and a veteran tailgater, Joe believes the stadium’s lower bowl is fantastic and who can complain about the weather? Only women without the NFL Network (sorry for being redundant) whine about it being too hot outside in Florida. Stop it. Don’t like it, feel free to move to Nebraska.

Believe it or not, Joe has found better tailgate stadiums, Jacksonville and Pittsburgh spring to mind. And while Joe finds The CITS fine, lower bowl great, access and ease to get to the stadium perhaps the best in the NFL, the pirate ship is overblown. Fans aren’t allowed up there so that’s a major negative, but it does make for a great TV prop. That written, the cannons are cool.

Joe has written about this several times in the past couple of years: The NFL gave Miami an edict that the Dolphins had to upgrade Joe Robbie Stadium (or whatever cheap beer or boring, has-been, fossil of a dime store musician it’s named after now), or South Florida will not get another Super Bowl. Joe Robbie is not that much older than The CiTS.

The Falcons, unless that damned bus runs off a cliff, look like they will get a new stadium in a few years and the Georgia Dome is not that old either. How long before the NFL tells the Bucs that The CITS needs to be upgraded before another Super Bowl comes to town?

Joe guesses not that long. And that’s not a Bucs problem, that’s a Tampa Sports Authority problem.

If Joe had to wave a magic wand to make a gameday experience better at The CITS, it would be that the stadium has a Bud Zone-like sports bar (that could be open year-round), which is what is in place in Jacksonville and Joe has learned Miami has been added to Joe Robbie Stadium.

Always with an eye for the Bucs to sign a free agent, Joe was a bit surprised he didn’t have his inbox filled by loyal readers — and Joe has his February numbers in. Let’s just say Bucs fans have literally blown Joe away with support. Joe actually did a double-take with the traffic figures. A humble and sincere thank you to all — wondering if defensive tackle Tommie Harris could help the Bucs.

The Bears recently parted ways with Harris. It seems some at the NFL Network right away thought Harris was Tampa Bay bound, including someone named Elliot Harrison who wrote about this very subject on NFL.com.

[Harris] is one release that surprised some folks in the NFL Network newsroom Tuesday. But Harris just hasn’t been an impact player the last couple of years. While there’s been some speculation that he could end up in Carolina with his former defensive coordinator Ron Rivera, a great spot for Harris to touch down would be Tampa Bay.

The Buccaneers have two second-year defensive tackles in Gerald McCoy and Brian Price, and adding a guy like Harris isn’t the worst idea ever. Besides being a mentor, fewer snaps might translate into more effectiveness for a player entering his eighth season. Harris and McCoy both played for Oklahoma, and we all know how those allegiances go.

Nice thought but Joe doesn’t buy this for a number of reasons. It’s clear that Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik doesn’t believe in “mentors.” Dominik believes in production. This was a huge concern last offseason and it proved to be trivial. So Dominik isn’t going to sign a guy to be a part-time coach when he already has coaches in place.

Second, what makes anyone think Dominik will sign a free agent?

Joe’s not arguing Harris may not have some value with the Bucs or that signing him wouldn’t have some merit. But it’s already a crowded field at defensive tackle with GMC, Brian Price and Roy Miller. Not sure Bucs fans should be preparing any housewarming parties for Harris in the near future.

Justin Houston helped himself at the combine. Did he catch Mark Dominik's eye? The Commish, Justin Pawlowski, NFL Draft guru extraordinaire, explains all this and more.

Before giving a great breakdown of defensive players’ performance and buzz coming out of the just completed NFL Scouting Combine, draft guru The Commish, Justin Pawlowski, explains why only clueless observers would find the combine meaningless.

The Commish is fiesty today.

If you didn’t pay attention to any defensive players at the combine, you’ll get up to speed fast in this podcast.

Click the arrow below or download here.

[audio: 3111combinedefense.mp3]

Don’t forget all Pawlowski’s exclusive draft coverage on JoeBucsFan.com is archived here. He’ll also answer your draft questions here on Wednesday. Fire them off to him at commish@620wdae.com.

Have a cold one with NFL Draft guru Justin Pawlowski and he’ll make a good case why the Bucs have major room for improvement among their starting linebackers.

