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TAMPA, Fla. -- You could suggest the Tampa Bay Buccaneers stepped out of character when they signed free-agent tight end Dallas Clark late Monday night.

Before adding Clark, the Bucs had only two players on the roster who were 30 or older. One was 37-year-old cornerback Ronde Barber, but he literally is grandfathered in because he has spent his entire career with the team and is a Tampa Bay icon. The other is defensive tackle Gary Gibson (30). He’s also an exception. Gibson, a career backup, played for coach Greg Schiano at Rutgers, is here for depth and there’s no guarantee of him making the regular-season roster.

Other than them, every other player on the roster has an age that starts with a 2. This is a team that's made it clear it will build primarily through the draft.

Clark spent nine seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, and as recently as the 2009 season was one of the league’s most productive tight ends -- when he had 100 receptions. But Clark suffered a season-ending wrist injury in the middle of the 2010 season. Last season, Clark had an assortment of injuries and was limited to 11 games, in which he produced 34 catches. That led to speculation that Clark’s career might be over.

“I’m not done playing,’’ Clark said Tuesday after his first workout with his new team. “You’re an NFL player. Every day you are proving yourself. The second you stop, you are out the door.’’

Clark said he’s over last season’s injuries and isn’t hampered by anything.

“I believe whole heartedly that he is going to return to his form and play the way he is capable,’’ Schiano said. "That’s what we need. I think he can do everything we are going to ask him to do. And it is really good to have strong veteran presence in that tight end room as well.”

But the thing is, Clark really isn’t all that much different than Barber or Gibson. The Bucs are hoping he’ll be their main pass-catcher at tight end, but they also plan to play Luke Stocker in a lot of situations. Their investment in Clark isn’t all that huge. They signed him to a very simple contract.

It’s a one-year deal. He’s scheduled to make $2.7 million in base salary and only $1 million of that is guaranteed. There was no signing bonus or any incentives. That comes after the Bucs freed up $4.8 million in cap room by trading tight end Kellen Winslow to Seattle.

If Clark bounces back and produces anything similar, the Bucs got a bargain and they’ll be thrilled. If the injuries linger or Clark isn’t the same player he was before, it’s not like the Bucs have made a huge long-term investment in him.

In short, the Bucs entered into a low-risk deal that at least has the potential to bring a lot of rewards. If it doesn’t, there’s really no harm.

In other financial news, the Bucs have given wide receiver Preston Parker a one-year contract extension. Parker still will make the same $540,000 in base salary this year that previously was scheduled. But he received a $50,000 signing bonus and his 2013 salary will rise to $1 million.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers didn’t take long to unload Kellen Winslow, after telling the veteran tight end he was on the market for a trade.

The Bucs announced late Monday night that Winslow had been traded to the Seattle Seahawks for a seventh-round draft pick in 2013 (that can rise to a sixth-round pick if Winslow meets certain playing-time and statistical requirements in Seattle) and they quickly turned around and signed veteran Dallas Clark to replace him.

The move came after Winslow broke the news to Sirius XM NFL Radio on Monday morning that coach Greg Schiano had said the Bucs wanted to trade him. Winslow said Schiano expressed unhappiness that he wasn’t taking part in offseason workouts with his teammates.

Although the Bucs only got a late-round pick for Winslow, it’s a still victory that the Bucs were able to get anything for a player who probably would have been released if no one offered anything in trade. Schiano is in the process of cleaning up Tampa Bay’s locker room and Winslow follows safety Tanard Jackson, who previously was released, as another player that didn’t fit the team’s new personality.

Clark may be a better fit in the locker room and he and Winslow might be an even exchange on the field at this point in their careers. Winslow had 218 catches for 2,377 yards and five touchdowns in three seasons with the Bucs. Winslow never missed a game in that span, but missed lots of practice time.

Clark may be on the downside of his career, but he may be a better fit in Schiano’s system. Clark spent the past nine seasons with Indianapolis. He started 111 of 114 career games, while catching 427 passes for 4,887 yards and 46 touchdowns.

"Dallas Clark is a consummate pro and proven playmaker," Tampa Bay general manager Mark Dominik said. "He will be another asset, on and off the field, for our team. In addition to Luke Stocker's continued improvement in his ability as an every-down tight end, we feel we have both talent and depth at the tight end position."

Let’s assume New Orleans general manager Mickey Loomis is able to work out a deal to re-sign quarterback Drew Brees. It will be complicated and expensive, but it’s also pretty much guaranteed to happen.

