The Bucs still have a lot of questions they need to answer in their last preseason game against Houston.

The play of the back-up quarterbacks – Josh Freeman is throwing without the soft cast on his thumb, which is great news for the start of the regular season, but someone still has to take the snaps on Thursday night. Josh Johnson continues to play well, but Carpenter has struggled and looks lost out there. Snead took quite a few snaps this week in practice, expect him to play this game. This is an audition for the back-up position. The Bucs could cut both Carpenter and Snead at the end of the game (there are talks that Michael Spurlock could be the emergency quarterback for the Bucs if needed – he did play quarterback in college).

Defensive end battle – Michael Bennett has been impressive this preseason and Tim Crowder continues to shine as well. Kyle Moore is still pushing for playing time and Stylez G. White (the name never gets old) is also working for the position. This position has been fairly quiet through the preseason and needs to step up and produce more to help the young rookie defensive tackles. There is still a level of uncertainty about who the two starting defensive ends will be at the beginning of the season.

Wide receivers again – It sounds like a broken record, but the wide receiver battle will continue until the first snap of the regular season. Stovall is out (although he is back at practice) which means Sammie Stroughter will start next to Mike Williams, the “steal of the draft.” The other receiver positions are still up for grabs. Arrelious Benn has been quiet (Morris is defending him promising he is coming along normally), Reggie Brown and Michael “stone-hands” Clayton are still battling for their roster lives. Nunn has been cut and either Brown or Clayton could be next.

Progression of the defensive tackles – Rookies Brian Price and Gerald McCoy had a great game against the Jags, putting pressure on the Jags, even though they didn’t record a sack. They had a strong showing and look to continue their strong performance. Roy Miller continues to be very consistent on the line and should continue to help anchor the defensive line and the defense in general. The stats have not been great from this unit, but the force is being felt.

Special teams – The Bucs have looked bad on special teams, giving up huge returns on both punts and kickoffs. The field goal unit has been solid, but punting has been terrible. Brent Bowden needs to improve quickly (no one else to back him up). He cannot be shank-a-potamus on Thursday night again or the battle of field position will be lost every game. The Bucs will have to tighten up on special teams if they want to win field battle and put points on the board.

We won't see Talib in Week One.

Bad news strikes Tampa Bay once again, this time it comes in the form of starting cornerback Aqib Talib facing a one game suspension issued by the NFL. The suspension is for violating the league’s personal-conduct policy.

The decision to suspend the former first round pick stems from Talib’s arrest last year after he allegedly hit a cab driver. The Kansas alum entered a diversion program that included anger management classes.

Luckily, the Bucs are facing the Cleveland Browns Week One, a team that isn’t much of a threat through the air. However, his absence still hurts the Bucs’ defense all around, and with him out of the lineup, Vanderbilt rookie Myron Lewis will get a shot to prove his worth in the season opener.

Ward's time has come to an end in the Bay.

The Buccaneers and Coach Morris have announced they have made some roster cuts this afternoon.

The Buccaneers have released running back Derrick Ward. Ward had been battling for the number two running back position, but had been struggling in the preseason. He seemed sluggish and even Coach Morris thought he need to slim down. Kareem Huggins appears to be the number two now behind Cadillac.

Wide receiver Terrence Nunn has also been cut. This is not a major surprise here. The Bucs have a logjam at receiver and too many players at this position. Nunn has not been a factor this preseason.

The final cut is linebacker Jon Alston. Alston has been battling for a spot on the linebacker rotation, but has fallen short and will have to try to find a new job.

There will probably be more roster moves coming after the final preseason game on Thursday, this is just the beginning as Coach Morris and staff trim down the roster to the final 53 as they get ready for the regular season (everyone should pray that Clayton is the next in line to get cut).