Most sober Bucs fans have a lot of questions about the Bucs defense for the 2009 season. With the purge of talent in the offseason, the shifting of players and letting a couple of starters go, it’s hard to picture the Bucs defense improving from last year.

Former Bucs great Warren Sapp is of a similar mind. In an NFL.com chat, he all but warned Bucs fans to temper expectations of the defense.

Anthony, Jacksonville, FL 04:36 PM ET
Sapp, a legitimate question – how do you feel Bates’ scheme will allow for the Buccaneer defensive line to succeed? What are your thoughts on Dre/Kyle Moore, and Roy Miller?

Warren Sapp, NFL Network
Bates is teaching everybody his scheme. Everybody in Tampa knows one kind of defense – the Tampa 2. And Bates doesn’t teach that. So everyone is in the classroom. Trust me on this. It will be a work in progress. None of the guys they have are two-gap players, and that’s what Bates needs.

What more authority does a Bucs fan need than that? As Joe has stated several times, he just can’t see a 30-year (Jermaine Phillips) old moving to a new position and shining. That was just one of a number of moves the Bucs made with defensive personnel that left Joe scratching his head (and it’s not because of his eczema).