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TAMPA, Fla. -- The show on the stage was impressive on every level.

The moment Greg Schiano started talking, you got the sense the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had more order, direction and control than at any point in the past three years. Schiano said all the right things and said them the right way. I’ve seen some introductory speeches for coaches through the years.

I’ve seen Sam Wyche trying to play cheerleader on the back of a flat-bed truck outside the old Tampa Stadium, Tony Dungy very dryly talking about what he’d bring to the Bucs (before any of us realized the depth of the man) and John Fox trying way too hard, and not really succeeding, to instantly win over the Carolina fans and media.

Schiano did none of that. He just let it flow naturally and everything he said was perfect.

But the most impressive show I saw was taking place about 30 yards away from where Schiano stood. That’s where a young man sat silently. He sat completely upright and seemed to be listening intently to everything his new coach said.

That man was Josh Freeman. There’s little doubt Schiano’s hiring will be a big point in Buccaneers’ history -- for better or worse. Schiano’s got a huge job ahead of him and he might have the skills to succeed.

But Freeman is still the most important person in One Buccaneer Place. He is the quarterback. He now is Schiano’s quarterback. If things are going to turn around for the Buccaneers after a disastrous 4-12 final season by Raheem Morris, Freeman might have to play an even bigger role than Schiano.

Freeman is an enormous talent with all sorts of leadership intangibles. The only problem is Morris, his staff and Freeman’s supporting cast came dangerously close to ruining him last season. Freeman threw 22 interceptions last season, after throwing only six in a very promising 2010 campaign.

This kid is too good a talent and a person to ruin. If Schiano is going to succeed, he needs to get Freeman back on track.

Perhaps the best news of the day was that the quarterback and the coach already are on the same page. Freeman was in Kansas City on Thursday when he got the call from general manager Mark Dominik, alerting him that Schiano had been hired.

Freeman did exactly what you would expect a good leader to do. He went and bought a plane ticket to Tampa. In Freeman’s eyes, he had to be there.

“First day, first press conference and I really wanted the opportunity to meet coach Schiano and show him that I’m here and I’m ready to go,’’ Freeman said.

The coach and the quarterback met before the news conference. Freeman, who publicly supported Morris to the bitter end, came away impressed.

“I love his direction,’’ Freeman said. “He’s a very passionate coach and I’m really excited to have the opportunity to play for him.’’

As he introduced Schiano, Dominik used words like “structured," “organized" and “disciplined." As he spoke about himself, Schiano revealed one of his main mottos “Trust, belief and accountability’’.

As Schiano went on about his “TBA" formula, I took a look back over my shoulder at Freeman. There seemed to be a gleam in his eyes, even more of a gleam than when Schiano mentioned that his offensive philosophy includes taking shots down field.

Every quarterback wants to hear a coach say he wants to take shots down field. But more than getting to throw some deep passes, I think Freeman needs, and wants, the “TBA’’.

Freeman was a leader for the Bucs in 2010. He was a leader as he organized offseason workouts last spring and summer during the lockout. He went into last season as a leader. I don’t think Freeman ever stopped trying to be that leader.

I think he simply got dragged down by the total lack of leadership and direction from the previous coaching staff. A lot of players ran wild and there was no accountability and not nearly enough leadership from other corners of the locker room. The Bucs were a ship out of control.

There’s no question the Bucs need control and discipline.

“There is going to be a Buccaneer way and they are going to be Buccaneer men,’’ Schiano said.

Schiano’s going to run things a lot different than Morris. That’s a good thing for Freeman, who is a guy that believes in structure and order. He’ll get that now and he might even get some improvements in his supporting cast.

The Bucs now have a coach that just might put them in a position where they have a chance to succeed. More importantly, they’ve got a leader who is totally on the same page as the coach and that could take them a long way.

“That’s the only way to have success in this league is to have people buying in with the trust, belief and accountability,’’ Freeman said. “There’s really no other way. Everybody’s got to be full tilt from Day One. The direction Coach Schiano s going to take this team in is going to be great and it’s exciting.’’

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FALLING

1. Raheem Morris, Buccaneers coach. He has become a weekly contestant in the “Falling’’ category of Stock Watch. That’s only because his stock has continued to fall every week for about the past month. How much lower can it go? Well, think about this: The Bucs play Jacksonville on Sunday. You put together back-to-back losses to the Panthers and Jaguars and that’s as bad as it gets. The defense, which Morris coordinates, is a mess. Weird things keep happening around One Buccaneer Place (see Morris, cursing and ripping on defensive tackle Brian Price in the latest episode). This is really starting to look like the final, bizarre days of Sam Wyche all over again. I’m just hoping Morris doesn’t do what Wyche did and go on a 45-minute diatribe/meltdown on Christmas Eve.

2. Julio Jones, Falcons receiver. When he has been healthy, the rookie receiver has had a pretty good season. But Jones played like a rookie Sunday. He dropped two passes and was called for a couple of costly penalties.

3. Mike Mularkey, Falcons offensive coordinator. Atlanta came out very aggressive, throwing a couple of quick deep passes against Houston. That didn’t work. Didn’t the Falcons learn anything early in the year when they were trying to force things downfield? Their offensive line isn’t really good enough to block for the deep ball, unless Michael Turner and the running game has softened up a defense first. If the Falcons somehow don’t make the playoffs or have an early exit, there’s probably going to be a scapegoat because expectations were so high at the start of the season. Mularkey’s looking like the leader in the scapegoat clubhouse.

RISING

1. Ron Rivera, Panthers coach. Carolina has won two in a row, which is more significant than it sounds. In my newspaper days, I covered two dramatic turnarounds. I saw Tony Dungy take over a bad Tampa Bay team in 1996 and put it in the playoffs the next season. I saw John Fox take over a terrible Carolina team in 2002 and put it in the Super Bowl the next season. Each of those teams showed some progress and built momentum at the end of the first season that clearly was a stepping stone to success the next year. What Rivera is doing looks an awful lot like what Dungy and Fox did at the end of their first seasons.

2. Robert Meachem, Saints receiver. About as quietly as you can put up 119 receiving yards and one touchdown, Meachem did that in Sunday night’s victory against Detroit. It’s easy to get lost in a receiving corps that also includes Lance Moore, Marques Colston and Devery Henderson, and don’t forget tight end Jimmy Graham and the running back trio of Darren Sproles, Pierre Thomas and Mark Ingram. People always say Drew Brees makes everyone around him look better and that’s got a lot of truth to it. But Brees also benefits from working with an amazing collection of talent -- and Meachem is part of that collection.

3. Tony Gonzalez, Falcons tight end. On a day when not much went right for the Falcons, Gonzalez put up 100 yards on seven catches. This guy is amazing. There were times last season when I thought Gonzalez was near the end of the road. If you threw him a 7-yard pass, he’d give you 7 yards. This season, Gonzalez looks faster and is making some things happen after the catch.

Thoughts on Tampa Bay Buccaneers' 37-9 loss to the Houston Texas on Sunday at Raymond James Stadium:

What it means: The Buccaneers have been searching for an identity all season. Looks like they finally found it. They are a mediocre team with problems in a lot of places on offense and defense. They’re 4-5 and have to face the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers next. Coach Raheem Morris has been saying all year that his team’s goal is to win the NFC South. That’s probably not going to happen, unless the Bucs suddenly get dramatically better and the Saints stumble.

Same old story: Tampa Bay’s offense started off the way it has pretty much all season -- very slowly. The Bucs didn’t score their first points until Connor Barth hit a field goal just before halftime. They didn’t score their touchdown until the fourth quarter. Maybe the Bucs should take a lesson from former coach Sam Wyche. Back in the mid-1990s, the Bucs were starting poorly after halftime. So Wyche actually had his team practice its halftime routine. Maybe the current Tampa Bay offense should practice starting a game.