The Saints want it to happen, Brees wants it to happen and every Louisiana resident from Bogalusa to Lake Charles wants it to happen. Then, let’s assume that Loomis also is able to find a way to re-sign guard Carl Nicks and receiver Marques Colston. Those assumptions aren’t as solid as Brees re-signing because there are only so many ways to cut the pie that is the salary cap.

But, let’s just hypothetically say, Loomis, who has a pretty good track record, gets all three deals done. Aside from re-signing a few lower-level free agents, maybe bringing in a free agent or two and conducting a draft without a first-round pick, Loomis’ work would seem to be pretty much done. But that may not be the case.

The Saints have another potential contract situation percolating. As best I know, there haven’t been any threats or holdouts, but the Saints almost have to do something about the contract of tight end Jimmy Graham.

He remains under contract through 2013. Perhaps more than any other player in the NFL, Graham has outperformed his contract and that generally leads to a new deal.

In 2011, only his second year in the NFL, Graham had one of the best seasons ever by a tight end. He caught 99 passes for 1,310 yards and 11 touchdowns. He’s 25 and he’s only going to get better.

When you look at Graham’s production and potential, it’s easy to make a case he’s the NFL’s most underpaid tight end. Heck, he might be the most underpaid player in the NFL, period.

Graham’s still playing on his rookie contract, which was standard for the third-round pick he was in 2010. But he’s scheduled to make only $540,000 in 2012 and $575,000 in 2013.

Atlanta’s Tony Gonzalez signed a one-year extension at the end of the 2011 season that will pay him just about $7 million. Gonzalez might be the best tight ever. But Gonzalez also is on the downside of his career and I don’t think there’s any doubt Graham’s better at this point.

In 2011, the average tight end salary was $1.27 million and Graham’s far better than average. In terms of average per year, Graham ranked No. 33 in the NFL, according to contracts that were in effect for 2011. For context, Tampa Bay backup Luke Stocker ranked two spots ahead of Graham.

I think you can make a pretty strong case that Graham needs to jump up at least 30 spots to be paid what he’s worth. Again, I don’t think Graham’s threatening a holdout and he doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who would resort to that kind of tactic.

But Graham is obviously a core player for the Saints and he’s a guy they want to keep happy. Yeah, they could play hardball and make Graham play out his rookie contract. But that’s bound to create at least some resentment.

The guy has become one of the league’s two or three best tight ends. It doesn’t have to happen immediately. But, at some point, the Saints need to pay Graham like one of the league’s best tight ends.

Atlanta’s Tony Gonzalez might be the oldest tight end in the NFC South, but he also got way more playing time than anyone else at the position in 2011.

Gonzalez, who will turn 36 in February, played more snaps than all of the younger tight ends in a division that suddenly has become known for its tight ends.

Gonzalez was on the field for 952 of Atlanta’s 1,157 offensive snaps. That’s 84.5 percent and it was good enough to rank Gonzalez No. 10 among all NFL tight ends. Dallas’ Jason Witten took part in a league-high 99.2 percent of his team’s offensive snaps, but New England’s Rob Gronkowski led in total plays on the field (1,092) because the Patriots had more offensive plays than the Cowboys.

Gonzalez finished the season with 80 catches for 875 yards and seven touchdowns. Shortly before the season ended, Gonzalez assured he will play at least one more season by agreeing to a one-year contract extension worth about $7 million.

In Sunday’s Pro Bowl, Gonzalez made a game-high seven catches for 114 yards. His receiving yards were the most for any tight end in the game.

Carolina’s Greg Olsen was the division’s second-most-used tight end during the regular season. Olsen was on the field for 866 of the Panthers’ 1,046 offensive snaps (82.8 percent and No. 12 in the NFL).

Tampa Bay’s Kellen Winslow participated in 822 of the Buccaneers’ 1,021 offensive snaps. That’s 80.5 percent and ranked No. 14 in the NFL.

Of the NFC South’s four regular starting tight ends, New Orleans’ Jimmy Graham took part in the fewest number of plays. Graham led all division tight ends with 99 catches for 1,310 yards and 11 touchdowns and was selected as the NFC’s starter in the Pro Bowl.

But the Saints use such a variety of offensive personnel that Graham’s time on the field was relatively limited. He took part in 798 of 1,152 offensive plays (69.3 percent and No. 24 in the NFL).

The Panthers used a combination of Olsen and Jeremy Shockey, who ended up taking part in 51.1 percent of Carolina’s plays.