On his draft page at WDAE-AM 620, Pawlowski looks at two linebackers that helped themselves immensely at the scouting combine and that he believes are on the Bucs’ radar: Dontay Moch and Martez Wilson. Here’s an excerpt:

… By not giving Ruud a new contract, the Bucs front office has give the Ruud critics more fuel for their fire.  Now, Ruud’s critics have a player to rally behind.  Martez Wilson is a MLB from Illinois who had the size all along, but his speed was a question.  Wilson stands at 6’4” and 250 lbs.  Like Moch, Wilson also ran a 4.44 in his 40-yard dash.  I expect Wilson to now draw heavy interest in the 1st round.

While Mark Dominik has said he’ll stay true to his draft board, he is staring at the possiblity of losing Ruud, Quincy Black and Adam Hayward in free agency, and a suspension for Geno Hayes after his recent wee-hours escapades. That could have the Bucs leaning linebacker come draft day.

In one of the more entertaining interviews Joe’s heard in a while, Bucs icon Warren Sapp checked in with The King David Show on 1010 AM a couple of weeks ago for a long chat with hosts Toby David and former Bucs QB Shaun King.

Sapp shared a funny story about Al Davis’ strong cologne and gave an interesting take on the Packers winning the Super Bowl, among other comments. (Sapp’s of the mind that Byron Leftwich and his slow delivery running the Steelers’ scout team and simulating Aaron Rodgers hurt Pittsburgh’s preparation for the best thrower in the NFL.)

And, of course, Sapp talked about the Bucs.

Toby David: You were a strong advocate for Keith Millard. What can we expect as Bucs fans for him to bring to the table for the Bucs’ defensive line next season?

Warren Sapp: You won’t see it until you see McCoy and Brian Price and those guys actually hit the field. Because Keith is one of three undertackles that ever lived. Me and Johnny Randle being the other two. So if you have somebody to teach them there, it’s got to be someone with some knowledge.

Shaun King: Speaking of Price and McCoy, both of their seasons were cut short from injury, but did you see anything during the season that made you think they can live up to their potential?

Sapp: No. No. (laughs)  I mean the kid started playing better toward the end, McCoy did. It’s just repetition of the tedious movements, the simplest movement that make you what you are. And he was getting the get-off, the penetration in the backfield. It’s just a work, a work in progress. My first year, I didn’t know what to do. I really didn’t. And then [Rod] Marinelli came and Tony [Dungy] gave me some direction. They gave me some structure within a system.  …And then I’d make it up as I went.

So I gave [McCoy] the madman that helped me make it up at 34 years old, and got me 10 sacks and the No. 3 defense, and that was Keith Millard in Oakland. And that’s the only thing I can do for McCoy.

Because I’ve talked to him on the phone and we’ve shared little moments, and he’s like “Man, I got to do this and I got to get that.’ And I’m like, ‘It ain’t that easy.’  You know what I’m sayin’. And I don’t have the time to put in. The next best thing I could give him is my old coach, and he’s got him now. So it should be fun.

Joe’s fired up to see what Millard can do with Price, McCoy, Roy Miller and Frank Okam. If Millard can get these young guys to all make significant strides, then the Bucs’ defense might be good enough to get them to the playoffs even if they can’t improve at defensive end.

Spring Training is here and there’s all kinds of Rays news popping. Even Trey Wingo sympathizer Tom Jones, of the St. Pete Times, is bashing Rays fans.

Stay up on everything Rays every day at JoeRaysFan.com.

Sometimes Joe gets caught up with real life and real work and his leather couch sucking him in on a drained weekend night while watching the Man’s Channel, the NFL Network.

Hence this was delayed a bit.

Over the past week, the good people of TBO.com, led by dynamic Dan Lucas, the sports czar of WFLA-TV, had a really cool series of interviews where Bucs coach Raheem Morris, Lightning coach Guy Boucher and Rays manager Merlot Joe Maddon had a sit down to talk about all manner of things, mostly about coaching and the Tampa Bay region.

In the first video, the coaches meet as they walk onto the set at The News Center. Check out Raheem’s muscle which escorted him into the studio.

In the second of the six-part video series, the coaches discuss the secrets to their success.

The next video, the coaches explain the many ways confidence is critical to success.

A really cool segment was the fourth video where the coaches talk about leaders. Joe was intrigued with Boucher’s description of a leader.

