Raheem The Dream obviously has done his share of self analysis since the 2009 season ended. That’s the only way “to be your best self,” as he likes to say. 

And apparently this self-study featured enough deep thought — seemingly sans research — for him to inexplicably compare his high-pressure situation in Tampa with that of Bill Belichick coaching the Browns in the 1990s.

For some reason, Raheem The Dream thinks Belichick didn’t have enough time to blossom in Cleveland and fans there wish he was given more time.

Now, forgetting the fact that the Browns were bailing to Baltimore and then canned Belichick, the Patriots head coach had five years in Cleveland that featured a losing record, a playoff win and a 5-11 final season. That wasn’t enough time?

Just how much time does Raheem The Dream think he needs in Tampa?

Raheem The Dream gave his Belichick analogy during a recent radio interview on 1010 AM with J.P. Peterson, who hosts a new TV sports magazine show on CW44 every Sunday at 11:30 a.m.

On the radio, Peterson asked the head coach about the possibility of being replaced by Bill Cowher. Here’s Raheem The Dream’s unedited response (beware of major Raheem ramble):

“The best part about it is how I look at it is this. You know, the rumors, the whatever the case may be, the believing in whatever people want you to believe. Everybody should want this job. We’re in Tampa. It’s the best job in football. The other thing about it is this, is when we get here, I’m sure the Cleveland Browns right now wish they would have gave Bill Belichick a longer time. I’m not saying I’m Bill Belichick. But what I’m saying is you got to have time to implement your plan, which he got at New England. And now he’s implemented it and now he’s a genius. And I’m not saying I’m a genius. I’m not saying I’m any of those things. But let’s go out and execute. Let’s do what we got to do.”

Joe suspects new Bucs uber media czar Jonathan Grella is now on Page 2 of a growing list counseling points for Raheem The Dream. Misguidedly comparing yourself to a Hall of Fame coach is never a good thing.

While Joe hopes Raheem The Dream has moved on from his ridiculious Dungy-era analogies, this won’t do, either.

No matter how much time Raheem The Dream thinks he should have, or how patient Team Glazer appears, Joe suspects Raheem The Dream knows very well that he’s in an improve-or-be-fired situation for the rest of his time in Tampa.

A chance to rub elbows with a dozen or so Buccaneers in a nice bowling alley for just $10?  That’s a good time, and nowhere near as hot as FanFest at the stadium.

As part of a mega fundraising weekend for his intense charitible efforts, Earnest Graham is hosting his annual bowling event on Saturday. It caps nearly 24 hours of community service and fundraising by Graham and many of his teammates.

Get information by clicking on the Earnest Giving logo below, and you can learn even more from Graham himself right here.

Joe’s not one to quote oily, agenda-driven player agents — especially off the record like some outfits.

But notorious oily player agent Drew Rosenhaus was in full Buccaneers love today on the local ESPN Radio affiliate, so Joe took notes.

Rosenhaus represents Kellen Winslow, Earnest Graham, E.J. Biggers and other Buccaneers, but his latest Tampa Bay client is the one he was gushing over today. That would be cornerback Myron Lewis.

In full contract negotiation mode, Rosenhaus called Mark Dominik an extraordinarily savvy executive, and Rosenhaus said he likes the way Raheem The Dream handles players.

Rosenhaus pointed out that Lewis missed his final college game at Vanderbilt before having arthroscopic knee surgery that kept him out of the Senior Bowl.

“If he plays in that [Senior Bowl], we’re probably talking about a late first round pick.” Rosenhaus said. “Mark Dominik got great value.”

Apparently, Rosenhaus must have strongly disagreed with the Cowboys’ rating of Lewis.

So there it is; oily player agent extraordinaire says the Bucs had a great draft.

Adam Schein of FoxSports.com takes a look at how each NFC South team improved itself in last month’s draft.

As Joe is wont to do in an effort to hypnotize himself that he’s not stuck in a soulless cube at work, bogged down with mindless duties, Joe slapped on his earbuds and fired up Sirius NFL Radio.

