See, Albert Haynesworth is a great guy

“Vacation Man” is certain the Bucs will make a major play for Albert Haynesworth on Friday, so he said today in an interview with The Fabulous Sports Babe on ESPN 1040 AM.

For those of you new to JoeBucsFan.com, Vacation Man is Pat Yasinskas, the ESPN.com beat writer for the NFC South. He also covered the Bucs for the Tampa Tribune and owned the Panthers beat for the Charlotte Observer after that. (Joe calls him Vacation Man because he said he didn’t watch the Bucs-Dallas game last season).

His comments today conflict squarely against the report by Peter King, of Sports Illustrated ,and the Houston Chronicle story that has Haynesworth ready to sign with the Redskins.

“I’m seriously convinced that the Bucs will make a strong play for Haynesworth,” Yasinskas said, acknowledging contrary reports. “And knowing the Bucs’ cap situation, he’d be foolish not to listen. …The Bucs are definitely interested in Haynesworth. …And the consensus around the league is Haynesworth will get paid [his asking price].”

Yasinskas has inside access, as does King. Joe will enjoy seeing how this plays out between the two MSM heavyweights.

Joe’s going to bet a 10-timer on Yasinskas. Somewhere Jim Bates is trying to sell his soul for Haynesworth.

The Bucs are seeking a Rex Grossman-type QB, says NFC South beat writer Pat Yasinskas

Joe cautions you about this post. It may induce vomiting.

ESPN.com NFC South beat writer, Pat “Vacation Man” Yasinskas, talked about the Bucs quarterback situation on ESPN 1040 AM today.

He said the Bucs will bring in a young veteran quarterback to compete with Luke McCown for the starting job rather than draft a quarterback, “free agent guys like J.P. Losman and Rex Grossman, young enough with some upside.”

Provided Washington signs Albert Haynesworth, would Bucs fans celebrate signing Redskins defensive tackle and restricted free agent Kedric Golston?

With the opening bell of free agency just a mere few hours away, Joe ran across an interesting list from ProFootballWeekly.com which rates the top 100 free agents. Good bet some guys on this list will be playing in Tampa Bay this fall.

One name that caught Joe’s eye is Washington defensive tackle Kedric Golston. If Dan Snyder does sign Albert Haynesworth that means Golston will likely be on the move and he’s not bad against the run, which the Bucs demonstrated last December they needed help with.

Of course New York Giants running back Derrick Ward would be a nice pick up too.

ProFootballWeekly.com also has a list of free agents by position.

Well, it appears Scott Smith of Buccaneers Insider survived the recent purge of Bucs employees at One Buc Palace last week. He has a video feature on new Bucs offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski. Maybe you might want to give the video a look?

There’s nothing a whole lot revealing in the video. Smith makes the mistake of invoking Cadillac Williams’ name as a weapon coming back from injury, which is, at best, wishful thinking.

In the meantime, watching the video might help keep Smith employed. You know, it’s all about page views, which reminds Joe:

"Money? What money? Why would you think we'll spend all our money?"

So here sits Mark Dominik, the Bucs rookie general manager, on a pile of money never seen before in an NFL offseason: $55 million of available salary cap room for 2009.

Is he ready to manage it? Joe’s not so sure.

Of course, if he’s going leave $25 million of the precious cash in the Glazer family safe at One Buc Place, then he might be more than ready to do the job.

The $55 million figure, reported by Peter King of Sports Illustrated, is a marked jump from the various $35 million to $40 million cap room estimates for the Bucs tossed around by various news outlets. Goes to show you that the media can play a little loose with the facts.

Joe believes King’s numbers. He is among the league’s great veteran scribes, and he sat down with Dominik the other day and talked to him about the mountain of cash.

“To sit there and say we’re going to be major players in the big free-agent market probably is wrong,” Dominik said. “Our goal is to take care of our young, core players. The veterans here are important to our future. Then, when you get to free agency, you have to measure the cost and benefit of every player. If you put a value of $4 million a year on a player, and it goes over that, you’ve got to be disciplined about chasing the money.” But surely Dominik feels the heat from the fans and ownership about having so much cap room, and spending some of it to make sure the recent run of playoff futility ends in Tampa.

Joe’s fear here is that Dominik is overmatched, and he’s learned a little too much from Bruce Allen, who played Mr. Frugal in Tampa, possibly with orders from above. Dominik is spewing the value speech right from Allen’s playbook.