The coaches then discuss in the fifth video how they are able to handle young leaders. Given some players in the area like Josh Freeman, Mike Williams, Steve Stamkos, Victor Hedman, Evan Longoria and David Price, each man has no shortage of young superstars to nurture.

Merlot Joe has an interesting take in the final video when the discussion turns to fan support, or the lack thereof.

Take a break from work and check out the videos. It was a great concept and the folks at The News Center pulled it off — no small thanks to the Bucs, Rays and Lightning for cooperating.

Super Bowl-winning coach Brian Billick hits the greaseboard to break down what the Bucs need in this spring’s NFL draft in this FoxSports.com video.

<a href="http://msn.foxsports.com/video/?vid=fc291df1-11c3-4c11-afd3-8b43598eacde&#038;from=IV2_en-us_foxsports_videocentral_player" target="_new" title="Billick: Buccaneers team needs">Video: Billick: Buccaneers team needs</a>

For those who missed the Ch. 8 multi-part feature interview with local head coaches Raheem Morris, Joe Maddon and Guy Boucher last week, it was pretty good stuff.

When Joe’s not feeling as lazy, he’ll link to all the segments on TBO.com.

The coaches gathered in a dimly lit room to sit on comfy chairs and answer all kinds of questions from good guy Dan Lucas. Raheem was asked about lockouts and drawing bigger crowds in the Tampa Bay market, and here was his response verbatim:

“We have a certain way down here. (looking at other coaches) We’re not going to make excuses about what we don’t spend. Myself, my management team, with Mark Dominik and our ownership, we got a vision. It’s to draft players. Do well in the draft. Get’em to come here and play. Remain young. Have a longevity of winning. And then re-sign our own players and make those guys play for us and be great,” Raheem said. “And we truly believe in that. And that’s how you generate a fan base. That’s how you get the fans to buy in. That’s how you get the fans to be a part of that family. And once that happens again, we’ll get that place filled. And I got all the confidence in the world.”

First, considering Joel Glazer said “money will never be an issue” when building the Buccaneers, and Raheem works for Team Glazer, why would Raheem even mention making excuses about spending? That sure seemed to come from left field for a coach who works for an organization that proudly proclaims it does everything possible to build a winner.

The more one listens to Raheem and Mark Dominik voice their philosophy (which continues to resist the mere mention of free agency), the more obvious it is that the Bucs will take one or two defensive ends high in the draft.

They’re desperate for the quarterback pressure, and they’re publicly disinterested in obtaining an established pass rusher. 

Dominik doesn’t think the Bucs should be pigeonholed by draft pundits, so he said last week, but by turning his nose at the biggest free agent class in history, Dominik’s all but asking to be pigeonholed.

Joe’s not sure if it’s all an elaborate series of smokescreens, or the Bucs are determined to not grab one impact free agent.

Among many other topics, draft guru Justin Pawlowski says keep an eye out for speedy Delone Carter, if you're looking for a mid-round impact running back.

It’s all things combine in this draft buzz podcast from NFL Draft guru Justin Pawlowski, of WDAE-AM 620.

If you weren’t paying attention to the NFL Scouting Combine on NFL Network or on NFL.com this weekend, then you can catch up quickly in this great breakdown.

Pawlowski’s been all over the combine, where every offensive player has completed their workouts.

Just click the arrow or download here. Joe hopes you’re enjoying the daily draft coverage on JoeBucsFan.com.

[audio: 22811combineoffense.mp3]

Many Bucs fans seem to forget that prior to Team Glazer landing Chucky in a monumental transaction that resulted in a Lombardi Trophy sitting in the lobby of One Buc Palace “Mooch,” Steve Mariucci, then the coach of the San Francisco 49ers, turned down advances from Team Glazer to coach the Bucs.

A few months later, Mooch’s Niners got trampled by the Bucs at The CITS as the Bucs rolled toward Philadelphia and the NFC Championship a week later.

So it doesn’t come as much of a surprise that Mooch, now an analyst for the Man’s Channel, the NFL Network, is high on the Bucs.

(You know the type that doesn’t have the NFL Network: it’s the same kind of a low person who hosts Oscar parties and serves guests spinach dip and wine coolers and can pick some nondescript person called “James Franco” — whoever the hell that is — out of a crowd.)