Joe heard Ross Tucker, co-hosting  “The Opening Drive” with Peter King, talk about offensive linemen and false starts. Tucker, who logged seven years as an offensive lineman in the NFL, currently is an SI.com columnist and is also a graduate of no less a higher institute of learning than Princeton University.

He had the following to say about offensive linemen and false starts:

“If a lineman is getting called for a lot of false starts, that tells me either he can’t hear, he doesn’t have the passion or the desire to play, or he is just dumb.”

Joe immediately thought of Bucs right tackle Jeremy Trueblood, who led the NFL last year in false starts.

False starts are a sore subject for Trueblood, as they ought to be. Joe knows a Bucs beat writer confronted Trueblood last year about why he was making so many false starts, and Trueblood copped an attitude with said reporter, saying in so many words, “Well, if you ever played the game, anyone who has played the position understands… “

What was Trueblood, who recently signed his tender offer from the Bucs, implying, that because he had more false starts than any other NFL lineman he knows the game better than any other right tackle, or that he doesn’t know as much about the game than others in the NFL?

It’s an interesting observation that Tucker had.

Let Joe get this out front right away: Trueblood is not dumb. Hardly. He graduated from one of the better universities in the northeast, Boston College. So let’s get that premise out of the way right now. Trueblood is hardly dumb.

Nor does Joe think Trueblood lacks passion. Joe sees Trueblood get tangled up in a lot of scraps on the field. To be  blunt, Joe enjoys this. Joe likes his offensive linemen mean and angry.

So that leaves Trueblood’s hearing to be an issue, if one is to believe Tucker’s premise. Joe has no idea if Trueblood is hard of hearing or not, but it’s an interesting theory.

Joe’s been busy, so Joe apologizes he has been a bit late on this. Seems as though Jeff Garcia was not one of Antonio Bryant’s favorite quarterbacks.

The duo became one of the more dynamic passing combinations in Bucs history when Bryant’s career was resuscitated by Chucky. Bryant told Bengals.com that Garcia forced Bryant to run two routes, documented by MDS of ProFootballTalk.com.

“Garcia’s a good player, but you had to run two routes. The route and then the Jeff route.”

This quote was also interesting given the fact Bryant had a career year with Garcia forcing Bryant to run two routes each play.

This also reminded Joe of a clip on NFL Network that showed Chucky completely freaking out as Garcia came to the sideline after an incompletion. Chucky was beside himself that Garcia was “freelancing” virtually on every play and Chucky lost it.

Joe was very impressed the number of f-laced adjectives and adverbs Chucky hurled at Garcia in one sentence. It was beautiful.

Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports believes the Bucs will long regret letting wide receiver Antonio Bryant walk.

In an article Joe wrote for the Champaign (Ill.) News-Gazette that will appear this weekend on former Illinois and current Bucs wide receiver Arrelious Benn, Joe typed that Benn could have a long productive career with the Bucs.

But Jason Cole of Yahoo! Sports doesn’t think Benn will make Bucs fans forget former Bucs wide receiver Antonio Bryant.

In writing a quick breakdown on each NFL team, Cole wrote the Bucs will rue the day they let Bryant go.

Mercurial TE Kellen Winslow returns, but getting rid of Bryant in favor of rookie Arrelious Benn might turn out bad for the Bucs.

Joe believes that philosophy is terribly short-sighted. Sure, Bryant may have been more productive this season, but just how much gas does Bryant have left in the tank? If Benn is moderately productive, it’s not crazy to predict he will be with the Bucs for 7-10 years.

Think not? Just look how long blocking icon Michael Clayton has clung to the Bucs roster despite year after year of subpar performances.

Back in December, Bucs icon Doug Williams had a wild month.

First, he was shamefully, publicly abused by Pewter Report, when the former colorful hand-held magazine outfit told the world that unnamed agents were ripping Williams and reported his “potential firing” right after the 2010 season would come as little surprise to those in the know.  

Then Williams publicly sniffed a return to college coaching. And then he seemed excited by the prospect of joing Bruce Allen in Washington, when he told the Washington Examiner what a great guy his former boss is and showed little enthusiasm for staying in Tampa.

