Joe's got the free link for you to jump into Sports Illustrated's "Vault" to read a Peter King feature on Derrick Brooks. King delivers a rare Xs-and-Os look at Brooks and the Bucs' defense, plus an inside look at Brooks' preparation and performance.

Admit it. You were too cheap to run out to 7-Eleven and drop $5 on Sports Illustrated two weeks ago, when Peter King wrote a massive feature story about Derrick Brooks.

Joe understands. You only pay for Sports Illustrated when there’s a bikini on the cover.

Well, the story took a deep-inside look at how Brooks prepared for the Bucs’ November game against the Vikings and how Brooks performed through the contest.

If you love football, and Derrick Brooks, you’ll thoroughly enjoy the read, although you might need to freshen your cocktail. it’s a long one.

THE GAME is never over on Sunday.

This game, for Brooks, ended on Monday in a defensive meeting room, when he, Ruud and June got their report cards from Bradley. Every Bucs linebacker is graded in four categories: Plus/Minus (carrying out the right assignment on each play), Effort (running to the ball, even on the other side of the field), Make Play (making plays when in position to make them) and Tackles (taking down a ballcarrier when favorably positioned). Generally, Brooks is happy if the team wins and he gets a grade above 90%.

So he should have been elated when Bradley handed out the graded play sheet. Brooks, who was in for 40 of the 52 defensive snaps against Minnesota, scanned his grades:
Plus/Minus: 37 of 40
Effort: 40 of 40
Make Play: 8 of 9
Tackles: 7 of 8
Total: 92 of 97, or 95%

Joe continues to be amazed at the consistently high performance that Brooks is achieving at 35 years old in a defensive system that demands speed and great discipline from its linebackers.

Throw in Brooks’ leadership in the locker room (the guy is practically a player-coach) and every Bucs fan should be thanking his maker nearly every team in the NFL passed on Brooks back in the 1995 draft; The Bucs grabbed him with the 28th pick. And just in case you forgot, Brooks hasn’t missed a game since coming to Tampa Bay.