New York ? Ronde Barber saw it in his offseason workouts with his brother.

“He just wasn’t the same,” said the Bucs’ All-Pro cornerback, who will square off against twin Tiki for probably the final time Sunday. “The passion to get up and get ready wasn’t the same. It didn’t stop him from doing what he had to do, obviously, in the offseason, because that’s just the kind of guy he is – he’s well prepared. But you can just tell that it’s taking its toll. He gets a lot more punishment than I could even imagine, and I think going in 10 years he obviously had some things he wanted to accomplish. I think he’s gotten all of those.”

Ronde, who helped his brother’s team’s cause last Sunday by returning two Donovan McNabb interceptions for touchdowns in Tampa Bay’s upset victory over the Eagles, wasn’t above giving McNabb the needle Thursday.

Asked about outscoring Tiki this year (12-0), he said, “Well, with Donovan McNabb the week before, the odds were pretty good,” before adding, “I’m kidding. I’m only kidding.”

Ronde said he had no intention of hanging up his cleats, and his brother concurred.

Tampa Bay's Ronde Barber runs for one of his two interception-return touchdowns against Philadelphia. The Bucs defeated the Eagles on Sunday.

“He’s always been the better athlete than me, whether it was running track and he was a national champion, or baseball when we played in Little League, and even as a football player,” Tiki said, calling his brother a sure Hall of Famer. “He’s accomplished more. It is his passion, and it will always be his passion, and so he can play for as long as he wants.”

Plaxico Burress puts Ronde in a category with former New York Jets star Aaron Glenn in terms of smarts.

“Guys like that who are kind of undersized watch a lot of film. They’ve got to know what’s coming, know where their help’s at,” Burress said. “He’s looking for the strengths and weaknesses of a receiver and he plays to it.”