On his own interest for a job here: “That’s strictly up to Bruce. It wouldn’t be good to say that now.”

Then the dust settled when Williams told local beat writers that he agreed to a new one-year contract with the Bucs to continue on in his post for Mark Dominik’s draft for the ages.

Now the Bucs are reporting that Dominik and Williams have mutually parted ways.  

Word came down yesterday, and Joe was waiting to see if Williams would open up more than the few simple quotes offered in the news release. So far, he hasn’t. But Joe suspects he will soon.

Dominik said Williams “will stay involved as a representative of the team in the community.”

Joe’s pleased to hear will remain close, if not part, of the organization. It seems an amicable divorce is in place. Joe hopes that’s still what it looks like after Williams’ first interview on the subject.

Angelo Crowell was last on the field two years ago, when he had a strong season for Buffalo.

Inexplicably determined to rouse excitement for the return of linebacker Angelo Crowell, St. Pete Times beat writer Stephen Holder tells his readers today that the Bucs want to “get something out of their investment in Crowell.”

Holder doesn’t quote anyone saying that at One Buc Palace. Hmmm. And Joe suspects that quote isn’t forthcoming because “money will never be an issue” when building the Buccaneers, Joel Glazer reminded us recently.

But assuming Holder is accurate, this “investment” line of thinking drives Joe a little bananas.

The guy hasn’t played or been healthy in two years, and the Bucs re-signed him for 2010, seemingly to a low-risk contract.

This is not trying to get something from an “investment.” It’s begging for a miracle and straying from “the plan.”

Crowell, the Bucs’ biggest free agent signing on defense in 2009, wasn’t heathy when the Bucs signed him and was coming off sitting out the entire 2008 season in Buffalo. Upon arriving in Tampa, he sat out many OTAs because his rare knee surgery wasn’t completely healed, and he looked slow in preseason and tore his bicep in an exhibition game. He landed on injured reserve and the Bucs were on the hook for his one-year, $2.5 million deal.

(From Holder) The Bucs would like to, finally, get something out of their investment in Crowell. And Crowell knows he is running out of time to get his career back on track. He’ll be 29 on opening day, so if he doesn’t make the team, it’s no sure thing that he’ll get a chance someplace else. To stick around, he needs to show that he has the quickness and agility to play in Tampa Bay defense. The biceps injury isn’t as much of a concern as the potential long-term effects of the knee issue and its impact on his mobility. One tip about his condition is the fact that the Bucs re-signed him in the first place. No team would know more about his health than Tampa Bay, which helped him through his rehab.

Anyhow, the Bucs have talked about increasing the level of competition at various positions. If Crowell can get it together, maybe he can do that — or more.

Crowell turns 29 during training camp. He hasn’t played in two years. Surely there was a healthy young body out there somewhere to push Quincy Black. And how can Joe have faith in the Bucs medical staff when they gave the green light to sign him last year?

Like every Buccaneers fan, Joe is pulling for Crowell. But Joe hopes the Bucs are still looking for another backup.

In one of the best interviews Joe has read in a while, Aaron Schatz of FootballOutsiders.com got a sitdown with Father Dungy to talk defense.

As can be expected, Father Dungy talked a lot about the Bucs defense, both past and recent. Dungy, largely credited with popularizing the Cover-2 defense, which became better known as the Tampa-2, claimed the Bucs defense under former defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin morphed and grew away from the Cover-2, using more men in the box.

Aaron Schatz: For obvious reasons, people equate your defensive philosophy with Monte Kiffin’s. However, our numbers show that while the defense was dominant against the pass both before and after you left Tampa Bay, the run defense was consistently better after you left. Was that a philosophical difference between you two, or was it merely the result of changing personnel?

Father Dungy: It was somewhat personnel but more a philosophical thought. Monte plays more eight-man fronts and blitzes more. He is determined to stop the run and force more second-and-long and third-and-long situations. I was more tuned into taking away the big play and making offenses be perfect. The Bucs actually didn’t play a lot of Cover 2 after I left.

This is one of the points Joe has made several times when the Dungyphiles rear their heads to claim that Chucky won with Father Dungy’s players, which is preposterous on many levels.

