Change, though, had come much quicker at Tampa Bay's nearby headquarters. The Bucs held their first minicamp with a new head coach (Raheem Morris), some new faces (ex-New York Giants running back Derrick Ward among them) and — most surprisingly — a new defensive philosophy.

Yes, the famed Tampa-Two is being deep-sixed to a large extent. In its place will be a more common 4-3 system implemented by new coordinator Jim Bates.

"It's more an in-your-face defense as opposed to zones and reading the quarterback," Bucs middle linebacker Barrett Ruud said. "There's going to be some adjustment."

This move isn't as jolting as Denver's recent decision to trade quarterback Jay Cutler. But it does represent a bold offseason step made by another 32-year-old head coach trying to blaze a different trail than his predecessors.

Since the mid-1990s, Tampa Bay's defense has deployed a zone-coverage scheme that emphasized quickness over power. The Bucs frustrated quarterbacks, who were forced to dink-and-dunk because long completions were hard to come by, especially when defensive linemen Simeon Rice and Warren Sapp were bringing heavy pressure. Brooks — a future Hall of Fame selection as an outside linebacker — and five-time Pro Bowl cornerback Ronde Barber also thrived under former coordinator Monte Kiffin. Tampa Bay fielded the NFL's ninth-ranked defense in 2008, marking its 11th top 10 finish in the past 12 years.

The Bucs became so synonymous with the system that it was called the "Tampa-Two," even when teams like Indianapolis and Chicago were running it.

Yet when Kiffin left at season's end to join his son Lane at the University of Tennessee, the Tampa-Two went with him. Instead of hiring someone with familiarity running that style, Morris added a replacement whose scheme is predicated upon press coverage and larger defensive tackles with different gap responsibilities.

So is this just change for change's sake? Morris says no.

First and foremost is his respect for the 62-year-old Bates, a defensive coordinator in Denver, Green Bay and Miami earlier this decade. The two were introduced several years ago through Jim's son Jeremy, who was a Bucs assistant at the time. Jim Bates said he unsuccessfully tried adding Morris to his 2005 staff in Green Bay when the latter was Tampa Bay's assistant secondary coach.

Morris is a Mike Tomlin disciple and leans heavily on Pittsburgh's head coach for advice. Morris points to the fact Tomlin — who was steeped in the Tampa-Two as a former Bucs assistant — didn't force Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau to change his renowned zone-blitz scheme. Morris said he was going to treat Bates the same way.

"Our mindset was, 'Let's not change what Jim does well,'" Bucs first-year general manager Mark Dominick said last Wednesday between Bucs practices. "Let's see if we can adopt some philosophies of both systems, but mainly stay within Jim's system because it has worked."

That, however, presents a new set of challenges: Dominick admits personnel changes may be needed to make the system click.

All of these changes make the offseason especially important for Bates to install fundamentals. Asked when he expects players to know his system well enough to react instinctively, Bates said, "Before the start of the season, hopefully."

"It takes every bit (of time) in the classroom and on the field," he said. "You can't ever put a timetable on when the athleticism is going to take over and the thinking is limited. Some guys will pick it up quicker than others."

Here's something else the Bucs need to pick up: A new defensive nickname now that the Tampa-Two moniker is no longer apt.

"I don't know what they're going to call it now," Ruud said. "We'll just be the Buccaneers' defense I guess."

That's fine — as long as Bates and Co. prove the Bucs aren't settling for second-best by forsaking the Tampa-Two.