Tampa Bay Times from St. Petersburg, Florida • 26

6C I Thursday, July 31, 2008 St, Petersburg Times huccnfl'! if bucs.tampabay.com for more NFL news Dues notebook iffffiK mm mMmm Reports: QB offered big money to stay retired Associated Press Packers president Mark Murphy traveled to Mississippi to meet with quarterback Brett Favre and his agent on Wednesday in an apparent attempt to talk him out of ending his retirement. And two media outlets reported the attempt included a financial offer. Murphy did not talk to reporters to be sidelined by a groin injury sustained just before camp. Gruden said he will be cautious but hopes the receiver returns in the next two days. "We don't treat him like everybody else," Gruden said.

"He's a strange bird to start with." Graham practiced after tweaking his ankle Tuesday. And tight end Ben Troupe sustained a mild concussion Tuesday but should not be sidelined long. ONE MORE: Fullback Carl Stewart, who spent most of the offseason with the Bucs after going undrafted out of Auburn, signed. rush is going to decide the game because the offensive linemen are tired, too," coach Jon Gruden said. "Sometimes, these fourth or fifth guys can give you some key snaps." Black, a third-round pick, saw a few snaps at end during his rookie season but played almost exclusively on special teams.

"They keep a record of everything we do in practice, so you always want to put your best foot forward and be aware of what you put on tape," he said. "Anywhere I can help the team, that's what I want to do." INJURIES: Galloway continues for concern. "Games are won on the goal line," defensive tackle Jovan Ilaye said. The offense got the best of us (Wednesday)." BLACK'S NEW Quincy Black has lots of promise. But because of the Bucs' group of stout linebackers, he has rarely been able to show it That might change, however, as the second-year player has been one of only a few linebackers participating in pass-rush drills as the Bucs attempt to use his versatility and speed.

"In this heat, when you get a lead, the fourth-quarter pass Joseph said. "We have to be able to march down the field, get in short-yardage and goal line and convert. We had a good feeling walking out of that period." Earnest Graham ran for two scores and Michael Bennett and rookie Clifton Smith one. "We're very strong up front," Graham said. "We've made some upgrades at a lot of positions.

We're very strong at running back and fullback. I think we're definitely built to score down there." Conversely, the defense, which in 2007 allowed touchdowns on 85 percent of its first-and-goal situations, might have reason upon returning to Green Bay on Wednesday night but issued a statement: "We discussed a number of topics not related to football, including Brett's long-term relationship with the Packers. I consider our Brett Favre could report to camp Friday, his agent says. Jm 1C shines on 4 with bright future 'A ll VIS 1 VM conversation to be confidential and am going to be respectful of Brett and his family and keep the details private. "(General manager Ted Thompson and coach Mike McCarthy) are going to continue to work on the football side of this issue.

They have my full support." As the statement was released, the sidelines at Packers practice buzzed about the reports of payment offers. WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee reported the Packers offered Favre several million dollars to stay retired, and the Green Bay Press-Gazette reported on its Web site that they offered "a substantial salary" to stayaway. "I don't have any information," said McCarthy, who had not talked with Murphy. "Wish I did." Nearly five months after his tearful retirement news conference, Favre filed for reinstatement with the league on Tuesday. Commissioner Roger Goodell took no action Wednesday, giving the sides more time to work out a resolutioa Once he is reinstated, the Packers will have 24 hours to release him or return him to their active roster.

The team has ruled out releasing Favre. They also could trade him, but no deal appears imminent. Team officials have made it clear, both publicly and to Favre, that he would back up Aaron Rodgers if he returned. Wednesday afternoon outside his office in Hattiesburg, agent James "Bus" Cook said Favre, who has been throwing to players at a nearby high school, could be in Green Bay on Friday. The Packers don't have a full public practice scheduled for today.

"He would love to go back to Green Bay," he said. "That's why he started working out But right now, it looks like he'll be the quarterback at Oak Grove High School." BRIAN CASSELLA I Times New Bucs center Jeff Faine, center, and left tackle Arron Sears double-team Jimmy Wilkerson during practice Wednesday. BY 8TEPHEN F. HOLDER Times Staff Writer LAKE BUENA VISTA If there is one place offensive linemen get the chance to show their worth, it's on the goal line. Wednesday, they did as the offense scored touchdowns on four of six chances in an intense short-yardage drill.

It gave the offense bragging rights. But more important, it was a positive sign for a unit that in 2007 scored touchdowns on only 69.6 percent of first-and-goal situations. "We can't always rely on (receiver Joey Galloway) to make a big play," guard Davin BUCS continued from ipoftliglrt "We don't like to lose. We love to win. If we can avoid injuries, if we can play consistently, we can be as good as we want to be." On the field, the offensive line was, at times, dominant Tampa Bay finished 11th in the NFL in rushing offense at 117 yards per game despite losing running backs Cadillac Williams and Michael Pittman to injuries: But like many young linemen, they struggled a bit in pass protection.

Their 36 sacks allowed tied for 14th most which isn't bad unless you consider that scrambling quarterback Jeff Garcia avoided many others. Certainly, the Bucs' investment of high draft picks on the offensive line appears to be paying off. Joseph, a 6-foot-3, 313-pound right guard taken 23rd overall in 2006, has plenty of ability. But like many of his linemates, he has lacked the consistency to be considered a Pro Bowl player. "This year I think will be my year," Joseph said.

"Of course, I'm being optimistic But consistency is our biggest challenge. Some weeks, we'd run for 200 and something yards against a stellar defense and the next week we'd go on the road and really struggle." Sears, a 6-3, 319-pound left tackle from Tennessee, was a second-round pick last year and started all 17 games, playing with a sprained ankle in the playoff loss to the Giants. Several NFL scouts believe Sears has even more upside than Joseph and could beat his teammate to Hawaii. "I liked several things. The No.