But sometimes value is determined by a team’s need, not the market, a fact Allen seemed to miss.

Dominik can talk all he wants about taking care of young core players. But until the Bucs improve greatly at the skill positions and find a pass rush, what’s the point of securing the long term future of, say, Donald Penn?

What’s frustrating and exciting for Joe is that he’s not finding any evidence that tips the hand of Dominik. What’s the plan? Win now? Win later? Try to compete every year so ticket sales don’t fall and hope for a miracle run? WIll the Bucs continue to be defined by their defense?

All the answers are coming in a matter of weeks.

Joe is struggling to figure out exactly the market value of an underachieving wide receiver known for his blocking

Joe’s getting a laugh out of all this angling by agents and players leading up to the start of free agency.

It happens every year all over the league, and every year it’s a hoot. The St. Pete Times today writes about Michael Clayton wanting to stay but not if he has to leave millions on the table.

“Right now, it’s still up in the air,” Clayton said. “I know there’s an opportunity for me to come back. I want to be back. But I think it’s going to come down to money. There’s a thin line between taking less money and trying to be a part of this organization and what they’re building, and leaving millions on the table. But I love and respect (the Bucs) and I want to be a part of it.”

Joe doesn’t know the Bucs’ true level of interest in Mr. Disappointment, but Joe is sure Clayton is a good bet to drop his fat signing bonus when it’s handed to him by a team in the coming weeks.

If Mark Dominik subscribes to the same philosophy as Sirius NFL Radio's Solomon Wilcots and Carl Banks, it's not out of the question the Bucs will draft a RB early, such as Iowa's Shonn Green, a favorite of Joe's.

With the NFL combine still underway, it’s almost preposterous to guess with authority what position the Bucs will draft in the first round when the NFL draft rolls around in late April, nearly two months away.

That doesn’t mean speculation isn’t fun for Joe.

While Joe would never draft a running back in the first round unless that position was the final piece to a puzzle of a strong team, Solomon Wilcots and Carl Banks made a strong case for the Bucs to draft a running back in the first round.

Speaking on The Red Zone on Sirius NFL Radio Tuesday afternoon, Wilcots said if the Bucs indeed plan on trying to develop quarterback Luke McCown into a long-term starter, the Bucs need another running back given Warrick Dunn’s age and Cadillac Williams’ uncertain future.

“I feel they really need a running back,” Wilcots said of the Bucs. “Running the ball and playing good defense goes a long way to helping develop a quarterback.”

Banks concurred.

“If you don’t put these guys [inexperienced quarterbacks] in the right situation or build around them, they go downhill because they are shot,” Banks said.

Joe can’t argue with any of that. Would Ben Roethlisberger, for example, have developed into a two-time Super Bowl winner if he wasn’t drafted by a good team with a strong running attack, a solid offensive line and stellar wide receivers?

Now Joe isn’t saying McCown is the next Big Ben. Joe hasn’t been drinking any Jameson yet today. The lone problem Joe can see with Wilcots’ premise is the Bucs no longer have a good defense.

After meeting with Bucs general manager Mark Dominik, Peter King doesn't get the feeling the Bucs will chase Albert Haynesworth.

Today, Peter King has an item about Bucs general manager Mark Dominik who had a sit-down with King in Indianapolis. And unless King — or anyone else — misreads the smoke signals, Albert Haynesworth, nor any other big monied, top-notch free agent, is going to play for Tampa Bay in 2009.

I had a good meeting with new Tampa Bay GM Mark Dominik, who’s an impressive and bright guy. But he’s also under some significant pressure. The Bucs have $55 million to spend under the 2009 salary cap — the most ANY team has ever had entering any cap season. He was careful not to talk about specific players, but I left the meeting thinking the Bucs won’t be a player for Albert Haynesworth. I’m not sure about Julius Peppers.

“To sit there and say we’re going to be major players in the big free-agent market probably is wrong,” Dominik said. “Our goal is to take care of our young core players. The veterans here are important to our future. Then, when you get to free agency, you have to measure the cost and benefit of every player. If you put a value of $4 million a year on a player, and it goes over that, you’ve got to be disciplined about chasing the money.”

Joe has gone on record as being uneasy about Haynesworth. Too many red flags for Joe.

[UPDATE: The Houston Chronicle is reporting that the Redskins will sign Haynesworth once the bell rings to open free agency later this week. This reinforces a report Peter King had on the same subject Monday.]