Bucs intrepid multimedia maven Scott Smith is part of the Bucs contingent in Indianapolis at the glorified track practice NFL Combine and Smith grabbed Mooch for some thoughts on the Bucs.

“I like where the Bucs are headed. Raheem’s second year, they’ve made great progress. Systems are in place on both sides of the ball. They know what they want to do scheme-wise so they know what kind of kids fit their systems.”

Mooch said this is the case because the Bucs already have a franchise quarterback in Josh Freeman. As if reading from a script, Mooch said, “It all starts there.”

Where has Joe heard that before?

Maybe it’s a good thing for Smith that Mooch doesn’t like the Bucs as much as he does Marisa Miller.

In the next 24 hours, you can win top-shelf Rays Spring Training tickets in Dunedin on March 13!

Joe’s good friends at Paradise Worldwide Transportation give away great prizes to their Facebook friends. And now they’ve got a pair of awesome tickets behind the Rays dugout for the Rays at Blue Jays game on Sunday, March 13, at 1 p.m in Dunedin. 

To have a chance to win, all you have to do is “Like” Paradise Worldwide Transportation on Facebook. Just click right here to get it done.

The drawing is TOMORROW!

Unrest in the Middle East (boy, there’s an oxymoron), the skyrocketing cost of gas nor the plight of his cherished New Jersey Devils can tear away oatmeal-loving, popcorn-shoveling Peter King from fretting about his beloved National Football League.

In particular, King is losing sleep over the future of the Bucs.

The SI.com columnist, in his must-read Monday Morning Quarterback column, decided to pester a general manager of a team this weekend in Indianapolis at the great American track practice NFL Combine who King believes will be bruised by the coming NFL lockout.

That general manager was Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik.

(My, Dominik has become quite the media darling in recent days, hhmm? Just like Joe predicted he would.)

King is of the mind that the Bucs will be hurt by the lockout worse than any other team, hence why he shadowed Dominik this weekend.

But the Bucs are a good example of why fans should be worried about their team this offseason if there’s a prolonged work stoppage. They have one of the youngest teams in football and one of the most intriguing after a highly unexpected 10-win season; they’re the first team since 1990 to start 10 rookies in a game, which they did in a 2010 game. Dominik has had an excellent past two months inside his own building, locking up every assistant coach contractually through the 2013 season while the head man, Raheem Morris, is signed through 2012, and the Bucs will surely try to remedy that soon. Dominik has his scouting staff, led by underrated director of college scouting Dennis Hickey, signed for multiple years too.

“Honestly, with the coaches, instead of worrying about their next deal, I want them worrying about the next down,” said Dominik. “With the scouts, I want them to feel like we have faith in them. Look at the two Super Bowl teams this year, and what do you see? Stability. Green Bay and Pittsburgh are two of the teams in the league I think we all admire for their long-term approach. That’s what we want to build.”

This is the kind of team that needs a good offseason program, with players on a schedule and needing regularity. You don’t want young players, particularly young players with off-field issues in their past like wideout Mike Williams, being on their own for months at a time. I heard some teams fret over the weekend about offensive linemen possibly not working out much, and coming back woefully out of shape. There are all kinds of worries. But Dominik is a realist. If he’s worried, he’s not saying. And he’s not saying much.

King goes on the write how a number of NFL teams have put together memos and videos on how the teams should work out in the offseason, even simple stuff like what exercises to do and not to do in order not to hurt oneself, and the suits on Park Avenue in Roger Goodell’s war room have nixed each attempt, fearing a lawsuit.

This is just beyond silly. What’s to stop, say, Josh Freeman from picking x-high school to work out at, for argument’s sake, Jesuit, and Dominik or one of his minions telling Jesuit officials in person (sans, traceable evidence) what the Bucs should do and said school official relaying this information to Freeman?

Then, after the season resumes, Team Glazer makes a handsome donation to Jesuit for the school’s hassle.

No need to worry Peter, Joe has a hunch Freeman will take care of things.

The Bucs may be looking for a versatile defender like Buffalo's Arthur Moats.

When Chucky and Bruce Almighty were running the show, the duo did not want players that coaches couldn’t figure out where to play. In other words, no ‘Tweeners.

