Last year when Raheem the Dream took over the Bucs, he wanted them to be violent.

But in a bizarre move, Raheem the Dream took an already thin position — safety — and decided he wanted then 30-year old Jermaine Phillips to move to linebacker.

Joe said from Day 1 that was a crazy move. Good thing people at One Buc Palace read Joe. Before the 2009 training camp was finished, Phillips was back at safety.

But the injury-prone, hard-hitting safety got hurt once gain. His season was done. Then he became entangled in an ugly domestic dispute that temporarily landed him behind bars.

Phillips, a free agent, remains unemployed, so reports eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune in a TBO question-and-answer feature. And don’t hold your breath on Mark Dominik calling Phillips up to offer him a new gig.

Q:  I must have been living under a rock, but what ever happened to Jermaine Phillips? Two years ago he was a outstanding safety and now he is no longer on the team roster.

Keith Henderson, Spring Hill

A:  Phillips is free to sign with any NFL team, but he currently doesn’t have a job. Hard to believe he is washed up at the age of 31, but he is saddled with some off-field issues and he has a history of season-ending injuries. Add it all up and he’s sitting at home, waiting for a phone call. One thing’s for sure — his time with the Bucs is up.

— eye-RAH! Kaufman

This doesn’t surprise Joe one bit. Phillips had a difficult time not breaking his arms. Given the fact he’s now 31, and the Bucs are in a youth movement, this was a no-brainer.

Joe has to wonder if Phillips’ career is finished if he is still unsigned with less than two months before many training camps open.

Buccaneers new media general Jonathan Grella has informed JoeBucsFan.com that Mark Dominik’s in depth speech and Q&A session with season ticket holders this week was off-the-record and not for media publication.

The session was recorded by WhatTheBuc.net,  which is a long-standing Bucs fan site run by a part-time local media personality known as “Old School,” who does fill-in host work on WQYK-AM 1010, a reputable sports radio station.

Joe heard the audio, knew it was from a media guy, and had no reason to think it was bogus or obtained improperly. So Joe listened to the audio and posted a snippet of Dominik’s comments about Donald Penn.

To be blunt, Joe has spoken with “Old School” from time to time and there are few nicer guys or bigger boosters of the Bucs than “Old School.” Joe is confident beyond words this recording was not done to ambush Dominik or performed for some malicious reason. That’s not “Old School.” He doesn’t roll like that.

All that said, Joe does hold himself to standards. And if the Buccaneers say something was off-the-record, then Joe will honor their statement. So Joe has removed the post.

What Joe really believes, well, he’s just going to keep that off the record. But Joe does suggest the Bucs pay closer attention to what’s going on in the media. They do pay people for that.

Bucs beat writer Tom Balog, of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, was is in midseason form last night as he took a biting look at whether Chucky cost former Bucs general manager Rick McKay a spot in the Bucs Ring of Honor alongside his dad.

Balog slammed the legal profession and kept on firing.

Naturally, McKay had a spit-and-polished answer at the ready.

  “I couldn’t have left under better terms,” McKay said.

 What was that?

 ”I felt very comfortable with the timing of it,” McKay said. “What was necessary for me and where I thought the Bucs were and where the Bucs were going to go.”

 You mean, to hell in handbasket, Rich? Because that’s where the Buccaneers are still trying to escape from now, seven years post-Rich McKay era.

Ouch.

McKay, now the Falcons president, was at One Buc Palace yesterday talking to the media about all things John McKay, who will enter the Ring of Honor when the Bucs play the Falcons in December in their throwback uniforms.

With that “I couldn’t have left under better terms” line, it almost sounds like McKay wants everyone to know he wouldn’t mind his old job back one day.

Bucs second-year wide receiver and erstwhile starter Sammie Stroughter takes a break from workouts to speak with St. Petersburg Times Bucs beat writer Stephen Holder in this Times video.

Joe has written that great guy Earnest Graham, 30, can only be depended on doing so much because he’s becoming a graybeard.

The versatile Bucs back is selfless. He will play just about any position so long as he’s playing. And this lack of ego may bring an end to his Bucs — or NFL for that matter — playing days.

Take for example this little nugget from dapper Rick Brown of the Lakeland Ledger concerning Graham playing fullback:

Entering his seventh year, Graham has suffered injuries the past two seasons at fullback that have ended his year prematurely.

