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Just about everywhere you look or listen there is speculation the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be in hot pursuit of wide receiver Vincent Jackson.

It makes sense on many levels, starting with the facts that the Bucs need a true No. 1 receiver and Jackson probably is the best available in free agency. There’s likely to be competition from Chicago and Washington and perhaps some other teams. The San Diego Chargers are also holding out a bit of hope that they can re-sign Jackson.

But the Chargers will only do that if his price tag is somewhere around $11 million a season. If it gets higher than that, he likely will walk and Tampa Bay’s a very logical place for one of the top members of this free-agent class.

The Bucs have about $43 million in salary-cap space and it’s become increasingly clear the Bucs want to do everything possible to put quarterback Josh Freeman in position to succeed. Jackson certainly would help in that regard.

At 6-foot-5 and 230 pounds, Jackson may not sound like the deep threat so many think the Bucs need. But Jackson is a bit of a freak of nature when it comes to his speed, plus he uses his strength to get separation.

Just look at his numbers when it comes to yards per catch. Last season, Jackson averaged 18.4 yards per catch. That’s the second-highest total of his career and the highest (19.7) came in his rookie season when he was used as a third receiver.

That shows Jackson isn’t losing a step, which is a concern for a receiver who just turned 29. It looks like Jackson has several good years left and the Bucs shouldn’t let their infamous history of bringing in receivers scare them off. Jackson’s not Alvin Harper or Bert Emanuel, guys that were No. 2 receivers elsewhere that the Bucs thought could emerge as No. 1 guys. Jackson also isn’t Keyshawn Johnson, Joey Galloway or Antonio Bryant, guys who produced in the short term, but, for various reasons, didn’t last in the long term.

Jackson is a proven No. 1 receiver. Although he had some off-field problems, those appear to be behind him and teammates and media members who have covered him say Jackson doesn’t have the “diva’’ personality so many receivers do. He’s described as very quiet and always has been liked by his coaches.

If the Bucs are going to get Jackson, it likely will cost them around $12-$13 million a year. That’s a lot, but the Bucs have indicated they’re ready to spend money after going lightly in free agency in recent years.

Jackson is the one guy out there that seems like a sure thing. Pittsburgh’s Mike Wallace is a restricted free agent and I don’t think the Bucs are looking to give up draft picks. New Orleans Marques Colston isn’t a speed guy and he’s been banged up at times in the past.

If the Bucs don’t get Jackson, then they need to look in a different direction.

Robert Meachem (Saints), Mario Manningham (Giants) and Laurent Robinson (Cowboys) are guys that can stretch the field, but none of them is a true No. 1 receiver, although they'd come at a much lower price tag than Jackson. But even adding a speed guy could make it easier for Tampa Bay’s current group of receivers – Mike Williams, Arrelious Benn, Dezmon Briscoe, Preston Parker and Sammie Stroughter — to get open.

A 2010 suspension for a violent incident with a cab driver cost Aqib Talib up to $2.8 million in salary this season.

According to contract numbers obtained by ESPN.com, Talib’s suspension automatically kicked in a forfeiture of an escalator that could have paid him up to $2.8 million in 2012. Talib still is scheduled to earn $1.853 million this season.

Talib also is facing a trial on an assault charge in Texas later in March. Talib could face the possibility of prison time or suspension by the league or the Buccaneers.

While Talib missed big on his escalator, some other members of the Buccaneers have hit big on their own escalators. That will eat into early reports that had the Bucs heading for the start of free agency with around $67 million in cap space.

Quarterback Josh Freeman kicked in a $5.5 million escalator by meeting certain playing time and statistical requirements in 2010. Freeman now is carrying an $8.545 million cap figure for this season. He also already has kicked in a $7 million escalator for 2013 and that number could end up going as high as $9.455 million if he meets more escalators this season.

Defensive tackle Gerald McCoy earned a $5.1 million escalator based on his 2010 performance and now is carrying a $9.443 million cap figure for 2012. McCoy also has kicked in $6 million in escalators for 2013 and $7.7 million for 2014. McCoy still can earn an additional $8.44 million in escalators over the rest of his contract.

Cornerback E.J. Biggers earned an $875,000 escalator with his 2010 performance and is carrying a $1.455 cap figure this year.

Receiver Sammie Stroughter earned a $435,000 for this year based on his 2010 performance. His cap figure for this season is $1.012 million.

Defensive tackle Roy Miller earned $805,000 in escalators based on his performance in each of the last three seasons and is now carrying a $1.563 million cap figure.

ATLANTA -- As expected, the Buccaneers will be without injured receiver Arrelious Benn and right tackle Jeremy Trueblood in Sunday’s game with the Falcons.

Both players have been declared inactive. Preston Parker and Dezmon Briscoe will get more playing time with Benn out. James Lee is expected to start in Trueblood’s place.