Now, here is more evidence coming straight from Father Dungy’s own mouth that the Bucs defense was different, using more and different schemes after Kiffin gained full and complete control of the Bucs defense under Chucky.

Alex Marvez of FoxSports.com believes Josh Freeman and the Bucs will be "respectable" in 2011, but not this year.

Another day, another national columnist advising Bucs fans to wait another year.

That’s the word — not from Joe — from Alex Marvez of FoxSports.com. In a column where he looks at all the last place teams from 2009 and what team has the best chance to rebound, Marvez is not too charitable to the Bucs and suggests 2010 will be a season to forget for Bucs fans.

The Bucs began their youth movement in 2009 but need at least another season to become respectable again.

Unlike yesterday, when Joe brought you Pat Kirwan’s prediction than an 8-8 season would be a success, Marvez did not go on the record with a win total as a goal he sees for the Bucs.

First, Raheem The Dream called Josh Johnson a “career backup.”

Now, Greg Olson compares third-year pro Johnson, known for his intelligence and grasp of the offense, to an undrafted rookie quarterback.

For a short TBO.com feature story about interception-happy former University of Mississippi quarterback Jevan Snead trying to make the Bucs roster after being signed as an undrafted rookie free agent, Olson told beat writer Anwar Richardson that Snead should be on “equal footing” with Johnson.

“The good thing is we have two younger players in Josh Johnson and Rudy Carpenter that aren’t that much older than him and haven’t been in the league that long, so development wise, they shouldn’t be much further along,” Bucs offensive coordinator Greg Olson said. “He has an opportunity to come in and compete with those guys as opposed to a four-, five-, six-, 10-year vet guy. He should be on equal footing with those guys.”

Poor Johnson, taking one on the chin from the offensive coordinator.

Joe’s all in favor of coaches tyring to foster competition in the offseason, but Olson’s comment crosses the line.

If Johnson is on equal footing with Snead, then the Bucs better pray harder for Josh Freeman’s health than they ever intended. 

Recently, some quasi-misguided soul — he couldn’t be too misguided, after all, he reads Joe — commented that only women Twitter.

This couldn’t be further from the truth.

Joe tried to educated this man (?) that Twitter, when used properly, is very much a manly thing. Truth be told, women don’t have the NFL Network.

Want proof of how Twitter is good for any red-blooded American male? Think a scantily clad Marlana Aref, one of many beautiful Bucs cheerleaders. Seems as though some intelligent being over at One Buc Palace has decided to tag along as the Bucs cheerleaders frolic on some sandy white beach for their calendar shoot.

And said someone from One Buc Palace (intrepid Scott Smith perhaps?) is attaching various “behind the scenes” photos of the calendar shoot on the Bucs official Twitter feed.

Now that Joe has linked to the Bucs Twitter feed, feel free to waste time at work gawking. Joe won’t blame you at all.

How the Cowboys' personnel department ranked three Bucs rookies before the draft, Gerald McCoy, Brian Price and Myron Lewis, was uncovered by the Miami Herald.

Yesterday, the Miami Herald published a photo it secured of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones standing in front of his team’s draft board.

Joe’s first reaction was, ‘Who cares?’ and ‘Why does a Miami newspaper want to write a story about this?’

But upon further review, the picture, which the Herald blew up and spent lots of time scrutinizng, reveals how the Cowboys ranked various players entering the 2010 draft. Armando Salguero, the Herald reporter, claims he confirmed the authenticity of the photo with the Cowboys organization.

Dallass ranked manbeast-in-waiting Gerald McCoy as the No. 2 pick, ahead of Ndamukong Suh. So that was a feel-good moment for Joe.

But Dallass had defensive tackle Brian Price ranked 45th overall (the Bucs took him with the 35th pick). And cornerback Myron Lewis was ranked as a late fourth-round pick, 118th overall (the Bucs picked him with the 67th pick near the top of the third round). No other rookie Bucs’ rankings were visible in the photo.

Of course, this doesn’t mean a whole heck of a lot. But it’s very interesting, especially during the NFL dog days of May.