Graham is expected to be the Bucs starting fullback this season. Brown’s information just reinforces Joe’s fear that Graham has already seen his best days.

This also moves Joe to write once again that the Bucs aren’t as deep at running back as some would have you believe. Graham gets hurt playing fullback. Cadillac Williams is a(nother) play away from a(nother) knee injury. Kardashian-chasing Derrick Ward? Jury’s still out.

After the Bucs drafted a quarterback in the first round last year, added tight end Kellen Winslow last offseason and drafted two rookies at wide receiver high in the draft this spring (Arrelious Benn and Mike Williams), Joe doesn’t think he’s out of line suggesting the weak link of the Bucs’ offense is at running back.

The ball is in the proverbial court of Bucs holdout Donald Penn. Will the Bucs left tackle make the ballsy yet unwise move to sit out the season? Or will he just blow off training camp and settle for a much lower salary?

In the latest TBO Bucs vlog, Anwar Richardson and Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune get into a spirited, emotional debate on what Penn’s next chess move should be.

Please click on the link above, and tell Joe who you side with, and more importantly, who makes the better case for Penn, Cummings or Richardson?

With today’s signing of rookie punter Brent Bowden came the release of former Chiefs wide receiver Mark Bradley, a guy the Bucs nabbed from the waiver wire in December and seemingly had some hope for. Bradley was recently was part of an “Insider” piece on Buccaneers.com.

Somewhere, blocking icon Michael Clayton is liking his improved odds of making the 2010 squad.

Here’s the list of current Bucs receivers (in no particular order):

Arrelious Benn
Mike Williams
Sammie Stroughter
Maurice Stovall
Reggie Brown
Michael Clayton
Michael Spurlock
Mario Urruttia
Chris Brooks
Terrence Nunn
Preston Parker

Joe has written before that he is quite certain the blocking icon makes the opening day roster, as the Bucs and Mark Dominik won’t want to flush the remainder of their Clayton investment (about $3 million guaranteed) down the toilet. But it is a topic of heated debate at the JoeBucsFan.com headquarters.

Some around here think Clayton is nothing more than a flimsy at best insurance policy and is doomed to be cut barring a rash of training camp injuries.

By STEVE WHITE
JoeBucsFan.com analyst

Former Buccaneers defensive end Steve White (1996-2001) is a devoted student of the game. He’s even authored a coaching guide and coached defensive linemen at the University of South Florida. And after all those years breaking down film with former defensive line coach Rod Marinelli and the other architects and legends of the Bucs’ defense, White shares his knowledge with JoeBucsFan.com readers every week in his must-read Bull Rush column. 

Today, White takes a look at what must fall into place for the Bucs to crank out a winning season in 2010.

On paper I have already stated my over-under for Bucs wins this season is six. I have even gone so far as to state the games I think they are likely to win, and I’ve challenged those who believe they will win more than six to state the games they put in the win column.

But football isn’t played on paper, and for that reason I figured I might as well spell out how the Bucs can overcome expectations and put together at winning season.

Stop laughing.

Back in 1997, I bet there weren’t many people, whether Bucs fans or pundits, who picked us to have a winning season. That isn’t to say that this Buccaneers team is analogous to that one. It surely isn’t. But it IS to say that you never know until the whistle blows.

So here are the things that would have to happen for the Bucs to pull it off.

First and foremost, all of the starters will have to stay healthy and available. One of the underplayed keys to how bad the season went for the Bucs last year was how many injuries they suffered to key players, plus the effect it had on the defense to not have Tanard Jackson the first four games.

Think about it for a second.

T-Jax missed four games and still tied for the team lead in interceptions last year. Jeff Faine went down with an injury and our offensive line suddenly couldn’t block anybody. Jermaine Phillips goes down and Sabby is forced into a starting role which he may or may not have attained otherwise. Our nickel corner position was almost a revolving door. Our best wide receiver hands down, Antonio Bryant, missed three games. Our starting fullback goes down with an injury, which forces Earnest Graham into the lineup in a role in which he played well but was was unfamiliar with. We even lost our Pro Bowl return man, Clifton Smith, for part of the season.

When you are already dealing with the firing of both coordinators, a first time head coach, and a pretty tough schedule, and having very few veterans on the team, not having stability at every position for every game made things that much worse.

This year, it will be even more important to keep everyone healthy as, in my opinion, overall I think the team has more talent in the starting positions. But I don’t have a lot of confidence in a lot of our backups.