Here’s a list of other NFC South backup tight ends and the percentage of playing time they got in 2011:

• Luke Stocker, Buccaneers, 34.1.
• John Gilmore, Saints, 28.6.
• Michael Palmer, Falcons, 23.6.
• Reggie Kelly, Falcons, 19.7.
• David Thomas, Saints, 12.6.
• Richie Brockel, Panthers, 11.8.
• Ben Hartsock, Panthers, 7.1.
• Zack Pianalto, Buccaneers, 6.3.
• Mike Higgins, Saints, 2.3.
• Collin Franklin, Buccaneers, 1.6.

As Tampa Bay has struggled through a four-game losing streak, it’s become trendy to pick apart the Buccaneers.

They’ve got plenty of problems on both sides of the ball. Coach Raheem Morris and his staff are frequent targets of criticism, having the league’s youngest team and a difficult schedule are convenient and somewhat-legitimate excuses, and injuries (particularly the loss of defensive tackle Gerald McCoy and running back Earnest Graham) have played roles.

But let’s take a look at a big problem spot, one that I never would have guessed would have been an issue at all. After watching quarterback Josh Freeman and tight end Kellen Winslow work out together at the University of South Florida during the lockout, I was certain I was seeing a special chemistry building. As a matter of fact, if I had time to have a fantasy football team, I would have drafted Freeman and Winslow very early.

That would have been a huge mistake. As it turns out, Freeman and Winslow simply aren’t clicking. With lots of help from NFC West colleague Mike Sando, who works part time as a rocket scientist and actuary, I got a breakdown of how Freeman has fared when targeting each of his receivers. We’ll leave out Collin Franklin and Micheal Spurlock because they each have been targeted only three times.

Although Winslow leads the team with 47 receptions and is second with 476 receiving yards, it wouldn’t be a stretch to call his connection with Freeman horrible. Winslow has been targeted 78 times. When throwing to Winslow, Freeman’s NFL passer rating is a dismal 48.9. Winslow has caught two touchdown passes. But seven of Freeman’s 15 interceptions have come on passes intended for Winslow.

Freeman’s passer rating when throwing to Winslow is worse, by far, than any other wide receiver, running back, fullback or tight end on the roster.

In fact, Mike Williams, who allegedly is Tampa Bay’s No. 1 wide receiver, is next as we move up from the bottom of the list. When throwing to Williams, Freeman’s passer rating is 70.0.

Here’s Freeman’s passer rating when throwing to all of the other Tampa Bay players who have been targeted more than twice and we’ll continue to work our way up from the bottom:

• LeGarrette Blount: 76.4

• Erik Lorig: 80.1

• Arrelius Benn: 81.8

• Luke Stocker: 83.3

• Earnest Graham: 88.6

• Kregg Lumpkin: 91.3

• Preston Parker: 103.6

• Zack Pianalto: 112.5

• Dezmon Briscoe: 135.2

TAMPA, Fla. -- No big surprise here, but the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be without two injured starters for Sunday’s game with New Orleans.

Running back LeGarrette Blount (foot) and defensive tackle Gerald McCoy (ankle) are inactive. Earnest Graham and Kregg Lumpkin are expected to share Blount’s work load. Frank Okam and Da’Quan Bowers are expected to rotate at McCoy’s spot.

The other inactives are receiver Sammie Stroughter, linebacker Zac Diles, offensive tackle Derek Hardman, offensive tackle James Lee and tight end Luke Stocker.

Carolina defensive end Charles Johnson (hip) is probable and participated fully in practice. Johnson had been added to the injury report Thursday. Right tackle Jeff Otah (back) is listed as questionable and participated in practice on a limited basis. Linebacker Omar Gaither (knee) is out for Sunday.

Atlanta has declared receiver Julio Jones (hamstring) and cornerback Chris Owens (concussion) out for Sunday’s game with Carolina. Defensive end John Abraham (groin), center Todd McClure (knee), guard Garrett Reynolds (ankle), and safety James Sanders (hamstring) are all listed as questionable. Abraham, McClure and Reynolds each participated in Friday’s practice on a limited basis.

The New Orleans Saints declared right tackle Zach Strief (knee), linebacker Will Herring (hamstring) and tight end David Thomas (concussion) out for Sunday’s game with Tampa Bay. Receiver Devery Henderson (calf) is probable.

The Buccaneers declared defensive tackle Gerald McCoy (ankle), tight end Luke Stocker (knee) and receiver Sammie Stroughter (foot) out for Sunday. Running back LeGarrette Blount (knee) is listed as doubtful and linebacker Mason Foster (knee) is questionable. Foster was able to participate in practice fully Friday.

The final injury reports are out, so let's take a look at the most important injuries around the division.

