As Joe wrote earlier, Bucs second-round pick Da’Quan Bowers, the guy who dropped in the draft because of a suspect knee, had a candid interview with Justin “The Commish” Pawlowski of WDAE-AM 620 yesterday. It was his first extensive local interview.

Of course, The Commish hit Bowers with the question of why he didn’t attend the Bucs’ minicamp this week. Bowers was clear with his answer.

“I didn’t want to miss rehab and training. I thought that this was a crucial point coming that the lockout may end in the next couple of weeks.  I didn’t want to put myself behind for my great rehab program that I have going for myself,” Bowers said. “So I decided to skip the [rookie] symposium and the minicamp they had.”

Bowers went on to say he understood that getting hurt at minicamp would render him or any player without a contract worthless, and he didn’t want to run that risk. Bowers explained he was in regular touch with Gerald McCoy and said his future teammates understand his absence and just want him to show up healthy when the lockout is over.

Joe gets Bowers’ explanation. However, previously in the interview Bowers said his knee is in “playing shape.”

“I’m running, cutting, jumping. Everthing is full-go,” Bowers said.  

If this is the case, then why is he so concerned about missing a couple of days of “rehab?”

Something smells fishy to Joe. Surely Bowers wouldn’t have hurt himself by attending the symposium for a day and merely shaking hands with his soon-to-be teammates.

Joe doesn’t fault any NFL player who is worried about injury before signing a contract. For most players, signing that rookie contract is the equivalent of winning the lottery, and Joe understands any guy who wants to protect his health.

But to say you’re 100 percent and concerned about missing rehab time in the same breath just doesn’t fit. Joe’s raising a cold beer hoping Bowers is healthy and just extremely cautious.

Finally!

Da’Quan Bowers has opened up for his first local interview since being drafted by the Bucs in April. The manbeast defensive end with the bad knee opened up for about 20 minutes yesterday to The Commish, Justin Pawlowski on WDAE-AM 620 radio. Props to the The Commish, who has a small write-up on his website, CommishOnline.com.

The full interview will air again during The Commish’s show today about 2 p.m. on WDAE. Pawlowski drives The Sports Animal Saturday bus on the air from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Those chained to a computer can listen online at 620wdae.com.

Joe will carve up key points of the interview this morning and through the weekend.

It’s more than fair to say that Joe has his finger on the pulse of the Bucs fan base. Joe interacts with fans daily and spends far too much of his life pounding out Bucs news and commentary on these pages.

So Joe was taken back a bit by the harsh words from NFC South blogger Pat Yasinskas in regards to the ongoing Aqib Talib saga. (Joe wrote about the latest on Talib earlier.)

Yasinskas is clear that he thinks the Bucs organization has absorbed a beating from its fans because of displays of bad character off the field.

Talib is one of their most talented players when he’s focused on football. But the Bucs have had a series of off-field problems over the past year or so and that’s led to them taking a beating from their fans about character. They could make a big statement in that area by releasing or trading Talib. But, if the legal system and the NFL aren’t going to sideline Talib, the Bucs might be hesitant to take any action.

Joe has to disagree. The Bucs have taken a beating about character from many in the media — Joe included when it came to King of Turds Jerramy Stevens — but hardly from fans. Now one could make the argument that fans have shown their alleged frustration about the team’s character at the box office, but Joe thinks that would be ridiculously misguided.

But Joe will ask his readers: Have you, the fan, issued the Bucs “a beating” for the character of players and staff in the organization?

Esteemed Bucs beat writer Roy Cummings joins beat comrade Anwar Richardson with a few takes on Bucs minicamp this week. One in particular has Gerald McCoy watching the unity of the O-linemen and wishing his linemates had their chemistry.

In addition to delving into Barrett Ruud’s absence at the Bucs players-only minicamp, Justin “The Commish” Pawlowski, of WDAE-AM 620, gives his hands-on take of camp and offers his priorities for the Bucs in free agency.

Yes, it’s another edition of JoeBucsFan TV, taped at minicamp.

In this exclusive JoeBucsFan TV video, you can hear — and watch — Josh Freeman say that little known linebacker Tyrone McKenzie “is a different kind of dude.”

Freeman responds to a question from Tampa Tribune beat writer Anwar Richardson, who essentially asks Freeman if it’s surprising that McKenzie has taken on such an offseason leadership role given his newness and status on the team.

Joe has wondered the same thing about McKenzie, who was on the practice squad last year, then shined on special teams late in the season and earned a spot on Raheem Morris’ goal line defense. All reports had the guy as a Mr. 1a alongside Freeman organizing offseason workouts and coordinating the big minicamp this week.

