After five years in the gut of the Bucs’ defensive line, it’s no surprise that Chris Hovan says the Bucs should draft a defensive lineman in April.

Speaking to Rock Riley on 98.7 FM this morning, Hovan also said if he were a general manager, he would draft a defensive lineman in the first round every year.

Hovan said he’s a big fan of how the Giants have attacked drafting for their defensive line and he’d like to see the Bucs follow the same track — to have “depth that are playmakers.”

This got Joe thinking and researching, and the somewhat sad fact is the Bucs have invested as heavily as the Giants on defensive linemen over the past 10 NFL Drafts. The problem is the Bucs weren’t as successful.

Bucs’ premium D-line picks through last 10 drafts.
2011 – Adrian Clayborn (1), DaQuan Bowers (2)
2010 – Gerald McCoy (1), Brian Price (2)
2009 – Roy Miller (3), Kyle Moore (4)
2008 – Dre Moore (4)
2007 – Gaines Adams (1)
2003 – DeWayne White (2)

Giants’ premium D-line picks through last 10 drafts.
2011 – Marvin Austin (2)
2010 – Jason Pierre Paul (1), Linval Joseph (2)
2007 – Jay Alford (3)
2006 – Mathias Kiwanuka (1), Barry Cofield (4)
2005 – Justin Tuck (3)
2004 – Reggie Torbor (4)
2003 – William Joseph (1), Osi Umenyiora (2)

Obviously, the Giants have had their misses, but they’ve also numerous home runs — and two Super Bowls. Even Barry Cofield, hardly a household name, has had an impressive career.

Joe has hope for the Bucs’ more recent picks on the D-line given the run-stuffing prowess in 2012 , but the Mark Dominik-era D-linemen still have much to prove.

As Joe’s written previously, Joe would have no problem with the Bucs snagging a D-lineman in the first round this April. Decisions on free agents Michael Bennett and Roy Miller, however, will go a very long way toward making that call.

OK, for NFL fans in general, and in some respects for Bucs fans, an alarm bell will ring at 4 p.m. March 12, and the unrestricted free agency season begins for 2013.

Joe suspects many Bucs fans envision sort of a scene from Black Friday, when the doors of a Target are flung open at 4 a.m. and Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik races through and just grabs whatever he can reach and throws objects in a shopping cart.

This has led to many Bucs fans already having their shopping list, sort of like kid with a list as he or she waits in line to talk to Santa Claus each December. One such Bucs fan e-mailed his list to Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune for approval.

Q: Every year, I put together a wish of the free agents I would love to see wearing red and pewter. I start by fixing the horrible secondary. Patrick Chung from the Patriots could line up next to Mark Barron. Sean Smith could help our porous secondary. Martellus Bennett could fix our tight end problems. How about this one? We could sign Jake Long to play right tackle, which would eliminate the need to draft a RT. Kyle Vanden Bosch could provide insurance if one of our DEs goes down. With any of those above moves, we could have way more flexibility in the draft to take the best player available, instead of reaching for a need.

— Andrew Athans, Arnold, Md.

A: I agree with your premise that these deals would alleviate the need to reach for prospects in the draft, but they might also bankrupt the team. None of the players you mentioned will come cheap. If you narrowed your focus to two of these you’ll probably be closer to what the Bucs will really do. They’ll definitely address all these areas of need, but probably not in the way you suggest.

— Woody Cummings

Well, here’s Joe’s take on just some of the suggestions by Mr. Athans:

First, no way will the Bucs go out and grab Jake Long. Will the Bucs look to upgrade right tackle? Probably, but don’t expect Dominik to break his budget doing that. The position may be a draft target Dominik as opposed to free agency.

Would Michael Bennett’s brother look good in a Bucs jersey? Sure, but what if his brother signs with another team?

Of course, just about any warm body not named “Myron Lewis” would be an upgrade at cornerback. Look for Dominik to draft a corner (maybe two) and add one or two via free agency. And yes, he will have to overpay for a corner, just like half of the teams in the NFL will do because talent at the position is so coveted yet so scant.