Albert’s Army: The Bucs picked up defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth during the week because injuries had left them thin in the middle of the defensive line. Haynesworth was fairly active, making four tackles. But the problems on Tampa Bay’s defense go way deeper than the middle of the defensive line. Matt Schaub only had to attempt 15 passes, but he threw for 242 yards and two touchdowns and the Texans had no problem running the ball.

Insult to injury: Derrick Ward, the same guy who was a free-agent bust with the Bucs, ran for a touchdown against his former team.

What’s next: The Bucs travel to Green Bay to play the Packers next Sunday.

Examining the most crucial event in the history of every team in the division.

The most important moment in the history of the New Orleans Saints, maybe even in the history of the entire NFC South, might have come when a coach and a quarterback went for a ride and got totally lost.

It came on a spring day in 2006 when Sean Payton, recently hired as the coach, took free-agent Drew Brees and his wife, Brittany, for a ride that seemed misdirected at the time, but turned out to be a drive to destiny. While touring the area, Payton got off Interstate 10 at the wrong exit and started driving on streets he’d never seen before.

“I finally admitted to Drew, 'I have no idea where we are right now,'’’ Payton wrote in his book, “Home Team.’’

It’s worth a laugh now. But at the time, Payton, Brees, the Saints and the entire New Orleans region really had no idea where anything was. This was a few months after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and the Saints didn’t even know if they’d be able to stay in New Orleans for the long term.

Brees’ future was just as cloudy. He wasn’t being brought back by San Diego because he was coming off a major shoulder injury and the Chargers were handing things over to Philip Rivers. There was interest from Miami, but the Dolphins weren’t sure about Brees’ shoulder. Neither were the Saints.

But Payton and general manager Mickey Loomis decided to take a gamble. They offered Brees a big contract and a couple of days after being hopelessly lost, he accepted. The Brees signing was the big winner for the Saints in our Flash Points polls about the make-or-break moment in the history of each NFC South franchise.

Forty-six percent of more than 50,000 voters (the highest of all the NFC South precincts) chose the signing of Brees as the biggest moment in team history. Winning Super Bowl XLIV finished second at 36 percent and the hiring of Payton was third at 17 percent.

No argument here. Hiring Payton was significant, but signing Brees is the biggest reason why the Saints went on to win a Super Bowl and make themselves more a part of the New Orleans fabric than ever before.

Let’s turn to a couple of loyal readers for affirmation.

Richard in Ann Arbor, Mich., wrote: “Signing Drew Brees has to trump all. When you take into account everything that Drew has done off the field since his arrival, winning the Super Bowl may be the least important thing that he has done for the city of New Orleans.’’

Fred in New Orleans wrote: “As much as I would like to say our turning point was hiring Jim Finks or Jim Mora or maybe even Sean Payton, I think the Saints' turning point was actually made by another team -- when the Dolphins refused to make an offer to Drew Brees. If they make a hard push for him who knows what happens next?’’

PANTHERS: Jake Delhomme's arrival game

Appearing in Super Bowl XXXVIII was the winner of the popular vote as the Flash Point for the Carolina Panthers. That loss to New England drew 42 percent of the vote, and advancing all the way to the NFC Championship Game in only the second season of an expansion franchise finished second at 28 percent.

But I’m going with a moment that wasn’t even on the ballot as my Flash Point for the Panthers -- the insertion of Jake Delhomme at quarterback at the start of the second half of the 2003 season opener against Jacksonville. An unknown career backup with the Saints, Delhomme replaced Rodney Peete and the Panthers just kept winning all the way to the Super Bowl. I was covering the Panthers on a daily basis as a beat writer at that time and as I think back, Delhomme’s emergence in that game was one of the most magical moments I’ve seen in sports.

Let me add that a vocal group of readers made a strong case that Delhomme’s debut should have been on the ballot because that was actually the moment that sparked the whole Super Bowl run. I thought about that for a couple of minutes and decided they were right. So let’s hear from a few convincing readers.

Brian in Charlotte wrote: “Jake Delhomme’s halftime entrance into the game versus Jacksonville seems to represent the best of Panthers history. The team marched to an appearance in the Super Bowl that year and, while we may not have had back-to-back winning seasons, provided the Panthers with both stability and leadership at the quarterback position for the next few years.’’

Evan in Charlotte wrote: “Carolina rode on that momentum to eventually go to the Super Bowl. That whole season was Carolina's defining moment, but it all began at that game. Everything about the Carolina Panthers changed at that moment.’’

Brian and Evan, you’re absolutely right.

BUCCANEERS: Dungy turned the tide

In the closest contest of all our polls, readers voted Tampa Bay’s victory against Oakland in Super Bowl XXXVII as the defining moment in Buccaneers’ history. That got 39 percent of more than 31,000 votes. The hiring of coach Tony Dungy in 1996 finished a close second at 37 percent and the trade for Jon Gruden, the coach who actually won Tampa Bay’s lone Super Bowl, was third at 21 percent.

But I’m not going with the simple majority here. I’m going with the hiring of Dungy because I think this is a chicken-and-egg kind of thing. Much like the signing of Brees and the insertion of Delhomme led the Saints and Panthers to Super Bowls, I view the hiring of Dungy as the move that started Tampa Bay on a path to the Super Bowl.

Tampa Bay is a land of transplants and history sometimes gets lost. But I happened to be a beat writer covering the Buccaneers when Dungy was hired (heck, I was part of a media stakeout outside Bern’s Steakhouse as Dungy and ownership were inside sealing the deal).

You have to understand what the Bucs were like before Dungy arrived. They were the joke of the NFL for more than a decade. Former owner Hugh Culverhouse was despised by fans, players and the people who worked for him. The Bucs had gone for more than a decade without a winning season and good coaches such as Ray Perkins and Sam Wyche came to Tampa Bay and became horrible coaches.

Dungy (supported by new owner Malcolm Glazer) quietly changed the entire culture of the Bucs. They began winning and changed uniform colors and logos. Everything changed. Raymond James Stadium was built and filled up every week. The Bucs became consistent winners.

It’s true Dungy couldn't get Tampa Bay over the final hump. He was stubborn and conservative on offense and that got him fired. But he had the Bucs built into such a great defensive team that Gruden was able to come in, tweak the offense and win the Super Bowl in his first season. None of that would have been possible without Dungy’s contributions. He made the Bucs consistently relevant for the first time in their history.

Let’s turn to a couple comments from readers.

Darryl in Springfield, N.J., wrote: “The hiring of Dungy was huge as he helped to instill a culture of winning. However, I think another important step was drafting Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks in 1995 (the moves were made by Wyche and former general manager Rich McKay). Beyond their contributions on the field, Brooks was the heart of the Bucs, and Sapp brought a public swagger to a downtrodden franchise. The history of Sapp and Brooks in Tampa might be different without Dungy, but I think you could also argue that the history of Dungy might be very different without Sapp and Brooks."

Tim in Clearwater, Fla., wrote: “Sam Wyche drafted two first-ballot Hall of Fame players in Warren Sapp and Derrick Brooks. Without these players, Dungy’s tenure in Tampa Bay would likely not have been as long or as successful.’’

True, but Sapp and Brooks didn’t do much in their one season with Wyche. When Dungy and defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin arrived, they put Sapp and Brooks into a defense that became dominant. In my eyes, it all started with Dungy.

FALCONS: Matt Ryan brought consistent winning

When it came time for Atlanta fans to weigh in on the Falcons' Flash Point, they went with the drafting of quarterback Michael Vick. That move won the vote at 39 percent, while the drafting of Ryan in 2008 came in second at 31 percent.