Also inactive for the Bucs are quarterback Rudy Carpenter, receiver Sammie Stroughter, cornerback Anthony Gaitor, defensive end Daniel Te’o-Nesheim and offensive tackle Derek Hardman.

TAMPA, Fla. -- As expected, Tampa Bay receiver Arrelious Benn (concussion) is inactive for Saturday night’s game with the Dallas Cowboys.

That likely means more playing time for Dezmon Briscoe and Preston Parker.

The other inactives for the Buccaneers are quarterback Rudy Carpenter, receiver Sammie Stroughter, safety Larry Asante, cornerback Myron Lewis, offensive lineman Derek Hardman and offensive tackle James Lee.

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 Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts just put out their final injury reports for Monday night’s game at Raymond James Stadium.

The Bucs don’t have anything all that significant. Linebacker Quincy Black (ankle) is listed as questionable, but participated fully in Saturday’s practice. Tight end Kellen Winslow (knee) is probable and participated on a limited basis in practice after sitting out Thursday and Friday. Backup quarterback Josh Johnson, who suddenly appeared on the injury report with an ankle issue this week, is listed as probable and practiced. The Bucs ruled out backup offensive lineman James Lee (ankle) and receiver Sammie Stroughter (foot).

The Colts have a pretty lengthy and significant injury list, starting with quarterback Peyton Manning, who hasn’t played this season because of a neck injury and won’t play against Tampa Bay. Quarterback Kerry Collins, who’s been starting in Manning’s place, is listed as questionable after suffering a concussion last week. Collins hasn’t practiced all week and the Colts have said they’re prepared to start Curtis Painter.

The Colts listed defensive end Dwight Freeney (ankle) as questionable, but he fully participated in practice Friday and Saturday.

TAMPA, Fla. -- There are no surprises among the Buccaneers’ inactives.

As expected, linebacker Quincy Black is out with an ankle injury and Dekoda Watson is expected to start in his place.

Receiver Sammie Stroughter, running back Allen Bradford, safety Larry Asante, cornerback Anthony Gaitor, tackle Derek Hardman and tackle James Lee also are inactive.

TAMPA, Fla. -- I scrambled up to the press box here late Sunday afternoon, seeking verification of some basic facts. Namely: The current year and the final score of the game that had just concluded at Raymond James Stadium.

No, I hadn't fallen into a heat-induced delerium. In fact, I had just left the Detroit Lions' air-conditioned locker room. Therein, I heard:

Quarterback Matthew Stafford talk about the latest ailment that forced him to stagger off the field.

Coach Jim Schwartz rant about "stupid" football and "inexcusable" mistakes, promising that "it's not going to be a real pleasant film session" on Monday.

Guard Rob Sims express his conviction that coaches would "jump us on a whole bunch of stuff" in the coming days.

Hmmm. Tapping into my long history as a reporter, I confirmed that Sunday's game in fact took place in 2011. The Lions defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-20 in a game that wasn't as close as the final score indicated, winning their season opener for the first time in four years and putting on display many of the components that caused so many of us to catch Lions Fever this offseason.

That Stafford's "injury" was nothing more than cramps, and that Schwartz was able to discuss Sunday's troubles in the context of a victory, marked the start of a new era that only the Lions could indoctrinate. They are far from perfect and in fact could have botched Sunday's game. But overcoming injuries and "bad football," as Schwartz called it during a different portion of his rant, is half the battle in the NFL. There are no perfect teams, and just about every one of them has a knucklehead like Lions right tackle Gosder Cherilus, whose fourth-quarter unsportsmanlike conduct was almost certainly what Schwartz was referring to when he said: "There are some things that happened in this game that are inexcusable and will not continue."

Indeed, Cherilus' post-whistle shove of a Bucs defender stopped the clock with 1 minute and 24 seconds remaining and the Bucs out of timeouts. It gave the Bucs enough time to mount a potential game-tying drive, but ultimately they ran out of time. It also gave Schwartz exactly what any coach wants: A victory with plenty of material to humble his players with moving forward.

You see what's happening here, right? One of Schwartz's biggest tasks this season will be to shield players from the hype we've all created for them. It's always preferable to have players who believe they can be good than to be convinced that they already are.

But let's make no mistake here. For the most part, what we saw Sunday verified what we thought about the Lions this summer. Playing in a heat index that reached 94 degrees, the Lions controlled the game from start to finish. Frankly, much of the Bucs' success came after Lions breakdowns, namely Aqib Talib's 28-yard interception return for the touchdown and Sammie Stroughter's 78-yard kickoff return.

Indeed, Schwartz said, "They couldn't really move the ball on our defense but they had 10 points in the first quarter mainly because of two mistakes."