Vanden Bosch is quite simply over the hill. Joe has read enough about him that Dominik should only sign him for a rock bottom price, if available, and use him as a backup; nothing more.

Last year Dominik made waves in free agency. Don’t expect that type of a wake next month. Dominik can’t play Santa every year.

Among the treats Joe had at Media Day during the Super Bowl was to meet Andy Benoit, who among other publications, writes for the excellent “Fifth Down Blog” of the New York Times.

Benoit is sort of the new breed of football writers. Rather than being a wordsmith, Benoit relies on watching hours of film and sifting through analytical data to bring that out in informative, concise stories without sounding like a drunk algebra teacher, or worse, someone who has diarrhea of the mouth with statistical gibberish.

Benoit also works for FootballOutsiders.com, the precursor to ProFootballFocus.com.

JoeBucsFan: What was your impression of Greg Schiano’s first year? Surprised, disappointed or is the book still open?

Andy Benoit: Book is still open. I was surprised at how well the defense played, especially against the run. They did a good job schematically with that, because they had a lot of the same personnel [from 2011]. Obviously, Lavonte David had a lot to do with that and it was a trickle-down effect with the rest of their front seven. Offensively, I like the Vincent Jackson signing; I think they got their money’s worth from him. Mike Williams has been better than I guessed he would be. And obviously Doug Martin is there so it’s a Josh Freeman question at this point. But the Bucs are in a pretty good spot overall. That’s a solid young roster they have laid a foundation for.

Joe: OK, so you set me up for a Freeman question. Is he ever going to get over the hump or is he going to be who he has been of late: One day he will look like John Elway and the next week he will look like Bobby Douglass.

Benoit: He has the talent to get over the hump. I don’t want to say it is a mindset thing but it is what is he looking at and what is he seeing? There are inconsistencies in the decision-making and there are inconsistencies in the mechanics. That’s what alarms the Bucs. Talent wise, I thought he was a new version of [Ben] Roethlisberger. It is very telling that [the Bucs] are not rushing to lock him up. Instead, they are taking a wait-and-see approach on him.

Joe: How much do you think it has messed with his mind that every year he has had so many different coordinators and position coaches? Though Joe was told by someone with high authority in the Bucs front office that offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan both was, and is a quarterbacks coach, so that in some respects, he is wearing two hats.

Benoit: It’s is hard to say because now we are talking about guessing about a guy’s mindset.

Joe: Shaun King said not long ago and not totally in a joking manner that Freeman needed a shrink.

Benoit: … (laughs) Well, Shaun is really aggressive with some of the things he says publicly about quarterbacks which is why he has done well in the media. People talk about Jason Campbell and the same thing and Alex Smith and the same thing. The guys that are really good quarterbacks don’t get different coaches every year or not for the same reason. That could be a Freeman issue as well. Eli Manning hasn’t been in a bunch of different systems and it is not just because he got lucky. Certain guys, you build the system around them. It is hard to guess how Freeman is thinking around it.

Joe: Lavonte David, he looked like he was a third round pick and, obviously, Mark Dominik traded up to get him late in the second round. I don’t think anyone imagined – shoot, I saw him play at Nebraska and realized he was a sideline-to-sideline guy – I don’t think anybody expected what this guy turned out to be. He was just unbelievable.

Benoit: He got consistently better as the season went on. All Pro might be a bit much but certainly Pro Bowl [was] in the discussion. Bobby Wagner got a lot of attention and [Luke] Kuechly was the best of them all. Kuechly is in his own class. He will be the next [Brian] Urlacher. But David, there is a lot to like about him. Very fluid athlete and good in traffic and good in space.

Last night Joe watched some college hoops and found two incredible games with buzzer-beaters to end both, one of which was a crazy play by Illinois to beat No. 1 Indiana.

Those games, along with a few Köstritzer beers, helped soothe Joe’s post-football-season depression.

Good beer always helps, too.

Anyway, Joe also mined the interwebs for football news and came across an interesting piece from popular sports radio personality Adam Schein. The normal co-host of SiriusXM NFL Radio’s “The Blitz,” Schein also types a regular column for NFL.com.

In a recent column, Schein wrote about his top 47 NFL moments for the 2013 season. Why 47? Why not!

