Clifton Smith is on his way to becoming the most prolific return man in team history

Joe just had a rare 2009 moment of Bucs pride that didn’t involve gawking at the orange-clad cheerleaders.

Reading a Bucs-Dolphins preview in the Sun-Sentinel, Joe learned the Bucs kickoff return and coverage teams are each ranked No. 1 in the NFL.

That’s damn good.

As Joe has written previously, Bucs fans are downright spoiled to have Clifton Smith and Sammie Stroughter behind him on the depth chart. Special teams guru Rich Bisaccia gets major kudos for taking his various units up to a near championship-caliber level in recent weeks. 

Now if the Bucs could only land a top-flight kicker …

Of note from the Sun Sentinel, the Dolphins’ Ted Ginn, Jr. is the top-ranked kickoff returner in the NFL (Smith is third).

Joe suspects the Bucs coverage team will win out against Ginn and company. Joe’s just hoping they get plenty of opportunities.

By the time you are reading this, Joe will be awash in Caybrew and college football. Joe, however, always remembers his loyal readers so Joe is bringing you videos from NFL Network previewing the Bucs-Dolphins.

First up is a preview produced by the solid work of NFL Films. Also there is an interview of Dolphins linebacker Joey Porter talking Bucs.

Former Broncos cheerleader and current NFL Network analyst Michelle Beisner counts down the top 10 highlights of last week’s games and Josh Freeman is No. 5.

Scott Smith of Buccaneers Insider takes a look at the Bucs kickoff coverage unit which Smith cites as possibly the most overlooked element of the Bucs solid special teams.

From the enemy, MiamiDolphins.com, is a breakdown on the health of the Dolphins and a look at the Bucsfrom Dolphins head coach Tony Sporano (“Paulie, this information better be right. You give me the news as if I was Jesus Christ himself.”)

Back in his college town of Manhattan,Kan., Josh Freeman is still a BMOC despite not being on campus.

The Manhattan (Kan.) Mercury has a feature story on Freeman about his first NFL start last week, a victorious one at that. Freeman’s teammates seem to love him, including his former roommate, rookie wide receiver Sammie Stroughter.

Maybe some will recognize the author’s name?

Being his roommate, I know where his mind is,” Stroughter said. “He’s a quiet assassin. He doesn’t get rattled and he loves to play the game.

“The one thing about him is from the OTAs he was taking charge. He was going to start. He had that mindset even from rookie camp. He prepared for that every day, that he would be a starter. His standards are so high, if you ask him about his performance, he expects more.”

The cool thing about Freeman is he doesn’t seem to be stuck on himself. Freeman seemed more concerned about becoming a better quarterback than he was reveling in the win. Joe loves the kid’s attitude, or more importantly, the lack thereof.

Bucs center Jeff Faine had a few curious comments yesterday while speaking with WQYK-AM 1010’s J.P. Peterson.

Faine talked about what great people both Josh Freeman and Sammie Stroughter are, and then remarked about the personalities of the current crop of Bucs rookies.

“I have to hand it to [Bucs general manager] Mark Dominik,” Faine said. “The character of the guys that were drafted this year is really good. They’re not a bunch of young punks.”

Faine went on to say this year’s rookie class is not a collection of players that veterans are close to only because they are teammates yet distanced themselves from off the field.

So just who was Faine throwing darts at?

Was it a shot at Bruce Almighty who didn’t factor in character when drafting players? Was it a stab at Chucky, who didn’t give a damn if a player was a felon so long as he could play football? Or were Faine’s comments indirect shots at Aqib Talib?

This is information Joe would like to know.

Vacation Man of BSPN.com gives Bucs fans an inside look in this NFC South roundup at what members of the Bucs administration and coaching staff thinks about rookie quarterback Josh Freeman. Hint: It’s a four-letter word.

It’s been well documented the Bucs are transitioning more to Chucky’s playbook with Greg Olson’s spin, away from the much hyped simplified Jeff Jagodzinski model built on downhill running and play-action passing.

