Bucs defensive coordinator Jim Bates crashed and burned in just one season leading the Broncos' defense in 2007.

We’ve all heard about Bucs new defensive coordinator Jim Bates and his great successes around the NFL.

That got Joe wondering. Why did Bates’ 2007 defense stink up the joint in Denver, where he was about to get demoted after his first and only season as Broncos’ defensive coordinator”?

Bates quit before Mike Shanahan dethroned him.

Under Bates, Denver’s defense went from average in 2006 (ninth in points allowed) to the bottom of the league in 2007 (28th in points allowed).

Here’s three names for you: Jarvis Moss, Tim Crowder and Marcus Thomas. These are the three defensive linemen the Broncos drafted in 2007.

According to the Denver Post, Bates had a huge hand in this draft. And that makes sense, since Shanahan was the offensive guru, general manager and under increased pressure to take his defense to the next level.

If Bates hasn’t been given carte blanche of the Broncos’ defense, he clearly possessed the most influential voice in the team’s draft war room last weekend. The Broncos made four picks in the draft and three were defensive linemen.

Let the Jim Bates era begin.

Bates’ picks haven’t impressed. Moss, the former Gator stud, has been a bust. He was the 17th overall pick (the Broncos traded up). Crowder (2nd round) had an encouraging season under Bates in ’07, but rode the bench for 2008. Thomas (4th round) has been a non-factor and had legal issues.

If Bates was, in fact, making the calls on defense, then he also judged Simeon Rice worthy of a $3 million deal in Denver, after the Bucs let him walk. Rice accomplished nothing and was inactive for some games.

Joe’s got a lot of respect for Bates’ record around the league. But he definitely has something to prove in Tampa. Bottom line is he got fired – quickly – in Denver, where there’s always been a fair amount of loyalty and stability.

And let Joe be the first to say Bates and the Bucs look to deal for Tim Crowder.