Anyway, Schein picked Bucs running back Doug Martin’s crazy game against the Raiders this season as his sixth-best NFL moment of the just concluded season.

6) Doug Martin gashes the Oakland Raiders for 251 yards and four touchdowns in Week 9, delighting the fantasy owners of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie nationwide.

What a game that was and it proved Martin was no fluke, and that Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik hit a home run by trading up from the second round to grab Martin late in the first.

Joe just crosses his fingers that Martin wasn’t overworked. As we all know, there is only so much tread on the tires of every running back.

Warren Sapp started it, and now Michael Strahan seems determined to show off his urine stream in the blossoming pissing match between the two legendary defensive linemen.

Sapp was voted into the 2013 Hall of Fame class Saturday, but Strahan, also in his first year of eligibility like Sapp, didn’t make the cut. Joe documented on Wednesday that Sapp trash talked Strahan a bit during a Tampa radio interview.

“Say if I rewind this to Saturday at 12 o’clock me and you are sitting and I say, ‘It breaks down whatever and whatever and then you have Michael Strahan and me. C’mon, the menace and the media darling,'” Sapp said. “C’mon. Madness, or Good Morning America? I mean, c’mon.”

And now Strahan is firing back directly to Sapp on Twitter.

@MichaelStrahan – @WarrenSapp You never cease to amaze me! Enjoy your moment. You don’t need to take a shot at me to justify yourself to other people. #class … … @WarrenSapp I only competed against myself. Don’t let people make you get at me to justify your HOF selection. Enjoy it because u earned it. … …  … You have my # too. I’m a grown man and handle myself like one. Respect me and I respect you! “@WarrenSapp: @michaelstrahan u got my #!”

Joe can’t disagree with Strahan. Sapp did take a needless, irrelevant shot. It’ll be fun to see how No. 99 responds. Perhaps a pay-per-view MMA cage fight is in order. Sapp could use the cash.

Don’t miss this amazing event at Tilted Kilt Clearwater TONIGHT.  Tilted Kilt will host LIVE MMA Cage Fights. It’s going to be awesome!

Tilted Kilt is always the place to be to watch football, the Lightning, and feast on awesome food and experience the world famous Kilt Girls.

“They’re terrible,” former Bucs QB Shaun King said of the Bucs’ front office.

Fresh off a 7-9 season with emerging young players and Pro Bowlers in their prime, the Bucs are cruising into 2013 free agency with a monster load of cash to spend after restructuring the contracts of Carl Nicks and Vincent Jackson, and rolling over about $8 million of cap space into 2013 (a figure NBC put out yesterday).

But former Bucs quarterback Shaun King is not excited. The NFL analyst for NBC Sports Network, and one of three quarterbacks to lead the Bucs to the NFC Championship game, said yesterday that the Bucs’ needs and not a great fit for this offseason and he has no faith in rockstar general manager Mark Dominik.

“I’m going over the free agent list and I’m not that impressed. You know, they’re going to get a guy that’s gonna cost more than he’s worth. Sort of like Eric Wright last year,” King said on WDAE-AM 620 yesterday. “There aren’t a lot of difference-makers at need positions for Tampa. The safeties that are available are just OK. There aren’t any cornerbacks as good as Brandon Carr or Cortland Finnegan. There are some pass rush guys that are going to be there, but they’re going to cost. I just don’t know. I don’t like anything we’ve done so far.

“The one thing the good teams have is continuity. And we’ve changed a lot of coaches. I know Coach [Ron] Turner left to be a head coach, but Josh is going to get another quarterback coach. That’s another philosophy. That’s another set of opinions, That’s a new voice that he’s got to try and acquiesce to at the same time while he’s trying to improve. We changed DBs coach. We changed special teams coach. So in all those areas you’re starting from scratch, as far as what the expectation is for the guy playing that position. You know, the needs and deficiencies we have on this team are because of the mistakes that we’ve made in the front office up to this point.