So it’s not surprising to learn the zone blocking system, a key to the Bucs’ offseason overhaul, is losing its prominence in the offense.

Bucs center and offensive captain Jeff Faine said as much on Friday, speaking on 1010 AM.

Faine agreed with a caller who asked whether he was indeed seeing less and less of the zone blocking. Faine explained the zone blocking system is still being used “but we’re focusing on more of the man-gap schemes.”

Faine went on to say Greg Olson continues to add more plays into the system each week.

Faine also raved about Josh Freeman. “In my mind it was a very average game for him,: Faine said. “And I say that to [illustrate] how talented and he is and based on what I see from him every day.”

It’s a sleepy Saturday morning yet Joe is here to provide his weekly look at what the national scribes think of the Bucs. Let’s just say it’s a bit better than last week.

THe Bucs bumped up slightly from last week in the eyes of BSPN’s Mike Sando with the Bucs at No. 31.

Give the Bucs credit for winning a game against a significantly more talented opponent.

Former Bucs beat writer and current SI.com columnist Don Banks gave the Bucs a big boost after beating the Packers, ranking the Bucs all the way up to No. 28.

Josh Freeman looked good in the shotgun and on the move against the Packers, showing some nice touch on his passes. That’s what the rookie quarterback was used to in college at Kansas State, and the Bucs would do well to maximize his comfort zone. After a week of Johnson being told he’s the next big thing in Tampa Bay, let’s see how the kid responds on the road against a Dolphins team that’s better than its 3-5 record.

Adrian Hasenmayer of FoxSports.com isn’t overly impressed with the Bucs first win, ranking the Bucs at No. 31.

FIRST-HALF BLESSING:Did you ever think Tampa fans would be thankful for those hideously beautiful orange jerseys? The Bucs are 1-0 so far going old school, let’s make it a weekly thing!

FIRST-HALF CURSE:Sure, the Bucs have been cursed with arguably the toughest schedule in the league. But still, with a young team it would have been smart to give rookie QB Josh Freeman the keys to the wagon in Week 1 to accelerate his learning curve.

The Bucs were promoted two spots in the eyes of Pete Prisco of CBSSports.com ranking the Bucs at No. 30.

Josh Freeman showed that he might be their franchise passer of the future. He made some plays in the victory over Green Bay. Maybe they should keep the throwback jerseys they wore that day.

Kevin Blackstone of Fanhouse.com seems to be smitten with Freeman, having the Bucs ranked at No. 28.

Tampa Bay proclaimed the future of the franchise, Josh Freeman, their new starter and threw him into the lion’s den as close to defenseless as possible in Week 9. The first-round pick from Kansas State responded by throwing three touchdown passes and leading “his” team to their first victory of the season.

Veteran NFL scribe eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune updated the Bucs small injury list today and a new name has appeared: Derrick Ward.

Ward joins wounded teammates Antonio Bryant, who continues to struggle with knee swelling, and Stylez G. White, who’s battling through a shoulder injury to keep his consecutive games played streak (40) alive.

“Ward’s got a knee tweak,” [Raheem] Morris said, “but I think he’ll be fine. He practiced all week and looked pretty good.”

Joe finds it awfully convenient for Cadillac Williams that Ward has come up with a tweaked knee, considering a busy day in Miami for Ward likely would cost Caddy a good bit of cash.

No, Joe doesn’t think there are any shenanigans at play. But this further illustrates why players shouldn’t be wagering five-figures on their personal stats.

Like all real men in the Tampa Bay area, Joe watched the Bears-49ers game last night on the NFL Network (don’t have the NFL Network? Then grow a pair and don’t be such a woman).

After watching bratty Bears quarterback Jay Cutler throw five interceptions, Joe slept well last night.

(Or maybe Joe’s sound sleep was due to his vivid dream about the Bucs cheerleaders?)