It’s Not All About The Rookies

The next thing that has to happen is some young players have to take the next step up in their play. And I don’t mean the rookies who will undoubtedly have their own growing pains. T-Jax, Aqib Talib, Geno Hayes, Barret Ruud, Jeremy Trueblood, Sammie Stroughter, Jeremy Zuttah are all players who have to play well for us to have even a shot at a winning season.

I would include Josh Freeman in that group, but as a second-year quarterback I won’t put that much on his shoulders. It has to be the guys around him who make things easier for him in order for us to win.

If Freeman has to go out and win every game for us, then we are in a world of trouble. Our defense has to keep other teams from scoring so much that our offense has to put up big points every game. And our offensive players around Freeman have to perform at a high enough level so he can be a part of the solution instead of THE SOLUTION.

We already have pretty good talent in other positions that I feel confident in. I think Ronde will play well enough for us to win as he always does. I think Stylez White is going to be a force rushing the passer. I think Faine, Donald Penn (if he signs) and Davin Joseph will anchor a much improved offensive line.

I continue to believe that Kellen Winslow is one of the best pass catching tight ends in all of football. But we will rise and fall with the development and improved play of those other guys this year.

Some Dungyball Would Help At Home

The third thing we have to do is once again is get back to game plans that, especially at home, play to our strength.

People used to always complain about how “boring” our offense was when Coach Dungy was here, but one thing they never seemed to understand was how having a “boring” offense and a dominating defense helped us be so strong on our home field.

There are few places in the NFL where you play from the first game to the last and will have steam rising off of the field.

For a lot of teams, especially late in the season, the heat is a shock to their system. Then when we pound the ball at them play after play and our defense keeps getting off on third down, and it becomes a demoralizing affair. I used to literally see teams wilt in the fourth quarter in Raymond James Stadium after we had pounded them over and over all day.

I like the passing game as much as the next guy, but throwing the ball a lot in this kind of weather pretty much lets the other team off the hook. Especially when we have a pretty physical offensive line and a stable of physical running backs.

On defense, we have to continue to play as we did at the end of 2009, where we put pressure on the offense and made the opposing offenses adjust to us rather than allowing them to dictate the game.

We probably never will have a big hulking defense that will just stay in one place and pushes people around. Instead we are lean, quick and fast and we have to use slants and blitzes and different looks to keep the opposition off rhythm.

We HAVE to create more turnovers in order to put our own stamp on games. And we are going to have to win on first down a lot more to set up third-and-longs where we have the advantage. As much as people have focused on the defense being last in the league in run defense, and rightfully so, very few point out that we were No. 10 in passing defense and tied for ninth in interceptions, even though we gave up a bunch of big plays.

And finally, yes, we have to have our rookies play well. This, for me, is the most problematic aspect of the prescription for us winning. BUT, it could happen.

It’s scary to think that we have to rely on Arrelious Benn, Mike Williams, Gerald McCoy, Brian Price AND Myron Lewis to at least play decent football for us to have a winning season, but that’s where we are at. Now I’m not saying they have to come out the gate playing like Pro Bowlers, but what they can’t be is the weakest link. And they have to improve as the season goes on.

We won’t win if teams can single-block McCoy all year. We won’t win if Price can’t hold the point. We won’t win if Lewis isn’t an upgrade over Elbert Mack on the deep ball. We won’t win if Benn and Williams can’t get open AND catch the ball when its thrown to them.

Well, we can win a few games, but we won’t have have a winning season or anything close to it.

That’s a lot of pressure for a rookie class but it is what it is.

At this point, you might expect me to weigh in on some position battles that everybody is paying attention to like Cadillac Williams vs Derrick Ward or Sabby Piscitelli vs Sean Jones or even Jerramy Stevens vs John Gilmore. Well, honestly while I think those battles make for good debates they are kind of incidental to how far we go this year.

Whether Caddy or Ward start, I think our running game will go as the offensive line goes. Whether Sabby or Jones starts, I think that position won’t win or lose us many games this year, if everybody else plays well. Whether Stevens or Gilmore is our blocking TE, neither guy is that much of an intimidating force.

So the question is can all of the positive things I listed happen in 2010? I have to say I don’t know.

