The creamsicle uniforms may not be one and done after Sunday’s game against the Packers.

Per Jeff Faine, he and his teammates have been ordered to leave their uniforms in the locker room after the game so they can be laundered and re-used.

“Since it is a one time thing we were going to bring them home, but they said we can’t in case we use them again,” Faine reported Friday evening during his weekly radio show on 1010 AM.

Earlier this week Earnest Graham said players were talking about sticking with the throwbacks if the Bucs win Sunday.

Joe’s all in favor. No need to make a change if they can chalk up a W.

A Josh Freeman fan called Adam Schein and Jim Miller, co-hosting “The Blitz” earlier today on Sirius NFL Radio, and was geeked about Josh Freeman starting. The caller, however, sort of took the duo to task for picking the Packers to beat the Bucs (can you imagine?).

Miller, a former NFL quarterback himself, suggested that while he doesn’t expect anything from Freeman right now, he does expect good things from Freeman down the road.

“I was hoping Josh Freeman would light a spark for the Bucs and then you guys pick them to get trashed by the Packers,” the fan said. “Maybe the Bucs can show something?”

Miller then explained his take on the Packers game and Freeman.

“I love [Freeman’s] upside,” Miller said. “I said that before the draft. He’s a big physical kid but his mechanics and footwork needs work on. He’s not as polished at Flacco or Ryan. He is just not.”

The Bucs “gameplan will have to be simple and he will be up against a very complex defense. He will have to have mirrored routes, which are basically the same routes on both sides of the field; out-routes and checkdowns.

“It will have to be a simple gameplan. He has great talent but you won’t see it this year. He will struggle and will really struggle against this 34 defense the Packers run.”

Joe’s got official confirmation of a kind gesture and smart business move enacted by the Glazers and their business team at One Buc Palace.

With great seats available all season long, the Bucs have been offering many of their most loyal customers free upgrades to unsold club level seats (those seats don’t count toward TV blackouts).

Joe first learned of this via comments made by multiple callers to various sports radio stations over the past week.

Today, Jeff Kamis, Bucs director of all things media, confirmed the team’s generosity to some lucky, dedicated fans.

“This is a program that we have been running this season in appreciation to our long term season ticket holders,” Kamis wrote in an e-mail.

Of course, the Bucs can’t put this offer out to every season ticket holder in the upper level. But the sheer joy in the voices of those who scored the upgrade is no doubt easing the pain of the winless season.

Given all the no-shows for recent games, it’s also likely a smart way to put more fannies in the seats on game day. The season ticket holder who gets the free upgrade is more likely to attend the game — and spend money at the stadium.

A Bucs fan had the nerve to try to cross swords with former Bucs great Derrick Brooks as he co-hosted “The Red Zone,” with Ross Tucker this afternoon on Sirius NFL Radio.

The Bucs fan was extremely upset with both the Glazer Family and Raheem the Dream. In short, he wanted the Glazer Family to speak to fans over what they plan to do in order to change the Brutal Bucs losing ways.

The fan also thought Brooks was dead wrong about Raheem the Dream.

“I look across the NFL and I see all sorts of first-year coaches doing well,” the fan told Brooks. “Look at what Mike Smith did last year. He had a rookie quarterback. Look at what John Harbaugh did last year with a rookie quarterback. Denver has a first-year coach with Josh McDaniel and a retread quarterback and they’re winning. Then I see what we have and Morris doesn’t even have a win.”

Brooks made no secret of his support for Raheem the Dream and is of the opinion Raheem the Dream will do fine if given the time. He also stood up for Bryan and Joel.

“I believe in coach Morris,” Brooks said. “I like him. Remember, he interviewed for the Denver job. I think coach Morris will be a great coach. He’s just in a tough situation. His experience losing, it will either make him a better coach or a not-so-good coach.

“Now what is going to change on the field if our owners speak up? They didn’t do that when we won the Super Bowl! They’re not that way. They’re not going to do that.”

Vacation Man of BSPN talks about the debut of Josh Freeman Sunday against the Packers.

Former Bucs DE Steve White

Former Bucs defensive end Steve White, who nails it every week in his popular Bull Rush column on JoeBucsFan.com, also has plenty to rant about on his own sports blog.

