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Joe offers his greetings from Jacksonville as the Bucs open the 2014 preseason against the Jags. You should check Joe’s Instagram account. All in crystal clear HD.
So there are all sorts of questions for Bucs fans. Too many to list, on both offense and defense. It should be an interesting game if for no other reason than the newness of the Lovie Smith regime. [read more]
Preseason Game 1
Bucs at Jags
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m.
TV: WFLA-TV, Channel 8, locally. Game will be rebroadcast on NFL Network at 7 a.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. Monday.
Radio: Buccaneers Radio Network (in Tampa WFUS-FM 103.5, and WDAE-AM 620); SiriusXM Channel 108.
There’ll be all kinds of things to pay attention to when the Bucs kick off the 2014 preseason in Jacksonville this evening.
Here are 10 things Joe will keep his eyes on: [read more]
Watching how the defense plays tonight is something Bucs fans will want to monitor.
No, the Bucs don’t run a Cover-2 defense all the time. But it very much is key component into Lovie Smith’s defense. As Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks have said since Lovie was hired, it’s not a defense that can be picked up overnight.
Joe knows Bucs fans both near Tampa and far from the Tampa Bay area would love to see a return to when the Bucs punished opponents on a weekly basis like the old days. [read more]
In case you missed Joe’s appearance on the Ron and Ian show this morning on WDAE-AM 620, Joe’s got it all for you right here.
The rapid-fire segments hit on plenty of Bucs issues of the day. [read more]
To make the squad, Bucs FB Jorvorskie Lane has to continue to catch the ball and play special teams. Photo courtesy of Buccaneers.com.
Every once in a while Joe will get asked about fullback Jorvorskie Lane: “Will he or won’t he make the team? Why won’t the Bucs keep a fullback?”
Having dealt with the oppressive heat and humidity of a Tampa summer day more than a few times at Bucs training camp, Lane, if he is kept on the 53-man roster, would be the lone fullback. [read more]
This video is a must watch.
Florida Gators great and Bucs wide receiver Louis Murphy has had a decent pro career.
Now on his fourth team in his sixth NFL season, Murphy has 121 career catches, but the end zone has been a sour hangout for him. [read more]
We know Bucs tickets have been a tough sell in recent years to the legions of Tampa Bay fans in our midst.
But, per the Tampa Bay Business Journal, it seems fans of other teams aren’t eager to watch Bucs football, either. [read more]
Bucs fans are wearing out their F5 buttons hoping for word about a new guard.
Joe knows Bucs fans are refreshing their browsers multiple times a day hoping that Tampa Bay picks up a guard, somehow, somewhere. They moan to themselves, “Oneil Cousins?” when their supervisor is not hovering over their shoulder.
It’s gotten to the point where innkeepers no longer want some fans to down pints in their establishments because they are tired of the non-stop grousing over a lack of guard. There seems to be, however, a similar malaise across the NFL. [read more]
Aaron Rodgers delivered quite a text to the Bucs’ offensive coordinator
Remember when Chucky, who was dubbed a quarterback genius and professed to love every QB who threw a football, had a chance to draft Aaron Rodgers but didn’t? Yeah, one wonders what could have been. (Cadillac Williams wasn’t a shabby pick, though)
However, if the Bucs return to their glory days under Lovie Smith, a big reason could be Rodgers, the Packers future Hall of Famer. For it was Rodgers who played matchmaker for Lovie and hooked him up with his old college coach, Jeff Tedford, explains Jim Corbett of USA Today. [read more]
Imagine detail-obsessed, micromanager Greg Schiano giving his defensive line the freedom to call its own pass rush style on third down. They could call games, straight rushes, whatever.
Ha! That wasn’t about to happen. Schiano was the same guy who was restricting hot meals for players. [read more]
Six years ago Joe fired up this website and never turned back.
Today, Joe turns six — six full years obsessing 24/7 about all things Bucs on these pages.
It all started with a laptop and a dream. About two years before JoeBucsFan.com was born, Joe hatched a plan to cover the Buccaneers in a way that would entertain and interest Joe, something edgy and fresh and unlike the stale traditional media. A defunct site called JoeNetsFan.com was the inspiration for the name and the spirit. But Joe decided to bring a different angle, the whole third-person “Joe” thing.
Joe pounded away for months on these pages writing passionately for almost nobody. Traffic grew while Joe endured endless personal attacks, the result of rattling the cages of Bucs fans, the Bucs organization, and Joe’s media brethren.
But Joe pressed on, confident that fans were buying into Joe’s unique brand of journalism that continues to be like no other.
Thankfully, Bucs fans kept coming. Yesterday, JoeBucsFan.com enjoyed 20,000+ actual visits and pages viewed were about 80,000, a rather typical day. Joe’s traffic continues to rise, and it’s reached the point where Joe now is the No. 1 destination for legions of Bucs fans.
The ride has been wild (Joe could write a book about the bizarre sh*t he’s experienced), and Joe appreciates all his readers. While Joe has wacky daily commenters, the typical reader around here only comes once a week or so, and Joe is thankful to all of you.
In the birthday spirit, Joe is seeking donations/gifts to help fund his obsession with the Bucs, unattainable women and beer. Joe would love to travel to more Bucs games this year. Thanks in advance for those who choose to give Joe a birthday gift. Your cash will help drive Joe to new heights, or new lows, depending on your perspective.
The Bucs play a total of six games a year against the hated Dixie Chicks, the Stinkin’ Panthers, and the bounty-loving Saints. For those who want to snoop on the Bucs’ hated rivals, Joe provides a regular glimpse at what’s happening around the NFC South. [read more]
Lovie Smith politely chided the Tampa Bay pen and mic club early this week for being overly critical of defensive lineman Da’Quan Bowers.
The former Tampa Bay second-round pick, now entering his fourth season, and third coaching staff and second administration, has rarely if ever lived up to his ceiling.
The past two seasons have been rough for Bowers. Not long after then-Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik let sack leader Michael Bennett walk away for no good reason, the starting left defensive job was gifted to Bowers. He rewarded the team by getting into a gun hassle in New York. [read more]
Where does one start to talk about Bucs training camp?
There has been Gerald McCoy being virtually unstoppable on the defensive line. Austin Seferian-Jenkins looking otherworldly. Atlerraun Verner doing his best to sell Bucs floppy hats. The soap opera of Da’Quan Bowers.
It has been an eventful past two weeks and Joe has been to so many practices, the days are running together for him. He has to keep checking what day it is for a semblance of normalcy. [read more]