There is the potential that it can, but even with all the preparation in the world it’s also going to take some luck. For that reason, I’m sticking with my prediction of an over/under of six wins. But by the same token, I am hoping to be pleasantly surprised.

This post was inspired by our new columnist “The Optimist” so you have him to thank/blame for it.

Joe just took a walk outside for lunch.

It’s hot!

But Joe’s not complaining. Joe loves the hot weather. Makes the beers taste better. Then there’s all the Tampa Bay area hotties wearing skimpy outfits, showing plenty of tanned skin. (Sigh).

The hot weather also tells Joe something good is not far behind: football season.

Last week Joe got worked up in a froth with all the college football alignment talk. So much so that Joe caught himself a few times this week already mapping out drinking watching plans for football weekends.

The cherry on top so to speak is Bucs training camp. Per the Tampa Tribune’s eye-RAH! Kaufman posting on the TBO Bucs Twitter feed, via NFL.com, Bucs players are scheduled to report to One Buc Palace July 30 with practices beginning July 31.

That’s six weeks from this weekend.

Joe can just envision the Bucs cheerleaders and the stench of sweat now. Aaaahhh!

"Jimminy Christmas! If I didn't work with Vacation Man, I'd rip him a new one."

When Joe thinks about his beautiful girlfriends over the years, Joe doesn’t include the lovely Rachel Watson.

The reason is simple: Joe has never dated, spoken to or performed naughty acts with Ms. Watson.

Sadly, Pat “Vacation Man” Yasinskas, the BSPN.com NFC South beat writer, doesn’t subscribe to this truth-be-told philosophy.

Vacation Man prefers to pretend fantasy is reality and sell it to his “worldwide leader” audience as the end result of intelligent journalism. Vacation Man ranked his top coaches in NFC South history yesterday, and two on his list never even coached in the NFC South, which was created in 2002.

To make his piece more laughable, Vacation Man ranked the coaches as follows:

1. Tony Dungy
2. Sean Payton
3. John Fox
4. Jim Mora
5. Jon Gruden
6. Dan Reeves

Yes, JIM MORA is No. 4.

Never mind that Mora never won a playoff game with the Saints. Never mind that Vacation Man has him ranked ahead of Super Bowl-winning Chucky. Mora coached in the NFC West.

(Reeves, by the way, only coached in the NFC South for two seasons.)

That’s like saying Tom Osborne is one of the greatest coaches in Big Ten history!

And Vacation Man takes yet another swipe at Chucky.

“I’m not going to say Dungy or defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin deserve the credit for that Super Bowl. Gruden deserves the credit. But what did Gruden really do beyond that?”

That’s like saying, other than leading the country through the Great Depression and World War II, what did Franklin Roosevelt do beyond that? WHAT??? Coaches are SUPPOSED to win Super Bowls!!!  This is the singular goal of an NFL coach. A coach can wipe his ass with division title flags. They mean squat!

Please, name a coach, any coach, when he is hired, saying his goal is to win a division title? That’s beyond absurd.

Vacation Man, in his bizarre assessment of Chucky, goes on to drop the nugget that “he won a Super Bowl with Brad Johnson as his quarterback and no true superstars on offense.”

Maybe Joe’s lost his mind, but Joe’s pretty sure that Keyshawn Johnson and Mike Alstott were bonafide renowned superstars entering 2002, and Johnson had a heck of a season that year. And how many Pro Bowls did Alstott play in?

Thinking of past references to Alstott, Joe wonders if Vacation Man has an ax to grind with the guy?

Vacation Man doesn’t directly address why he picked non-NFC South coaches like Dungy and Mora, but he does say “I like to look at the big picture and have some flexibility outside the lines.” 

Translation: Vacation Man makes stuff up because he thinks it reads well. What’s next, Michael Clayton ranked No. 9 on the list of top offensive lineman?

By this twisted logic used by Vacation Man, Wayne Fontes would edge out Mike Holmgren as the greatest coach in NFC North history. Oh, wait…

It’s just unbelievable to Joe how Father Dungy has some people hoodwinked. “What did Gruden really do beyond that?” What, was Chucky supposed to perform free vasectomies? NEWSFLASH: NFL coaches are not hired to perform the Last Rites.

It’s been years ago and Joe should have let it pass, but he cannot. Joe will never forget how Father Dungy stubbornly, if not arrogantly, refused to adjust his offense to something slightly more modern than the 1946 Chicago Bears claiming this was the offense that Chuck Noll used when the Steelers won, when if fact it was not.