I’m going to dispute that one. Yes, Vick had a big impact and led the Falcons to some success. But they could never string good seasons together and Vick’s time in Atlanta came to a terrible end when he went to prison. That coupled with the disastrous tenure of coach Bobby Petrino put the Falcons as low as any NFC South team has ever been.

That was at the end of the 2007. A few months later, the Falcons drafted Ryan. Guess what? Since that moment, the Falcons have had three straight winning seasons. Before Ryan’s arrival, the franchise never even had back-to-back winning seasons. Atlanta went 13-3 last season before a disappointing playoff loss to Green Bay.

But the Falcons are built around Ryan and he’s not going anywhere for a long time. In fact, I think the Falcons are right on the cusp of huge success. Let’s turn to a reader for perspective.

Reid in Atlanta wrote: “The true 'defining moment' for the Falcons is not on your list of choices. It was when Arthur Blank purchased the team from the Smith family, who oversaw a comedy of errors and bad personnel choices for decades. Blank may be responsible for the Petrino fiasco, but otherwise his moves have been solid, and a welcome contrast to what preceded him.’’

No argument that Blank has done some great things and made the Falcons more competitive than they ever have been. But I think the best move Blank made was drafting Ryan. That’s when things really turned for the Falcons.

All four AFC East starting quarterbacks are under contract and in place for 2011.

Yet each comes with his own set of intriguing circumstances and at least one major question for next season.

Even the resident superstar, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, hasn't won a playoff game in three years and faces a recovery from foot surgery.

The other three -- Mark Sanchez, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Chad Henne -- certainly don't come with any guarantees.

Sanchez's sophomore season seems like a success in the afterglow of another deep postseason run with the New York Jets, but he still has a long way to go to deserve his Sanchize nickname.

The Buffalo Bills like Fitzpatrick but could be tempted to draft a quarterback with the third overall pick. The Miami Dolphins already could be searching for Henne's replacement.

With those issues in mind, let's look ahead to the 2011 season by breaking down each quarterback in the context of what we learned about him in 2010.

I've ranked them in terms of impact and asked Scouts Inc. analyst Matt Williamson to weigh in with his thoughts.

1. Tom Brady


Big 2011 question: How long can he keep doing it?

Pluses: Brady showed he can win with practically any supporting cast. His teammates have been transitory regardless of perceived significance (e.g. Randy Moss). Even with inexperienced help and a few retreads, Brady obviously was the league's MVP and earlier this week was announced as the only unanimous All-Pro selection.

Brady is the ultimate field general. He manipulates defenses, makes quick decisions at the line of scrimmage and delivers the ball with pinpoint accuracy. He broke the record for consecutive throws without an interception and led the NFL in touchdown passes.

Minuses: The combination of age and injuries are the biggest concern -- if there is one. Brady will turn 34 before next season begins and had foot surgery last week to repair a stress fracture. It was his second major operation in three years. At this rate, we can't expect Brady to be in his prime four or five more years. The window is closing.

Brady, though, doesn't rely on mobility. Perhaps his biggest shortcoming -- a flaw that opened the door for people to make a case for Michael Vick as MVP -- is that Brady doesn't make plays with his legs. As Williamson noted, Brady's not the best improviser when a play breaks down.

Brady also has lost three straight postseason games. While some would chalk that up to happenstance, it's a trend that certainly will be on Brady's mind the next time they make it, which should be in a year.

Williamson's take: "To me, he's still the king of the castle. It's pretty hard to argue against Brady or Peyton Manning. The bar is set so high that 30 teams in the league would kill for either of those guys to be their quarterback, and that will be true a year from now.

"He's so competitive. His work ethic is so great. He can throw the football as well as anyone. His supporting cast is phenomenal. His head coach isn't going anywhere. If your biggest problem is 'How much longer is he going to last?' then that's not much of a problem. The guy's great."

2. Mark Sanchez

Big 2011 question: Can he evolve into a truly great quarterback in his third season?

Pluses: Sanchez seemed ordinary for major chunks of 2010. I would have ranked Fitzpatrick ahead of him halfway into December. But Sanchez proved to be a money quarterback with two more road playoff victories and another solid performance in the AFC Championship game.

Sanchez is developing into a clutch quarterback, a topic I examined in a column last week. Authorities such as Bill Parcells and Sam Wyche have been impressed with Sanchez's ability to rise to the occasion. His postseason stats dwarf his regular-season numbers. He has five fourth-quarter comebacks and won back-to-back overtime road games this season, something that never had been done before.

Sanchez is only 24 years old and already has played in six playoff games. His combination of age, experience and potential will keep him in the spotlight for a long time. Jets backup quarterback Mark Brunell told me last week that Sanchez is "going to be an elite quarterback someday."

Minuses: There are plenty of negatives to keep Williamson and me from jumping on the Sanchez bandwagon. Sanchez is inconsistent from game to game and inaccurate with his throws. He's prone to turnover flare-ups, proving he can be rattled. He has trouble coping with blitzes.

Sanchez completed 54.8 percent of his attempts, third-worst in the NFL. He threw only 13 interceptions (wonderful number compared to the 20 he threw as a rookie). But Football Outsiders charted 15 more dropped interceptions, an excessive number. Football Outsiders managing editor Bill Barnwell noted Sanchez should have thrown more interceptions than a year before because he had only five dropped as a rookie. Defenders held onto 80 percent of potential picks in 2009, but just 46 percent this season.

So Sanchez's abysmal 75.3 passer rating (fifth from the bottom and behind Henne) downplayed how scattershot he was. Take away Sanchez's four games with 100-plus passer ratings and he threw six touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

You can see why the Jets need to maintain their infrastructure and not become dependent on Sanchez yet.

Williamson's take: "I have been a huge basher of him. I think he's been vastly overrated. To talk about him as a top 10 quarterback, top 12 or 15 quarterback, is crazy to me. But these last two games have opened my eyes. I will give him much more benefit of the doubt now.

"I still need to put an asterisk next to him. In the AFC Championship Game, that's as good as he's going to play, and that's good enough for the Jets to win. They have the formula. He has great receivers, a great line and one of the best defenses in the league. But he still has issues. His best moments are something that anybody can do. He still struggles with the blitz. His arm is still average. He's not a guy who can attack outside the numbers. He can't drive the ball deep downfield.

"I'd rather play against him than with him. Still, he plays his best when it matters most, and most quarterbacks don't. His intangibles are really encouraging. I don't think the stage ever is too big for him."

3. Ryan Fitzpatrick

Big 2011 question: Will he be the long-term answer or just a stopgap?

Pluses: Fitzpatrick was a journeyman backup who could be on the verge of his first full-fledged offseason as somebody's starting quarterback. The Bills brain trust opted for Trent Edwards at the start of training camp and gave him all of the first-team reps. But two games into the season, new head coach Chan Gailey had seen enough and inserted Fitzpatrick.

Despite Fitzpatrick's limited interaction with the first-teamers, he provided a noticeable spark with his mobility and deep throws. The coaching staff and his teammates almost immediately seemed to have renewed faith in the offense. He helped previously anonymous receivers such as Steve Johnson and David Nelson turn into dangerous contributors.

Fitzpatrick also became easy for Bills fans to root for. He was a seventh-round draft choice out of Harvard who nearly became the first Bills quarterback to throw 30 touchdowns in a season since Jim Kelly. Fitzpatrick challenged defenses and took chances downfield.

Minuses: Fitzpatrick is 28 and probably has hit his ceiling. He might be satisfactory as a caretaker, but his prospects as a playoff quarterback are dubious. He was a backup his first five years in the league and didn't stand out in 15 starts with the St. Louis Rams and Cincinnati Bengals. The fact he signed with the Bills to be a backup in 2009 reflected his worth on the open market.

Fitzpatrick is fun to watch because he takes chances, but his swashbuckling tendencies get him into trouble. He's liable to feather a pass between two defenders or throw a horrendous interception on any given play. He committed five turnovers in Week 16 against a Patriots team that had nothing to play for.

