Giants 24, Bucs 0

Here are some thoughts of the Bucs loss to the Giants. And stay here. Joe’s coming with a flood of copy.

* Pretty good catch by Moss. Interestingly, the play came right after Dave Moore said on the Bucs radio network that the Giants wouldn’t throw any more unless they had to. Guess they had to?

* Should have been a defensive interference on Leftwich’s throw to Winslow that was incomplete.

* Dave Moore said this isn’t all Leftwich’s fault. He said receivers just aren’t open. Oh, and they also are are dropping balls. Pathetic.

* Hey, first attempt, first reception for Josh Johnson.

* First time the Bucs are in Giants territory. Thanks to a penalty of course.

* Antonio Bryant drops a pass. Figures.

* Johnson doing a nice job of dodging the Giants blitzes.

* First down. Joe smells a quarterback controversy.

* At least Johnson added some life into the Bucs. This team was dead. Comatose.

*”The Big Dog,” Steve Duemig of WDAE-AM 620 should enjoy this week. Counless people will be screaming for Johnson to start at Washington. Quarterback controversies make for busy call radio.

* With less than five minutes in the game, Joe finally heard Chris Hovan’s name called. Next time this guy wants to call out his teammates for horrid play (which wasn’t inaccurate and probably needed) he might want to show up for the game himself.

* Play was there to connect with Michael Clayton but threw way behind him. Joe can’t pin that on Clayton. That was on Leftwich. He had plenty of time to throw.

* Still no first down.

* Even Deckerhoff is getting frustrated. Coming back from a commercial, he says, “Bucs go three-and-out. What’s new?” Joe feels your pain Gene.

* Gaines Adams with a tackle for a two-yard. Yes, Gaines Adams! Of course, that was the same kind of a move that he got burned on last week for a big play at Buffalo.

* Manning didn’t have enough time to throw for that first down, did he? And damn the receiver was wide open.

* Well, at least early in the third quarter, the Bucs defensive line appears to be stopping the run a little better.

* Joe thinks the Giants have a tougher time gaining yards against their scout team in practices.

* Can’t fault the Bucs on the Boss catch. That was just a great catch. Sometimes, you have to tip your cap to the opponent.

* Deckerhoff slipped up and referred to the Giants as “we.”

* Bucs FINALLY get a stop. Though this time the Giants got a field goal out of it. Finally!

* Hurry up offense?

*OMG! A first down!!! Joe can’t believe it. A Bronx cheer in Tampa by the fans.

* Well, maybe if the Bucs got seven points for a first down, it might be a game?

* Joe still hasn’t heard Chris Hovan’s name called yet.

* You know things are bad when Eli Manning runs for a first down.

* Barrett Ruud is one of the few Bucs defenders earning his cash today.

* Gaines Adams absolutely was blown off the line on Jacobs ‘ first down run late in the quarter. I mean tossed off the line like he was a high school kid.

Raheem the Dream needs to calm down. As he exited the field just after the half when the Giants missed a pooch kick of a field goal, Raheem the Dream tells the Bucs radio network that, “We played great defense at the end.”

Huh??? Great defense? The freaking Giants marched down the field on your defense, thanks in large part to your defense being unable to tackle. If Manning doesn’t throw behind a receiver, or the kicker doesn’t yack, you’d be down by three scores.

Coming back down to earth, Raheem the Dream confessed it was the worst offensive of football for the Bucs all year. Not sure how it could get worse. No first downs. That says it all.

* How about that Bucs offensive line blasting holes in the line? Maybe this zone blocking scheme is like fitting a square peg in a round hole? The Bucs offensive line didn’t need much tinkering. You know, the proverbial don’t fix something that’s not broken?

* Let’s see, in the first 18 minutes of the game the Bucs have had seven plays from offense. Wow.

* OMG! A three-and-out by the Bucs defense. Joe might have to crack open a(nother) Caybrew.

* Cadillac behind Trueblood and Joseph. Joe likes that.