“A lot of people come up to me and say, ‘Why are you so hard on Dominik?’ And I say because in the National Football League, the thing that makes it great is the parity. The economic system is the same for every team. So it comes down to intelligence in the front office. It doesn’t take four years to have a roster loaded with talent that’s a playoff team. What we do here is we’re just spinning our wheels. We make mistakes, so then we have to try and make up for the mistakes. And everybody just says, ‘Ok. Give him another year.'”

Joe must defend Dominik here a bit. King states it doesn’t take four years to build a winner because the economic system is the same for every NFL team. But was it “the same” during Dominik’s early years as GM? The Bucs were among the lowest spenders in the NFL for three of Dominik’s four seasons, two of which had no salary cap, aka no leaguewide economic parity.

Dominik also walked into the job and was awarded one of the youngest and most inexperienced coaches in the history of the NFL. Does anyone believe Dominik didn’t want to interview several candidates?

Of course, Dominik is responsible for the Bucs’ talent level, and he’ll ultimately be judged by wins and losses. Scott Pioli got canned recently in Kansas City with a stack of Pro Bowlers, a division title under his belt, and a season in which his Chiefs were a field goal from the playoffs, and only one less total win than Dominik in his four seasons.

Wins are all that matter in the NFL, and Joe’s confident Dominik’s front office will be held to that standard when appropriate.

Among Joe’s more painful moments of the 2012 season was Greg Schiano’s November reference to “E.J., Leonard, Danny and LeQuan” when talking about his key cornerbacks.

Joe was sobered up immediately upon hearing that. That fearsome foursome only struck fear in the hearts of Bucs fans. And it’s no surprise they helped lead the Bucs to early January tee times after a 6-4 start.

Now, one member of the fearsome foursome is gone: LeQuan Lewis, so Twittered Bucs beat writer Woody Cummings yesterday.

Joe suspects Lewis is an early casualty of postseason film analysis. Rockstar general manager Mark Dominik already has praised E.J. (Biggers), Leonard (Johnson) and Danny (Gorrer), so Joe believes those guys are safe, assuming E.J. isn’t in high demand on the unrestricted free agent market.

Lewis can’t complain too much. The Bucs gave him a shot as their No. 1 return man and in the secondary. He just couldn’t make enough happen.

Joe isn’t a big mock draft guy in that Joe’s not big on the mock draft types –who grow to an insane level in the final days leading to the draft — talking about guys “rising” and guys “falling.”

Bulls(p)it! This isn’t the New York Stock Exchange. If a team doesn’t have its draft board set by the end of March, there is something seriously wrong. Guys don’t rise and slide in late April much less the middle of February, barring getting pinched for a felony.

And putting together a mock draft before free agency — March 12 boys and girls — is akin to having a few beers and playing darts. Fun, but slightly more productive than useless.

For example, Joe pays about two percent attention to Mel Kiper’s mock draft. Currently, he has the Bucs selecting Notre Dame inside linebacker Manti Te’o. Come ‘on Mel, at least put a little thought behind your weak attempts, huh?

Another BSPNer, Todd McShay, another dubious source, has the Bucs selecting Texas A&M defensive end Damontre Moore. At least McShay put some thought behind this.

Now none of the draft gurus at NFL.com have Moore slipping below No. 6, and the Bucs pick at No. 13. That’s within range of a less-than-painful trade up by Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik if so inclined.

Bucs insiders have hinted that if the Bucs believe there is a pass rusher sitting at No. 13, one the team believes could give the Bucs an immediate impact, the Bucs would pull the trigger on said player. Also, given Dominik’s history of drafting defensive linemen, Moore somehow winding up with the Bucs isn’t an absurd thought.

Look, do the Bucs need cornerbacks? No question. Sadly, there are no elite corners this season but corners are three rounds deep Joe is told, meaning there is very good value at corner later in the draft than at No. 13.

Yes, some would suggest Alabama cornerback Dee Milliner is worthy of a high pick, but Joe heard former Bucs quarterback Shaun King (you know, one of only three Bucs quarterbacks to lead the Bucs to an NFL Championship game?) say that if Milliner was in last year’s draft, he may have been the third or fourth cornerback selected and the only reason Milliner is considered a high first round pick is because NFL teams are irrationally desperate for cornerbacks.