The Atlanta Falcons declared center Todd McClure (knee) out for Sunday, after he missed his third straight day of practice. That likely means Joe Hawley will return to the starting lineup. Defensive end John Abraham (hip) and defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux (knee) are listed as questionable. Both practiced on a limited basis.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers declared tight end Luke Stocker out with a knee injury. Linebacker Quincy Black (ankle) is questionable.

Carolina tight end Jeremy Shockey (concussion) should be able to play against his former team, the Saints. Shockey is listed as probable. Guard Geoff Hangartner (back) and tackle Jeff Otah (back) also are listed as probable.

The Saints have declared tight end David Thomas (concussion) and tackle Zach Strief (knee) out for Sunday. Receiver Devery Henderson (calf), linebacker Will Herring (hamstring) and center Olin Kreutz all are questionable after practicing on a limited basis.

Time to check in on the most important injuries around the NFC South.

The news was mixed out of Atlanta. Defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux (knee) and linebacker Stephen Nicholas practiced on a limited basis for the second straight day. But center Todd McClure (knee) sat out for the second straight day. McClure had returned from a knee injury last week and stepped back into the starting lineup after Joe Hawley had started the first three games.

There were encouraging developments out of New Orleans as center Olin Kreutz (knee) and linebacker Will Herring (hamstring) returned to practice on a limited basis. Receiver Devery Henderson (calf), offensive tackle Zach Strief (knee) and tight end David Thomas (concussion) also missed practice.

Tampa Bay rookie tight end Luke Stocker likely will miss Sunday’s game at San Francisco with a knee injury. Coach Raheem Morris said Stocker will be week-to-week. Stocker has been getting a fair amount of playing time as a blocking tight end as the Bucs use Kellen Winslow mostly as a pass-catcher. Stocker’s absence could create more playing time for Zack Pianalto and Collin Franklin.

The news was positive for the Panthers on the offensive line. Right tackle Jeff Otah and right guard Geoff Hangartner, who sat out Wednesday with back injuries, went through the full practice Thursday. Tight end Jeremy Shockey (concussion) took part on a limited basis, but coach Ron Rivera was optimistic about Shockey’s chances of playing Sunday.

The Wednesday injury reports are out, so let’s take a look at the most significant injuries around the NFC South.

We’ll start in New Orleans because the Saints have some pretty serious injury issues. Linebacker Will Herring (hamstring), center Olin Kreutz (knee), tackle Zach Strief (knee) and tight end David Thomas (concussion) all sat out the last game. They also sat out Wednesday’s practice.

There was mixed news in Carolina. The good news is cornerback Chris Gamble (concussion) returned to practice. The bad news is guard Geoff Hangartner (back), tackle Jeff Otah (back) and tight end Jeremy Shockey (concussion) sat out practice.

Tampa Bay didn’t list any significant players on the injury report. But backup tight end Luke Stocker (knee) and defensive end Tim Crowder (knee) sat out.

There was a little bit of encouraging news out of Atlanta. Defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux (knee) and linebacker Stephen Nicholas (calf), who have been out in recent weeks, returned to practice on a limited basis.

We’re only one week into the season, but the NFC South isn’t faring very well in one key statistical category.

That’s dropped passes. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers lead the league with five, according to ESPN Stats & Information. The Atlanta Falcons are tied for third with three.

Plus, two NFC South receivers are tied for the league lead in drops with two each. Those are Atlanta’s Roddy White and Tampa Bay’s Arrelious Benn.

The other drops for the Bucs came from Preston Parker and tight ends Kellen Winslow and Luke Stocker. Atlanta’s other drop was by running back Jason Snelling.

On the other end of the scale, drops have yet to be a problem for New Orleans and Carolina. The Saints have only one drop. The Panthers haven’t had a dropped pass yet and rookie quarterback Cam Newton threw the ball 37 times on opening day.

TAMPA, Fla. -- The panic that was so widespread among Tampa Bay Buccaneers' fans last week can rest for a bit.

The Bucs did some good things in just about every area in Saturday night’s 17-13 preseason victory against the Miami Dolphins at Raymond James Stadium. The Bucs also did some bad things, but none of them were the kind of mistakes that are unusual for preseason games.

That wasn’t the case in the past week’s loss to the New England Patriots, in which the Bucs did almost nothing positive. Yeah, the Patriots are an annual Super Bowl contender and coach Bill Belichick is known to demand intensity in exhibition games. The Dolphins probably aren’t going to be confused with the Patriots anytime soon, but they’re still a decent team.

Everything’s relative, but the measuring stick on the Bucs looks a lot better than it did a week ago. The defense generated some pressure and LeGarrette Blount flashed some big-play ability as a receiver out of the backfield.

Those are all things the Bucs knew they had to improve on and have been working on throughout the preseason.