* Why didn’t Leftwich just throw the ball at Askew’s feet. It wouldn’t have been a loss.

* Nice tackle by Bruce Johnson to deny Cadillac Williams a first down. OK, Joe will ask: Will/can the Bucs get a first down this half?

* Can someone besides Ruud and Barber and Talib make a play on the Bucs defense?

* Ha! joe was just typing Talib’s name and he makes a nice play.

* Manning overthrows an open man for a first down. Gene Deckerhoff on the Bucs radio network wonders aloud if the wet ball from the downpour helped the Bucs.

* Mahan whiffs on a tackle and Ward pays.

* Byron Leftwich channels his inner Roger Staubach for a four-yard run.

* Once again, three-and-out. Joe’s phone is going crazy from all the texts from THE PESSIMIST, whos is seething over this putrid offense.

* Ward damned near got loose for a long touchdown.

* Miserable, miserable, miserable tackling on Bradshaw’s runs.

* Hedgecock (“Hee, hee. Hee, hee. He said ‘cock.'”) dropping passes will likely be the only way for the Bucs to stop the Giants.

* Elbert Mack didn’t give Manningham enough room on Manningham’s first down.

* Pretty nice play by Sabby Piscitelli to break up a touchdown, though it was thrown behind.

* “Boys (Bucs defense), meet the Men (Giants running backs).”

* Great play by Sabby Piscitelli to stop Jacobs in the backfield. Is that the first negative yardage play by the Bucs?

* First break: Giants hooked the field goal.

* Joe’s just wondering: Chris Hovan shot off his mouth (rightly so) about guys needing to make plays. Has his name been called yet today? Is his uniform even dirty?

* If Brandon Jacobs can break off five yards a carry like he did the first attempt, it will be a long day.

* Doesn’t seem like the Giants will use Jacobs much today do you?

* Good coverage by Aqib Talib on the long catch by Steve Smith. Perfect pass by Eli Manning.

* Stylez White had a shot at getting Jacobs in the backfield on a stunt but totally whiffed on him.

* So far, both completions by Manning there was good coverage by the defensive backs.

* Jacobs seems like he’s back to the old Brandon Jacobs.

* Gene Deckerhoff sounded like the announcer Artie Lange spoke about in his video Joe posted earlier today. “It’s an interception. No, it’s caught! Now there’s a fumble.” Joe could just picture scores of gamblers freaking out. Joe did and he doesn’t have a dime on the game.

* Bucs defense is just getting carved up.

* Did anyone lay a hand on Jacobs on his touchdown? That’s pathetic. Joe just saw the replay. One hand was layed on Jacobs — one!

* Dave Moore of the Bucs radio network noted how Byron Leftwich has trouble with soft, short throws. Maybe that’s why Kellen Winslow, Jr. struggled to catch a seemingly innocent pass.

* Now if Derrick Ward can keep running like this it would sure help.

* What was Davin Joseph trying to do on Ward’s first run, running backwards in front of Ward?

* Oh, boy. Three-and-out thanks to a penalty. Game could be over on the Giants second possession. Joe can’t see the Bucs coming back from two touchdowns down the way the Giants are moving the ball.

* Gee, Barrett Ruud (Barrett Ruud!) makes a nice solo tackle and Jacobs still gets a four-yard game.

* Nice play by Talib to break up a pass to Manningham! Ge is playing solid football.

* The Giants are now on their third possession and the Bucs have run a total of four offensive plays. Terrible.

* Of course, first play afterwards, first down Giants.

* This Jacobs is just a sledgehammer… and a Saluki.

* Bradshaw’s run was simply outright rotten defense.

* Dave Moore of the Bucs radio network is talking about how worn out the Bucs defense is already. Hell, they’ve been on the field for almost the entire first quarter and its a blast furnace out there. What do you expect when you have just four plays from offense?

It was just announced on the Bucs radio network that wide receiver Antonio Bryant is indeed active today despite battling with a knee injury all year.

