Bucs look for payoff at last minicamp

TAMPA -- It wasn't that long ago that the Bucs were scrambling to hire a coach, assemble an offensive coaching staff and replace a slew of departed free agents.

But nearly four months later, the Bucs figure they will be caught up in their offseason work, particularly on offense, by the end of their third and final minicamp, which begins today at One Buc Place.

"Considering we had such a late start and that we put together an offensive staff that really had no prior common denominator, it's really been a crash course for coaches and players alike to get up to speed here," offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Bill Muir said. "I think we've been able to make good progress. These next three days, I think, are about trying to put the exclamation point on our offseason program."

It has been quite an offseason for the Bucs. They've brought in a host of free agents, such as quarterback Rob Johnson, running back Michael Pittman, receiver Joe Jurevicius, tight end Ken Dilger, guard Kerry Jenkins and receiver Keenan McCardell, and are implementing coach Jon Gruden's version of the West Coast offense.

That new scheme has been the focus of the offseason and will continue to be a key element of the minicamp, which runs through Saturday.

"One of the things we have wanted to do is build a familiarity and comfort zone from a mental standpoint so that the players could understand the philosophy of the offense and how we wanted to intergrate it," Muir said. "We want that mental aspect to be pretty well introduced so that when we go to training camp we can concentrate on the physical things such as timing and techniques and not be bogged down in a lot of learning."

The minicamp will involve two-a-day practices today and Friday and a morning practice Saturday. Muir said the team expects virtually 100 percent participation.

After Saturday, players will continue to work out at One Buc Place on a voluntary basis until training camp begins in late July.

The minicamp is closed to the public.