But Stafford and receiver Calvin Johnson connected for two highlight-reel touchdowns -- one a 36-yard play on fourth down after Talib bit on a double move, and the other a 1-yard pass Stafford shoved in Johnson's direction during the third quarter just as his right calf seized.

"During the process of dropping back, I was losing it," Stafford said. "I bet I looked pretty stupid on TV. He made me look pretty good once again."

I'm sure it took the breath of many Lions fans to see Stafford on his back on the sidelines while athletic trainers worked on his leg. But he never missed a snap, finishing with the second 300-yard game of his career and the Lions' first on opening weekend since Bobby Layne threw for 364 yards in 1953.

Stafford made a handful of mistakes himself, throwing high for tight end Will Heller on Talib's interception and nearly throwing a second on a pass behind running back Jahvid Best. But Stafford appeared in command of the offense from the start, and the Lions never trailed after the 36-yard play to Johnson.

"We didn't play our best football out there but we still got a win," Stafford said. "That's a good sign. Obviously you won't want those mistakes to keep coming back. We've got to fix those."

As Stafford and the offense rolled up 431 total yards, the Lions' defense largely shut down Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman. Middle linebacker Stephen Tulloch served in a modified spy role, sacking Freeman once and finishing with two quarterback hits. Freeman had 98 passing yards through the first three quarters, and the Bucs a total of 128 yards, before the Lions' late-game breakdowns.

"This is the beginning of something special and I'm glad to be a part of it," Tulloch said. "It's crazy when you win and you know you can play better. That's what makes this so exciting. We can just keep working."

That's what I think will distinguish this edition of the Lions. Trust me, I understand why Schwartz was upset. Any coach would have been in that situation. But he doesn't get to rain on our parade. "We can just keep working" is much different sentiment than "back to the drawing board." The Lions are done with that place. This is, after all, 2011.

TAMPA, Fla. -- Sit down with Mark Dominik even for just a few minutes and you’ll quickly hear his theory on why the term “youth movement’’ shouldn’t come with negative connotations.

“Don’t confuse youth with immaturity,’’ the general manager of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers said. “There’s a big difference between those two things. I’m sure we’ve all met 23-year-olds that act like they’re 28 and we’ve met people that are 28 but act like they’re 23. I feel like we’re a mature, young football team, which is important.’’

Yes, the Bucs, who were the NFL’s youngest team last season, are going to be young again. They have only three players 30 or older and they’re counting on big things from a lot of rookies and second-year players.

But this is a team that won 10 games last season with a lot of young players in key roles, and all of them should be a year better. That experience only encouraged the Bucs to continue with their youth movement and steer clear of making any dramatic moves in free agency. Instead of worrying about regressing, like a lot of fans and media are predicting, the Bucs fully expect to take another step forward.

“It doesn’t matter how old you are,’’ quarterback Josh Freeman said. “It matters how well you’re playing and if you have the ability to step up in big situations.’’

Freeman epitomizes what Dominik was talking about. The quarterback is 23, but spend a few minutes with him or think about how he led his teammates through workouts during the lockout and you’d swear he was 28. Or 38.

“It’s about the type of player we’re looking for,’’ Dominik said. “Certainly, the skill level has a lot to do with it. But it’s also very much about the type of player we’re looking for in terms of their demeanor. Plus, I have a lot of confidence in our coaching staff as far as getting guys prepared.’’

The Bucs hit it big when they drafted Freeman, and pickups such as receiver Mike Williams and running back LeGarrette Blount have made quick impacts. That’s part of the reason why they plan to plug rookie Adrian Clayborn in as an immediate starter at defensive end and why they’re willing to put rookie Mason Foster at the all-important middle linebacker position.

“When we talked to Adrian Clayborn and Mason Foster in the draft process, we felt that sense of someone who was wise beyond his years,’’ Dominik said. “It gives you confidence to be able to see a young man who takes his game and his craft seriously and puts time into it and it’s important to him. That's the kind of thing that's important to us. We have a young team that we like very much and we look forward to it growing older together.''

THREE HOT TOPICS

1. Where will the pass rush come from? The Bucs were among the worst in the league at pressuring quarterbacks last season. That’s why they drafted Clayborn in the first round and fellow defensive end Da'Quan Bowers in the second in April. A year ago, the Bucs used their top two draft picks on defensive tackles Gerald McCoy and Brian Price.

There’s a lot invested in those young defensive linemen and the Bucs expect immediate results. Sure, they wouldn’t mind getting some sacks from blitzes by their linebackers or defensive backs, but it’s not like the Bucs have some other pass-rushing defensive end hidden up their sleeves.

Throughout camp, Clayborn’s looked even better than the Bucs thought he was when they drafted him. Bowers, coming off knee surgery in January, hasn’t been quite at Clayborn’s level. But he has looked better than the Bucs expected him to be at this point. At worst, Clayborn will start right away and Bowers will be used as a situational rusher. At best, Bowers might get on the field more than that and show every team that let him slide to the second round that his knee is fine.