This week he came after Raheem The Dream again demanding he stop comparing his team and players to previous Bucs eras. Earlier this year, White took Raheem The Dream to task for a Dungy comparison.

Now it’s a Warren Sapp-Aqib Talib analogy, based on quotes in the St. Pete Times, that has White fired up.

Morris said Talib still has a lot of growing up to do.

“You’ve got to weigh character with a man’s God-given ability to play this game,” Morris said. “Has he made mistakes? Yes, He has. Has he made some as a Buccaneer? Yes, he has.

“He has to get better and we’ve got to contunue to get better…We had a bunch of players like him in the past. To mention one, Warren Sapp. He grew up and became a man.”

White’s reaction:

Look every coach has to have his own way of disciplining players, but I for one definitely feel like Morris has let this Talib situation get away from him. With a guy who came into the league with so much baggage prior to even playing a down and then for him to be in trouble several times since he was drafted this is the kind of thing that should call for immediate punishment in my honest opinion. But hey, just because the guy beat up a cabbie and then turned around and missed a curfew who am I to tell Morris how to run his team?

But what you DON’T need to do is keep trying to compare your situation to former Bucs players and coaches to try to justify where you are at. I played with Sapp for 6 years and yeah he was far from perfect. But he for damn sure wasn’t getting arrested for beating up cabbies. He for damn sure wasn’t hitting his teammates in the head with helmets. He for DAMN SURE wasn’t missing curfew either.

It was bad enough when Morris took a shot at Coach Dungy who I believe took the Bucs to the NFC championship and won a Superbowl with Indy the last time I checked. But this is really getting out of hand now.

Do everyone a favor Coach Morris, just focus on the people who are there now. …

Joe wonders what Sapp would say about Raheem The Dream mentioning him in the same breath with Talib?

Joe prefers San Diego Seduction receiver Julie Galindo to Michael Clayton.

Joe is a football fan.

And he’s especially a fan of the gritty old school players who catch the ball and take hits. Not those who drop them and find excuses.

That brings Joe to Julie Galindo, a surehanded receiver who snatches balls consistently, whether she has to go get them on her knees or leap for them.

Galindo also is known for her blocking after just two games for the new San Diego Seduction of the Lingerie Football League.

Yes, Joe is following the league, which desperately needs embed codes for its game highlights. (But you can still see some on the league Web site).

The Tampa Breeze has yet to post its roster; Their inaugural game is in December at the St. Pete Times Forum.

Joe hopes the team is smart enough to advertise here and give Joe full media access.

That would surely boost attendance.

Caybrew is the official beer of JoeBucsFan.com, and the only beer you should drink. But Dead Guy Ale? The Professor can't resist toasting Josh Freeman with a few of those on Sunday.

Joe’s got famous friends. Sadly, Carmella Garcia is not one of them, but perhaps she’ll come around.

Today, Joe introduces you to another one of his pals. He’s Cork Gaines, a hardcore Bucs fan and the premier Tampa Bay Rays blogger/analyst/wiseass fan on the planet. “The Professor” (sorry, John Clayton) is the creator, curator and Mr. Everything at RaysIndex.com. It’s a site Joe visits regularly. And an absolute must for Rays fans.

Joe is honored to have The Professor joining him for a regular feature at JoeBucsFan.com.

Everybody relax, I’m here. This is The Professor in the Pork Chop Express, and I’m talkin’ to whoever’s listenin’ out there…

FIRST QUARTER (warming up)
Since last November, the Tampa Bay Rays lost the World Series and then pissed away a 2009 season, finishing 19 games behind the Yankees. In that same time period, the Bucs have lost 11 games in a row…Which team has had the rougher 12 months?