General manager Buddy Nix told Buffalo News reporter Mark Gaughan this week that the Bills need to draft a quarterback in April. Whether the Bills grab Cam Newton or Blaine Gabbert with the third overall pick will clarify the plan for Fitzpatrick as a long-term solution.

Williamson's take: "I don't think Fitzpatrick is the answer. I don't think he can ever be in the top 50 percent of starting quarterbacks in this league. He can get you to 8-8, but in the end you're going to want to replace him. But I wouldn't fault the Bills at all to say 'Let's give him another year. Let's give him an entire offseason as The Man.' They should say 'This is your team, and we're going to go out and get you a receiver, a defense and a blocker or two.'

"The Bills can jump off that bridge a year from now. The Bills can't reach on a quarterback in the first round and have him sit behind Fitzpatrick. That organization has too many issues. Their needs are too great to spend No. 3 money on the 12th-best player in the draft. You tread water with Fitzpatrick for now and hope he gets a little better."

4. Chad Henne

Big 2011 question: Will he be able to seize the starter's job again?

Pluses: Henne was benched once and pulled from a game late in the season. He had a rough year, but he's 25 years old -- young enough to be considered a prospect yet with substantial experience. Henne was a four-year starter at Michigan and sat for a year behind Chad Pennington before taking over the Dolphins' job in 2009.

Henne has a strong arm and can make all the throws. He's also tough, missing only one week with a knee injury that the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported would "more than likely" end his season. Henne returned in Week 12 and, on the other side of the country with the season on the line, threw for 307 yards and two touchdowns against the Oakland Raiders.

Henne could benefit from some new voices. Offensive coordinator Dan Henning retired, and quarterbacks coach David Lee took a job with Ole Miss. The Dolphins hired young offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who has been exposed to Brady and Brett Favre. Receivers coach Karl Dorrell, the former UCLA head coach, will be Henne's position coach.

Minuses: The Dolphins publicly expressed their dissatisfaction in Henne by benching him. He flopped in 2010 even though the Dolphins made one of the offseason's biggest acquisitions, trading two second-round draft choices and committing a metric ton of cash to star receiver Brandon Marshall. Henne also had one of the league's top slot receivers, Davone Bess.

But Henne's erratic play doomed their season. He produced a trio of three-interception games and posted a passer rating below 70 five times.

Henne plays like a robot. Every motion appears purposeful, as though it was programmed, rather than coming naturally. He doesn't perform well off the script, can lock onto receivers and freezes in the pocket.

Williamson's take: "If we had this conversation 365 days ago, I would have been all about Chad Henne. I was very much a believer in him before this season. There wasn't one player in the league who let me down more than Henne. I thought he was on the verge of being really good.

"The Dolphins really handcuffed him with the play-calling and lack of a vertical passing game. That hurt him. He needs to throw the ball a lot. He needs to go deep. He needs to use his arm.

"But when you watch him play the game now, he's not even close to being good enough. I think a change of scenery would do him a world of good, but they can't afford to get rid of him for nothing. They would be foolish not to bring competition in for him.

"I like his skill set and think he can be very good, but he looks the worst I've ever seen him, and I was involved at trying to recruit him out of high school to Pitt. He was horrible this year."

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- On most throws, Mark Sanchez is unimpressive. His body language shows he's still learning how to carry himself as an NFL quarterback. Stats would imply his season ended weeks ago.

The reality, however, is that Sanchez has made it to the AFC Championship Game in each of his first two seasons with the New York Jets. He turned 24 years old in November, yet he already has tied the NFL record for road playoff victories.

Mediocre quarterbacks don't do that.

Clutch quarterbacks do.

"He's just one of those kids that has 'it,'" Jets backup quarterback Mark Brunell said, "and whatever 'it' may be is the ability to make the play that needs to be made -- clutch."

Sanchez's detractors don't see anything special, but among others, he's developing a reputation as one of those rare quarterbacks who excels in difficult spots. He can erase doubt Sunday by advancing to the Super Bowl with a victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers and one of the NFL's few established clutch quarterbacks, Ben Roethlisberger.

Like art, the concept of "clutch" is difficult to define, but you know it when you see it. Clutch performers execute when consequences escalate. Joe Montana was clutch. Michael Jordan was clutch. Tiger Woods, Reggie Jackson, Patrick Roy -- all clutch.

Sanchez isn't remotely near that echelon, but some expert observers claim he's getting there.

"It seems like it," Miami Dolphins consultant and two-time Super Bowl champion coach Bill Parcells said. "He's in his embryonic stage. So time will tell, but he's certainly showing some of the characteristics that are vital to that type of player.

"Sometimes with these quarterbacks it's not always pretty. But it becomes efficient."

Sanchez's numbers don't shriek competence. He ranked 25th in passer rating. Only three qualifying passers averaged fewer yards per attempt. Two completed a lower percentage of throws.

But over Sanchez's past 20 games, including the playoffs, he has directed five fourth-quarter comebacks and two more winning drives when the score was tied in the fourth quarter. Two of those victories were back-to-back on the road and in sudden death -- something that never before had happened.

A pair of his fourth-quarter comebacks were postseason games, including the wild-card victory over the Indianapolis Colts two weeks ago. He took the Jets 40 yards on five plays, completing all three of his passes for 38 yards. He feathered a beautiful pass up the right sideline to Braylon Edwards at the Colts' 14-yard line, setting up Nick Folk's point-blank field goal as time expired.

Clutch? You betcha.

"Sanchez qualifies in the discussion for sure," noted quarterback guru Sam Wyche said. "Their record and the fact they have prevailed in this single-elimination tournament tells me he's had some clutch plays in 2010. There's no way a quarterback can be off much and get this far in the playoffs."

Wyche knows a little about clutch. He was the San Francisco 49ers' passing game coordinator for Montana's first four NFL seasons. Wyche later watched from the Cincinnati Bengals sideline when Montana orchestrated one of the most sublime clutch drives of all time to win Super Bowl XXIII.

Wyche explained clutch as a combination of attributes a quarterback must possess when the margin for error is skinniest. The quarterback must be poised, have the rules mastered, be mindful of field position, be skilled at clock management and be in command of his teammates.

"Clutch means making quicker decisions, generally unforgiving decisions," Wyche said. "You're at the end of the game. You don't have the second half to come back and rebound.

"In a time squeeze with two options -- throw the ball away or try to get it into a tight hole -- who makes the right decision?"

Another clutch quality is raising the performance level when it's essential.

Sanchez's 2010 regular-season stats were ordinary, and in many cases below average. He completed 54.8 percent of his throws, averaged 6.6 yards per attempt and tossed 17 touchdowns with 13 interceptions. His passer rating was 75.3, lower than Chad Henne's. The Dolphins benched Henne twice because of lackluster play.

A look at Sanchez's effectiveness in key situations indicates an even shakier quarterback. Among those who threw at least 10 times in the regular season, ESPN Stats & Information showed, Sanchez's passer rating was 48th in the fourth quarter and overtime, 38th on third down and 27th in the red zone.

But in Sanchez's five career playoff games, he has completed 60.5 percent of his throws, is averaging 7.4 yards per attempt and has seven touchdowns with three interceptions.

His 92.2 career postseason passer rating -- accumulated entirely on the road -- is 22.0 points higher than his regular-season rating.

Jets head coach Rex Ryan said that when it comes to being clutch "you either have it or you don't" and that Sanchez probably had it as a kid, regardless of the sport he tried "because the great ones, the competitors, find ways to win, and I think Mark is that kind of guy."

