Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 5 Biggest Concerns Heading into the Regular Season

With three preseason games in the books and the finale tomorrow night in the nation's capital, who the Buccaneers are and the type of team they will be under new head coach Greg Schiano have slowly come to light.

We know rookie Doug Martin and third-year back LeGarrette Blount will share rushing duties, forming a potentially dynamic backfield duo unseen in Tampa Bay since the days of Warrick Dunn and Mike Alstott.

We've seen that the defense—in an effort to make up for its lack of "splash plays" and quarterback sacks in recent years—will look to utilize its youth and athleticism by deploying a more aggressive scheme than previous regimes.

Oh, and we've found out that rookies Lavonte David, Michael Smith and Mark Barron—along with the above-mentioned Martin—will all play a major role in deciding just how improved this team is from last season's squad.

With that in mind, what should fans be most concerned about heading into the regular season?

That is, what have we seen, or not seen, that raise red flags and could potentially spell disaster at some point this year?

5. Attendance

These days, it seems attendance is often the topic of debate whenever the Bucs are mentioned.

Truth be told, you can also throw the Tampa Bay Rays into that very discussion, as their dismal attendance record speaks for itself.

Nevertheless, what was once considered a certainty—a sold-out Raymond James Stadium for every Bucs home game—has turned into a half-empty habitat of doom for the home team.

Case in point: The Bucs are a combined 8-16 in home games over the last three seasons.

Home sweet home? I think not.

Don't get me wrong, I don't fault the fans one bit. The Glazers became greedy and complacent, which—regardless of the type of business—are horrible traits to adopt and even tougher to kick.

That said, the Glazers appear to have realized their faults and poor business decisions and stepped their game up in an effort to win back their once-loyal fans.

They've lowered ticket prices for a vast majority of the stadium, reduced the television blackout threshold to 85 percent (from 100 percent previously) and, perhaps most important of all, were uncharacteristically active during the free-agency period, spending more than $140 million on day one alone.

All of which leads to one simple question: Will the fans return?

Let's face it: Their poor play certainly hasn't helped sell out the stadium, so before they worry about winning over fans, they need to focus on winning more games.

4. Pass Rush

The Bucs have invested heavily along the defensive line over the past few seasons but have yet to see any real results from said investments.

Included in that group are tackles Gerald McCoy and Brian Price, as well as ends Adrian Clayborn and Da'Quan Bowers.

It's worth noting only two of those four will start for the Bucs when the season begins on September 9, as Price has since been traded to Chicago and Bowers will begin his season on the PUP list—not to mention McCoy's inability to stay healthy through an entire season.

But other than that, the group has been outstanding.

Jokes aside, the Bucs have a serious dilemma on their hands due to the lack of pass rush that has come from their side of the line of scrimmage.

Over the past three seasons, the Bucs have averaged just 25.6 sacks per season.

To put that into perspective, from 2000 to 2002, the Bucs averaged 46.6 sacks. It's no coincidence that those teams finished seventh, eighth and first in points allowed during each of their respective seasons.

Whereas the recent Bucs defenses have finished 27th, ninth and 32nd overall in their respective seasons.

In short, defensive coordinator Bill Sheridan has to figure out a way to generate more pressure that results in higher sack totals than what we've seen of late.

3. Offensive Line

Coming into the preseason, the offensive line was widely considered the strongest unit on the team.

One injury and a few shaky performances later, and—much like the personnel—the perceptions have changed.

With the rock of the line, guard Davin Joseph, out for the season with a knee injury sustained Friday vs. New England (via ThePewterPlank.com), the entire makeup and chemistry of the line has been altered.

Ted Larsen will fill in for Joseph, barring the Bucs finding a more-capable veteran after final roster cuts at the end of the week.

For now, Larsen will be asked to pick up where Joseph left off. As I alluded to in the opening, the Bucs will look to establish a run-first offensive attack, so the play of the offensive line is clearly paramount for any success to occur.

Aside from injury, the Bucs have also entertained the idea (via BucsNation.com) of starting tackle Demar Dotson at right tackle, instead of the oft-maligned Jeremy Trueblood.

While Trueblood is still officially listed as the starter (according to the team's website), should Dotson supplant him, the right side of the line would be drastically different than a month ago, which could have a ripple effect across the entire offense.

2. Josh Freeman

Shouldn't the Bucs and their fans have other things to worry about than whether or not their fourth-year quarterback is capable of leading this team forward?

Shouldn't the questions and concerns about No. 5 already have been answered?

Shouldn't Josh Freeman be our quarterback by now?

Yes, yes and yes.

Yet here we are four years later, still debating about Raheem and how he drafted his guy to be his quarterback on his team.

Look, we've all seen what Freeman can do.

2010 was a shining example of his potential and the type of impact his abilities can have on opposing defenses, as he threw for 3,400-plus yards, 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions.

But then, 2011 happened. Yes, it was a bad team, and yes, it's not all his fault. But by and large, was it not the same team that finished 10-6 the season before? Wasn't he in the same offense, throwing to the same receivers, behind the same offensive line?

Again, a resounding yes.

For what it's worth, I want him to succeed. I want him to prove the naysayers—myself included—wrong. It makes for better football and more-compelling story writing.

It would also likely mean the Bucs were winning more games.

However, until Freeman shows us that he is who we were led to believe he is, the questions and concerns will remain.

1. Depth

If the preseason has shown us anything, it's that the Bucs truly lack depth across the board.

Not only has the injury to guard Davin Joseph highlighted that, but the performances turned in by the second- and third-string against Tennessee and New England further demonstrate a precipitous drop-off in talent after the starters.

Last week, the first-team defense held Tom Brady relatively in check, only to have Brady's backup, Ryan Mallett, throw for two scores in the fourth quarter of their failed comeback attempt.

The week before, Tennessee scored 23 of their 30 points after the Bucs' starters left the field.

Players are going to get nicked and banged up during the course of a grueling 16-game schedule. Injuries are very much a part of the game, which is why teams work tirelessly to scout and draft players, thus ensuring a succession plan is in place whenever possible.

Suffice it to say, quality depth is an area the Bucs clearly have work to do in. Especially with the threat of catching the injury bug around every corner.

As such, it is concern No. 1 for the Bucs heading into the 2012 regular season.

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