So the more Joe thinks about Moore coming to the Bucs, it really isn’t that far-fetched.

“Relax everyone. We’ve got another Rutgers man in the house.”

The Bucs made their 2013 coaching staff official today and, while various changes were widely publicized weeks ago, there were a couple of new moves revealed.

Linebackers coach Bob Fraser, a Schiano man from Rutgers, was promoted to assistant defensive coordinator and another Rutgers man, Robb Smith, is the new linebackers coach, his first time in the NFL.

Smith will enter his first NFL season, having spent the previous 14 seasons in the college ranks. He previously served at Rutgers as defensive coordinator/secondary coach (2012), special teams coordinator and linebackers coach (2011), special teams coordinator/cornerbacks coach (2010), and special teams coordinator/outside linebackers coach (2009); at Maine as assistant head coach/outside linebackers coach (2006-08), assistant special teams/linebackers coach (2005), and defensive backs coach (2002-04) at Maine; and at Iowa as a quality control/defensive graduate assistant (1999-2001).

In his only year as the defensive coordinator, Smith helped make Rutgers one of the best defenses in college football, ranking fourth in the nation in points allowed per game (14.2), sixth in rush yards allowed per game (95.2) and 10th in total defense (311.6 YPG). Smith also helped Rutgers LB Khaseem Greene become an All-American.

Under Smith’s guidance, Rutgers routinely had one of the best special teams units in college football. In 2012, the team led all FBS schools with eight blocked punts. They ranked second in 2011 and first in 2010 in blocked punts, with nine each year. While Smith was at Rutgers, the Scarlet Knights led the nation with 31 blocked punts.

A Pittsburgh native, Smith was a three-year letterman at Allegheny College, where he graduated in 1997. During his time with Maine, Smith helped oversee one of the Top FCS defenses in 2006, ranking in the top five in rush defense (first), total defense (second), sacks (third) and scoring defense (fourth).

After Fraser’s success with the linebackers — what an improvement!! — with a big assist from Bryan Cox, Joe’s not surprised by his promotion. As for Smith, clearly he will do exactly as Greg Schiano tells him with the Bucs linebackers. Just the way Schiano likes it.

The Complete 2013 Bucs Coaching Staff

Greg Schiano                       Head Coach
Brian Angelichio                  Tight Ends Coach
Bob Bostad                           Offensive Line Coach
Jay Butler                              Head Strength and Conditioning Coach
Earnest Byner                      Running Backs Coach
Bryan Cox                             Pass Rush Specialist
Bob Fraser                            Assistant Defensive Coordinator
Phil Galiano                          Assistant Special Teams Coach
John Garrett                          Wide Receivers Coach
Bob Gilmartin                        Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach
Jeff Hafley                             Secondary-Safeties Coach
Steve Loney                          Assistant Offensive Line Coach
Tem Lukabu                          Defensive Assistant
Kevin MacConnell               Director of Football Operations
Ben McDaniels                    Offensive Assistant
John McNulty                       Quarterbacks Coach
Randy Melvin                       Defensive Line Coach
Tony Oden                            Secondary-Cornerbacks Coach
Jimmy Raye                          Senior Offensive Assistant
Bill Sheridan                         Defensive Coordinator
Robb Smith                           Linebackers Coach
Mike Sullivan                        Offensive Coordinator
Joe Vaughn                          Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach
Dave Wannstedt                  Special Teams Coordinator

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It’s pretty darn clear that beleaguered former Bucs secondary coach Ron Cooper, now the University of South Florida assistant head coach, wasn’t a big fan of his first NFL experience and is ecstatic to back in the college ranks.

Cooper sat down yesterday with “Gary and The Commish, on 98.7 FM, and when asked about his Buccaneers experience, Cooper never once thanked the organization, mentioned Greg Schiano or any other coaches, and remarked about limited time to teach in OTAs.

Asked about coaching the Bucs secondary, Cooper talked a lot about injuries and absences, and praised opposing quarterbacks.

