Larry Asante (22) didn't get the tackle on this play last week but he made New England opponents pay Friday night.

Let’s be honest, the Bucs set of safeties is thin, even Joe can see this.

Ahmad Black has a high ankle sprain and given the fact he has played sparingly and may not be back until next month, his shot at making the final cut is dicey.

Then there is Cody Grimm, who is returning from an ugly broken leg against Baltimore. He didn’t start training camp at a full 100 percent.

So when Larry Asante got to play tonight, though he didn’t make a lot of plays, the plays he made were memorable.

Asante, not exactly a large man, brought pain on the two tackles he made, laying the wood to Patriots players. One hit resulted in a forced fumble the Bucs recovered.

Big plays — like the pick he made on Drew Brees last year — may make for a big decision by Bucs management in keeping the former Cornhusker.

“It’s the mentality that Coach Rah preaches in practice all the time,” Asante said of his big-hit ability. “We take that to heart. If someone tries to catch the ball, we will try to jar it out. We have to make them pay.”

Asante just hopes that the hits he lays on opponents stay fresh in the mind of Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik.

“When you get your chance to make the plays you have to capitalize on them,” Asante said.