Joe remembers not that long ago, Bucs general manager Mark Dominik made a play for the spoiled child, Cutler. Joe feared Dominik might be “successful” and get him.

But Dominik didn’t. And the move he failed to make may just be the move that saved his career as the Bucs general manager.

The Bears foolishly gave up two first round picks and their starting quarterback, Kyle Orton, for Cutler. At the time, pundits lauded the Bears and mocked the Broncos.

Who is laughing now? The Broncos are likely playoff bound. The Bears are circling the drain, dragged down by Cutler’s interceptions and juvenile attitude.

At one point last night after an interception, Cutler took off his helmet, stared into space and scratched his head, looking like Joe when he ponders how he could somehow lure Rachel Watson into his lair.

People point to the Bucs for giving up so much to land Meshawn Johnson and Chucky and suggest the Bucs are paying for it now. But at least the Bucs got a Super Bowl out of those deals.

Joe’s pretty convinced that Cutler will not bring the Vince Lombardi Trophy to the shores of Lake Michigan.

Joe expresses his deep appreciation to Dominik for not pulling the trigger on Cutler.

The Professor says Barrett Ruud must play bigger than the four tackles he mustered against Green Bay

Don’t worry if you missed “The Professor’s” inaugural column on JoeBucsFan.com, Cork Gaines is back for his second go-round.

The creator, curator and Mr. Everything at the popular RaysIndex.com is a hardcore Bucs fan and the premier Tampa Bay Rays blogger/analyst/wiseass fan on the planet. Joe is honored to have The Professor join him for a weekly feature at JoeBucsFan.com.

RaysIndex.com is a site Joe visits often. It’s an absolute must for Rays fans.

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 (a look back)
The Bucs finally picked up their first win since last November with a 38-28 victory over the Packers…How big was this win?

There was Lee Roy Selmon’s induction into the Ring of Honor, the ’79 Bucs reunion, Josh Freeman’s first start, the 4th quarter comeback, a win over the Pack, shutting up the cheeseheads and ending talk of going 0-16. And of course there was the classic Swashbucklers, er, I mean the orange uniforms and Bucco Bruce. This might have been the most fun I had watching the Bucs since the opening week of the 2003 season when the Bucs beat the Eagles 17-0 on Monday night in their new stadium…BIG

SECOND QUARTER (looking forward)
Lee Roy Selmon was the first member of the Bucs Ring of Honor. Who should be the next? 

Let’s skip any members of the Super Bowl squad. It is far too early to be immortalizing guys like John Lynch, Mike Alstott and Derrick Brooks. Warren Sapp deserves it, but nobody is in a hurry for that one. That leaves Ricky Bell, Doug Williams, James Wilder, John McKay and Donald Igwebuike. But we will go with the biggest poster from my bedroom as a kid…DOUG WILLIAMS

THIRD QUARTER (outside the pocket)
With the Bucs taking on the Dolphins this weekend, what other game should Bucs fans follow closely?

As bad as the Bucs were in the first 7 games, they are still only 2 games behind Carolina for not-last place. Of course, if the Bucs have any hopes of getting out of the South’s cellar, they will have to beat the Panthers in Carolina in week 13. Tough task, but not impossible with Josh FreeMan-Bear-Pig under center…ATLANTA @ CAROLINA

FOURTH QUARTER (no huddle)
The Bucs are currently one of 5 teams at 1-7. If the Bucs end up with the top pick in the draft, what will they do with that selection?

Raheem Morris would love to trade the top pick for about 20 6th and 7th round picks…TRADE DOWN

That was a pretty exciting first week for Josh Freeman.What can we expect for an encore?

That was a nice performance, but let’s temper the excitement a little bit. Freeman had nine weeks to prepare for one opponent…MORE MISTAKES

Who needs to have a huge performance this week on defense?

It will be on Barrett Ruud and the other linebackers to shoot through developing holes to stop the Wildcat. Ruud needs to make much more than the 4 tackles he had last week…BARRETT RUUD

Who needs to have a huge performance this week on offense?

