Joe got a chance to chat with Fox Sports Radio host JT the Brick, who can be heard locally on WDAE-AM 620 overnights Monday through Friday, 1-6 a.m. Though he is widely regarded as an Oakland Raiders fan, mostly because he worked for them, he grew up and is still a hardcore Giants fan. Joe and JT discussed the Giants-Bucs game coming Sunday.

Joe: It doesn’t appear Justin Tuck will play. With him out of the game, will that cause a domino effect resulting in the otherwise strong Giants front defensive line being neutralized? How concerned should the Giants be?

JT the Brick: Tuck is a beast and one of the best defensive players in the NFL. Without him the Giants have to rotate more players in and it takes away from the play of Osi Umenyiora who will be double teamed more. This is a big break for the Bucs.

Joe: Umenyiora was just about invisible Sunday night. One tackle and one quarterback hit. On the Cowboys final drive, it seems Dallas ran right at him, daring him to make a play. Was his play Sunday cause for concern or was it just a freak bad game for him?

JT: Umenyiora was fantastic in Week One and should have a big game on Sunday. If Leftwich can’t get rid of the ball quickly, Osi will look to take his head off. Kellen Winslow, Jr. will have to chip him at the line of scrimmage and also get open over the middle of the field and slow down the Giants pass rush.

Joe: The Giants in recent years have been dominant on the ground. But so far this year the Giants rank in the bottom half of the league in rushing and have yet to score a rushing touchdown. What’s your analysis on the drop off in the running game?

JT: Brandon Jacobs will try to wear down the Bucs defense and I expect the Giants to run more than pass. Eli was clutch against the Cowboys hooking up with his young wide receivers, but he wants to get back to the running game and control the clock.

Joe: The Bucs pass defense is beyond porous. They’ve given up 921 yards passing in two games and opponents average over 10 yards a completion. Granted, they’ve been exposed by some good receivers (Jason Witten, Lee Evans and Terrell Owens). Can Mario Manningham and Steve Smith burn the Bucs defense or will Eli Manning have to spread the ball around?

JT: Eli will take what the Bucs secondary gives him. He is great at getting all of his receivers involved. I think he will try to stretch the field with Manningham early and hope that Smith can help move the chains on third down. Eli is smart enough and has been successful in the past against the Bucs Cover-2 and he will look to hand the ball off to Jacobs and pick up first downs with short passes on third down. The Giants are the ONLY team in the NFL without a red zone touchdown so far in 2009.

Joe: From a Giants fan’s perspective, is there any element on the Bucs that concerns you? Is there any way you can see the Bucs winning? And from a national talk show perspective, just how much of a train wreck have the Bucs become?

JT: I have always liked and respected the Bucs but believe the Glazer family made a huge mistake by letting go of Jon Gruden and Bruce Allen. I worked with them both in Oakland and they didn’t deserve to get fired a few weeks before the Super Bowl in Tampa. That mistake will live with this team for the next several years and the current coaching staff is not ready for the challenge ahead of them.