Now comes a stunning report from the St. Pete Times yesterday that McKenzie flew to Nebraska to track down Barrett Ruud recently to watch film. Apparently, Ruud said he would be happy to help the young player review film and prepare for 2011. So McKenzie hopped a plane to Omaha to study with Ruud, who he surely hopes to replace.

McKenzie is also a guy Raheem spoke highly of last year on WDAE-AM 620. You can read that here.

Joe’s impressed. The reality is McKenzie might not even make the Bucs roster next year. Hats off the to the kid for his work ethic.

Hey Rays fans in Tampa, take advantage of the the $9.95 roundtrip luxury bus to Tropicana Field!

Wake the heck up! Gas is nearly $4.00 a gallon. Parking is expensive. This is a stunning freaking deal!

It’s the No Excuses Tour to Tropicana Field, which takes Rays fans via luxury bus from Lee Roy Selmon’s restaurants in New Tampa and South Tampa to home Rays games. And you can bring your own food and beer, and travel in style courtesy of Paradise Worldwide Transportation.

It’s only $9.95 per person, and the chauffeured bus is sticking around for the Aug. 6 Goo Goo Dolls concert.

Visit NoExcusesTour.com to get ALL the details and buy tickets. And don’t forget to watch the No Excuses Tour video while you’re there.

Joe’s never believed that lockout organizer Roger Goodell would suspend Aqib Talib for his latest trouble in Texas until the court system played out the case.

Sure, Goodell could step in when the the lockout is over and lob a pre-emptive strike against the Bucs and Talib, but Joe can’t see that happening given the flimsy, he-said-she-said-he-said evidence in the aggravated assault case against Talib.

Joe sees Goodell following the same path as he did following Talib’s cabbie-slugging escapade; Goodell waited for a court resolution (pre-trial intervention/guilty plea) and then reviewed the case and suspended Talib for a game.

Goodell won’t even have access to the all the evidence until the matter is resolved — standard in a criminal case — so why would he feel compelled to make a decision without knowing the facts? It’s not like there’s an injured victim and the public is clamoring for justice.

So for Joe, news yesterday of the State of Texas scheduling a trial date for Talib in March of 2012 means only one thing: Talib will be Buccaneer in 2011. The odds of anything developing in the case before the end of the 2011 football season are extraordinarily slim.

And no, Joe doesn’t believe for a moment the St. Pete Times report of the Bucs already deciding to cut Talib when the lockout ends is accurate. Joe’s been on the record with that from Day 1.

Mark Dominik runs the club based on what he believes is in the best interest of team. Surely, Dominik is smart enough to know that cutting Talib immediately would be foolish, if not irresponsible. Trade Talib? Maybe.

Philosophical Brian Price checks in with JoeBucsFan TV and hardly paints an optimistic picture of his future. Sarah Tyson grabbed Price on the sidelines at the players-only minicamp in Bradenton.

Joe knows that Sabby the Goat moved on to a new farm some time ago but whenever Joe hears about him, Joe just has to share, especially when it’s a funny anecdote.

A Jets fan chimed in to the “Opening Drive” this morning, co-hosted by Ross Tucker and Solomon Wilcots, heard exclusively on SiriusXM NFL Radio, and the fan claimed the Jets are soft at safety. He thought he had the answer to the Jets’ ills at safety: Sabby the Goat.

Wilcots and Tucker had a prolonged pregnant pause, apparently thinking they were being punked by Captain Janks when Wilcots finally responded, “(sigh), I’m going to be honest with you: Sabby Piscatelli is no Jim Leonhard.”

Then Tucker confessed, “Sabby got benched by the Bucs and then he got cut by the Bucs. What’s that tell you?”

And while Joe is on the subject of horrible sports radio calls, Joe yesterday heard a caller to “Movin’ the Chains,” co-hosted by Pat Kirwan and Tim Ryan, claim he wanted his team (Joe didn’t catch it) to switch to a 34-defense from a 43-defense because when this caller would switch defenses on Madden to 34 from 43 he got more points.

The suggestion left Kirwan speechless.

Esteemed Tampa Tribune beat writer Roy Cummings took time out of his suddenly busy schedule to chat all things Bucs with Darek Sharp this morning on WDAE-AM 620.

Cummings shared a some of his chat yesterday with Bucs rookie Luke Stocker, who had attended the rookie symposium run by the disbanded players association in Bradenton. Per Cummings, Stocker said he has heard of the possibility of a rookie minicamp of up to five days before teams convene for a full squad training camp when the lockout ends.