Joe vividly recalls how Mel Blount talked about the 1978 Steelers in an episode of the fantastic America’s Game by NFL Films. Blount referred to a change in NFL rules, known as the “Mel Blount Rule,” that banned contact with receivers five yards past the line of scrimmage. It was because of this rule, Noll informed the Steelers he would change his offense up and pass more to take advantage of the new rule, which resulted in two Steelers Super Bowls in 1978 and 1979.

And who was Blount’s teammate on the 1978 Steelers? Father Dungy.

Blount also went on to say in the same episode how Father Dungy was one of the smartest men he ever played with. So if Father Dungy was this smart, why didn’t he learn from Noll being flexible when Father Dungy was with the Bucs? 

What another pathetic waste of time from BSPN! This almost makes “Around the Horn” seem intelligent.

C’mon Pat, you’re better than this.

Bucs general manager Mark Dominik can afford to relax with training camp roughly six weeks away.

Weeks after a draft that by all paper accounts looks to be successful, and is subsequently turning  him into a rock star, with various local and national media outlets offering him a forum to crow about his draft — deservedly so — Dominik has every right to kick back at a local beachside resort, recline in a beach chair and admire the (ahem) scenery while relishing a cold, adult beverage.

But it’s not just the draft that has Dominik resting comfortably. The way Washington Redskins defensive tackle/petulant child Facestomper Haynesworth has been acting, indirectly, is making Dominik smarter by the hour.

Remember last offseason Dominik came this close to signing Facestomper, who was a free agent. Instead, Facestomper went to Washington where he meandered through an injury-riddled season.

Now with Super Bowl-winning coach Mike Shanahan on board and the Redskins moving to a 34-defensive front, Facestomper is sulking and pouting and carrying on worse than Joe if DirecTV dropped the NFL Network.

Facestomper is so outraged, that little more than a year after he signed a guaranteed contract for $40 million, in a time when Americans are struggling to make mortgage payments much less being able to hold onto their job, any job, Facestomper is demanding to be traded unless the Redskins play a 43- front and will not report to any Redskins offseason activity.

So insulted is Mike Florio, the creator, curator and overall guru of ProFootballTalk.com, he has gone so far as to label Facestomper as “a turd,” which in the Florio-venacular, is as low as you go.

It seems even those NFL types associated with Facestomper are sick of him. Consider the text messages about Facestomper that BSPN NFL insider Adam Schefter documented last night on Twitter.

@Adam_Schefter:  Texts on Albert from NFL people “You can’t fix a bad guy”…”He is a total JERK!”…”Hope media go to town with this one and tear him up.”

The shame of this is, good guys looking for a warranted salary bump like Bucs left tackle Donald Penn, among others, get lumped into the same pile of dung as glorified bowel movements like Facestomper, which is terribly unfair.

No, it’s not fair. And if Joe were Penn, he’d really want to take a football cleat to Facestomper’s grill.

What would have happened if Dominik was successful in signing Facestomper last year? Now there’s no way of predicting that Facestomper would have demanded a trade from the Bucs already.

But Joe is guessing that Dominik is really glad to know he will never have to find out the answer to that riddle.

Prepared to play the game of Demar Dotson chicken a little longer with the Bucccaneers, restricted free agent Donald Penn has passed on his chance to sign the Bucs’ guaranteed one-year tender offer of $3.168 million for 2010.

The deadline was midnight, writes beat scribe Anwar Richardson, of the Tampa Tribune. Now the Bucs cut the offer about $100,000.

Joe’s written plenty about Penn’s situation, so has former Bucs defensive end and JoeBucsFan.com analyst Steve White. Frankly, Joe’s impressed Penn passed on signing his name on that big a Lotto ticket. Joe’s not sure he’d have the stomach for that.

The next benchmark for Penn is next week’s mandatory Bucs’ three-day minicamp. Penn faces a nominal fine if he skips those.

Joe finds all the national chatter surrounding Vince Young’s strip club tussle rather amusing.

Young and many talking heads have voiced their concern that warden Roger Goodell will strike his mighty hand down upon Young and possibly suspend him. Young has even said he’s asking a higher power for help.

Meanwhile, ESPN.com reported that Young, back in Nashville, apologized to teammates, coaches and Titans fans for his role in the altercation.