Back in November, with the Jets on a death-defying win streak, Ryan was asked about Sanchez's success. The Jets notched consecutive overtime road victories and a miracle against the Houston Texans at the Meadowlands, where Sanchez drove the Jets 72 yards for the winning touchdown in just 45 seconds. Sanchez delivered a dazzling 42-yard strike to Edwards along the right sideline and a perfect 6-yard toss to Santonio Holmes in the left corner of the end zone one play later.

"It doesn't get too big for him," Ryan said a few days later. "The stage here, he plays on this stage every week and he can handle it, where a lot of guys can't. A lot of guys can be great quarterbacks, but on this stage, not so fast."

The Steelers have one of those quarterbacks, too.

Roethlisberger owns two Super Bowl rings and has delivered 19 fourth-quarter comebacks and 25 winning drives over his career, according to ProFootballReference.com data. Three of them happened in the postseason, including that famous dart to a toe-dragging Holmes in Super Bowl XLIII.

Wyche compared Roethlisberger to Montana, whom the NFL Network named the No. 1 clutch quarterback of all time.

"This guy has the same kind of good fortune in the game," Wyche said. "He seems to zig when he's supposed to zig and doesn't zag. He seems to be able to throw the ball away or maybe get a great run out of his running back, and the players around him perform because they have the confidence that he's going to perform.

"He's just got that quality. It's a charisma thing, and you don't bet against it very often."

Sanchez already has beaten Roethlisberger head-to-head at Heinz Field this year. Roethlisberger posted better passing numbers, but Sanchez ran a fourth-down bootleg 7 yards for a touchdown.

No matter the outcome Sunday night, Sanchez should be considered one of the NFL's future stars. A 24-year-old doesn't advance this far twice in a row by accident.

"He's not mentioned in the same sentences as Peyton Manning or Tom Brady," Brunell said. "He doesn't have those numbers yet. He doesn't have a Super Bowl ring. But all indications are that he's going to be an elite quarterback someday, who will have those numbers and be mentioned with all those top guys like Drew Brees.

"He'll be there. For a guy in only his second year, it's pretty dang impressive what he's accomplished."

Buffalo Bills coach Chan Gailey's defensive coaching staff has gotten a lot better.

FoxSports.com senior writer Alex Marvez reports Dave Wannstedt will join Gailey's staff as assistant head coach and inside linebackers assistant.

The move is an offseason victory for the Bills, an organization that struggled to attract top free agents because they haven't reached the playoffs in a decade. Wannstedt becomes the biggest name to join the Bills as an assistant coach since future Hall of Famer Dick LeBeau served on Gregg Williams' defensive staff in 2003 or since Sam Wyche was quarterbacks coach under Mike Mularkey in 2004.

It will be interesting to see how big a voice Wannstedt has on defensive game planning.

Gailey retained defensive coordinator George Edwards, who oversaw a slapdash unit that switched from Dick Jauron's 4-3 scheme to a 3-4. By the end of the season, the Bills were running multi-front schemes.

They ranked 24th in total defense, 32nd in run defense and third in pass defense (because opponents ran so much).

The Bills had an opening because Gailey fired inside linebackers coach DeMontie Cross.

Wannstedt agreed with the Bills after drawing interest from several other teams. He was available because he resigned as head coach at the University of Pittsburgh.

He was Miami Dolphins head coach from 2000 through 2004, taking them to the playoffs his first two seasons with Gailey as offensive coordinator. Wannstedt led the Chicago Bears from 1993 through 1998, reaching the postseason once.

Wannstedt gained notice as a sharp defensive mind under Jimmy Johnson with the Miami Hurricanes and Dallas Cowboys. He was Cowboys defensive coordinator in Super Bowl XXVII, holding the Bills to 17 points.

The Buffalo Bills are intrigued enough by quarterback Tim Tebow that they're going to conduct a private workout with him after the University of Florida's pro day March 17.

NFL.com personnel guru Gil Brandt also reports the Seattle Seahawks will hold an individual workout with Tebow, the most famous question mark of next month's draft.

Tebow didn't throw at the NFL scouting combine because he's trying to revamp his awkward delivery to look more orthodox.

The Heisman Trophy winner has been working out with a quartet of specialists, including former Bills quarterbacks coach Sam Wyche. His other tutors also have AFC East ties: former New York Jets offensive coordinator Zeke Bratkowski, former Jets receivers coach Noel Mazzone (Arizona State offensive coordinator) and former Miami Dolphins offensive coordinator Marc Trestman (head coach of the CFL's Montreal Alouettes).

Tim Tebow won't throw at the NFL scouting combine this week, but the coaching quartet trying to salvage the University of Florida star's quarterbacking future claims he's making significant progress as a pro-style passer.

In case you haven't noticed, all four of the contractors brought in for "Home Makeover: Tebow Edition" have AFC East ties.

The men trying to renovate Tebow's throwing mechanics are former offensive coordinator Zeke Bratkowski, Arizona State offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone, retired coach Sam Wyche and Montreal Alouettes head coach Marc Trestman.

Bratkowski served on the New York Jets' staff from 1985 through 1989 and again in 1995 and '96 as offensive coordinator. Mazzone was the Jets' receivers coach from 2006 through 2008. Wyche coached the Buffalo Bills quarterbacks in 2004 and '05. Trestman was the Miami Dolphins' offensive coordinator in 2004.

ESPN's Adam Schefter wrote a feature on the reclamation project. He noted Bratkowski is focusing on an improved, over-the-top delivery.

Tebow's footwork also is a concern because the Gators were a shotgun-exclusive team. He must learn how to master the center-quarterback exchange and the type of dropbacks he must be comfortable with as a pro.

The coaches sound like they're happy with how their project is coming along.

"You're not looking at the same quarterback," Bratkowski said in Schefter's feature. "To say we're there 100 percent where we want to be, no. But we'll be more improved come pro day than we are at this point in time now."

Wyche told Bengals.com reporter Geoff Hobson that Tebow's mechanical flaws are minor and could be corrected within a week once he gets into an NFL program.

"If you don't think he can line up at quarterback in the NFL, then you don't know about lining up in the NFL," Wyche told Hobson. "The last thing I told him when I left was not to change how accurate he is and his touch. The two things you have to have in a quarterback are accuracy and intelligence. If you don't, you're going to be finding another one pretty quickly. And [Tebow] is as smart as a whip."

Trestman cited Tebow's mind as his greatest asset to helping him make the transition.

"His intelligence level is as high as any quarterback I've encountered coming out of college," Trestman said in Schefter's feature. "His intelligence is off the charts. After spending time with Tim, it was evident that he learned a lot of football in his four years at Florida -- a lot.



"As a result he has been able to quickly adapt and make corrections in his throwing motion and footwork that will allow him to get the ball out faster and improve his accuracy. He has more than enough arm strength and shown he can make all the throws at the next level. He has only been at it for a few weeks. So I can only anticipate he will continue to improve."

There’s one encouraging trend emerging when it comes to the future of Tampa Bay coach Raheem Morris.

He seems to still have the locker room. Center Jeff Faine used very strong words Wednesday to say he believes Morris should not be let go after a first season that hasn’t gone well at all. Injured safety/linebacker Jermaine Phillips made some pretty similar comments Monday.

This is significant. I covered the end of the Sam Wyche era in Tampa Bay and the final days of George Seifert’s disastrous era in Carolina. In those locker rooms, nobody -- and I truly mean nobody -- was stepping forward in defense of the coach.

Does it really matter what the players think? Yes, it absolutely does. Most owners around the league try to get a sense of where the players stand before firing a coach. Although the Glazer family, which owns the Buccaneers, does operate with a great deal of stealth in the public eye, the three brothers who run the team are very smart and always very aware of what’s going on in their building.

I’m sure they’ve seen the quotes from these players and they might have heard some of the same straight from players. I’m not reporting here that the Glazer brothers have been surveying players, but that wouldn’t surprise me.