“That’s league’s what I call different,” Cooper said of the NFL. “It isn’t as much coach-driven as it is player-driven. You know, the players are the ones that have to execute. The players are the ones that have to do it all. You know, a lot of times that people put it and say, ‘It’s coaching. It’s coaching. It’s coaching.’ But, you know, there are good quarterbacks, Drew Brees, Matt Ryan. I mean they’re good quarterbacks. The difference probably in professional football is that every week, not every week, but out of the 16 games you’re going to have 12 guys, including the guy at Oakland, that can make every throw.”

Cooper went on to say it was a challenge to have new players coming on the roster during the season.

Weeks ago, Joe reported that privately Cooper was frustrated by Schiano demanding the secondary be coached Schiano’s way when it came to drills and other methods.

Regardless, it’s clear Cooper wasn’t a good fit for the Bucs or the NFL. Joe wishes Cooper well. (You can listen to the complete interview below.)

“The Godfather,” Gil Brandt, kindly gave Joe time to talk Bucs football last week during Media Day in New Orleans. Brandt was the architect of the Dallas Cowboys dynasties from the early days of the Tom Landry administration through Jimmy Johnson’s first few seasons. In his heyday, Brandt was uncanny about eyeing football talent, and his current regular spots on SiriusXM NFL Radio are must-listen for Joe. Brandt works for the NFL in organizing draft activities each spring. In no uncertain terms, when Brandt talks, Joe listens.

JoeBucsFan: You made noise in the Tampa Bay area when you ranked Josh Freeman near the bottom of quarterbacks under 30. What do you think has gone wrong with Freeman?

Gil Brandt: I don’t know. As you know, I thought he was a coming star. I brought him to the draft [in New York] as you remember, I thought so highly of him. If you watched him in 2010 and you watched him beat Green Bay [in his debut as a starter in 2009], he looked pretty good. Then I thought last year [in 2011], well, the whole team was a disaster. Then you watched him this past season, he was an up-and-down guy. He was great one week and down the next week. I still think the guy has a lot of talent. I think he is athletic. I think he is smart. You know, with a quarterback, you are either in the outhouse or the penthouse. There is no in-between. I think he has the physical tools to play the position. And I think mentally, he is good enough to play the position.

Joe: Freeman has had so many different coaches, different quarterback coaches and/or offensive coordinators each season since he been in the NFL. Can that mess with a quarterback’s head?

Brandt: Of course. With something new, instead of doing things spontaneously at times, you are thinking. And if you are thinking, you may delay a throw a tenth of a second and that can result in an interception. I think he has a chance and it helps that he has very good receivers now.

Joe: Bucs general manager Mark Dominik had previously always talked about getting No. 5 toys. There are not too many other quarterbacks out there now that has as many toys as Freeman now enjoys.

Brandt: You are right.

Joe: Gerald McCoy, he finally had a healthy season, finally played a full season. Is he finally showing what he can do on the NFL level.

Brandt: (laughs) As you know, I always loved Gerald McCoy. Not only do I love him…

Joe: You just love those Big XII guys, Gil.

Brandt: (laughs)… yeah, well, not so much that, but I love Gerald McCoy as a person. I just think what a great, great person this guy is. And I would imagine he is delight for you to do business with.

Joe: Oh, he’s a treat!

Brandt: So it is great to have players that understand the media is a pretty important part of the business.

Joe: Lavonte David…

Brandt: He’s an unbelievable player.

Joe: Well, I watch Nebraska games and when the Cornhuskers were on defense when David played, he was always in the picture no matter where the play was. He was truly a sideline-to-sideline guy. I thought he would be a good third round player. Obviously, the Bucs traded up to get him late in the second round. But who expected him to blow up like he has his rookie year?

Brandt: We’ve had some good rookie linebackers this year. Bobby Wagner up on Seattle and Luke Kuechly with the Panthers who has really exceeded expectations. But I don’t think anyone was surprised [at David’s success] but he is so small. So everybody was wondering how a guy his size was going to make it in the National Football League, but he has held up pretty well.

The sweet, early smells of the NFL Draft are in the air, and that means it’s Justin “The Commish” Pawlowski’s time of year.

Have you lost track of the The Commish, Joe’s go-to local draft guru? Well, as of Monday, he’s been getting after all things Bucs and NFL and more from 9 a.m. to noon on 98.7 FM, flanked by Tampa Bay Times columnist Gary Shelton.

