Joe has always enjoyed reading veteran St. Petersburg Times sports columnist Gary Shelton’s missives over the years.

Sometimes Shelton makes Joe chuckle. Sometimes Shelton makes irritated (not with him). Always Shelton makes Joe think. Summed up, this is the earmarks of a strong columnist.

But rarely — maybe never — has Joe ever read an angry Shelton. That changed today.

Shelton’s near rage over the Tanard Jackson issue jumped off Joe’s computer screen this morning when he read Shelton condemn the (former?) Bucs safety Tanard Jackson for testing positive for a banned substance and thus being suspended for a year.

For the third time in his career, Jackson has been caught with drugs in his urine and rocks in his head. He has taken his bad habits and twisted them around his bad judgment, and he has taken his self-destructive nature and pointed it at his own huddle. Jackson will be gone for a year, but his teammates also have to pay part of the price.

Dammit, Tanard, what were you thinking?

Better question: Why weren’t you thinking?

Wow. In just three paragraphs, Shelton wrapped up the ire of Bucs fans as well. Just when the team seemed on the cusp of returning to great things, with it’s biggest game at the CITS since the Chucky era just hours away, one of the most important elements of the defense was whisked away for his own stupidity.

Shelton nails it between the uprights.