They have both been disappointing, but if I can play the “Stupid Metaphor” game, the Rays were the ugly friend that always hangs out with hot chicks, but can never seal the deal. Meanwhile, the Bucs are more like your friend Narcoleptic Nick. No matter how well or bad things are going, Nick will always puke and pass out about before the evening is over ruining everybody’s night. Meanwhile we hear there is still a hockey team in the area…TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING

SECOND QUARTER (over/unders)
College teams that would be favored in a head-to-head match-up against the Bucs: 2.5

OK, OK. That is a low blow. They are still an NFL team and favored against any college team. But we do wonder what the spread would be if the Bucs played the Gators at a neutral site. 20.5? That’s not a lot…UNDER

Number of people that predicted Josh Freeman would start his first game in week 9 and then jumped up and down like a Whack-A-Mole yelling “I AM NOSTRADAMUS!”: 5,874

My 7-week old daughter predicted that crap the day of the draft, and she was a fetus…OVER

Losses for the Bucs this season: 16.5

After the season, I predict the Bucs will finally accept a 15-year old challenge from Beloit College to play for the right to use Bucco Bruce on their helmets (see 5th bullet in this link). Beloit will win and thus restore the Bucs as the worst team ever…OVER

Wins for Raheem Morris in his career as coach of the Bucs: 8.5

The Bucs saw the success of young coaches with other teams and thought it was the right move. It wasn’t. Hey, we love it too when 7th round draft picks succeed in the NFL. But they were drafted in the 7th round for a reason. Heart is great, but you still need talent to win. Bill Cowher will be coaching this team in 2011…UNDER

THIRD QUARTER (a look back)
Tony Dungy took the Bucs out of the darkness. Jon Gruden won a Super Bowl…Which head coach had the better tenure?

In 7 seasons, Chucky went 57-55 and made 3 playoff appearances. In 6 seasons, Dungy went 54-42 and made 4 playoff appearances. Advantage Dungy. Chucky won a Super Bowl. Dungy built the team that won the Super Bowl. Advantage Gruden. Gruden went 3-1 against the Eagles. Dungy went 1-3. Advantage Chucky. Chucky was arrogant on offense. Dungy liked field goals. Advantage The Other Team. In the end, both coaches gave us something that can never be taken back. A Super Bowl…PUSH

FOURTH QUARTER (no huddle)
Who has been the Bucs MVP over the first 7 games?

The Bucs are 0-7. Take away any one player, and they still have zero wins. On other hand, there are reasons to keep paying attention to the Bucs other than the unintentional comedy factor…Bucco Bruce and Josh Freeman will keep fannys in the seats

The Florida Tuskers play a 6-game schedule. Can they win more games than the Bucs?

The Tuskers are already 4-0…Next question

How many TDs will Josh Freeman throw this Sunday in his first start?

Touchdowns? I’ll cheer if he can throw a spiral…Two (one for the Packers)

The Bucs are breaking out the orange throwback unis this weekend…You cool with that?

I love the Orange. Not the neon orange of the early 90s but the true orange of the 70s and 80s. And I love that it will be against the Packers. And while I usually favor historical accuracy, would it have killed the Bucs to alter Bucco Bruce so he is NOT winking?…Why is he winking?!?

We have heard you pick a beverage for each game based on the matchup…What is the drink of choice for week 9 against the Packers?

Well, we are still waiting for our cases of Caybrew to come in the mail. In the meantime, we are going with Dead Guy Ale in honor of Josh Freeman’s first professional start…Dead Guy Ale

Amanda Harris

Highlights of every game and the best analysis around.

Remember, Joe does double duty serving fans of the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Check out JoeBoltsFan.com today. The finest Bolts analyst on the planet, Amanda Harris, breaks down last night’s game.

Pat Kirwan and Jason Horowitz of CBSSports.com break down the Packers-Bucs game. As regular readers know, Joe is addicted to Sirius NFL Radio, on which Kirwan has a weekday show. In this spirited discussion, Kirwan shows why Sirius NFL Radio is such a jewel. Kirwan drops a mini-bombshell about rookie quarterback Josh Freeman and explains clearly why the Bucs defense sucks.

"Olie, text Coach Gru and see what he likes for Freeman against the Packers. Sh*t, Chucky probably just watched as much Packers film last week as we did."

The man Mark Dominik and Raheem The Dream hand picked to craft the franchise’s new offense for years to come, and call plays for their eight-figure rookie franchise quarterback, is miles from One Buc Palace and collecting a fat Glazer paycheck.