“I just made a mistake. I made a mistake even being there, and I let that guy provoke me into doing what I did,” Young was quoted as saying.

He added: “I pray to God that Roger Goodell [commissioner of the National Football League] doesn’t come down hard on me, because I definitely want to be here for my teammates.”

Joe’s quite certain that Young can sleep easily. (And surely God has more pressing concerns than the NFL).

After all, helmet-wielding Aqib Talib didn’t even get a public slap on the wrist by Goodell for belting a defenseless cab driver in the head from behind while the guy drove on the highway with Talib, Angelo Crowell and Torrie Cox in the cab last summer.

And all that came on the heels of Talib belting Cox in the face at practice with his helmet; the intended target was Donald Penn.

Talib subsequently paid off the cabbie and asked the courts to let him enter a state diversion program so he could get some counseling and earn a chance to have the charges dropped.

Young’s apparent crime, caught on video, is nothing compared to Talib’s sins. And unlike Talib, Young quickly apologized publicly and expressed widespread remorse.

Joe’s quite certain Goodell won’t do a darn thing to Young, unless somehow he holds quarterbacks to a higher standard than cornerbacks.

Joe has stated many times over recent weeks that he is of the belief that the Bucs have depth at running back.

In other words, the Bucs are deep in average running backs.

The numbers bear Joe out. The Bucs finished 25th last season in average yards per carry. Bucky Brooks, of NFL.com, suggests in a recent chat that unless one of the Bucs’ three clone-like backs has a stellar season, the growth of Josh Freeman as a franchise quarterback will be delayed.

Martin, Glasgow, Scotland
Hey Bucky, I’ve been looking to get an answer to this. Do you think Williams and Ward provide enough of a run game to take pressure of Josh Freeman. Or do Tampa look to bring in LenDale White or maybe even Marshawn Lynch? Thanks

Bucky Brooks, NFL.com
Martin, The Bucs’ running game has the potential to alleviate some of the pressure on Freeman, but one of the backs (Williams or Ward) must emerge as a legitimate threat in the backfield to create 8-man fronts. If they can get enough attention focused on the running game, Freeman should have favorable match ups in the passing game with Kellen Winslow II serving as the “go-to-guy”. He flew under the radar last season, but he should become a big-time weapon for the Bucs this season. Also, I wouldn’t expect the Bucs to pursue LenDale White. Though he has been a productive player in the past, I don’t think that he offers much of an upgrade for them at this point.

No, hell no, LenDale White is not the answer. The last thing the Bucs need is another plodding, bruising running back. The Bucs need a spark in their offensive attack and that would come from someone with lightning speed, who can hit the hole in a blink of an eye.

Joe loves Cadillac Williams and Earnest Graham to death, but Joe doesn’t hold out much hope either of these two will rush for 1,200 yards this season. The jury is still very much out on Kardashian-chasing Derrick Ward. Peanut Smith, when he’s not getting concussed during an on-field assault, puts the ball on the ground too often.

From the day he arrived in Tampa Bay, Bucs tight end Kellen Winslow has stated he wanted to be a team leader.

It’s that drive and fondness for his teammates that drew him back — maybe too soon — from his sixth knee surgery to One Buc Palace Monday for OTAs, so reports Nick Williams of the Tampa Tribune.

“It feels good,” Winslow said. “It’s just something I deal with everyday. I’m not going to let these guys down though.”

Winslow has had multiple surgeries on his right knee, which was injured in a motorcycle crash that forced him to miss the 2005 season with the Cleveland Browns. The most recent surgery was described by Bucs head coach Raheem Morris as minor, an arthroscopic procedure to clean up scar tissue.

“I’m feeling good,” Winslow said. “I’ll be ready for training camp. I’ll be ready.”

This is great to read, and Joe’s happy that Winslow is trying to get to 100 percent by training camp, or as close as he can get. Reading between the lines, Winslow will never be 100 percent.

The sixth knee surgery is what frightens Joe. At the time of his acquisition, Joe thought Tony Gonzalez could have been had for a second round pick (he was) and may have a longer shelf life because of Winslow’s gimpy right knee.

This is nothing against Winslow whatsoever. Joe wishes him the best, obviously. If pressed, Joe is sure Winslow would admit that his multiple knee surgeries are a concern to him for his long-term NFL playing career.

Say what you will about Warren Sapp, but the soon-to-be Hall of Fame defensive tackle for the Bucs is a football historian.