Yesterday, The Commish interviewed former Bucs secondary coach Ron Cooper, something Joe will bring you a take from later. You can click the link above to listen to The Commish live.

The 2012 NFL season wrapped up just a couple of days ago, so of course it is time to look ahead to 2013, something Joe has been doing for a few weeks now.

Sure, San Francisco is a favorite to contend for the Super Bowl they nearly won Sunday. But when Peter Schrager of FoxSports.com decided to put fingers to keyboard, he thought of other teams fans should watch outside of the Niners, the Dixie Chicks and a few other obvious teams.

Schrager believes the Bucs are a top sleeper fans will overlook for 2013.

3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: The Baby Bucs showed real signs in 2012 and should be better in 2013. Quarterback Josh Freeman is entering his crucial fifth year and he has real weapons in Doug Martin, Vincent Jackson and Mike Williams. The defense is rich with young talent and should improve next year. The NFC South is loaded with good teams, but the Bucs could shake things up.

Yes, the defense should improve. The Bucs, barring an unforeseen injury, should be healthy up front for the first time in years. It is the secondary that needs a major upgrade and there is nothing to suggest Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik will not address that.

In Joe’s eyes, the Bucs’ playoff chances come down to two areas: Josh Freeman’s consistency and significant improvement in the secondary.

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Joe’s among the legions of Bucs fans on edge hoping Ronde Barber will return for the 2013 season. But Joe was a bit surprised recently to hear Barber say he’s unsure whether he’s in the Bucs’ plans.

One would think the New Schiano Order already would have expressed to Barber a desire for his return, even if they were waiting a while to get into details.

Barber opened up during an interview on WFAN-AM before the Super Bowl.

“I don’t know how many I could play. I honestly don’t know how many I will play,” Barber said. “I’ve been in a very fortunate situation here in Tampa that I have a GM now, and really a coach going all the way back to Raheem and now with Greg, that’s I think going to let me make the decision. You know, we’ll sit down here in another month or so after they decide what they want to do and we’ll have a pretty frank discussion about my future, and whether or not I fit in. And if I do, if I’m willing to continue to go. And it’s been that way for three years so I imagine it will be the same when we sit down and try to hammer out my future with the team.”

Joe hopes it’s a smooth situation that leads to Barber’s return at the end of the month, per Barber’s stated timeline.

Forgetting about everything the Bucs icon represents, Barber’s still a good, durable football player who’s important in the locker room.

You can listen to the entire interview below.

In the eyes of some Bucs fans, the second coming of Dick “Night Train” Lane, helmet-wielding, cabbie-punching, Adderall-popping cornerback Aqib Talib, is still a sore spot.

They mock Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik for only getting a fourth round pick in a swap with Bill Belicheat. Joe, meanwhile, considers that a borderline robbery of Belicheat as the Bucs were going to wash their hands of Talib anyway. So why not get a good draft pick for him?

(Remember how Dominik wheeled and dealed last spring using lesser draft picks to trade up for the likes of Doug Martin and Lavonte David?)

Well, it seems word is coming out of New England (or is it a negotiating plant by Belicheat?) says the Patriots don’t trust Talib to sign him to a long-term deal and may let him walk?

That’s what Comcast New England reported.

A source with knowledge of the situation told Comcast SportsNet’s Mike Giardi that, while Aqib Talib displayed no behavioral problems during his time with the Patriots, the team has enough concerns over his work ethic to be somewhat reluctant to offer the star cornerback a multiyear contract.

According to the source, Talib passed on the chance to do extra work at times this year and there are questions as to how he’d handle a long-term deal. The Pats, said the source, would prefer to sign Talib to a one-year, make-good contract.

Why, Joe cannot imagine how any team could not trust this modern day Mel Blount? Just like with the Bucs, Talib was not available when the Patriots needed him most.

It is also very odd to Joe to hear that Talib was such a treasure — by listening to some Bucs fans —  even though the Bucs had a winning record without his services the past three years. How could that be?

No, this move to let Talib go for a middle-round pick was a very wise move by Dominik.