That would be Jeff Jagodzinski.

His name came up during a live chat Thursday hosted by the Mad Twitterer, aka St. Pete Times Bucs beat writer Rick Stroud.

Stroud detailed his knowledge of what went wrong.

Comment From TroyTroy: What do you think is the real reason for the new offensive coach?

Stroud:    I talked to a lot of people about this one. Even before Jeff Jagodzinski was hired, I had guys that played for him at Boston College tell me Jags never really called a play. He had other people do that. When they went through some trials in training camp using the walkie talkies, he scrambled things up. When they went to RJS for a trial run, it was worse. In the preseason, same thing. What were they supposed to do? It’s a horrible mistake that during the interview process, they didn’t do a better job of knowing what Jags’ weakness might be. And they weren’t happy with the lack of volume to his protections and playbook.

It remains unfathomable how Jagodzinski even got the job. For Joe, it’s clear that Jagodzinski either lied through his teeth about his ability and experience in calling plays, or Dominik and Raheem The Dream had no clue how to interview him.

Joe suspects the latter.

Then to switch to Greg Olson and bring back Chucky’s playbook (Stroud explains this, as well) to a franchise allegedly establishing a new identity as a pound-the-ball/play-action-pass club is incomprehensible.

Two big questions loom: Can Olson build an offense that maximizes Josh Freeman’s abillity? And is Olson on the phone to Chucky for help?

Arron Sears playing hide-and-seek with the Bucs did nothing to help the offensive line.

Joe’s a bit late in getting to this, but it’s still relevent.

Backwards Hat, aka cool cat Rick Brown of the Lakeland Ledger, typed a column in which he details three key reasons the Bucs are toying with a winless season.

Angelo Crowell’s injury:  The linebacker is just two years removed from leading the Buffalo Bills in tackles. When healthy, he is that playmaker the team needed at strongside linebacker. But he struggled through training camp with injuries then was placed on injured reserve with a torn bicepsinjury forcing the team to play two first-time starters at linebacker. The inexperience has shown.

Absence of Arron Sears and injury to Jeff Faine: Let’s not downplay these. The offensive line was considered one of the Buccaneers’ strengths entering the season. The team wanted to use this strength to power its running attack. But with Sears not reporting (unknown reason) and Faine getting injured in the first game, the running game stalled. Faine has returned from his triceps injury so we’ll see if the running game will as well.

Suspension of Tanard Jackson:  This really hurt the team for the first four games. Jackson has always been a steady presence in the secondary. A converted corner, he had the speed and skills to cover as well as the ability to make the sure tackle. Add the team learning a new defensive scheme and it was chaotic in the secondary the first four weeks of the season. Now, Jackson has an interceptions in the last two games and is providing the stability the unit sorely missed.

Three solid points by Brown, though Joe is not sure he would list Crowell as part of the reason the Bucs crumbled. He was damaged goods to begin with. To expect him to play at a high level with 100 percent health was wishful thinking.

Joe really wishes Brown would cut some more Bucs videos. It’s been a while Rick!

Earlier this week Joe was wondering why the Bucs media relations staff kept Aqib Talib away from those pesky guys and gals with the Tampa Bay chapter of the pen and mic club.

Days after the dean of Tampa Bay sports radio, “The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig of WDAE-AM 620, broke the news that Talib and Raheem the Dream got into a cursing contest with each other in the lobby of a London hotel at 2 a.m., Talib was nowhere to be found at One Buc Palace.

At the same time, Raheem the Dream was doing his best not to admit in his denial that the incident actually happened.

Well, Talib finally faced reporters Thursday and Tom Balog of the Sarasota Herald-Tribune wasn’t exactly buying what Talib was selling.

Talib did not take the opportunity to deny that he cursed at Morris, apologize, or set the record straight about the circumstances that led to their meeting of the minds.

His comment sounded like something he was advised to say from someone in the team’s media relations department, two days after Morris denied that Talib showed him any disrespect after he broke his coach’s curfew by two hours.

“Raheem already told you guys what happened so I’m not really going to get into that,” Talib said. “I’m sticking to football questions. ’Rah’ kind of already explained to you guys what happened, so I’ll leave it at that. . . . I’m not going to get into it all.”