So much so that when he learned Monday morning that the Bucs were going to add another blast from the past to the Ring of Honor, Sapp cited via Twitter the Bucs first coach, John McKay as the next person worthy of such an honor. 

@QBKILLA: Coach Mckay. Should Have Been 1st.

Later, Sapp fielded protests from fans who scoffed at Sapp suggesting McKay should be inducted.

@QBKILLA: 3rd Year Hosted NFC Championship Game! Had the Tools! Wouldn’t Pay And Keep Doug! Doug Williams Curse. U Sure U A Buc Fan?

And just so people were not misled, Sapp later reinterated who he thinks should be in the Ring of Fame, in order.

@QBKILLA:  Lee Roy, Coach, Doug And Rick Bell 1st Four Or Somebody Done Bumped Their Head!

@QBKILLA:  The Coach (Mckay), The QB (Doug Williams) & A Fallen Brother (Ricky Bell)! Four Corner Stones!!

A few hours later, eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune broke the next that indeed, it will be McKay.

The vocal Glazer-hating contingent of Manchester United fans would love to have the world believe that every fan of their club hates Team Glazer and wants them to vacate their soccer mad country that can’t even find one decent goalie.

Well, it seems these blathering haters are all wrong.

The wildly popular Daily Mail tabloid in England is reporting today that season ticket renewals at Manchester United are brisk and enough for Team Glazer to claim victory against their detractors, who hoped that fans would stop buying tickets and subsequently force Team Glazer to sell the team.

Team Glazer must be clanking their bottles of Newcastle about now.

As for those Tampa blackouts, Joe is sure that only Team Glazer’s sheer love of Bucs fans would prevent them in the fall.

Who could argue against John McKay?

The Bucs’ first and iconic head coach will be the 2010 inductee into the Bucccaneers Ring of Honor, so says Tampa Tribune NFL writer eye-RAH! Kaufman. Lee Roy Selmon was the inaugural inductee last year.

After winning four national championships at Southern Cal, McKay was named to lead the 1976 expansion Bucs. He compiled a 44-88-1 record and won two division championships, developing a national reputation for his acerbic wit.

In just the fourth year of the franchise, McKay guided the 1979 Bucs to an NFC Central Division title and a playoff win against the Eagles before dropping a 9-0 decision to the Los Angeles Rams in the conference title game at the old Tampa Stadium.

The late McKay was no doubt the perfect coach for the expansion Buccaneers and deserves the accolades.

Of course, most Bucs fans have little or no recollection of McKay. So Joe is impressed that Team Glazer picked him for 2010.

Surely, a Derrick Brooks induction would have sold a heck of a lot more tickets. It’s good to see the money wasn’t that important to Team Glazer.

Bucs Hall of Famer Lee Roy Selmon was the inaugural member of the Bucs Ring of Honor which debuted last year when the Bucs won their first game of the season over Green Bay.

Who will be the second?

The Bucs just announced the next member of the Ring of Honor will be released Wednesday.

Joe has no idea who it is but Joe’s going to guess — nothing more than a guess — it will be Doug Williams.

Others who may get the honor:

Mike Alstott.

Scot Brantley.

John McKay.

Warren Sapp.

John Lynch.

Jimmie Giles.

Mark Cotney.

Or will the Bucs on Wednesday have a mini-ceremony of sorts where Derrick Brooks announces his retirement, and thus will be in the Ring of Honor?

OK, Joe wants to hear from Bucs fans. Who should be the next Bucs player in the Ring of Honor?

Monday is often a busy day for sports chatter in the Tampa Bay area and today.

First, the Rays can’t win in the Fruitdome and as a result, they are now tied for first with the Yankmees.

Second, the college football landscare is drastically changing before our very eyes. What ramifications will this have for the big four schools in the state of Florida.

Lastly, the Bucs are having OTAs this week. This is always a paramount topic in the Tampa Bay area.

You can be sure that the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, “The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig, will have plenty to say about all three tops. As usual, Duemig can be heard be WDAE-AM 620 from 3-6:30 p.m. today.

At 5 p.m., as usual, the creator, curator and overall guru of ProFootballTalk.com, Mike Florio, will make his weekly appearance to discuss all things NFL with “The Big Dog.”

Tune in to hear “The Big Dog,” from WDAE’s website for the live audio streaming of the show.