Let Joe be upfront: He likes Eli Manning. Always has, ever since he carried Mississippi to the Cotton Bowl in his senior year. (Quick, name another Rebels player that year.)

Joe even thought Eli would make a better quarterback in the NFL than his older brother Peyton Manning.

But after reading a recent story by Woody Cummings of the Tampa Tribune, Joe has to wonder if Eli has been on so many late-night talk shows he’s auditioning for one himself (couldn’t be any worse than Joe Buck), or if possibly Eli is watching adult films when he’s supposed to be watching game films.

In a conference call with the Tampa Bay pen and mic club today, Manning spread it out quite thick about how dominant he thinks the Bucs pass rush is.

(Yes, you read that last sentence correctly).

When asked Wednesday during a conference call with the Tampa Bay media what it was about the Bucs defense that concerned him, Manning started by lauding the pass rush.

“They have talented players obviously, and they can get a great pass rush just by bringing their front four,’’ Manning said. “They’re very disciplined, and doing the right things have guys that can make plays.’’

Uh, Eli. Joe believes you were asked about the Tampa Bay defense, not Dallass. Or Washington. Or Philadelphia.

As Cummings points out, the Bucs have a grand total of three sacks so far this year and the Bucs defensive front’s lack of pressure is one of the main reasons why the Bucs have been scalded for over a combined 900 yards by opponents.

Maybe Eli is still on a long bender from his day off yesterday?

If, in fact, Eli was trying to use some dry humor, Joe Buck better be careful. The King of All Media, Howard Stern, however, is still rather safe in his lofty position.