Derrick Brooks isn’t coasting

Now just 13 days before Bucs icon Derrick Brooks’ induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, get used to hearing plenty from No. 55.

Joe particularly liked this very casual chat with Brooks talking about the history and evolution of his Tampa charter high school, current Bucs, and much more. [read more]

Endless Top-Whatever lists across the Internet got Joe thinking of the Tampa Bay drought since their Super Bowl glory. Not a playoff victory since! And that motivated Joe to rank the 20 worst Buccaneers of the past 10 years.

Serious deliberations went into this at JoeBucsFan.com world headquarters.

Beers bottles were thrown. Game film came out. Arguments ensued. Chants of Sabby from wild interns were quieted by Joe. [read more]

A lot of questions on offense must be answered to expect Lovie Smith to be a playoff head coach this season.

It is almost hard to believe the Bucs haven’t won a playoff game since Chucky hoisted the Vince Lombardi Trophy aloft in victory in San Diego. If the Bucs don’t make the playoffs, much less not win a playoff game this year, then that will make it 12 years. Incredible.

In the current age of NFL parity, not winning a playoff game in 12 years is extraordinary. And Joe isn’t ready to buy playoff tickets this year, not as we currently stand in July. [read more]

Don’t expect Bucs DT Gerald McCoy to be in a steady rotation on gamedays.

Part of the lexicon of the Bucs defense in recent years has been a rotation of sorts on the defensive line. The main reason for this, Joe learned, was in the brutal Florida heat in the first half seasons, rotating guys on the line is necessary to maintain fresh legs.

Now Bucs coach Lovie Smith is bound and determined to find ways to get quarterbacks on the ground. Opposing quarterbacks, that is. [read more]

Compared to that of new starting Bucs left tackle Anthony Collins, former Bucs left tackle Donald Penn seems has a very different take on what it takes to jell as an offensive line.

The answer to the question in the headline is a giant X-factor of the Buccaneers’ 2014 season.

Offensive lines simply don’t jell and hum instantly with new parts and schemes and coaches, except in rare occasions. [read more]

Endless Top-Whatever lists across the Internet got Joe thinking of the Tampa Bay drought since their Super Bowl glory. Not a playoff victory since! And that motivated Joe to rank the 20 worst Buccaneers of the past 10 years.

Serious deliberations went into this at JoeBucsFan.com world headquarters.

Beers bottles were thrown. Game film came out. Arguments ensued. Chants of Sabby from wild interns were quieted by Joe. [read more]

Lovie Smith not only brings stability but much optimism.

Good morning, Bucs fans. We are now six days from the start of training camp. Joe will be out there at One Buc Palace sweating and Twittering for your dining and dancing pleasure. It will give Bucs fans a reason to goof off from work.

With the opening practice nearly within touching distance, there is reason for Bucs fans to be both bursting with anticipation and wringing their hands with doubt. [read more]

Endless Top-Whatever lists across the Internet got Joe thinking of the Tampa Bay drought since their Super Bowl glory. Not a playoff victory since! And that motivated Joe to rank the 20 worst Buccaneers of the past 10 years.

Serious deliberations went into this at JoeBucsFan.com world headquarters.

Beers bottles were thrown. Game film came out. Arguments ensued. Chants of Sabby from wild interns were quieted by Joe. [read more]

Josh McCown must succeed for the Bucs to have an exciting offense.

Joe knows Tampa Bay fans are starving for something to get them worked up, aside from the start of the football season, which actually begins in seven days when training camp starts. Wins would be a big start.

For decades, no, for the entire history of the franchise, a high-powered offense was only something fans saw from opposing teams. It seemed for reasons not quite clear, the Bucs’ have been allergic to quality quarterbacks and scoreboard-charged offenses. [read more]

In case you missed it, Joe was peppered yesterday with all kinds of Bucs questions during an appearance on the Ron and Ian show on WDAE-AM 620.

The topic of projecting the 2014 season came up, and Joe dove into the miracles fans and coaches are seeking from starting QB Josh McCown, among many other subjects. [read more]

Numbers show the Bucs may not be hurt much by the departure of Darrelle Revis.

Joe is on record saying he was anything but comfortable watching the Bucs wave goodbye to All-World cornerback Darrelle Revis. Though Joe has gotten over it (for now), it is against everything Joe knows about football to let the best corner of his generation just walk away in a pass-crazy league.

Yes, Joe knows why the Bucs did it. Still, if you are confident in your player evaluation skills, you find a way to keep a guy like Revis. It’s not like Revis broke the Bucs salary cap.

Joe has moved past this, and will so long as Revis is not missed. [read more]

Endless Top-Whatever lists across the Internet got Joe thinking of the Tampa Bay drought since their Super Bowl glory. Not a playoff victory since! And that motivated Joe to rank the 20 worst Buccaneers of the past 10 years.

Serious deliberations went into this at JoeBucsFan.com world headquarters.

Beers bottles were thrown. Game film came out. Arguments ensued. Chants of Sabby from wild interns were quieted by Joe. [read more]

Vincent Jackson talked about the reams of “information” he has received from Lovie Smith’s coaching staff.

One week, folks. One week. This afternoon will mark one full week until training camp begins for the Bucs. And while most Tampa Bay fans can’t wait, Joe knows many if not most players can’t wait for training camp to end.

The rigors of training camps past were legion. But the new NFL labor agreement has made them a shell of years past, when training camps were more like Junction Boys than bonding and learning sessions. [read more]

Endless Top-Whatever lists across the Internet got Joe thinking of the Tampa Bay drought since their Super Bowl glory. Not a playoff victory since! And that motivated Joe to rank the 20 worst Buccaneers of the past 10 years.

Serious deliberations went into this at JoeBucsFan.com world headquarters. [read more]

Former Bucs RB coach Earnest Byner believes RB Doug Martin can be a better pass-catcher.

It was a very strange feeling for Joe at One Buc Palace the night of the second day of the draft. For the better part of a year, Joe had been told how good Doug Martin was.

His rookie year, Martin’s numbers backed up that claim. Last year? Not so much. So when Joe heard someone mutter out loud in the media workroom that the Bucs drafted running back Charles Sims in the third round, Joe didn’t know what to think. The deepest position on the team was running back. What? [read more]

“Get it together, McCown. Or I’ll go sign your freakin’ brother.”

Noted film junkie and Saints backup quarterback Luke McCown, the former Buccaneer (2005-2009), says he’s looking forward to trash talking phone calls with his big brother this season. That would be Bucs starter Josh McCown.

Joe’s not interested in the trash, but is interested in how the younger McCown might be able to help Lovie Smith’s Buccaneers. [read more]