Did the Bucs reach for Lewis? The Cowboys sure think so.

Is defensive back Myron Lewis a starter come September?

Yesterday, Joe brought you the story of how the Mad Twitterer, of the St. Petersburg Times, suggested the Bucs may have drafted wide receivers Arrelious Benn and Mike Williams, in part, because they fit Greg Olson’s offense.

The bigger part of the overall story was that the Mad Twitterer believes the Bucs drafted four starters in last month’s draft and that’s not counting Benn.

The fourth starter, in the Mad Twitterer’s eyes, is defensive back Myron Lewis.

The fourth starter will be CB Myron Lewis, a third-round pick from Vanderbilt. At 6-2, 205, Lewis has a physical resemblance to Aqib Talib. He’s another long, athletic defender with good hands who changes direction with relative ease.

With Lewis beginning the year at nickel corner, playing maybe two of every three snaps, he might as well be considered a starter. Certainly, he is the heir apparent to 35-year-old Ronde Barber.

If Joe uses the Mad Twitterer’s math as a foundation, it’s not out of the realm of possibllity Bucs general manager Mark Dominik actually selected six starters.

As the Mad Twitterer pointed out, it’s just a matter of time before Benn starts. So that’s starter No. 5. The sixth starter will very likely be punter Brent Bowden. If a team drafts a punter and the same team also cuts its starting punter, it’s a pretty safe bet to assume the guy drafted will be given every opportunity to start.

Raheem The Dream recently told the world he feels like the Bucs are “three years ahead” of schedule now that they’ve fired their previous coordinators and are entering 2010 with stability.

Mark Dominik has talked openly about how beneficial it is to the team to have the coaching ranks all on the same page on both sides of the ball for an entire offseason.

And Earnest Graham, in an exclusive interview with Joe last week, said the Bucs’ new-found stability, especially at the quarterback position, “should translate on the field.”

Joe: Obviously, the Bucs will come to camp in a much more stable, familiar situation than last year. Will that continuity really make a difference?

Graham: It’s a huge deal. Years past, the years I was under Gruden, we changed quarterbacks a lot. Whether it was Chris Simms, Brian Griese, Bruce Gradkowski, Jeff Garcia, Griese … that’s hard on a football team even with the same coaching staff. And then last year…the league is tough enough, and then you throw all those changes in. It’s tough on a football team, especially a young football team. ….It has to help, going in knowing what you’re going to get, knowing who the quarterback is. It should translate on the field.

So if you’re not keeping score, that’s the front office, the head coach and an intelligent veteran player all offering sound reasons why the team should be better without even mentioning the talent upgrade on the defensive line and the expected improvement of promising youngsters Josh Freeman, Sammie Stroughter, Aqib Talib, Tanard Jackson, Geno Hayes and more.

This is why Joe laughs at those who believe Team Glazer doesn’t have a number on Raheem The Dream’s head for the 2010 season.

Team Glazer surely buys in to the notion that the Bucs should be better in 2010, and ready to seize the rare opportunity of four home games in their first six with a bye in between.

Pat Kirwan says 8-8 is a good, high goal for the 2010 Bucs. At this point, Joe can say he’d be somewhat satisfied and impressed by six wins. 

Joe has to believe Team Glazer will be at least working the phones if Raheem The Dream can’t put a 5 in the win column.

Pat Kirwan of NFL.com believes Josh Freeman will lead the Bucs to the playoffs... in 2011.

The Bucs were beyond horrid last year. That’s not a revelation to any Bucs fan.

There were a myriad of reasons why. From going to the youth movement to bagging offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski to the heinous Jim Bates Experiment, which blew up in the face of Raheem the Dream.

So despite many Bucs fans pining for a playoff run this year, it won’t happen. Bucs fans should be patient and realistic. Maybe winning as many games as the Bucs will lose will be a more rational goal.

That’s the word from Pat Kirwan. The former NFL front office executive, who co-hosts the superior “Movin’ the Chains” heard exclusively on Sirius NFL Radio, hosted a live chat recently on NFL.com, in addition to his duties with CBSSports.com. Kirwan suggested rather than playoffs, the Bucs should think .500.