2. Can Blount be a complete running back? That’s the hope and the plan, but Blount is a work in progress. We learned quickly last season that he can run between the tackles. He didn’t take the starting job from Cadillac Williams until midseason, but he still managed to rush for 1,007 yards.

Williams thrived as a third-down back last season, but he left via free agency, creating a void. When Blount was on the field last season, it was pretty obvious the Bucs were going to hand the ball to him. He only caught five passes and the team was hesitant to rely on Blount to pick up on blitzes on pass plays.

Earnest Graham and Kregg Lumpkin can do some of those things, but the Bucs have been working hard to make Blount a more balanced player. The coaching staff said he’s now up to speed on pass blocking and he has worked a lot on catching the ball out of the backfield in camp. If Blount can do everything this season, Tampa Bay’s offensive intentions no longer will be telegraphed.

3. Was Freeman’s first full season as a starter misleading? Not at all. He threw for 25 touchdowns with only six interceptions and pretty much carried an offense that had to do a lot of shuffling through a series of injuries.

Freeman took over as leader of the team last season, and he only reinforced that with the way he kept the Bucs together during the lockout. Those workouts only increased his chemistry with Williams, Arrelious Benn, Sammie Stroughter and tight end Kellen Winslow. Freeman is capable of throwing for 30-plus TDs and passing for more than 4,000 yards.

BIGGEST SURPRISE

The Bucs had a pretty strong feeling about receiver Dezmon Briscoe when they made the unconventional move of signing him to the practice squad, but paying him like he was a member of the regular roster at the start of last season. Briscoe later earned his way onto the regular roster and has made the Bucs look like geniuses throughout camp and in the first preseason game. The team believes Benn is coming along well after suffering a torn ACL late last season. But the Bucs don’t want to rush Benn. That's why Briscoe could end up starting at the “Z’’ position opposite Williams early in the season. The long-range promise of Briscoe is off the charts because he can play all three receiver spots.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT

It’s not so much that the Bucs have been disappointed with what they’ve seen from McCoy and Price when they’ve been on the field. The problem is the two second-year defensive tackles simply haven’t been on the field a lot. The hopes are still high for these two, but Price is coming off a rare surgery on his pelvis and is being brought along slowly. McCoy, who had his rookie season end with a triceps injury just when he was starting to blossom, has missed some of camp with a shoulder injury. Roy Miller is a consistent player and the Bucs don’t mind starting him. But they need McCoy and Price to be on the field and making big plays.

OBSERVATION DECK

• The arrival of Clayborn and Bowers also helps the offensive line. In the old days, left tackle Donald Penn rarely had to break a sweat in practice because he worked against Stylez G. White.
• There’s concern on the outside about depth in the secondary. A lot of that concern stems from the uncertain situations of cornerback Aqib Talib and safety Tanard Jackson. Talib could face suspension by the league for an offseason incident in which he was charged with aggravated assault, and Jackson is out until at least late September as he finishes a one-year suspension for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. The Bucs have no idea what’s going to happen with Talib. If Jackson returns to them, they view it as a bonus. But the team isn’t nearly as concerned with the depth situation as fans are. Coaches are comfortable with Sean Jones and Cody Grimm as starting safeties and think they’ve found quality backups in Larry Asante and Corey Lynch. At cornerback, the Bucs believe E.J. Biggers could step into a starting role if anything happens to Talib, and there’s hope that second-year pro Myron Lewis could succeed as a nickel back.
• The Bucs like what they’ve seen from Lumpkin during camp and think he might be a reliable backup for Blount. But Graham is a nice fall-back option. He’s been playing fullback, but played tailback earlier in his career. With Erik Lorig getting time at fullback last season, the Bucs have flexibility to move Graham around.
• Although Foster is expected to start in the middle, the Bucs aren’t going to overload the rookie. At least in the short term, outside linebacker Quincy Black will wear the radio helmet and call the defensive plays. Part of that is because Black will be on the field all the time, and Foster will come out when the Bucs go to the nickel package.
• Attention, fantasy football players: Consider drafting Winslow. He was good last season, despite missing a lot of practice time with an achy knee. Winslow said the knee feels better than it has in years. He spent most of the offseason working out with Freeman in Tampa and their chemistry should be even better than last season.

Much to the chagrin of many of their fans, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have made it very clear they have a plan that involves building through the draft and largely ignoring free agency.

Other components of that plan involved developing the players the Bucs draft and, then, at some point, making sure they keep the ones they want for the long term. Whenever people point to how much salary cap space the Bucs have (at the moment it’s $29.5 million because only the top 51 cap figures count in the preseason and the Bucs have about $14 million in cap room when you count all their contracts, which is how it works in the regular season), the team quietly reminds you that money will be spent.