The same cannot be said about Earnest Graham who will not suit up today. Reasons unknown.

Week 3
Giants at Bucs
Kickoff: 1 p.m.
TV:WTVT Ch. 13, DirecTV 712
Radio: Buccaneers Radio Network (in Tampa WFUS-FM, 103.5 and WDAE-AM, 620); Sirius Channel 158.
Weather: Per AccuWeather.com, perfect Raheem the Dream weather: Temperature at kickoff is expected to be 90 degrees under partly sunny skies dipping only slightly into the 80s in the second half before ending under thunderstorms.
Odds: Per Bodog.com, New York -7.
Outlook: If the Bucs are ever going to beat the Giants, this is the week. The Giants have nasty injuries to key players on its otherwise rugged defense, highlighted by defensive tackle Justin Tuck and safety Kenny Phillips. This will affect the Giants rotation and possibly allow the Bucs to double-team stud defensive end Osi Umenyiora. But if the Bucs can’t get any better blocking from what previously was thought to be their strength, it won’t matter and the Giants will likely crush the Bucs. For the Bucs to have a prayer of winning the offensive line must be able to block, thus enabling the Bucs to flaunt the Giants injuries. … Ball control will be critical. The Bucs defense, specifically its secondary, has been roasted more than a bratwurst at a tailgate party. If the Bucs control the ball with their running game (aided by blocking), it will keep the ball out of the hands of Eli Manning. Giants receivers Steve Smith and Mario Manningham are the top two receives for receiving yards in the NFC.
Fun facts: The Bucs have won 18 of their last 20 games if they do not commit a turnover. … When Cadillac Williams carries the ball at least 22 times, the Bucs are undefeated. … Artie Lange has lost a lot of money betting on the Giants to cover.
WARNING: The following video contains adult content, adult language, explicit sexual innuendo and free spirited talk of wagering. Viewer discretion is advised.

As one can imagine, the NFL Network has an ample supply of video previewing the Giants-Bucs game Sunday.

As one can imagine, Joe brings it to his readers.

First up is NFL Films’ preview package of the game.

Next is the NFL Network’s break down of the game with knothead Brian Baldinger, Sterling Sharpe and Joe Theismann.

Also is a video preview of AccuWeather’s forecast for the game.

Additionally, Scott Smith of Buccaneers Insider has a preview of the game, and a feature on wide receiver Sammie Stroughter.

A former Eagles second-round pick in 2005, LB Matt McCoy was cut by the Bucs today for the second time in two years.

It doesn’t say much for the Bucs defense when one of your opening day starters at linebacker, Matt McCoy, is cut before Game 3 in favor of a practice squad wide receiver, Mario Urrutia.

That’s what went down today, as the Bucs prepare to be without Maurice Stovall and/or Antonio Bryant for Sunday’s game against the Giants.

Mike Florio, creator, curator and overall guru of ProFootballTalk.com, has a conspiracy theory about the McCoy move your can read all about here.

Joe is concerned about Bryant. Allegedly, the injury is just bone bruise pain, but that’s typically pain that can be played through, especially after one of those magic shots or funky little pills.

Bryant is in a contract year and can barely handle the financial demands on him with his $10 million contract in 2009, so he claimed months ago.

Joe assumes Bryant knows he needs a big season. Joe is concerned there’s more to this injury. The Bucs need him on the field.

For those of you into pain, here’s a video segment from ProFootballtalk.com on the worst teams in the league.

Of course, Mike Florio, creator, curator and overall guru of ProFootballtalk.com, includes the Bucs among these bottom-feeders.

Derrick Ward's a Buccaneer now. And Bucs defensive coordinator Jim Bates is acting like Ward has unlocked the secrets of the Giants' universe.

If you head over to Buccaneers.com and watch Jim Bates’ Wednesday news conference, the old guy in charge of the defensive mess finally cracks a big old grin when asked about how much running back Derrick Ward is helping him prepare to play the Giants on Sunday.