At any rate, this kind of support can only help the chances of Morris sticking around for a second season. If the players still believe in him, that’s a big positive.

One thing I found very interesting was Faine’s response when asked about Morris firing both his offensive and defensive coordinators already. The public assumption is that Morris made the hires of Jeff Jagodzinski and Jim Bates totally by himself.

Faine indicated that might not have been the case. I’ve never heard any indication that Jagodzinski and Bates weren’t the guys Morris wanted and the rule of thumb around the league is that a coach usually hires his own coaching staff.

But this statement by Faine makes me wonder a bit. I do know for a fact that, at the very least, ownership didn’t allow Morris to do everything he wanted with the support staff. And I also think there’s a realization high in the organization that general manager Mark Dominik probably could benefit from a stronger surrounding cast in the front office.

Of course, the best thing that could happen for Morris' future would be for the Bucs, particularly rookie quarterback Josh Freeman, to go out and play well (just show some signs of progress) in the final three games. That might be enough to keep Morris in place, although I think that would come with some movement on the coaching staff, in the front office and heavy turnover on the roster.

	J. Meric/Getty Images
	Tampa Bay rookie quarterback Josh Freeman gets his first start Sunday, against the Packers.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Pat Yasinskas

TAMPA, Fla. -- In April, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers drafted Josh Freeman and said he eventually would be the franchise quarterback. These days, the Bucs need Freeman to be nothing short of their savior.

That’s what it has come to. Seriously. Let’s not waste time dancing around what’s going on in Tampa Bay. Freeman’s going to get his first NFL start Sunday and a lot of jobs depend on what he does in the next nine games.

From coach Raheem Morris to general manager Mark Dominik to just about every other player on the roster, their futures all depend on what Freeman does in the next nine games. He doesn’t have to instantly be Matt Ryan or Joe Flacco, but the kid from Kansas State must show something.

Anything -- and I mean anything -- slightly positive could save a lot of people. Let’s face it, the Bucs didn’t hire Morris and Dominik with the intention of bringing them in for one season and then turning around and replacing them with someone like Bill Cowher or Mike Shanahan.

They hired them to do what Jon Gruden could not -- build a team for the long term. When the Glazer family hired Morris and Dominik, they told them to make the roster younger, and there’s no doubt a certain amount of implied patience came with that.

But what Morris and Dominik have done so far doesn’t quite look like they’re building from the ground up. They look like they’ve knocked everything down and kept digging until they have enough room to build about 10 subway lines.

They’re 0-7 and, to this point, the Bucs haven’t shown a single positive, except for maybe rookie receiver Sammie Stroughter. Jobs aren’t saved and franchises aren’t made by seventh-round receivers making a few nice catches.

It’s all going to come down to Freeman and if he can win a couple of games and show some improvement. That’s really going to be the only way the people who were hired to start the rebuilding job will have a chance to finish it.

Coaches who go 0-16 or 1-15 just don’t survive. And, really, is there any reason to keep Morris if things keep going the way they are? No, but we’re not quite to that point yet. There’s still time to create some hope, still time for Morris to find something to hang his hat on.

But that has to be Freeman because there’s nothing else. The Bucs are at their lowest point since the Sam Wyche days and, coincidentally, Freeman will make his starting debut in orange because the Bucs are digging out those old Creamsicle uniforms against the Packers.

They also will be playing in a stadium at least half full of Green Bay colors because the Bucs aren’t the most popular ticket in town and Packers fans travel and a lot of them are transplanted in Florida.

Not a great situation to start a kid who came out of college early and was not viewed as being ready to start in the NFL from Day One by everyone, including the Bucs.

“I take it as a challenge,’’ Freeman said. “I can’t really control what the defense does, but I can control what the offense does. I’m the quarterback. It gets to the matter of just getting something going.’’

I was of the school of thought that the Bucs should have just gone ahead and thrown Freeman in as the starter from the very start. If you’re going to rebuild, why not start doing it with the guy you’re supposedly building around in the lineup?

The Bucs didn’t see it that way. Basically, they didn’t want to throw him out there too soon, shatter his confidence, and turn him into the second coming of David Carr. That thinking has some merit because Tampa Bay’s offensive line has been terrible, the running game non-existent and the receivers (aside from Stroughter and tight end Kellen Winslow) have been unable to catch anything.

That offense made NFL veteran Byron Leftwich, who was supposed to be a bridge to Freeman, look so bad that he had to be benched. The Bucs were so determined to get through their game in London against the Patriots without starting Freeman that they turned things over to Josh Johnson, who had no business starting in the NFL.

But the Patriots and London are in the past. It’s time for Freeman. Ready or not, the entire franchise is on his shoulders.

“That’s not heavy on my mind because I’m just looking at it from a personal standpoint of what I want to do and my career goals I set up even before the draft happened,’’ Freeman said. “My goal is to wherever I got drafted, I want to be there my whole career and win a lot of football games. I think the pressure I put on myself outweighs that in my mind. They both kind of run together.”

Maybe it’s best that Freeman views it like that and maybe that approach will help him make the kind of incremental progress that will give the Bucs hope and save some jobs. If he truly realized what’s at stake for everyone and went out and tried to turn it all around at once, it might be too much for one person.

Freeman can be the franchise quarterback down the line. For now, he just needs to show something that says the Bucs might be on the right path and that will be enough. For Morris and Dominik and this rebuilding project, a little bit of progress from Freeman will make him the savior.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Pat Yasinskas

TAMPA, Fla. -- Without a doubt, the biggest difference I’ve seen between living in the Tampa Bay area from the mid-1980s through 1999 and returning here in 2008 is the way fans view the Bucs and the expectations they have for this football team.

Back in the old days, an 0-2 start wasn’t that big a deal. Heck in a lot of years, it was totally expected and fans just rolled with it. These days, it seems like a lot of people around here are ready to run coach Raheem Morris out of town and have already penciled in the Bucs to join the Detroit Lions in the ranks of teams that have gone a 16-game schedule without a win.

	J. Meric/Getty Images
	Bucs head coach Raheem Morris is facing heightened expectations in Tampa Bay.

It’s one extreme to another, so why did such a dramatic change come about in, roughly, the last decade? The short and simple answer is that Tony Dungy came along and started winning. Then, Jon Gruden won a Super Bowl and put together some other strong seasons and people have come to expect it.

Makes sense, but I’m having a tough time understanding why so many people suddenly have decided the sky is falling in Tampa. It’s been pretty clear since soon after Morris took the job that expectations shouldn’t be that high for this year. The Bucs don’t like to use the term, but, the fact is, they’re rebuilding and that takes time.

In fact, a history lesson might be in order before the panic gets out of control. Morris provided a bit of pretty good perspective on that as he spoke with the media Wednesday.

“Coach Dungy walked in here and there was a young defense,’’ Morris said. “There was Derrick Brooks, there was Warren Sapp, there was (John) Lynch. They said Lynch couldn’t play safety and he should have moved to linebacker. They said Derrick Brooks was too small to play linebacker. They said Warren Sapp was too fat and had a whole bunch of off the field issues and he couldn’t do it either. Ten years later, we can’t believe that we got rid of him. We can’t believe they are no longer Bucs anymore. Twelve years later or whatever it’s been, we can’t believe that they aren’t here anymore.’’

That’s a valid point and a lot of people forget Dungy’s turnaround of the Bucs didn’t happen overnight. Dungy’s initial team lost its first five games and eight of its first nine and a lot of people wondered loudly if the coach had any idea what he was doing. The 1996 team turned things around, winning five games in the second half of the season and the rest is history.

Before you go saying you don’t see any young versions of Brooks, Sapp and Lynch out there, listen to a bit more of what Morris had to say.