Cummings speculated that all rookies might have gotten this heads up at the official rookie event and it could be a sign of an imminent resolution to the lockout.

After all, Cummings said, if there’s going to be enough time for a rookie minicamp, then that would mean the lockout ends sooner rather than later in July.

Joe doesn’t know what to think. But Joe’s happy to jump on any shreds of hope.

Tanard Jackson, right, walks to practice with Aqib Talib Wednesday at IMG Academies in Bradenton.

Yesterday was an interesting day at Josh Freeman’s minicamp, the second of three such two-a-days.

First, there were far less members of the pen and mic club attending than the previous day. Joe wonders if that is because the Rays played Wednesday afternoon?

Seeing NFL chieftain Roger Goodell being tooled around in an IMG golf cart and then seeing IMG security flip out when reporters tried to approach him was funny.

But the biggest item yesterday was the return of troubled Bucs safety Tanard Jackson. Since he was suspended last year for violating the NFL’s substance abuse police, a second-time offender (that is known), he was put on the shelf for a year. Couldn’t practices with his teammates. Couldn’t go to One Buc Palace.

So if for only a couple of days, Jackson was back with the Bucs, details video star Anwar Richardson of the Tampa Tribune.

Wednesday marked the first time Jackson had seen or spoken with his teammates since his suspension.

“This is a major part of my life and I’m grateful to be back out here with the team and that is the most important thing for me right now, which is to get back out here with these guys,” Jackson said.

Tampa Bay’s minicamp wraps up on Thursday and it could be the last time Jackson practices with his teammates for several months. If the lockout ends before his reinstatement date, Jackson will not be allowed to have any contact with his friends.

Now whether Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik chooses to keep Jackson is another story. He’s potentially eligible to return to the Bucs Sept. 22, provided the season starts on time. Then, he has the rest of the season under contract with the Bucs before he is a free agent.

Joe paid a very seasoned videographer to attend the Bucs’ players-only minicamp yesterday, a guy who knows how to use his fancy HD equipment and knows how to make people feel comfortable and get access.

Here are some sound bytes, if you missed them. But Joe will have more video later today.

The point here is Joe came home last night and watched about 90 minutes of raw footage from Tuesday’s minicamp. Very interesting stuff, from drills to player conversations around the Gatorade coolers.

Joe’s not about to go all TMZ or Hard Knocks on the Bucs, but Joe will share some interesting observations.

First, the body language from rookies Mason Foster and Adrian Clayborn screams of two guys who are a little nervous and a little lost. It’s perfectly understandable, but it underscores the value of rookies joining their clubs in early May and acclimating before training camp.

Jeff Faine said yesterday the impact of the lockout on rookies is an untold story. Joe’s has to think he’s on the money.

Second, Joe hasn’t heard that much foul language in a long time. Joe’s hardly offended. It’s more funny than anything else. Once guys let their guard down and got used to Joe’s videographer following them around, the free speech was flowing. It gave Joe some unique perspective into what Hard Knocks could have turned into.

Lastly, Joe’s camera guy spent a good share of time on Aqib Talib in various scenes around minicamp. It’s obvious that Talib is well liked and a leader. He’s bringing a high level of energy to the practice field. He’s eager to coach, and he seems to be a magnetic personality among his teammates.

Remember, more video to come later.

Joe got a chance to chat with Bucs defensive tackle Brian Price at Josh Freeman’s minicamp this morning. Price is trying to rebound from a fractured pelvis in which he has screws surgically inserted. Price wasn’t able to participate in drills but was able to hit the weights with his teammates.

JoeBucsFan: How are you doing right now with your rehab?

Brian Price: I’m taking it easy right now. Don’t want to come up here and push it too hard. Just lifting weights right now and started jogging a few weeks ago.

Joe: Are you still in the early stages of your comeback?

Price: Yeah, yeah, yeah. I’m not trying to rush it now.

Joe: Let’s say training camp starts on time, what would be the prognosis for being able to go full out on, say, Aug. 1?

Price: I’m just trying to take it day by day, just taking it day by day.

Joe: Tell me about this zumba class you were in.

Price: Well, there were a bunch of ladies there..

Joe: That’s not a bad thing, right?

Price: (laughs) Nah, they were older ladies. I needed the support. It was a good sweat trying to keep up. I was walking into rehab one day and I saw them in there and I thought I would try it and they said it would kick your butt. And I was tired after one song, i’ll tell you that. Eventually, I was able to do the entire hour. It’s a pretty tough class. It’s crazy. you get tired so fast.