Some other observations on the Bucs:

• The NFL’s decision not to suspend cornerback Aqib Talib during the 2011 season is looking like a blessing. E.J. Biggers and Myron Lewis, who would have taken on larger roles if Talib was suspended, both struggled. Biggers got beat by Brandon Marshall on a long touchdown pass and also got flagged for pass interference. Lewis also drew a pass-interference call.
• There was a brief scary moment when second-year defensive tackle Brian Price went down in the second quarter. Price was playing for the first time since having surgery on his pelvis last year. He stayed down for a minute, walked off the field with the trainers, but returned to the game a few plays later. It didn’t appear the problem had anything to do with the pelvis. It looked like Price just had the wind knocked out of him.
• Rookie tight end Luke Stocker, who missed most of camp and the first two preseason games with a hip injury, made his debut. He made one nice catch and probably has put himself in line to get some playing time behind Kellen Winslow and in two tight-end sets.
• The Bucs have said all offseason they want Blount to be a more complete running back in his second season. He ran for 1,000 yards as a rookie, but only caught five passes. Looks like the Bucs have every intention of getting Blount involved in the passing game. He was targeted five times Saturday night and caught three passes for 62 yards, 52 of those came when Blount caught a short pass and made several nice cuts in the open field.

The New Orleans Saints are practicing out in California this week and haven’t taken to the field yet Monday. We’ll monitor what comes out of their practice and weigh in if there is anything significant. Meantime, let’s take a look at what’s going on around the rest of the NFC South.

This might be the best news Carolina rookie quarterback Cam Newton has heard this preseason. Wide receiver Steve Smith says he’ll play in Thursday night’s preseason game, after sitting out the first two exhibitions with a hand injury. Having Smith could be a big boost for Newton. One thing I’ve noticed in the first two preseason games is that the rest of Carolina’s receivers have had problems getting separation from defenders. That’s never been a problem for Smith.

Speaking of Newton, we don’t know for sure yet if he’ll be the starter on opening day. But this much is certain: Newton’s already in the spotlight. He’s on a billboard in Times Square. Before he's ever played an NFL game, I think it's safe to say Newton is the most famous pro athlete in Charlotte's history.

We still haven’t seen Atlanta defensive end Ray Edwards on the field for a preseason game. But coach Mike Smith said the team has increased Edwards’ practice time as he recovers from offseason knee surgery. But Smith stopped short of saying if Edwards will play in Saturday’s preseason game against Pittsburgh.

Tampa Bay rookie tight end Luke Stocker is back practicing after injuring his hip on the first day of training camp. He’s got some catching up to do, but the Bucs had high hopes for Stocker before the injury. The Bucs would like to use Stocker in their two-tight-end sets and as a backup to Kellen Winslow.

Although their run defense has been bad in recent years, the Bucs believe that’s going to change once the young members of their front seven have a chance to settle in.

TAMPA, Fla. -- Cadillac Williams isn’t at One Buccaneer place, but that doesn’t mean the veteran running back is out the door just yet.

Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris just said there remains a possibility that the free-agent running back could return to the Bucs.

“We like him in our building,’’ Morris said. “He’s had a bunch of good years of service. I hope we get more out of him.’’

Williams previously has said he’d be interested in returning to Tampa Bay, but wanted to test the free-agent market. The Bucs still have room for him, even though Williams lost his starting job to rookie LeGarrette Blount last season.

After the switch, Williams thrived as a third-down back. The Bucs don’t have an heir apparent for that role at the moment.

There was some other news from Saturday afternoon’s practice

• Rookie tight end Luke Stocker has a hip injury that could force him to miss several weeks of training camp. Stocker watched practice from the sidelines while standing on crutches.
• Morris has a name for defensive end Da'Quan Bower’s pass-rushing stance -- “The Crouching Tiger’’.
• Morris had a great quote on how tight end Kellen Winslow can be his own worst critic. “Kellen’s never satisfied. He takes his playbook into the whirlpool.’’
• Perhaps the highlight of Saturday’s practice was when linebacker Geno Hayes intercepted a pass and returned it for what probably would have been a touchdown, although no tackling was allowed.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers just announced they have signed three more draft picks. Tight end Luke Stocker, safety Ahmad Black and cornerback Anthony Gaitor are now under contract.

The Bucs previously signed defensive ends Adrian Clayborn and Da'Quan Bowers, linebacker Mason Foster, and tight end Daniel Hardy. The Bucs now have signed seven of their eight draft picks.

Running back Allen Bradford, a sixth-round pick, was the only unsigned rookie as of Thursday night.