Miami only allows 95 yards per game on the ground. But the running game needs to keep Miami honest to give Freeman a chance to make plays…CADILLAC WILLIAMS

We have heard you pick a beverage for each game based on the matchup…What is the drink of choice for week 10 against the Dolphins?

Let’s go fishin’…FISHERMAN’S BREW

Joe is hankering for an early lunch.

But Joe’s going to hold out to feast on the most incredible buffet in the Tampa Bay area tonight.

If you can handle it, click here to check out Derby Lane’s menu this weekend at the Derby Club.

Joe’s got his eyes set on the Asian BBQ baby back ribs, gorgonzola crusted filet mignon, spinach and sundried tomato orzo, and fried zucchini.

Awesome food, poker, greyhound racing and more every day at DerbyLane in St. Petersburg.

Trey Wingo, Mark Schlereth and Tedy Bruschi of BSPN discuss the Bucs-Dolphins game. None of the three like the Bucs but Bruschi loved the creamsicles.

This one got past Joe’s crack team of naughty interns Bucs news gatherers. But Joe’s not going to let it go.

Chris Harry, the former Bucs beat writer for the Orlando Sentinel (before the newspaper made massive cuts to its Bucs coverage) caught up with Ike Hilliard a few weeks ago.

Chucky’s favorite third-down option is now a receivers coach with the Florida Tuskers of the UFL.

Asked about a comeback, Hilliard said, “I’m done.” Harry explains Hilliard was not pleased with his ouster from One Buc Place following a good 2008 season.

Though never a superstar, Hilliard was always one of the most dependable players on the field. Jon Gruden nicknamed him “Third-and-Ike,” thanks to 111 of his 178 catches as a Buc resulting in first downs.

“Everybody looked up to him,” said Tuskers wideout Paris Warren, a former Buc. “He was a leader.”

Still is. Only the role has changed.

“I’m thankful for the opportunity,” he said.

Hilliard wasn’t crazy about the circumstances surrounding his exit from the NFL. He was part of the Bucs’ bloody offseason purge of veterans, along with Derrick Brooks, Warrick Dunn, Joey Galloway and Cato June.

It took some soul-searching to come to terms with his future.

“You always want to write your own ending to the story … but I’ve hung up the cleats for good,” he said. “If I’m going to be fortunate enough to have an opportunity like this, you can’t have one foot in the door and one out. You have to be all in.”

Joe’s glad Hilliard, just 33 years old, is at peace.

Joe has fond memories of talking international soccer and Bucs football with Hilliard last season. And Joe remembers how, in true Hilliard fashion, he held onto the ball over the middle after literally being knocked unconscious when Seattle’s Leroy Hill drilled him in the chin on the play.

Joe suspects Hilliard might be offered one more crack at the game next year if Chucky returns to the sidelines.

For intelligent football fans who were watching the NFL Network last night just prior to the Chicago-San Francisco game — and if you don’t have the NFL Network, what’s the matter with you? Be a man! — viewers witnessed a discussion about the future of Chucky.

As Joe has stated time and again for months, the two best prospects for Chucky to land would be Dallass and Washington. Both owners love the splash a high-profile coach would bring and both owners have no problems cutting checks for players, a perfect scenario for Chucky.

Jason La Canfora of the NFL Network, a former Redskins beat writer for the Washington Post, reported he hears strong rumblings from his sources on his old beat, and from his sources “inside the Buccaneers organization” that there is strong indication Redskins tyrant/owner Danny Snyder is in discussions to lure both Bruce Almighty and Chucky to Washington as part of a package deal.

It makes too much sense. Dallass, unless the Cowboys totally collapse, likely won’t can Wade Phillips since the Cowboys are playing so well. There is no organization in the NFL that fits better for Chucky than the Redskins.

Both JoeBucsFan.com analysts as well as fans have wondered why the Bucs don’t run a wildcat offensive formation from time to time.