The implication is that the Bucs are going to extend the contracts of some of their key young players to make sure they never get near free agency. We’ve talked several times about how quarterback Josh Freeman has to be at the very top of that list.

He’s under contract through 2013, but you could make the argument that Freeman already has outperformed his rookie deal. His average per year pay is $5.24 million. That may sound like a lot to you and me, but it terms of quarterbacks, it’s not great pay.

Freeman’s average per year ranks 24th in the league and he’s below guys like Kyle Orton and Charlie Whitehurst. If Freeman isn’t already a top-10 quarterback, he will be soon.

He’s also the franchise and you want to keep him happy. It’s pretty much a no-brainer that the Bucs should offer Freeman a pile of money and try to lock him up for the long term. But, after Freeman, who else should the Bucs target for extensions?

When I first thought about it, not a lot of names were coming to mind. That’s when I pulled out my list of the contract status for every player on the team and started really thinking about it. Once I did, I came up with a pretty lengthy list. I’ll give it to you in order of importance -- at least in my eyes.

Running back LeGarrette Blount. He’s under contract only through this season and could be an exclusive-rights or restricted free agent until he’s played four seasons. But the Bucs don’t need to play those games. If Blount picks up where he left off last season, the Bucs should lock him up. He’s not quite the franchise, like Freeman, but he’s a pretty important part of the franchise. He’s only making minimum ($450,000) this year and you want to keep key players happy.

Receiver Mike Williams. He’s under contract through 2013. But, like Freeman and Blount, he’s already outperformed his rookie contract as a fourth-round pick. If Williams didn’t have two more years on his contract, I’d rank him ahead of Blount. I think Williams has already shown that he’s going to be a very good player for a very long time.

Defensive tackle Roy Miller. He’s only under contract through 2012 and he’s quietly become a very solid player. We still don’t know if Gerald McCoy and Brian Price are going to be good and we’ve seen signs both might be injury prone. Miller doesn’t have the upside of McCoy and Price, but he’s the one sure thing the Bucs have at defensive tackle.

Cornerback Aqib Talib. Yeah, I said it. But humor me and listen to my logic on this one. I’m not saying the Bucs need to go out and give him an extension immediately. Talib’s under contract through 2012 and he’s got a trial scheduled for next March for his latest off-field incident. Let’s say Talib isn’t punished by the NFL and isn’t convicted by the legal system. And let’s say that he’s a model citizen from here on out. Then, it might make some sense to extend him. The kid is a heck of a talent and there are some important people in One Buccaneer Place who believe Talib isn’t a bad person, but has made some questionable decisions. They also know more about the off-field incidents than we do and they don’t think Talib was the instigator in any of them.

Linebacker Geno Hayes. He’s under contract only through this year. Hayes is a decent, but not great player. But the coaches like him and he’s viewed in much the same way as fellow linebacker Quincy Black. If the Bucs were willing to recently give Black a new contract, I think they’d do something similar for Hayes.

Cornerback E.J. Biggers. A lot will depend on how Talib’s situation plays out. Biggers is under contract through 2012. Ronde Barber's not going to play much longer. The Bucs could have one or two starting cornerback jobs open before long. Biggers has become a very good No. 3 cornerback and easily could transition into being a starter.

Safety Sean Jones. He’s 29 and only under contract through this season. He’s not young and he’s not a star. In fact, he's pretty ordinary. But the Bucs might want to extend him for a year or two. Jones brings stability to the safety spot and the Bucs don’t know if Tanard Jackson will be back after his one-year suspension.

Offensive lineman Jeremy Zuttah. He’s only under contract through this season and he’s a nice backup at center and guard. Center Jeff Faine's probably not going to play a lot longer and Zuttah could be his eventual replacement.

Quarterback Josh Johnson. He’s in the final year of his contract. Although he rarely has played, the Bucs like him a lot. But, even if they approached Johnson about an extension, they might not have much luck. Johnson knows he’ll never start in Tampa Bay as long as Freeman is healthy. He’s got some talent and might want to go to a place where he at least has a shot at a starting job.

Safety Cody Grimm. He’s under contract through 2013, but he’s getting paid like the seventh-round choice he was last year. There’s no need to rush. But if Grimm, who is expected to start, plays well and Jackson’s not coming back, then it might be time to start thinking about extending him.

Receiver Sammie Stroughter. Like Grimm, there’s no rush on this one and the Bucs need to see more out of Stroughter, who is under contract through 2012. He looks like he could be a nice third receiver and return man. If he can provide some more evidence of that, he might be a candidate for an extension.

In this Insider item, Matt Williamson takes an in-depth look at the wide receiver corps in the NFC South.

He ranks Atlanta’s receivers as the best, followed by New Orleans, Tampa Bay and Carolina. I can’t really argue with that because I think Williamson’s on target.

