December 23, 2012; Tampa, FL, USA; Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Williams (19) runs with the ball as he stiff arms St. Louis Rams strong safety Craig Dahl (43) during the second quarter at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers want to discuss a new deal with Mike Williams and they want to keep him in Tampa Bay. They have however asked him to be patient as they sort out other business this offseason first.

“I met with Mark and it was a very productive meeting,” agent Hadley Engelhard said. “We are progressing toward a new contract for Mike, but they’ve asked us to be patient to let them get through free agency and the draft. We’ve agreed to be a little less aggressive and give them some time. The target date right now would be some time in May.”

Mike Williams apparently wants to stay in Tampa and loves it.

“Mike really likes Tampa, and they like Mike,” Engelhard said. “He’s definitely outplayed his fourth-round compensation, and they want him to be a part of the future.”

Mark Dominik is the Buccaneers general manager and made the comments at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. Mike Williams is under contract through the 2013 season so there is no rush, as long as a deal is done before the season and it doesn’t lead to a hold out. Unlikely that it would of course.

“We’ll see,” he said. ‘Worst-case scenario, there’s only nine months left before he’d become a free agent.”

Mike Williams caught 63 balls for 996 yards, just shy of the 1,000 yard bench mark. He also made it into the end zone 9 times.

Was Michael Vick able to take home an award?

The NFL and the Associated Press are handing out the annual end-of-the-year awards one by one, with the first one — Defensive Player of the Year — going to Troy Polamalu.

The others are Defensive Rookie of the Year, Offensive Rookie of the Year, Comeback Player of the Year, Offensive Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, and of course the Most Valuable Player award.

Everyone has their own opinion on who should win which award, and I’m no different. So we’ll be going one-by-one and picking a winner along with an explanation as to why I chose that player. Since Defensive Player of the Year has already been chosen, we’ll start with Offensive Player of the Year and work from there.

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Josh Freeman is a star... in the making.

It seems like every year there is at least one team that comes from the cellar to surprise the NFL world. With that knowledge, most experts try to guess which team could do it before the season starts.

I’m guessing no one even considered Tampa Bay as a possibility.

The team was downright putrid in 2009 as a young quarterback and young head coach suffered through a team short on talent and answers. In fact, many questioned whether or not Raheem Morris should even be brought back for a second season after a 3-13 campaign.

Those people probably aren’t admitting who they were anymore.

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