Joe: When were you able to first start working out?

Price: Oh, I was working out. It was all upper body after my first surgery.

Joe: When was that?

Price: November and my second surgery was in January but always maintained my upper body in the weight room. My lower body, I started about a month and a half ago. I get stronger every day. It’s getting better.

Joe’s happy to give you some of the raw sound bytes — video style — from Day 2 of the players-only minicamp in Bradenton.

Yes, the JoeBucsFan TV camera crew was sweating it out today. Even more video tomorrow and through the weekend. Check back often. Enjoy!

Sadly, too many Bucs fans remember former Bucs wide receiver Michael Clayton for dropped balls.

In recent weeks, Clayton did anything but that for his old team.

Since not making the Bucs roster last season, Clayton, who calls the Tampa Bay area home, has kept in close contact with his former Bucs teammates, including Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman.

When Freeman decided to muster as many teammates as he could for a minicamp this week, it was Clayton who turned Freeman on to the IMG Academies in Bradenton.

Largely because of Clayton’s influence, the Bucs quarterback chose IMG to host this week’s minicamp.

“This is really my home, where I have been since 2007,” Clayton said as he exited the practice fields this morning after a Bucs workout. “Trevor Moawad has been great to me. I had the relationship with Trevor so I could have Josh bring the team. I always come here in the offseason.”

Moawas is the IMG institute’s director.

“I’ve been coming here year after year since Tampa drafted me,” Clayton said. “This is the best place you can come, especially during a lockout [when players do not have access to team facilities]. They have trainers here, they have coaches, they have it all in-house. It’s a tremendous place for athletes to come and take care of their bodies.”

Clayton, who already went through a minicamp similar to Freeman’s with his Giants teammates, has worked out with the Bucs this week, as he has for various gatherings of Bucs players this summer that Freeman has organized. But when the Bucs went to team-like scrimmages this week, Clayton bows out.

“I get some reps in but when they get in their teams [situations], that’s their time,” Clayton said. “I am here just to help them get better. I am a big bro. I have a lot of respect for them and the feeling is mutual. That is why they embrace me.”

Joe considers Raheem Morris an absolute gem of a speaker. He’s passionate, and compared to his head coach peers, never-boring Raheem lets it all hang out at times and then some.

The guy’s priceless. He makes fans laugh and gets them fired up all at the same time, all while simply being real.

Plus he often gives a lot of good Xs and Os answers for those paying attention. No wonder the guy’s a rockstar around town.

Today, NFC South blogger Pat Yasinskas even awarded Raheem an accolade for best postgame interview in a post on BSPN.com.

Best postgame interview: Raheem Morris. The Bucs’ head coach is animated and doesn’t hold much back. There are some in the organization who wish Morris would throttle it back a bit. But, from a media standpoint, there’s not another NFC South coach who is nearly as good a quote as Morris. There aren’t too many coaches around the rest of the NFL who are in his league.

Whoa!

Joe was taken back reading Yasinskas’ unsourced claim that some important people at One Buc Palace want Raheem to “throttle it back” and fire off more coachspeak. Joe doesn’t want to believe it.

Don’t do it, Raheem!

Keep being your best self. It’s working.

Yes, that's a Longhorn logo on Roy Miller's t-shirt.

Roy Miller lives in Texas. He grew up in Texas. He played for the Longhorns. And he’s even doing some phenomenal charity work in Texas in July.

He’s a Texas guy.

And, as Joe stuffs his face during lunchtime at the Bucs player-only minicamp today, Joe wants to share this nugget from an interesting interview Miller recently did with the Longhorns official football website. It seems Miller loves teaming up with his Texas buddies on the Bucs to spew annoying Texas love all over the locker room.

What is it like playing with Tim Crowder and Frank Okam in Tampa?  

At first it was just me and I saw Tim, and he said that they had just worked him out. And then when he jumped on board me and him started talking to everybody about how the Longhorns are better than everybody in the locker room. Then Hunter [Lawrence] came and now Frank is there. So that is all we do. We talk about how great this place is and people get tired of it, and on game days we wear our Texas shirts around and always try to do a good job of promoting this great place. We are proud of Texas and being part of this organization. Just to have those guys out there, it feels more like Texas. It made things a little bit easier for me. 

Joe’s got nothing against Texas. And surely Joe doesn’t want to upset the Texas courts, which hold Texan Aqib Talib’s fate in their hands. But Joe’s a Florida guy. Hopefully, all those Gators and Seminoles and Florida natives on the Bucs can beat down all the Texas love in the locker room.