He acknowledges Ward’s intelligence and can’t stop smiling. The smiles stood out for Joe because Bates has so little to be happy about.

If a player can really significantly help coaches prepare against a former team — in this case Ward was a Giant for years — then it seems Ward is the ideal guy to get the job done for the Bucs in a big way. He’s consistently lauded for being a smart, detail-oriented dude.

The New York Post and members of the Giants think Ward’s knowledge will be a factor, as well.

“An outstanding student of the game,” was the way Tom Coughlin described the former Giants running back.

“I plead the fifth, that’s all I can tell you about that,” Ward said yesterday, chuckling, about how much his presence can help the Bucs. “It’s only obvious, I played there for five years against that defense every day in practice.”

This is not akin to the Redskins picking up former Giants practice squad quarterback Andre Woodson the week before the season opener. Ward was a popular and integral member of the Giants, and there is no detail he won’t be able to impart to his new team.

Joe was pleased to hear Raheem The Dream say Ward will get the start on Sunday, if for no other reason than he’s the healthiest of the running backs. Cadillac Williams [knee soreness not related to his major surgeries] and Earnest Graham [hamstring] have made the injury report.

The Tampa Bay Lightning will take a hatchet to their roster today in preparation for opening day next week.

Amanda Harris of JoeBoltsFan.com breaks down all the options. Click on Joe below for great Lightning coverage every day.

There are injury reports, and then there’s how a player really feels.

There’s usually a world of difference.

In the case of center Jeff Faine, don’t expect him back in the Bucs’ lineup any time soon.

Speaking on 1010 AM on Friday, Faine said his shredded tricep muscle is improving and he feels at “50 percent.” But Faine said he is in no rush to play until he’s healed and ready to perform at his peak through the remainder of the sason.

To illustrate how far he is from being game-ready, Faine said, “I almost fell on my face” attempting a push up earlier this week.

Also, Joe was intrigued by Faine referencing the “tough business” side of the NFL that saw the Bucs cut Sean Mahan only to rush him in as a savior at center a couple of weeks later.

And Faine also went out of his way to call quarterback Josh Johnson “a starter” in the NFL.  

Joe listens to lots of player interviews. Why do none of these guys ever speak glowingly about Josh Freeman?

Loyal JoeBucsFan.com reader “Paul” shot Joe a link to this homemade video at the Bucs-Bills game last week. Joe’s never met Paul, but he’d enjoy drinking a Caybrew with him one day.

This poor guy was hammered wearing his Bucs orange in the nosebleed section of Buffalo’s old stadium. That’s dedication.

Now Joe has run other interesting fan videos before. So why not one from this devoted member of Bucs nation, especially entering a big football weekend. The video made Joe laugh. And Joe suspects “Paul” is very typical of the tens of thousands of readers of JoeBucsFan.com.

Enjoy.

Joe knows Giants fans are extraordinarily overrated

It seems like 99 percent of the time Joe loves reading eye-RAH! Kaufman’s solid work for the Tampa Tribune. It also doesn’t hurt that eye-RAH!’s one of the coolest guys working in the local fourth estate.

But Joe’s eyebrow was raised (sort of like Derrick Brooks used to do) when he read eye-RAH!’s loving article today about the allegedly devoted Giants fan base.

Though Joe loved reading eye-RAH!’s article, Joe can’t quite swallow the premise that the Giants have such a devoted fanbase.

Joe is not as impressed by Giants fans selling out their stadium for decades, or that Giants fans are present on the road.  This doesn’t mean there’s some special fan base up there. The Giants are simply drawing from a metropolitan area upwards of 18 million people that happens to be the wealthiest in the country.

It’s strictly a numbers game. The Giants’ market dwarfs the combined metropolitan areas of the NFC South teams.

Yes, Giants fans historically have kept their tickets through tough seasons, but that doesn’t mean they showed up for games. Check the stats. The NFL used to publish no-show numbers for every game.

