The PR Bucs Monday Mailbag is where PewterReport.com’s Mark Cook answers your questions from our Twitter account. You can submit your question each week via Twitter using the hashtag #PRMailbag.

Below are the questions we chose for this week’s edition of the PR Bucs Monday Mailbag. As expected, a majority were wondering how Mike Smith is still employed. Read them over and offer up your thoughts in the comment section.

Question: This isn’t a question but this performance by Mike Smith is again indisputably bad. Some will say defense stepped up in the 2nd half but there were so many key drops by Falcon WR’s on easy first down plays. He needs to go. Everything is too easy for offenses.

Answer: I hear what you are saying and you speak for many who wrote in for the Mailbag. And how can I begin to make a case for Smith? I can’t, but it isn’t up to me, or you, it is Dirk Koetter’s call. If Koetter chooses to stay with Smith and the season continues to crumble it will be his job on the line. So I do believe Koetter thinks that Smith isn’t as much the problem as the players. That is the only reasoning I can come up with, at this point.

I will hold onto a sliver of hope, however. As you mentioned, the defense did play better in the second half. Smith came out in the third quarter and began blitzing. And it worked. Not all the time, but it affected Matt Ryan and the Bucs were able to slow Atlanta down. Enough to get back in the game. We will see if they can continue that small bit of momentum next week when they host the Browns.

Question: What’s left to hope for this season? Seems like we’re heading for another lost season and the people in charge don’t seem capable of seeing that.

Answer: There is still hope for the season. Not necessarily for an NFL South title, but if you are a glass-half-full person, the Bucs are right in the thick of the wildcard race. Now stop laughing. Do I think they can do it? Well, I wouldn’t put any money on it, but as long as this offense can put up between 400-500 yards they have a chance to be competitive in every game this year.

Take a look at this tweet from Greg Auman and let it sink in.

This goes to show you that there is some hope left. The frustrating thing is, if this defense was only mediocre, not even great, but just okay, this team is easily 4-1.

Question: Do you think Jason Licht actually makes a trade for a CB, or does the past in-season trade failures detour him and he sticks with the rookies?

Answer: There are two ways to look at it, and Scott Reynolds made a good case for making a trade in his postgame 2-Pt Conversion column that you can read here.

The problem is the compensation, and more importantly, would a talent upgrade be enough to save the season, or not? While the Bucs are young and thin in the secondary, there are defensive issues all over the field, not just at cornerback. Heck, a valid question is if you could bring in two Deion Sanders and two Ronnie Lotts to roam the secondary, would they be successful in the scheme? It is the chicken and the egg theory. And I have no idea which came first.

Mortgaging the future is always risky. Can a veteran cornerback solve the defensive woes by himself? That is a decision above my pay grade. But, at this point, you have to consider everything. If things don’t work out, either way, there will be a lot of turnover this offseason, on the field and off.

Question: Would the Bucs have beaten the Steelers and/or Falcons with a game changer in the secondary, like say Derwin James?

Answer: Well, I may be the wrong person to ask. At least according to some on Twitter who assume my FSU bias gets in the way of me giving a well-rounded opinion. Absolutely I was in the Derwin James camp, and also the Jameis Winston camp. But that was because I thought they were the best players for the Bucs to select not because they wore garnet and gold in college. You never saw me banging the table for former Noles DeMarcus Walker, Nick O’Leary, Kelvin Benjamin among others or agreeing with the Roberto Aguayo selection.

As far as does James make a difference? I would lean towards yes – if he would have been used correctly. And there is no guarantee that he would have the same success in Tampa Bay as he is having in Los Angeles for the Chargers. But as far as more of an instant impact, James I believe would have done just that on this defense. James is so versatile, can cover in man, solid against the run and is actually tied for the team lead with three sacks. He is really a throwback kind of player. Much more than just a safety.

Some players just have that star power. Their attitude and work ethic, plus leadership qualities make them unique and usually very good NFL players. That is James. Was Vita Vea a bad pick? Of course not, and five years from now we could all be lauding Jason Licht for selecting Vea and passing on James. But if you are honest, even the most pro-Vea fan would have to say James’ skill-set is something the the Bucs could have used and could argue is missing from the Bucs defense. That has nothing to do with FSU. The stats don’t lie.

But the next few weeks will tell us a lot. It appears Gerald McCoy will miss some time with a leg injury suffered in Atlanta on Sunday so Vea will get his shot. And the Bucs need him to grow up and grow up quickly.