“We aren’t saying that the new guys are going to be Lynch, Sapp and those guys but we have some talented players out there,’’ Morris said. “In the last couple of weeks it has really been impressive. It’s tough to lose but it has been impressive. We just have to get other guys to come around with them. The bounce-back game that Sabby (Piscitelli) had, the way Ronde (Barber) performed in this new defense. Having Kellen Winslow getting off the way he did and the offense the way they did. Obviously, we addressed the offense this offseason. The offense has performed well and performed up to task. We’ll have an opportunity to catch it with some of the young players on defense that we drafted over the years. You guys get a chance to meet those guys and go through the growing pains that they went through the first night in 1996 and we love it as a challenge.”

It’s a huge challenge and I have no idea if Morris is going to turn out to be the second coming of Dungy or Sam Wyche. I’m just saying, give the guy a little time more time before calling him a failure.

	US PRESSWIRE
	Buccaneers coach Raheem Morris (left) is raising eyebrows after the sudden firing of offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski.

Posted by ESPN.com’s Pat Yasinskas

TAMPA, Fla. -- I’m writing this from the luxurious media room at the palace that is One Buccaneer Place. But suddenly it feels like I’m back in that lovely little trailer that used to house the media when the Bucs were headquartered at their not-so-palatial compound right off an airport runway.

Anybody seen Sam Wyche?

Those days of “Wicky Whacky Wyche,’’ as he was dubbed by a radio announcer, seem to be back. Children of all ages, welcome to the circus.

Just when you thought the days of then-quarterback Trent Dilfer muttering something about Barnum & Bailey’ at the end of the Wyche tenure were long forgotten, it’s looking like a big top has been thrown over Raymond James Stadium.

The relative calm ushered in by Tony Dungy and Rich McKay and carried on, to some degree and perhaps only by extension, by Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen seems to be gone. Is it only a matter of time before Raheem Morris has his team practice its halftime routine and publicly tells wide receivers not to drop their paychecks, the way Wyche once did? Are the Bucs back to the point where they’re only entertaining because of a comedy of errors as they pile up double-digit losses?

Since the January day when the Bucs made Morris, then 32, the league’s youngest head coach, I’ve been trying to give the guy every benefit of the doubt. There long has been a school of thought that Morris and general manager Mark Dominik are in way over their heads.

It’s getting real difficult to argue that point. The latest evidence came Thursday morning (just a few hours after kicker Matt Bryant basically ripped anyone in his path) when the Bucs fired offensive coordinator Jeff Jagodzinki, the same guy they gloated about getting back in January. In simple terms, the reason for Jagodzinski’s firing was the Bucs came to the conclusion he didn’t have the wherewithal to be a coordinator. He didn’t even call his own plays, his practice methods didn’t make a lot of sense and there was overwhelming doubt that he could develop this offense into anything close to a competitive unit.

Well, weird things can happen in the NFL, but sometimes you create your own problems and this situation raises a lot of concern about Morris and Dominik.

After all, couldn’t the Jagodzinski debacle been avoided with a little homework? Sure, Jagodzinski had been the head coach at Boston College. But he also had a reputation around the NFL of perhaps being a guy who was more style than substance, more name than proven commodity. Quarterbacks coach Greg Olson, who now takes over as offensive coordinator, didn’t even get an interview for the coordinator job when it first was open and he probably has a better reputation around the league than Jagodzinski.

Surely, the Bucs talked to some people around the league before making the Jagodzinski hire?

You would hope, but this isn’t the first time moves by Morris and Dominik have raised eyebrows around the league. In fact, they’re building quite a list of moves that can be questioned.

Start with what’s been described both as a last-minute jump or an exploratory look into the Matt Cassel sweepstakes. Either way, the Bucs didn't succeed. Or jump over to the decision to trade up in the draft to take quarterback Josh Freeman. The move was immediately booed by fans, who were hoping for a defensive player, at a draft party at the stadium.

As long as we’re talking quarterbacks, let’s talk about how the new regime has handled that position. It hasn’t quite been like the Gruden days when the Bucs seemed to sign three quarterbacks a week, and Morris and Dominik have made it clear from the beginning that they don’t want to play Freeman right away.

But everything else the Bucs have done at this position has come with no rhyme or reason. Early in their tenure, Morris and Dominik re-signed Luke McCown to a fairly large contract and told him he’d be given a chance to compete for the starting job.

Then, they turned around and signed Byron Leftwich. Although there was no clear-cut reason to think Leftwich outplayed McCown in the preseason, Morris handed him the starting job.

But there already were more red flags than usual flying at Raymond James Stadium even before the quarterback “battle’’ ended in a cease fire.

Morris and Dominik gutted the very core of everything good that ever has happened to this franchise in February when they unceremoniously cut Derrick Brooks. Sometimes you have to make difficult decisions and there is something to be said for getting younger.

You look for the flip side of that move and you wonder how the Bucs have replaced Brooks’ strong and positive influence in the locker room.

Trade for Kellen Winslow Jr. and give him a massive new contract?

Yeah, there’s a brilliant idea with no potential for absolute disaster. Hitch your wagon to a tight end, who -- without question -- is enormously talented and -- with absolutely no question -- has the ability to drain the life out of a locker room faster than anyone this side of Terrell Owens.

Again, let’s remember Morris at least gets a little benefit of the doubt until he actually loses a few games. But let’s be realistic: The doubt is getting really deep around here.

No, that actually wasn’t Wyche you saw cruising down Dale Mabry Highway this afternoon. But keep an eye out. There might be some Bill Cowher, Mike Shanahan or Mike Holmgren sightings in Tampa if the circus atmosphere continues.

Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas

Long ago, I learned not to read too much into preseason games. I saw Tampa Bay teams coached by Sam Wyche look good in the preseason and then hit double-digit losses in the regular season.

But I am going to take one thing seriously out of Saturday night's preseason game between the Falcons and Chargers. That's the Atlanta defense.

It didn't look good at all and that's a growing reason for concern. We all knew the Falcons would be entering this season with five new starters on defense and that means there is going to be some transition.

But shouldn't we be seeing some positive signs by now? Probably. But we haven't. In the only preseason game that really matters (because the starters play a fair amount), Atlanta's defense struggled. Yes, San Diego has a good offense, but LaDainian Tomlinson wasn't even playing. It didn't matter because the Chargers barely ran the ball.

They were throwing it and throwing it very well. In the first half, the Chargers had somewhere around 250 passing yards. That's not good news for any defense and every offensive coordinator the Falcons face in the regular season will be watching the video blueprint of how to carve up Atlanta's defense.

The Falcons aren't going to go out and blow up their defense at the end of the preseason. They're going with what they've got and that's a little scary. They could have gone out and grabbed some blue-chip defensive backs in the offseason. But they didn't.

They're going with Brent Grimes and Chris Houston as their starting cornerbacks and Erik Coleman and Thomas DeCoud as their starting safeties, for better or worse. If the Falcons are going to make the best of this, they need to do some of the same things they do with their offensive line. They don't have a tremendous amount of talent there, but they make the most of it because they hide their weaknesses.

They need to do the same thing with the secondary. The best way to do that is with a pass rush. They've got an elite rusher in John Abraham, but they need more than that. They need third-year pro Jamaal Anderson to step up from the very start of the season. Anderson was a top 10 pick in 2007 and he'll be on the bench if he doesn't start quickly.

The Falcons have Chauncey Davis, Lawrence Sidbury and Kroy Biermann as alternatives to Anderson. One, or some combination, of all those defensive ends will have to step up or the secondary really might be in trouble.

	J. Meric/Getty Images
	One of the largest questions Tampa Bay needs to answer is who will be their starting QB from among Luke McCown (12), Byron Leftwich (7) and Josh Freeman (5).

Posted by ESPN.com's Pat Yasinskas

TAMPA, Fla. -- Take a look at any preseason magazine or watch any television show. The verdict is unanimous.