Oh, look, Joe has found a Giants beat writer who wrote just last year about scores of empty seats — in September no less!– replete with a photo. Some fan base, huh?

Joe fondly remembers performing with his high school marching band at halftime of a Giants-Cardinals game at Giants Stadium in 1982. Maybe the stadium was one-half full that day. Maybe.

On top of all this, New York is not even a football town, Neil Best of Newsday has written about this several times. So why should anyone be impressed with Giants fan? Half of them would skip watching Sunday’s game against the Bucs in exchange for a Yankees playoff ticket.

It’s a baseball town first. Arguably a basketball town second. College football is literally an afterthought (as Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News told Joe during a media function at February’s Super Bowl in Tampa, “College football? What’s that?”). And the Giants are almost completely on the back burner in their backyard now, with the Yankees front and center and the Jets winning their Super Bowl last week against Bill Belicheat, behind a new coach and new quarterback.

Giants fans aren’t worth the paper the Tribune is printed on.

As lunchtime approaches, Joe can’t help but think of Bucs center Sean Mahan.

He’s the fill-in starter who was so valuable to the organization that the Bucs cut his pay in the offseason, then cut him before the season, and then rushed to re-sign him with open arms after Jeff Faine went down with an injury in Week 1. 

Before Joe writes about food, Joe must rhetorically ask, if Mahan was the first-option at backup center, why did the Bucs send him to his living room a week or so before the regular season?

All together now, To Save Money. (But Joe, the Bucs are $30 million under the cap?)

Now Mahan was interviewed on the Buccaneers Radio Network last night on 620 WDAE-AM. He talked about his challenges maintaining weight throughout the season. It seems all that exercise peels the pounds off him.

So to remedy the situation he eats all morning and night, Mahan said. Host Scott Ledger asked him about his food choices, and Mahan said he “doesn’t discriminate.”

For breakfast, it’s “four eggs, omelettes, waffles, pancakes …,” Mahan said. “[On the couch at night it’s] “steak and ice cream. …Before practice it’s lots of fruit. … I eat all day long.”

Joe got a good laugh out of this. Joe eats all day long, too, minus the 2 1/2 hours on the practice field and time in the weight room.

As Joe tries to do each week, he brings you the NFL power rankings from around the web to see what national sports scribes think of the Bucs.

First up is former Bucs beat writer and current Sports Illustrated columnist Don Banks who has the Bucs ranked at No. 29.

OK, here are your standings thus far: The state of Florida is 0-6 in the NFL this season. Missouri is 0-4. And that longtime loser, Ohio, is a rousing 1-3. New York is the leader at 5-1, if you count the Jets, Giants and Bills as actually representing New York, rather than mostly New Jersey.

Second is Mike Sando of BSPN.com who believes the Bucs are also No. 29.

The Bucs have allowed 900 yards in their first two games. They even made the Bills look good.

Pete Prisco of CBSSports.com thinks the Bucs are only slightly better at No. 28.

Remember when the Bucs were good on defense? They sure aren’t now. They can’t stop anybody. The pass defense is terrible.

Adrian Hasenmayer of FoxSports.com is of the same mind, but likes Cadillac Williams.

NO WORRIES: It’s a great thing to see RB Cadillac Williams bouncing around the field after twice blowing out his knee during his young career. He’s already scored TDs in each game of 2009.

TIME TO WORRY: Beginning with last season’s December collapse that cost the Bucs a playoff spot and Jon Gruden his job, the once-dominant Tampa defense has given up 30+ points in five of the last six games.

Finally, Clifton Smith of SportingNews.com believes the Bucs are No. 29.

As long as the penalties and poor defense continue, so will the losses.

Vacation Man, aka Pat Yasinskas of BSPN.com, appears in this video talking about the gripping issues in the NFC South.

In short, he asks Bucs fans to have patience. Joe agrees, so long as he doesn’t have to see the Bucs pass defense cough up 400-plus yards again.