Let Joe just say that he thinks if Talib was wronged by inaccurate reports about cursing out his head coach and blowing curfew, he’d be chomping at the bit to tell his side of the story so long as there were no legal ramifications involved.

Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy appeared on “The Blitz” on Sirius NFL Radio today with co-hosts Adam Schein and Rich Gannon.

McCarthy talked about the Packers upcoming opponent, the Bucs, and how the Packers are hoping to defend rookie Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman, who will make his first NFL start.

“The Bucs really have a different scheme defensively, it’s not one you play against every single day,” McCarthy said. “We have some familiarity with it since we had it the previous three years. The ability for us to be able to run on first down and get pass protection are needed to beat the bump-and-run coverage.”

On Freeman, it sounds like the Packers are poring over Freeman’s college tapes, just like Gil Brandt suggested they would.

“We definitely went back and looked at tapes and we cut down each pass he threw in the preseason,” McCarthy said. “We don’t have a whole lot to go on. We have to think of how [the Bucs] will use him. We’re focusing on the concept of their offense.

“[The Bucs] have good running backs and they run the ball well and we think that’s how they will play it.”

If it’s Thursday, that means it’s a Jenny Dell day for Joe. The gorgeous BSPN talking head talks Bucs football. Joe’s gotta be honest though: Does it really matter what Jenny has to say?

It’s time for Joe to start looking ahead to the Bucs next opponent, the Packers. While researching, Joe came across this tremendous video from — of all sources — the Green Bay Gazette! Tom Pelissero and Pete Dougherty provide both entertainment and a solid breakdown on the ills of the Packers.

Seems as though some in the land of cheese are upset that Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers is trying to fit a square peg in a round hole with his 34 zone blitz defense where the Packers have historically been a 43 defense.

Hhhmmm? Where has Joe heard that before?

As for the video, now Joe is all too aware of the current state of the fourth estate. There really is no such thing as writers or producers any longer. To survive in this 21st-Century jungle, media types must be skilled at multitasking. Those that can’t, or refuse, have or will become roadkill.

This video may be the best Joe has ever seen from a gaggle of writers. Memo to the ink-stained wretches: This is how you do video, not some lazyassed, Max Headroom-type schlock that not even Joe would use. You guys are writers, be creative! You know, there’s a reason why NPR needs tax dollars to stay afloat.

John Cotey gets it! If he and Joey Knight can pull off solid video for prep sports, there’s no reason (other than sheer neglect and/or laziness) the same cannot be accomplished for the Tampa Bay area’s most important sports beat.

Somewhere, Jeff Faine is smiling. And right now the Bucs center might be a very popular guy amid the Bucs locker room.

A haberdasher by trade off the field, Faine must be giving out a lot of advice thanks to Raheem the Dream’s new edict.

Raheem the Dream is putting his foot down. No, it appears players can talk “football talk” to him in hotel lobbies. But woe is the Bucs player who dresses gangsta on the road.

Per Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune on TBO’s Bucs Twitter page, Raheem the Dream now requires all players to dress sharp on the road.

Raheem’s new team policy is players must wear suits to games. No more t-shirts and baggy jeans.

Joe has a bit of advice for Bucs players: Let Aqib Talib have the copies of GQ first unless you are wearing protective gear.

Joe can’t blame Bucs players for wanting to cling to anything that gets them their first win.

Even if that means wearing the throwback orange and white uniforms for another game, or more. 

Earnest Graham, during a Tuesday interview on 1010 AM, said he and some teammates believe Bucco Bruce should make more than a cameo, assuming the Bucs knock off the Packers on Sunday.

“We’ve actually been talking about if we won would we be able to keep playing in those [creamsicle] uniforms? I definitely would hope so,” Graham said. “I definitely would hope that if we won, we just of course could keep the uniforms on as a bit of luck. So we’re definitely looking for it, to winning the game. And if we win, keep the uniforms on. Definitely.”

Joe’s on board. Whatever works.

Besides, maybe that would cheer up Jim Bates.