Everybody's got the Tampa Bay Buccaneers picked to finish fourth in the NFC South. If you want to know where they're projected in the whole league, look somewhere between No. 25 and No. 32.

Camp Confidential: NFC South • Panthers: Thurs., Aug. 6 • Saints: Mon., Aug. 10 • Falcons: Sat., Aug. 15 • Buccaneers: Tues., Aug. 18 • Training camp index

When you've got a new coach, a new general manager, uncertainty at quarterback and part ways with some of the biggest names in franchise history, you're going to be anointed as one of the NFL's worst teams.

"That's not a bad thing," middle linebacker Barrett Ruud said with a laugh. "That's the mindset we have going into this year. There may be no expectations for us from the outside. But, as a group, we think we can be pretty good.''

Why?

To understand what Tampa Bay has, you have to understand what the Bucs don't have. They don't have coach Jon Gruden, linebacker Derrick Brooks, receiver Joey Galloway, running back Warrick Dunn and quarterback Jeff Garcia back from the only NFC South team that's had a winning record each of the last two years.

That's been enough to drop expectations from prognosticators and fans to the lowest level since Sam Wyche and company were piling up double-digit losses in the mid 1990s. But maybe -- just maybe -- it doesn't have to be this way.

Maybe the Bucs aren't as bad as everyone thinks. They do have some positives.

	Cliff Welch/Icon SMI
	Barrett Ruud (right) is one of the Bucs' building blocks on defense.

"We've got a nice core group of players,'' Ruud said. "We've got a really good offensive line. We've got four or five really good running backs. We've got two quarterbacks that are really hungry and they're battling to be the starter. And we've got a defense that kind of had our pride taken away at the end of last year and we're trying to get back to where a Tampa Bay defense is supposed to be.''

Ruud has some valid points. Forget the quarterback situation for a second. The rest of the offense looks pretty good. The offensive line is solid, Derrick Ward and Earnest Graham are quality running backs and receivers Antonio Bryant and Michael Clayton and tight end Kellen Winslow might be able to make whoever is the quarterback look good.

The defense needs some work, but the Bucs have players like Ruud, cornerback Ronde Barber and safety Tanard Jackson to build around.

But, more than anything, the Bucs have new coach Raheem Morris. Yes, he's the youngest coach in the league and that's one reason for the low expectations outside the organization. But Morris is the reason the expectations are high within the organization.

"We were 9-3 last year and had a rocky ending because the atmosphere wasn't right,'' Clayton said." But the team we've put together this year is a whole lot better than last year. You know the energy is going to be in the right place because of the atmosphere. Raheem maximizes you. Raheem does a good job of maximizing everybody's effort and we didn't have that last year.''

Key Questions

Who will be the quarterback? Even the Bucs don't know the short-term answer to this one yet. They'll pick a starter after Saturday night's preseason game in Jacksonville. It will be either Luke McCown or Byron Leftwich; they have been basically even through camp and one preseason game.

The Bucs will go with the quarterback they think can be more efficient because they believe the rest of their offense is solid. But it's no secret that the quarterback who opens the season is merely a stopgap. It's blatantly clear that Josh Freeman is the quarterback of the future.

Since drafting Freeman, Morris has gushed about the quarterback he coa
ched at Kansas State. The selection went against the wishes of many fans, who believed the Bucs should have focused on a defensive player. But that's history now because Morris and general manager Mark Dominik are committed to building this team around Freeman.

They want to bring Freeman along slowly and that's why they'll open the season with one of the veterans. But Freeman isn't going to sit forever. If McCown and/or Leftwich struggle, the same fans who booed Freeman's selection will be calling for him to start.

Brooks

What's the defense going to look like without Brooks? It's going to be completely different and that's not just because the best player in franchise history is gone. Coordinator Monte Kiffin, the man who made the "Tampa Two'' scheme famous also is gone. The Bucs have a new coordinator in Jim Bates and a whole new defense.

There will be more bump coverage, but the emphasis still will be on speed. This isn't a very big defense. Former safety Jermaine Phillips has moved into Brooks' old spot on the weak side. Ruud's the only proven star in his prime and the veteran Barber will try to ease the transition.

But the Bucs believe they can develop some new stars and they're hoping guys like defensive end Gaines Adams and cornerback Aqib Talib can become core players very quickly.

What will the offense look like without Gruden? Again, things will be totally different. Coordinator Jeff Jagodzinski brings in an offense that's focused on ball control and the Bucs have the parts in place to be a run-first team. Led by center Jeff Faine and guard Davin Joseph, the offensive line might be the team's biggest strength.

One of the first moves Morris and Dominik made was to bring in Ward. He's going to be used in tandem with Earnest Graham. Jagodzinski's first goal is to establish the running game, but he's also got big plans for the passing game.

Gruden relied mostly on a horizontal passing game, but those days are gone. Although the Bucs may not have a true speed receiver, they'll use play action to try to create opportunities for Bryant, Winslow and Clayton down the field.

Market Watch

	Cliff Welch/Icon SMI
	The Bucs took a risk in trading for Kellen Winslow and signing him to a new, long-term contract.

Without much depth at wide receiver, camp was a golden opportunity for Dexter Jackson to redeem himself after a horrible rookie season. Jackson's been given a lot of chances, but hasn't been able to take advantage of him. A second-round pick from a year ago, there's a very real chance Jackson won't even make the roster. ...The move of Phillips to weakside linebacker is working out nicely and it comes with another component. Part of the reason the Bucs decided to move Phillips was because they wanted to get Sabby Piscitelli into the starting lineup at strong safety. He's embraced that chance and showed he can make big plays in the preseason opener.

The Bucs have known for months that they might have to go without starting guard Arron Sears, who hasn't reported to camp because of a "private matter." Sears was a very solid player the past two years, but there shouldn't be much drop off. The Bucs already were high on Jeremy Zuttah, who showed some promise as a rookie last year. He's had the entire offseason to work with the first unit. The Bucs would welcome Sears back, but they're not counting on that happening any time soon.

The Bucs knew what they were getting into when they traded for Winslow and turned around and gave him a huge contract. The tight end comes with enormous talent and baggage. Winslow had injury problems and often was the center of controversy in Cleveland. Morris is trying to light a fire under Winslow and already has criticized him. But that's all part of a plan to try to get the most out of Winslow's talents.

The Bucs also took a gamble by drafting wide receiver Sammie Stroughter in the seventh round. Stroughter has had some personal problems in the past. But all indications are he's put those behind him. Stroughter has been one of the stars in camp. At the moment, he's probably the leading candidate to be the No. 3 receiver. He's shown the ability to go across the middle and he also has return skills.

Observation Deck

The Bucs had pictured Angelo Crowell as their starting strongside linebacker when they signed him as a free agent. But injuries have held Crowell back and Quincy Black appears to have locked up the starting job. Backup Adam Hayward also has had a strong preseason and can do a lot on special teams. Crowell no longer is a lock to make the roster. ... Defensive tackle was a big concern in the offseason because Chris Hovan is aging and Ryan Sims never has been dominant against the run. The Bucs will use those two as the starters, but they feel a lot better about this position as they prepare to break training camp. Third-round pick Roy Miller has had a strong preseason. So has Dre Moore, who did little as a rookie last year. Moore has kept himself in shape after struggling with weight issues last year. The Bucs plan to use a four-man rotation and play Miller and Moore a lot. Miller could emerge as a starter before long. ... Defensive end Jimmy Wilkerson has been a backup throughout his career. But the new coaching staff penciled him in
as a starter from the very beginning and he hasn't disappointed. The coaches believe Wilkerson can play the run and rush the passer. They'll also rotate Stylez White into the lineup, but Wilkerson will get the majority of the snaps.