1 thing was his unflappabil-ity as a rookie getting thrown in the action," offensive line coach Bill Muir said. "I think the other thing was he's so fundamentally sound. Obviously, that's a credit to the Tennessee football program. He has great instincts for the game. He just gets it Of course, Muir knows how expectations can disappear like Bucs make Selmon at The Bucs broke out the "Oklahoma Drill" on Wednesday morning in one of the most intense drills you'll see.

It was no coincidence it came with former Sooner great and Bucs Hall of Fame defensive end Lee Roy Selmon present The exercise pits a blocker against a would-be tackier with the running back charged with following the blocker and making it past a cone behind the defender. End Kevin Carter had, perhaps, the day's most exciting play when he tossed aside tackle Donald Penn and buried Kenneth Darby, eliciting rousing cheers from the defense and fans. It was the perfect antidote to the sameness of camp, Carter said. "It kind of breaks the monotony of knocking heads and doing the same old thing," he said. "Those kinds of things, although it kind of gets us rowdy, it brings us together and gets us hyped." young line mfr-mvmm WIT" II' ---J ig0I The unheralded one is left tackle Donald Perm, who was undrafted and spent a year on the Vikings' practice squad.

He took over in Week 4 after Luke Petitgout's knee injury. "The thing that impresses me with these guys, at a really, really young age, they're really mature from an NFL standard," Faine said. "Sometimes I have to take, a step back and really appreciate that they're playing so well and doing it at a young age. They're talking so good about us, so there's going to be a lot of pressure from other defensive lines and defenses that are called better offensive lines." Now if only they can. block out the applause; because they saw me.

Nah. It was great It gets the guys whooping and hollering a little bit, and they had some fun." Finally, some stability The Bucs' most common starting offensive lines and linemen they drafted afterward since winning the Super Bowl: 2003: Roman Oben, Kerry Jenkins, John Wade, Cosey Coleman, Kenyatta Walker Draft Jeb Terry (fifth round) 2004: Derrick Deese, Matt Stinchcomb, Wade, Coleman, Walker Draft Chris Colmer (third), Dan Buenning (fourth) 2005: Anthony Davis, Buenning, Wade, Sean Mahan, Walker Draft Davin Joseph (first), Jeremy Trueblood (second) 2006: Davis, Mahan, Wade, Joseph, Trueblood Draft Arron Sears (second), Chris Denman (seventh) 2007: Donald Penn, Sears, Wade, Joseph, Trueblood Draft Jeremy Zuttah (third) 2008 (projected): Penn, Sears, Jeff Faine, Joseph, Trueblood a bag of Krystal burgers in his meeting room. "It's still a work in progress," he said. "Obviously, you can talk about potential and talent, but we've got to do it on the field." Off the field, there already is a bond that will be tough to break. Joseph and Trueblood, a tackle who was drafted in the second round from Boston College in 2005, have been inseparable since starting as rookies.

During the offseason, Trueblood cut out the fried foods, trimmed up and shaved his hair into a mohawk that's growing out again. When the season ended, he said he was bummed that there were no more games to prepare for. Clearly, that guy gets it, too. home For up-to-the-minute news from training camp, visit our Bucs Beat blog at blogs.tampabay.combucs. ites: Derrick Brooks, right, and Carter, a former Titan.

They signed autographs and posed for photos. And coach Jon Gruden even knelt next to Best's wheelchair, c-t Little guy's big day Bucs fan Anthony Best of Nashville experienced a dream come true Wednesday. Best, 11, who is battling terminal cancer, visited camp and was chosen as "Fan of the Day," enabling him to meet several Bucs, including hisfavor- Exit 65 (Old 26 CD) Victory Way Parking Disney's Wide World of Sports complex Area shown Bucs training camp Official All Star Cafe showing him a checklist of "good" and "bad" plays from practice. Best's grandparents, Danny and Teresa Hobbs, are long time Bucs ticket holders and former Belleair residents. Walkway 5 I' Baseball stadium Parking Times ST: special teams only WT: walk-through Practice moves inside from 4-5, closed to public Possibility entire afternoon practice moves inside, closed to public -v 1) 0 Sports field Bucs 2 Milk practice House fields i I 'Si The Sports Experience schedule 9:10 BRIAN CASSELLA I Times Former Bucs Doug Williams, left, and Lee Roy Selmon chat during Wednesday's practice, which included a drill named for Selmon's alma mater of Oklahoma.

"It was great," Selmon said. Said Selmon: "I thought it was nice. (Defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin and coach Jon Gruden) put that in specifically rim "'''IJt "1 Today (WT) Aug. 8 (WT) Friday (ST) Aug. 9 Preseason at Miami, 7:30 Saturday Aug.

10 None Sunday Aug. 11 2:454:45 Monday (WT) Aug. 12 Tuesday Aug. 13 2:454:30 Aug. 6 2:454:30 Aug.

14 (camp ends) Quote of the day "He's kind of like the white tiger atBusch Gardens. He doesn't come out every day. But when he does, you're glad you saw it because he's exciting." Coach Jon Gruden on the sporadic practice habits of 36-year-old receiver Joey Galloway Steptien F. Holder and Joe Smith, Times staff writers Aug. 7 (ST); 7:30 Preseason Aug.

9, at Miami, 7:30, Ch. 8 Aug. 17, 8, NFL New England, Network Aug. 23, Jacksonville, 7:30, Ch. 8 Aug.

28, at Houston,.