Seems as though fired offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski wanted to use the wildcat offense, but his successor Greg Olson did not. In fact, per eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune, the Bucs were running wildcat offenses in practice until Jagodzinski was fired.

Olson promptly trashed the wildcat.

According to Williams, the Bucs experimented with the Wildcat formation, but scrapped the idea because Greg Olson replaced Jeff Jagodzinski as offensive coordinator only 10 days before the season opener.

“Early in the year, we did toy with it here and there,” he said. “They actually had Peanut (Clifton Smith) at the point and me as the guy coming in motion. We definitely have the personnel, but Coach Olson kind of got thrown in the fire and it was hard to try to do something else.”

Joe has nothing against Clifton Smith but Joe has a lot against his nasty habit of fumbling. Maybe the reason Olson scrapped the wildcat was that Smith fumbled too much?

To run that type of offense, ball protection is critical. That’s not Smith’s forte.

Cadillac Williams' big-money bet on the Bucs-Dolphins game with Miami RB Ronnie Brown will no doubt fail the sniff test from Roger Goodell.

Once upon a time back in 1990, two big-name players on opposing teams made bets with each other during a game, just to add a little extra excitement to their fourth quarter performances.

The stars only wanted to outplay each other. A couple of harmless $1,000 bets among millionaires.

No dice.

The commissioner cracked down swiftly, issuing fines to each player and stern warnings.

That was the NBA. The players were Charles Barkley and Mark Jackson.

Of course, professional sports leagues are never going to sanction gambling between players and coaches. It would get out of control. Every week there’d be big action on every game, with coaches, players and general managers challenging their counterparts to bet.

Joe can visualize Bill Parcells, well known for his love of horse racing, offering Mark Dominik 3-1 odds that his Dolphins beat the Bucs on Sunday, or 4-1 odds that the Fins rush for 175 yards on the Bucs’ horrendous run defense.

Where would it stop? Surely Josh Freeman would want to call out Mark Sanchez to put 50 grand on their head-to-head matchup in December.

This all brings Joe to a real-life huge wager between old buddies and college teammates Cadillac Williams and the Dolphins’ Ronnie Brown.

It seems Cadillac Williams has something in common with fellow Auburn alumnus Charles Barkley.

The friendly pair has some hot action on Sunday’s Tampa Bay-Miami game, reports Jim Flynn of PewterReport.com. (For those unfamiliar with PewterReport.com, it’s an Internet-only, media-credentialed Bucs fan message board and news/commentary site.)

Flynn writes that Williams detailed two wagers he has with Brown on Sunday’s game.

They’ve decided to take advantage of the rare occasion by placing a friendly wager on Sunday’s game in Miami. The two friends travel together quite a bit during the offseason, but one of the trips they take together next offseason could become quite costly for the player whose team loses.

Brown and Williams are close, but they aren’t in agreement on the destination of their next vacation, which will last two weeks. Should Brown win the bet, the two friends will vacation in Australia. If the wager falls in Williams’ favor, the two friends will vacation in Africa.

Whoever’s team wins Sunday’s game will pay for the travel expenses associated with one of their offseason ventures. Whoever comes up on the short end of the rushing yards produced in Miami this weekend must pay for the activities on that particular vacation. …  

“This could get really, really expensive,” said Williams.

It’s obvious this bet could cost the loser well over $20,000. This is serious money.

Joe hates to be a party pooper, but the Williams-Brown wager on yardage gained in Sunday’s game definitely could compromise the integrity of the game.

Might the bet influence one of them to cut upfield when the smart play is to get out of bounds and stop the clock?  

There are countless hypothetical scenarios that make it extraordinarily clear this kind of wagering has no place in the NFL, especially at a monetary level that far exceeds dinner at a top-shelf restaurant.

The Bucs did not repond to an Thursday inquiry seeking comment.