Former Jets linebacker David Bowens, who had his best year playing for current Bucs defensive coordinator Jim Bates in Miami in 2004, said on NFL Radio Tuesday he is interested in playing for the Bucs

Speaking with Adam Schein and John Riggins on The Blitz on Sirius NFL Radio late Tuesday morning, former New York Jets linebacker David Bowens dropped a hint he could be playing for the Bucs next season.

When asked what teams he may have on his radar, Bowens said, “Cleveland would be nice and since I’m now living in Miami I’d like to play near home so I’m looking at Tampa and Jacksonville.”

Bowens dropped Cleveland in the mix because his former coach Eric Mangini is now coaching the Browns.

Bowens was asked what specifically he’s looking for in a potential suitor, he said he simply wants to be happy.

“I’m not looking for a lucrative deal. I want to stay happy and be wanted. I just want to feel wanted.

“Wherever I go, I will make plays.”

Bowens, who was drafted by Denver in the fifth round in 1999, recorded 40 tackles (his career high is 43 in 2004) and four sacks in 16 games last year, later confessed returning to the Dolphins would be his top choice, but admitted if not the Dolphins, “I want to play where it is warm.”

Bowens played four years in Miami for current Bucs defensive coordinator Jim Bates.

Thankfully, the smoke signals coming out of One Buc Place suggests the Bucs won't waste a pick on Josh Freeman.

As is usually the case, Joe Henderson of the Tampa Tribune hits a salient point. In his column this morning, Henderson touches upon the many needs of the Bucs. He rattles off the laundry list of names being bandied about and even throws in the name Percy Harvin, likely only because it’s a breadcrumb to the many Gators fans in his audience.

(Given Harvin’s medical history, Joe [not Henderson] would take Jeremy Maclin ahead of Harvin in a heartbeat.)

In the process of reciting the most rumored players the Bucs will obtain via free agency or the draft, Henderson invokes Kansas State quarterback Josh Freeman, who Joe (not Henderson) is not high on at all. Henderson points out a few things which leads Joe (not Henderson) to believe Freeman isn”t coming near One Buc Palace unless he’s a visitor.

No one is talking about Josh Johnson too much, but I remember a conversation with Bryant late last season. He had made a big catch or something and went out of his way to say that Johnson, standing on the sideline, had noticed the play would work and relayed the information. Bryant said Johnson had been doing a lot of stuff like that instead of just standing on the sideline and looking at the cheerleaders.

Doug Williams, now the director of pro scouting, was one of the loudest voices in the room last year in favor of drafting Johnson. He continues to be high on the kid, and the Bucs say Johnson will get a chance to show what he can do.

If the Bucs are still of the mind that they want to take Josh Johnson for a test drive, then why even bother with Freeman? Besides, as Henderson points out, the Bucs have way too many holes to fill then to mess around with a quarterback who takes opposing secondaries duck hunting on long throws.

The Dream was praised on NFL Radio for his infectious personality

On Sirius NFL Radio Monday morning Adam Schein, host of the The Blitz (Justin, Joe trusts you have trademarked the name of your show), spoke about meeting both Bucs general manager Mark Dominik and Bucs coach Raheem The Dream last week at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis.

And while Schein admitted he’s a big fan of Chucky and Bruce Almighty and was critical of the Glazer Boys for canning the dynamic duo, his mind is beginning to open towards Dominik and The Dream.

“I feel good about the direction of Tampa Bay. You can’t help but fall in love with Raheem Morris. He has an infectious personality but also will kick your ass on the field.

“Dominik gets it. He has a good sense of a plan. I think Tampa Bay is in good hands.”

Joe certainly hopes Schein is correct.

Joe is concerned that free agent defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth may not be worth the risk. Peter King of SI.com is of the same mind.

A lot of Bucs fans are jumping on the Albert Haynesworth bandwagon, hoping the Bucs throw the bank at the free agent defensive tackle.

Peter King of SI.com, in his weekly Monday Morning Quarterback column today, takes a good look at Haynesworth and isn’t exactly drinking the Kool-Aid. In fact, King suggests only a few teams are looking seriously at signing the 28-year old (and King doesn’t mention the Bucs as one of those teams). King did write about Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder as being smitten with Haynesworth.