Scott, Canada
Hey Pat, love your insight. Can you tell me how you see the Bucs this year? Do they have a chance to make some noise in the South, do you see them starting both new wides and both DTs?

Pat Kirwan, NFL.com
Thanks, Scott. The Bucs will be better this year than last. I think Josh Freeman will be a fine NFL quarterback. I think you closed in on the No. 3 spot with Carolina, but not ready to compete with the Saints or Falcons. Both rookie DTs will play a lot. You should be aiming for an 8-8 season and then if all these young players shape up make a legitimate run for the playoffs in 2011.

Playoffs in 2011? Playoffs? Did Kirwan write, “playoffs?”

Kirwan assumes first, there will actually be a 2011 season. If there is, that means the Bucs’ heralded rookies this year will have to grow up awful fast. Unless Team Glazer and general manager/rock star Mark Dominik go on a spending spree for the 2011 season — unlikely — that means this year’s rookies will have to mature awfully fast.

One reason the Bucs selected Arrelious Benn: his style fits within Greg Olson's offense so well.

The Bucs have gushed so much about their two new rookie wide receivers, Arrelious Benn and Mike Williams, Joe, being ever the skeptic, raised his antennae.

Reading from dispatches and talking to observers of the two rookies soothed Joe’s concerns. It seems the duo is the real deal.

One reason Benn and Williams are getting so many rave reviews, and perhaps why the Bucs didn’t draft wide receiver Golden Tate, is that, per the Mad Twitterer of the St. Petersburg Times, Benn and Williams fit so perfectly into Bucs offensive coordinator Greg Olson’s offense.

Benn and Williams are also great after the catch, which is critical in the offense under coordinator Greg Olson. The Bucs run a lot of slants, digs and crossing routes that require yards after the catch for big plays.

One observation: Williams might win a starting job before Benn. But before 2010 is over, both will be running out of the tunnel for pregame introductions. Regardless of the order, the position went from one with no depth to one of the most competitive on the team with Sammie Stroughter, Maurice Stovall, Reggie Brown and Michael Clayton.

This brings up one question, though Joe is confident it won’t be much of a factor but it’s a modest concern nonetheless: If Benn and Williams were drafted, in part, because they fit Olson’s offense so well, what if Olson and the rest of the coaching staff are jettisoned after the season if the Bucs fall on their face in 2010?

Joe’s not saying this will happen or should happen. But in May 2010, how do we know for a fact these coaches will still be here a year from today?

Tanard Jackson is one of many Bucs players expected to become free agents in 2011.

While a lot of attention of late has been paid to the Bucs draft — rightly so — there is an interesting fork in the road just over the hill and it appears there also could be clouds in the horizon.

Of course, the clouds are the looming labor stoppage of 2011, something Joe has written about many times because he feels it is the Sword of Damocles hanging over every NFL owner’s head and has been a factor in virtually every financial move the past two seasons.

Whether there is a season or not in 2011, one thing Joe knows for sure: there are tons of Bucs starters who will be free agents in 2011. What Team Glazer will do with those free agents may be determined by the players themselves, explains eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune in a TBO.com Bucs question-and-answer feature.

Q: Many of our core players will be free agents in 2011. On the offensive side of the ball we have guys like Davin Joseph, Donald Penn and Jeremy Trueblood on the O-line, tight ends Jerramy Stevens and John Gilmore, wide receiver Maurice Stovall and running back Cadillac Williams. On the defensive side there is Stylez G White on the D-line, linebackers Geno Hayes, Barrett Ruud and Quincy Black, cornerback Ronde Barber and safeties Tanard Jackson and Sabby Piscitelli.

How do you think the Bucs will handle signing most of these guys? Or should we even care? Because if the 2010 draft was being held as the deepest draft in 10 or 20 years, the 2011 free agent period will be the largest one ever with more than 450 players available.

Luvmybucs, Las Vegas, Nev.

