The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are 2 – 0, and fans are suddenly starting to take notice of the team again. With both home games being blacked out because the game did not sell out 72 hours before the game the Buccaneers have defeated the Browns and Panthers at home. Josh Freeman has looked good in both games, and it seems he is growing more as each 
game passes.
The biggest reason for the success of the team has to be the Buccaneers defense returning to a dominant force, which they have not been in quite some time. Ronde Barber looks like the player that has been to multiple pro-bowls, and they are getting after the passer like they did during their super bowl run.
All of those are positive signs for the team going forward, but the 2 – 0 start is a bit of a misleading one. The Bucs have beaten the 0 – 2 Cleveland Browns and the 0 – 2 Carolina Panthers who are both ranked in the bottom fourth of the league in most statistics. So, the Buccaneers have not beaten a team this year that has even won a football game, and two teams that are not even going to sniff the playoffs this year.
The Bucs face the 2 – 0 Pittsburgh Steelers who boast one of the best defenses in the league, and have dominated the two offenses they have faced this season. The shut down Matt Ryan and the Atlanta Falcons high powered offense, and man handled the normally physical Tennessee Titans as well. To add to the woes of the Buccaneers is the fact that starting safety Tanard Jackson has been suspended by the NFL for the rest of the season.
It seems that Jackson has violated the league’s substance abuse policy, although it is undisclosed as to what Jackson was 
taking that caused the positive test. This is Jackson’s second offense as he was suspended four games last season for taking performance enhancing drugs as well. Now the Bucs have to try and fill that void with fourth year pro Sabby Piscitelli who lost his starting job to Jackson.
The Bucs edged out both of those early season wins, and were hardly dominating in their performances except on the defensive side of the ball. With their first big test coming up on Sunday against the Steelers we will have a good measuring stick of exactly how good the 2010 Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going to be this year.