The only thing I will say is that Williamson seems to be going on the assumption the rookie Julio Jones is going to be very good right away. A lot of us are making that same assumption, including myself. But I will throw out the old cautionary line that rookie wide receivers can take some time to develop. But, like Williamson says, Jones is in a great situation. He should be playing opposite Roddy White and catching passes from Matt Ryan. Throw in running back Michael Turner and tight end Tony Gonzalez and defenses won’t be able to devote too much attention to Jones.

New Orleans doesn’t have a true superstar at wide receiver, but that’s mainly because the Saints spread the ball around so much. Marques Colston could put up bigger numbers in a system where he was the featured receiver. Lance Moore is very underrated and the Saints don’t want to lose him in free agency. Robert Meachem, a former first-round pick, started his career very slowly but has started to come on.

Tampa Bay has an incredibly young group of receivers. Mike Williams came in last year as a rookie and instantly became the No. 1 receiver. He should only get better. If classmate Arrelious Benn can come back from a knee injury and start grasping things the way Williams has, the Bucs could have a dynamic duo. Sammie Stroughter could be a good third receiver. But don’t rule out playing time for Dezmon Briscoe. He spent part of last season on the practice squad, but the coaching staff is very high on Briscoe.

Carolina ranks last and that may be due to the uncertainty of the future of Steve Smith. If he stays, he should help rookie quarterback Cam Newton. If Smith goes, the Panthers aren’t desperate at wide receiver. They like Brandon LaFell and David Gettis and hope Armanti Edwards can get on the field this year. They’d like to throw those guys out there with Newton and let them all grow up together.

He has not been able to speak to head coach Raheem Morris, offensive coordinator Greg Olson or quarterbacks coach Alex Van Pelt during the lockout, but Josh Freeman still is getting some coaching.

The Tampa Bay quarterback has acted as a coach while organizing and running workouts for his teammates. But, behind the scenes, he’s been getting help from the outside. Freeman has continued a tradition that started after his first season at Kansas State. He’s been working with private quarterbacks coach Anton Clarkson. Here's the link the to Clarkson's website.

“We’ve still worked some on the on-field stuff, but this year has been different because of the lockout,’’ said Clarkson, who played quarterback at Oregon State and Hofstra and is based in Southern California. “This year, we’ve focused more on defenses, understanding the coverages and the blitz protections. We’ve spent more time looking at film.’’

Clarkson, whose client list also includes rookie Jake Locker and several college and high school quarterbacks, including Joe Montana’s sons, has traveled to Florida several times to work with Freeman and the quarterback has gone out to California on multiple occasions.

“The other thing we’ve worked on and talked a lot about is working on leadership,’’ Clarkson said. “That comes pretty easily and naturally to Josh. He might only be 23, but he’s a wise-old soul. When the lockout was coming down, I was about to talk to him about the idea of setting up some workouts for his teammates, but he already beat me to the punch.’’

Although most of Freeman’s workouts so far have been for offensive skill-position players, he has said the Bucs will hold more of a minicamp session the last week of June, with offensive linemen and defensive players expected to take part.

As soon as that’s over, there’s another step in place to get ready for the start of training camp. Clarkson said Freeman will come to California as soon as the workouts end and, this time, he’s bringing guests. According to Clarkson, receivers Mike Williams, Arrelious Benn and Sammie Stroughter are expected to join Freeman in California for a series of on-field workouts and time in the film room. Clarkson has a strong knowledge of Tampa Bay's playbook and knows Morris, another Hofstra product, very well.

Freeman and Clarkson first began working together at the urging of the Kansas State staff and have continued each offseason since. They also talk during the season and Clarkson said Freeman is one of the best pupils he’s ever worked with.

“First off, Josh has a great deal of natural talent,’’ Clarkson said. “He’s gigantic and he’s naturally athletic. But, more than that, he’s one of the most competitive and driven people I’ve ever been around. When I’m working with him and talking to him, he’s almost trying to steal the words out of my mouth. He’s so desperate to add information and make himself a better player and he’s never satisfied. As good as his numbers were last season, if you talk to him, they weren’t good enough. The fact the Bucs went 10-6, but didn’t make the playoffs has given him another chip on his shoulder.’’

Freeman threw 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions last year.

“Every year since I’ve worked with him I’ve asked him what his goals for the team are and what his personal goals are,’’ Clarkson said. “He’s given the same answer every year. His team goal is to win the championship. Individually, he always says he wants a season without an interception and I always tell him, 'Josh, that’s not really possible,’ but he darn near proved me wrong on that one last year.’’

Clarkson said Freeman’s nature is to never be satisfied. That’s why Clarkson believes Freeman soon will be among the league’s elite quarterbacks.