In fact, Washington might be the logical landing spot. Hmmmm. I wonder why Redskins owner Dan Snyder was having dinner with the agent for Haynesworth, Chad Speck, at Morton’s here Saturday night. I’m sure they were just talking about how it was colder here than at the Arctic Circle. But I kept asking all weekend: “Who wants Haynesworth — or, more appropriately, who’s going to pony up for him?” And I got the old “it only takes one” answer a few times. But one coach told me the smartest thing, and this was a coach who has some interest in getting Haynesworth at the right price, which is about half of what Haynesworth is hoping to get. “Everybody I’ve asked this weekend says, ‘We’re out of that,’ or ‘I don’t think you’ll see us involved in Haynesworth.’ ”

Sad, really, because he’s a great football player, an impactful player who can change a game from the interior defensive line spot. The downer stuff about Haynesworth:

• He’s never played a full season. He’s started three, 11, 10, 14, 10, 12 and 14 in his seven seasons.

• He’s never played more than 65 percent of the Titans’ defensive snaps in a season. You might say a Nnamdi Asomugha is tremendously overpaid at $15-million a year (much more on him later in the column), but Asomugha or a quarterback is going to play 95 percent of his unit’s plays in the course of a year, barring injury. Even if healthy, Haynesworth’s going to come off the field a third of the time, minimum. So do you want to pay quarterback money to a player who never touches the ball and plays two-thirds of the snaps a franchise quarterback plays? It makes no sense.

• He’s got a reputation for coasting on some plays.

• He’ll be 28 on opening day. You want to pay a 335-pound guy who’s never started more than 14 games and is entering his eighth year $13 million or $15 million a year? Good luck.

In the end, my guess is Snyder will pay up and grab him. He’s the kind of trophy player Snyder would love to have, and the kind of player, if healthy, who will really help the Redskins close the gap on the Giants in the NFC East.

The thing that spooks Joe about Haynesworth is that he is nearly 30 and there is significant evidence that once defensive tackles reach 30, because they’ve been beat on so much, their production drops like a rock. So in essence, the Bucs would be throwing cash at a guy for two or three seasons.

Is that worth the gamble? Joe isn’t so sure.

Watching Chucky on NFL Network, it’s clear that he has a future in broadcasting. He’s not a star, but he’s got potential when he’s not glowing about seemingly every single player.

JoeBucsFan.com analyst Bob Fox takes a look at Chucky’s immediate future in the studio, which could land him the seat he always craved –alongside Brett Favre.

Check out Fox’s analysis now in the JoeBucsFan.com Features section.

Peter Schrager of FoxSports.com suggests the Bucs will select a quarterback in the first round and it will be Mark Sanchez.

Well, at least this makes a helluva lot more sense than Josh Freeman or Alex Mack.

Like Mel Kiper of BSPN, Peter Schrager of FoxSports.com opines the Bucs will draft a quarterback in the first round. Unlike Kiper, Schrager believes it will be USC quarterback Mark Sanchez.

I know, I know. Sanchez is going as high as No. 3 to Kansas City on some other mock drafts. And yes, it seems absurd that he’d slip all the way to 19. But I’m not crazy about him as an NFL quarterback, and I’m not so certain NFL draft experts are either. Tampa Bay’s QB spot is a mystery, and they did draft Josh Johnson a year ago. At 19, this is a risk worth taking. As for the other mock drafts, remember — most had Aaron Rodgers going second overall in 2005 and Brady Quinn going as high as first.

Joe doesn’t know what to make of Sanchez. At first glance, USC has a veritable quarterback factory in the City of Angels. But Sanchez only shined for one season. Can you say “Akili Smith?” Had Sanchez staying in school and shredded Pac-10 defenses another year, Joe would be fully on the Mark Sanchez bandwagon.

Joe isn’t sure he’d pull the trigger on Sanches with the No. 19 pick.

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Though this is a bit dated, Joe stumbled upon a John Lynch interview for XX Sports Radio out of San Diego. Lynch talks about all sorts of things including his transformation from Pro Bowl safety to TV talking head, about how the last three coaches he played for are now all unemployed, how he’s too old to be an NFL head coach and some inside stories of his battles with Mike Tomlin with the Bucs and what he thinks of Raheem The Dream.

The San Diego sports radio hosts refer to Lynch as “The mayor of Tampa.”

NFL Network has a video highlight package of Bucs linebacker Derrick Brooks titled “2008: Best Derrick Brooks.” As one can expect from NFL Films and the NFL Network, it’s good stuff.

Though it’s not 100 percent that Brooks will be back next season, Joe just cannot see Brooks not being with the Bucs. Sure he’s getting up there in years but he’s still a solid linebacker. The public relations hit the Bucs would take just wouldn’t be worth it (remember the John Lynch fiasco?).