While a number of Bucs fans are even more depressed than Jim Bates these days, Jason La Canfora of the NFL Network offers Bucs fans a slim ray of hope.

And Joe emphasizes the word “slim.”

La Canfora is of the mind that the Bucs will actually win a game this season. Which game, La Canfora wasn’t clear in a recent chat on NFL.com.

Oddly enough in the chat, the very first question was about the Bucs.

Josh, Wellington FL
Do you think that the Bucs will win a game this season?

Jason La Canfora, NFL Network
It’s going to be a challenge, but I do think they’ll manage to win a game, given the odds, how turnovers have a way of equalizing things out. I believe they will win, but asking for more than one win at this point may be a bit much for where this team is right now.

Right now about the only game Joe sees the Bucs having a chance of winning is at Seattle. Given the Bucs fortunes of regular season games on the west coast, that’s not very encouraging.

A lot of money spent, a lot of moves made, a few draft picks spent on building a run-first, throw-deep offense with Raheem the Dream so coveted.

Then in the first month of the season, (newer) offensive coordinator Greg Olson threw it out the window and reverted to Chucky’s playbook.

The biggest acquisition the Bucs made in the offseason was signing running back Derrick Ward. But he’s been nearly as invisible as Rachel Watson since Olson decided to revamp the offense midstream.

But Don Parr of ProFootballWeekly.com believes with rookie quarterback Josh Freeman making his first start, the running game will be more of a priority and Ward will return to the mix.

The Buccaneers made the signing of RB Derrick Ward one of their top priorities in the offseason, and after scoring a four-year, $17 million contract, he was expected to handle the majority of the workload in the backfield for a team that figured to rely heavily on the running game. Through seven games, though, Ward has just 45 carries while Cadillac Williams has 76, and the Bucs are running the risk of wearing out Williams, who is not a durable player. What makes this situation more perplexing is that the Bucs’ coaching staff has been fairly consistent in saying it would like to get Ward more touches, yet he continues to get a relatively modest number of carries. The sixth-year veteran has yet to have more than 13 in a game. Observers say the team could make better use of its running game, and it finally might do so when rookie QB Josh Freeman takes over as the starter in Week Nine.

The only chace the Bucs have of beating the Packers is to pound the ball early and often on the ground.  There’s no question Ward should be a key element of this.

If eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribuneis correct, family members and friends of Raheem the Dream and Mark Dominik will be buying loads of season tickets for the 2010 season.

Kaufman, writing in a question-and-answer format, all but says that the job security of Raheem the Dream and possibly Dominik may depend on how many season tickets are sold for next season.

Q: It seems to me that the entire Bucs organization from the general manager and head coach to the assistants are in over their heads. The firing of the offensive coordinator one week before the season began is a symptom (in my opinion) of an organization in disarray or one that just doesn’t know what to do. The decision to make Byron Leftwich the starter is another poor decision and a colossal waste of time. I’ve been a Bucs supporter since the beginning, and the caliber of play this season harkens back to those years of 1 and 2 wins per season. Isn’t it clear to the ownership that they have made a fundamental mistake in the hiring of both the head coach and general manager? My season tickets won’t be automatically renewed next year. I’m waiting to see some infusion of qualified personnel.
John Chapin, Tallahassee

A: Your frustration is both obvious and understandable. This administration has made a string of poor judgments since the start of training camp and the results are there on the scoreboard for all to see. Buc fans sitting on the fence about renewing tickets for 2010 want to see progress as this season unfolds. And that’s exactly what the Glazers will demand as they decide whether to stick with Dominik and Morris to chart the future. If the Bucs are showing improvement in December, that will count heavily for ownership. If the arrow is flat, heads will roll.
— Ira Kaufman

Joe has heard that theory before and Joe believes it has merit. Think about it: If the Brutal Bucs finish the season at 0-16 and no moves are made on the coaching staff — just finishing winless should dictate massive changes on the coaching staff even if Raheem the Dream somehow survives — just how are the Bucs supposed to market the team if it hits rock bottom and no changes are made?

“Hey, come out and watch the worst team in football! We have the first pick in the draft who might be a player in three years, so buy your tickets now and avoid the rush!”

That won’t fly.