“Just a Pro Bowl alternate wasn’t good enough for him last year,’’ Clarkson said. “He looks up to guys like Drew Brees, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. He wants to get to a point where he can put his name up there with those guys.’’

Can he do it?

“Absolutely, there is no doubt in my mind,’’ Clarkson said. “Physically, he’s more talented than those guys in terms of size and strength. He’s a remarkable athlete. Those guys have set themselves apart by putting in an enormous amount of work on the field and in the film rooms and meeting rooms. Josh obviously is younger than them, but he’s working to catch up to them by really focusing in on all the things they did to set themselves apart.’’

SOMEWHERE IN THE TAMPA BAY AREA -- It's late May and you literally could see the heat waves rising from the football field. Among them and above them, you could see something much larger.

The big man had a football in one hand and his cell phone in another. He was throwing a pass to one teammate while making plans with another for a future workout.

Through it all, you could see a very young quarterback further entrenching himself as the leader of his team. You could see Josh Freeman literally rising up and running the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from all (football) angles.

Very quietly, Freeman has been doing this off and on since late March. While guys like New Orleans’ Drew Brees and Atlanta’s Matt Ryan have been leading some very public workouts for their teammates during the lockout, Freeman has been keeping things quiet. He asked that the location of Monday’s workout not be mentioned because he doesn’t want distractions.

“We have a lot of good character guys that are willing to put in the time in effort,’’ Freeman said. “It’s kind of a cultural thing around here. It means a lot to everybody. We take a lot of pride. Lockout or no lockout, we’re going to be ready to play.’’

You probably got the sense Freeman was emerging as a leader as the Bucs went a surprising 10-6 with the league’s youngest roster last season. You should have gotten the sense he was getting pretty powerful when he called a players-only meeting last season after a series of off-field incidents and told his teammates the trouble needed to stop.

He may be only 23 with only one full season as a starter, but there’s no longer any question about who’s running the Buccaneers.

“As the quarterback, you’re the leader of the team,’’ Freeman said.

It was more than obvious Freeman was the leader as the Bucs went through Monday’s workout. He’s the quarterback, but he’s so much more than that in the world of lockout limbo. He’s the coach, offensive coordinator, navigation system and travel planner of the Bucs.

As he threw a pass to receiver Arrelious Benn (more on him in a bit), he was talking to a teammate who was having trouble finding the undisclosed location and, a few minutes later, was talking with another teammate about travel plans and the schedule for an upcoming workout.

“Where’s (receiver) Mike (Williams)?’’ Freeman said into his cell phone. “Have you talked to Mike? We need to find out when he’s coming in.’’

Soon after that Freeman put down the phone and started talking his teammates through a play that got messed up in one of the games against New Orleans last season.

“It’s hard to get everybody free and their schedules lined up,’’ Freeman said. But, at the same time, we want to provide options for guys to get down here and work out. Everybody knows we’re a young team and we had a lot of momentum coming off last season. We want to build on that and keep that going.’’

Freeman was quick to point out that backup quarterbacks Josh Johnson and Rudy Carpenter have been helping run the workouts and coordinate plans. But Johnson and Carpenter are backups and Freeman is the franchise quarterback, even though he can’t talk to anyone with the franchise. He’s relying mostly on the experience of going through the offseason between his rookie year and second season, when the team raved about Freeman showing up at One Buccaneer Place to work with offensive coordinator Greg Olson, quarterbacks coach Alex Van Pelt and head coach Raheem Morris.

“Basically, they taught me how to think like a coach,’’ Freeman said. “I was in there every day. We’d watch film, go out and do field work and talk about different concepts. We did a lot of protection calls. We would just meet for hours and I think that helped me get more comfortable with the offense, take more charge and go out there and play more confident football.’’

That showed on the field last season as Freeman carried Tampa Bay’s offense and it showed even more Monday. At a time when players aren’t even allowed to talk to coaches, Freeman is the closest thing the Bucs have to a coach.

“Luckily, we kind of prepared for it before the lockout and the coaches said, 'If this thing keeps going, here’s what you need to do in the offseason,'" Freeman said. “We went through the installs and all that and they let the quarterbacks know what they wanted installed.’’

Freeman’s been doing installations and more. He’s focused mostly on the offense so far, but some defensive players have shown up. Freeman said he’s been in touch with veteran cornerback Ronde Barber about getting more defensive players involved and possibly doing seven-on-seven drills if the lockout lingers.

“For a young team, the offseason is especially valuable,’’ Freeman said. “Get the guys together, get the time together and get the work in. You miss getting that time in at the facility, but we’re making do with what we’ve got.’’

Freeman said it’s been challenging at times to get large group practices organized because players are scattered across the country and a young team like the Bucs features a lot of players who make low salaries and can’t afford to travel constantly. But Freeman is doing his best to keep the Bucs together.