Brooks should, and Joe believes will, line up as usual for the Bucs in his No. 55 this September.

NFL Network stud reporter Adam Schefter caught up with Raheem The Dream on the sidewalk in Indianapolis yesterday at the NFL Combine.

As usual, The Dream doesn’t say a whole lot but he did have an interesting story of being with Mike Tomlin on the field of the CITS when the Steelers clinched the Super Bowl earlier this month. Hopefully something about that moment will wear off on The Dream.

Veterans like Joey Galloway will have to drastically alter their physical preparation under The Dream regime

So it seems Raheem the Dream’s “Staying the Course” philosophy will not include Jon Gruden’s preservation approach to practice.

Chucky was known leaguewide for giving select veterans Wednesdays off and more between games and for practicing without pads often.

In the Dream’s regime, time off and glorified walkthroughs make a team soft and hurt chemistry, he tells the St. Pete Times.

Morris also indicated he won’t tolerate some players taking scheduled days off during the week while the rest of the team receives no such benefit.

“Everything has got to change as far as that,” Morris said. “It’s my job to relate to those guys what I expect out of them, what I need them to give me and then hold them accountable doing it. Once I get a chance to do that, it will be fine.

“You’re looking for 53 guys who are going to buy in and then go to war with those guys. If it’s only 40 at the time, then you play with those 40 until you can develop the other guys and you tolerate the rest until you can replace them.”

Interesting that Dream says he will tolerate those who don’t buy in and then replace them. That comment, in Joe’s eyes, shows a lot of maturity on his part.

Joe wonders whether Dream will have a big doghouse, or just work with said players, communicate with them effectively and get the most out of them until he sends them packing.

Life will change greatly for the Bucs veterans. Guys like Joe Galloway and Warrick Dunn had gotten very comfortable with Chucky’s tender loving care when it came to their bodies.

Albert Hayneworth is almost 28, has never played a full season and is officially on the Bucs radar as a defensive savior

“Vacation Man,” in his NFC South blog for ESPN.com, notes that Raheem the Dream’s comments about free agent defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth on Friday might earn him a spanking from the Bucs’ general manager.

Here’s why you’ve got to love 32-year-old, first-time head coaches. They talk.

Enjoy it while you can because Tampa Bay’s Raheem Morris probably already has received a lecture from Mark Dominik on the importance of not saying much about personnel.

So what did Dream say about Haynesworth? Not much. But something for Joe and other Bucs fans to chew on during these long February weekends.

I’m not even sure if it’s legal for me to talk about him yet because we haven’t started (free agency),” Morris said. “But he definitely has talent. He’s definitely on the radar and we’ll see when that time comes.

If you happen to be drinking the Derek Anderson-traded to the Bucs rumors that are starting to pick up steam — Ozzie the Sports Junkie proudly boasts he started the rumors — then, in the words of Ian Beckles, “Hold up!”

Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com explains why that likely will not happen.

Please take some time this evening before you turn in for the night to hear Joe on the radio.

Joe will be making a special in-studio appearance this evening with Ozzie the Sports Junkie on WTMY-AM 1280 in Sarasota.

Ozzie can be heard weeknights from 11 p.m.-1 a.m.

The show can also be heard from the station’s website. No special software is needed. Just go to the site and listen, it’s that simple.

Sounds like lovely Mrs. Garcia could grace the Bucs sidelines once again.

UPDATE: Friday, 2/20, 1:30 p.m.: Joe has learned from a trusted source that Jeff Garcia has not, in fact, closed the door on a return to Tampa Bay.

As Joe reminded you the other day, he is a man. Therefore he watches NFL Network regularly.

Joe also listens to NFL Radio on Sirius.

Raheem The Dream was on NFL Radio today talking glowingly about Jeff Garcia and his winning ways and leadership and how the Bucs wanted to let him test the free agency market.

Then The Dream happily said, “Who knows, at the end of the day he may be a Buccaneer.”

(Joe couldn’t believe after that bombshell there was no follow up question by host Adam Schein.)

Sounds to Joe like the Bucs and Garcia were initially far apart on money, so they told him to test the market and come back soon to talk.

Now 39, Garcia will struggle to find a No. 1 job in the NFL. The Bucs might just be ready to offer him market value – lower than Garcia hoped – and a chance to compete for the starting job.

As we know, among The Dream’s first words were that he planned to “Stay the Course.”