A:  The Glazers have said that any player who performs well over a period of time will be rewarded by the Bucs. Guys like Penn and Ruud are wondering when their day will come. You would think Tanard Jackson and Davin Joseph will be offered long-term extensions. After this season, the Bucs will have to identify their core players and build with them going forward. Penn, Ruud and Trueblood could all hit the market next March, assuming a new collective bargaining agreement is in place.

— eye-RAH! Kaufman

The Bucs have said since Chucky was canned they wanted to build through the draft, which Joe has no problem with. Keeping guys like Joseph, Jackson and Hayes will go a long way to reinforcing that mantra. 

Maybe manbeast-in-waiting Gerald McCoy lost his laptop or his Blackberry.

Perhaps something simple like that happened to make him end his Twitter obsession.

Or, perhaps it was a tap on shoulder nine days ago at Buccaneers rookie minicamp. Joe’s secret embedded camera at One Buc Palace did record the following exchange:

Raheem The Dream: GMC, before you start being your best self out here, I gotta tell you something. You need to lay off the Internet, and things of that nature.

Gerald McCoy: What do you mean, Rah?

Raheem The Dream: All I know is Dominik says Twitter isn’t one of our core beliefs. And you gotta be true to your core beliefs to be your best self.

Of course, Joe’s secret camera is unreliable. But, for some reason, McCoy hasn’t sent out a Twitter message since a few hours before Bucs rookie minicamp started on April 30.

It seems pretty easy to connect the dots and conclude that the Bucs likely quashed McCoy’s Twitter addiction.

Jack Bechta, the resident player agent/columnist on NationalFootballPost.com, penned an interesting look at NFL players and social media the other day.

Unfamiliar with social media? Think Twitter, Facebook and the many ways players — and anyone – can fire up an account and start sharing all sorts of everything personal and professional.

All of my rookie clients who just returned from their first minicamp were briefed on what they should and shouldn’t say to the media. One team even told its players that they should “think twice” before tweeting or talking about their experiences in minicamp. Twitter, Facebook and other outlets makes coaches and GMs a little nervous. I know of one GM and ownernship group who have grown so irritated and tired of their top players’ social efforts that they decided to clean house of those individuals. The team has already recently parted ways with three players and has its sights set on several more it would like to see go. The brass simply feels that their players’ focus should be 100 percent on winning and not be distracted on building their own brand.

Hopefully, the Bucs didn’t use their Myron Rolle tactics to intimidate McCoy into dumping his Twitter account.

Joe’s all in favor of the team setting social media boundaries for players, but Joe doesn’t think teams should tell players to kill it altogether.

Used with a little discretion, a player’s social media account ultimately bonds fans to the player and builds interest in his team, which is good for everyone.

Joe hopes to read McCoy’s next tweet — before he retires.

Of all the veterans purged by Mark Dominik over the last couple of years, kicker Matt Bryant seems to be one of the select few that will keep playing at high level in the NFL.

Dominik passed on Bryant, who turns 35 this month, in favor or $2 million bust Mike Nugent, who was quickly tossed aside for youngster Connor Barth last year. 

Vacation Man, NFC South beat writer for Moscow-based BSPN.com, who spent a chunk of this week at Atlanta Falcons’ minicamp, reports Bryant looks like a sure bet to keep Atlanta’s No. 1 kicker gig that he scored after a stint in the UFL last year.

Who’s the kicker? This was a big issue last year and the Falcons finally parted ways with veteran Jason Elam after he lost his consistency. Atlanta believes it has the answer in veteran Matt Bryant, who joined the team late last year. Bryant used to be one of the league’s more reliable kickers. But his career got thrown off track in Tampa Bay by injuries and a family tragedy. The Falcons believe Bryant is healthy and ready to get back to being the kind of reliable kicker he once was.

Joe’s happy for Bryant, yet Joe is having unsettling visions of him kicking game-winning field goals against the Bucs in 2010. Maybe Joe needs more sleep.

Joe’s a big fan of Barth, who shocked every Bucs fan alive with those three 50-yard field goals in one game against Miami last year. Like every team — and maybe more than most — the Bucs desperately need their kicker to be consistent, and great at times.

Hopefully, Barth’s up for it.