“Coming down here, there’s a peer pressure aspect to get into the weight room, get out on the field and get your work done,’’ Freeman said.

Speaking of peers, who has caught Freeman’s eye in the workouts?

“I will say (receiver) Sammie Stroughter his having an incredible offseason,’’ Freeman said. “So is (tight end) Kellen Winslow. Arrelious is obviously coming off his (torn ACL) injury, but he’s looking great as well. We have a number of guys playing great football right now. Kellen Winslow is just a guy that’s so impressive. He’s a guy that comes in and works out in the morning, then comes and gets the throwing part in and then he goes and works out some more.’’

Funny, but it’s easy to see that’s the same routine Freeman is following. The lockout’s not an ideal situation for anyone. But, with Freeman running things, the Bucs are in good hands.

“We’re just trying to stay together as a team and keep working on things,’’ Freeman said. “We watch some film and talk over plays and stuff like that -- just do the stuff a football team should be doing.”

NEW ORLEANS -- The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be without injured fullback Earnest Graham and wide receiver Sammie Stroughter for Sunday’s game with the Saints.

Graham (neck) and Stroughter (hamstring) have been declared inactive. Erik Lorig is expected to start in Graham’s place. With Stroughter out and Arrelious Benn already on injured reserve, Tampa Bay will have to look to Preston Parker, Dezmon Briscoe, Micheal Spurlock and Maurice Stovall for depth at wide receiver.

Other inactives for the Bucs are: cornerback DJ Johnson, tackle Will Barker, defensive end George Johnson, defensive tackle Doug Worthington and tight end Nathan Overbay.

It seems like every week in the NFL there are stories about players going against their former teams or coaches facing their former teams. But, when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play the Washington Redskins on Sunday, the game presents more of a behind-the-scenes grudge match.

Bruce Allen is Washington’s general manager. He held that job in Tampa Bay from 2004 until he (and coach Jon Gruden) got fired after the 2008 season. That made me wonder a bit about how much Allen’s drafting has contributed to Tampa Bay’s surprising turnaround.

The answer is easy: Not much at all. Go take a look at Tampa Bay’s roster and I’m talking only the current active roster. There are nine guys Allen drafted and you can’t exactly call them the core of Tampa Bay’s resurgence.

Allen did draft safety Tanard Jackson, who is suspended until at least next September for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy. He also drafted cornerback Aqib Talib and Davin Joseph, who currently are on injured reserve.

That leaves Allen’s draft haul as center Jeremy Zuttah, backup quarterback Josh Johnson, linebackers Quincy Black, Geno Hayes and Adam Hayward, tackle Jeremy Trueblood, receiver Maurice Stovall, running back Cadillac Williams and linebacker Barrett Ruud.

That’s a less-than-stellar cast. We’ll give Allen credit for drafting the starting linebacker corps, even though Ruud is probably on his way out of Tampa Bay. Trueblood was average for a few years, but he’s now playing behind James Lee. Zuttah’s a decent guy to have swinging between center and guard, but he’s nothing special. Williams had a nice rookie year and has made a couple of inspirational comebacks from major knee injuries, but he could be on the way out as the Bucs look for a younger pair of legs to go with LeGarrette Blount next year. It’s a minor miracle Stovall’s still on the roster and the Bucs would be in deep trouble if they ever had to start Johnson at quarterback.

Joseph’s a free agent next year and there’s no guarantee Jackson will be back. Talib’s a great natural talent, but he’s come with trouble.

Oh, and let’s talk about some of Allen’s other greatest hits. We’re going to leave tragic figures Gaines Adams and Arron Sears alone. But how about receiver Michael Clayton? The Bucs could have had St. Louis running back Steven Jackson or Atlanta receiver Michael Jenkins (a Tampa kid) or New Orleans defensive end Will Smith with that pick.

And who can remember Chris Colmer? Yeah, he’s the offensive tackle Allen drafted in the third round, despite a history of shoulder problems. The injury resurfaced as soon as Colmer joined the Bucs and he never played a down in the NFL.

At least with Clayton the Bucs got one productive season. But Allen’s history with other receivers was even worse. There was fifth-round choice Larry Brackens out of that football factory that sometimes is called Pearl River Community college and, then there was Allen’s all-time worst draft pick.

Yep, Allen saved it for his last draft. He and Gruden used a second-round pick on Dexter Jackson and walked into the media room a bit later and claimed he was going to be the second coming of Carolina’s Steve Smith. Turns out the only thing Jackson and Smith had in common was they were both short and since Jackson had gone to school at Appalachian State, he had spent some time in North Carolina.

But, hey, maybe Allen’s drafts did the current Bucs a favor, after all. If Allen hadn’t botched things at wide receiver the way he did, Mark Dominik never would have had to draft Mike Williams, Arrelious Benn and Sammie Stroughter.