Joe’s very curious to see how warden Roger Goodell reacts to this wager. The Tampa Tribune also references the Williams-Brown bet, so Goodell can’t brush it off because it might lack credibility coming from a Web site.

If Mr. Goodell has no problem with it, Joe would advise every defensive end on the Bucs to immediately bet Gaines Adams $50,000 that they record more sacks than he does this season.

In this Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel video, Dolphins coach Tony Sporano (“Christopher, you leave Comley Trucking and every other f’ing item on this planet that belongs to my uncle June — including his hemorrhoid donut — the f’ alone.”) talks about the challenges his defense will face when trying to stop Bucs rookie quarterback Josh Freeman.

Miami fans are no doubt concerned about injuries. Joe wishes he could comfort these particular fans.

Earlier, Joe let you know that the Dolphins are among the league’s most banged up teams.

Now it seems they may be forced to endure a major hit to their rushing attack ranked fourth in the NFL, so says Omar Kelly of the Sun-Sentinel. He’s got a fresh report from Fins practice on Thursday.

So this time I won’t say that Justin Smiley, the Dolphins starting left guard, who is nursing yet another shoulder injury, is AWOL.  …But Smiley sure was missing from Thursday’s practice, and we haven’t been given an explanation why YET.Could Smiley be in the training room getting his shoulder electronically stimulated? Sure. But I couldn’t name you an injured player not on the IR who didn’t attend the team’s stretch.

The point I’m trying to make is this shoulder injury, which has been a reoccurring thing throughout Smiley’s NFL career (he’s had both shoulders surgically repaired), appears to be more than soreness.

Considering this is the second practice he’s missed I think it’s safe to assume the Dolphins top pulling guard is a long-shot to play against Tampa Bay on Sunday.

Joe keeps getting a vibe that the Bucs are catching the Dolphins at the right time. Not a vibe that the Bucs are better than the Dolphins. Just that the Bucs’ best might be good enough to win Sunday.

There are few things Joe loves more than talking Xs and Os with former Bucs defensive end Steve White, author of the popular Bull Rush column on JoeBucsFan.com.

White’s film breakdowns are always a fun read on his blog. And Joe’s sharing a couple of these nuggets today.

Missed Tackles. All of a sudden we are back to missing tackles in the run game. Quite a few of those missed tackles came from the safety position when either Jackson or Sabby Piscitelli and even Will Allen started off disguising their role as the 8th man in the box and then took off running at the snap and either ran pretty much by the ball carrier or just didn’t wrap him up. Now maybe they should come in a little more under control so they have a better shot at getting the runner down. Or maybe its just that there is still some confusion as to which gaps they fit into on run downs.

Whatever the reason we need to get that fixed this week before we go down to Miami.

Among other observations, White praises Kellen Winslow for his growth and commitment in the run game and notes that against Greeen Bay John Gilmore replaced Jerramy Stevens as the second tight end on running plays.

In a private chat with Joe, White also noted that Stevens has caught just one ball in the past five games after being a “matchup nightmare” last year.

Joe can’t help but wonder whether Stevens is in Raheem The Dream’s dog house for his repeated shoddy blocking earlier in the season.

Joe — and earlier his hcckey crazed sister Amanda— are getting stylish today about the Bucs uniform.

Seems as though someone named Ken Carbone writing for something called FastCompany.com has a problem with the Bucs helmets. So he decided to tinker with them.

Carbone is a fashion designer by trade, so he likely is not a football fan. So Carbone decides to go high school and redesign the Bucs helmet.

Joe can sum this up in one quick four-letter word: Fail.

I amplified the “Jolly Roger” feature of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers helmet to make it more telegenic while retaining the overall team color scheme.

Too much white on a potential illegal logo. Please remember that when the Bucs redesigned the helmet logo, Al Davis and the Raiders freaked out claiming copyright infringement.

Besides, when Joe looks at that logo that Carbone came up with, he can’t help but think of the Boca Ciega Pirates which the helmet is a virtual carbon copy of.