Dave Scheiber, of the St. Pete Times,  one of the premier and most decorated sports features writers in the business, cornered Chris Hovan recently and talked about leadership.

In this feature chock full of good quotes, Hovan talks about the massive void left by the departure of Derrick Brooks.

“The most enjoyable experience I’ve ever had in my nine-year career was to be [Brooks’] teammate. I’ve never seen a veteran leader take such control over the locker room.”

And Hovan goes on to talk about his goals as a Bucs leader and his impressions of Raheem The Dream.

“I’ve always liked Coach Morris’ style,” he said. “I came in here in 2005, and I see a lot of characteristic traits in Coach Morris that I saw in Coach Tomlin. He’s a young, energetic coach — very smart. I think he’s got such great intangibles. Talk about running through a wall for a guy — I’d run through a brick wall for Raheem Morris.

“Over the years, we’ve developed a relationship where I respect him more than anybody I’ve ever been under. I think it’s my job to help the offense win games, so I know he’s going to put us in that position. He’s a great leader.”

Joe gets fired up hearing about how every Bucs player gushes over top for Raheem The Dream. Clearly, everybody is buying in, which is the first step towards getting it done on the field.

Of course, the next step is the hard part: blocking and tackling and having the talent and coaching needed to execute. Nobody anywhere has a clue how good or bad these Bucs are.

Only 9+ weeks until the first preseason game. That will be a glorious ending to this maddening offseason of the unknown.