That edict has changed under Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik who is looking for football players no matter their size. As a result, per Rick Stroud of the St. Petersburg Times, that makes life easier for Bucs scouts.

But with coach Raheem Morris incorporating so many multiple fronts as defensive coordinator, including more 3-4 looks, those hybrid players are in play this year for Tampa Bay in the NFL draft.

“Raheem’s flexibility of what he wants to do has really helped our draft board be more fluid then most clubs I think,” general manager Mark Dominik said.

“It helps us now really open up the board more, and we love it. We’ve always had a hard time figuring out these tweener guys, and we just take them off our board and don’t get them. So it’s disappointing. This keeps those guys alive, and I feel like a lot more teams keep going back to the 3-4, which is great because it also opens up some of those (4-3) guys as well.”

Stroud points to Auther Moats of the Buffalo Bills as one of those types of players the Bucs are now targeting. Ryan Kerrigan is another name Stroud dropped.

And here’s a key element Stroud notes that may tip the Bucs’ hand: Dominik has often publically stated how he is fond of collegiate team captains because of their intangibles.

Kerrigan was a captain on his Purdue teams.

Joe’s back again wondering why Mark Dominik keeps publicly pronouncing his disinterest and distaste for free agency.

One has to wonder why a general manager consumed with building a Super Bowl winner and a lasting contender is seemingly averse to studying every free agent and determining which one in this massive free agent class — with money never being an issue — could help his team.

Sure, Joe gets the whole stated build-through-the-draft philosophy of the Bucs. But Dominik talks as if free agency is not a tool loaded and ready in his arsenal.  Here’s Dominik’s response to a recent question at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, per Buccaneers.com video:

Reporter: Does the uncertainty of free agency change the dynamics of this draft?

Mark Dominik: “Not how we approach it. Obviously in Tampa, it’s cliché, a lot of us like to sit up here and say, ‘We want to build through the draft.’ We’re absolutely going to do it that way. And that’s the way we’ve been going. Clearly the two teams that just played the Super Bowl have the same mindset, which is an encouraging blueprint to where we want to be. So we’ll stay the course. It doesn’t affect us. Not the way that we’re looking at it. I don’t want it to.”

Again, Joe gets the Bucs’ plan. But Joe’s talking more semantics and public relations here. There was a time when Dominik and Raheem Morris would chatter about how they would comb the earth and leave no stone unturned to improve the Bucs. Now it seems they’d do anything — except an expensive free agent. (Joe will have a recent comment from Raheem tomorrow.)

It’s an interesting shift in presentation. Don’t ask Joe why.

Now Joe’s not about to believe Dominik and Raheem aren’t interested in free agency and doing their due diligence. That is their job.

Of course, that doesn’t mean they would actually pull the trigger on one.

The NFL Combine, aside from being a glorified track practice (does it really matter just how far a quarterback can long jump; has a Super Bowl been won because a quarterback can jump high?) and a winter conclave for NFL types, is a hive of espionage where teams and agents alike, taking advantage of the hordes of media which flocked to the Indianapolis, plant lies and innuendo so a client/player/team might better themselves somehow.

It seems one of the many rumors floating around central Indiana now is that the Bucs don’t care about character because they drafted/signed Mike Williams and LeGarrette Blount last year.

Speaking to Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune, Dominik dismissed this notion.

Though no one has said so publicly, some around the league have begun to wonder if the Bucs have started to cut corners when it comes to character. Dominik has heard the rumblings, and he swears no corners have been cut.

“I don’t believe we have (cut any corners) at all on character,” said Dominik, who is especially upset with those who believe he may have lowered the Bucs’ standard for character by bringing Williams and Blount onboard.

“I’m proud of both of those guys and what they’ve accomplished so far,” he said. “I don’t view them as character issues or concerns, (either) on our team (or) in our locker room. I’m glad they’re members of our team.”

Dominik again Sunday had a sitdown live on Sirius NFL Radio, which Joe will have transcribed by tomorrow, and Dominik again emphasized nothing is more important to him than character.

It’s because Dominik and his scouts did so much research is why Dominik felt comfortable in acquiring Williams and Blount. It appears teams that have put in less work are trying to sully Dominik’s reputation as some form of covering for themselves.