The Bucs Fan Thanksgiving Primer

By JC De La Torre

Wow, its amazing isn’t it? Turkey day is upon us already and we have our annual excuse to gorge ourselves on fowl, corn, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, and all the other fixings that are traditional for your family. There’s one other meal that this certain Thursday on the calendar fulfills and that’s our appetite for NFL Football.

For Buc fans, Thursday will matter a little bit. Tampa Bay is currently 8-3, tied for first place in the NFC South. If the playoffs were to begin today, the Bucs would have a 1st round bye. The Bucs desperately want to hold on to the division title and that bye. It’s a lot easier to reach the Super Bowl by winning two games than three. Certainly, there’s been cases where the eventual Super Bowl Champions made it there by going through the wildcard round (our current champions are prime example), but its certainly an easier road to battle your way through a tough divisional fight, then get a week off, play a home playoff game – win it – and then play for the right to go to the Super Bowl. That’s the formula that worked so well in 2002 for Tampa Bay.

In fact, if you think about it, the similarities between 2002 and this season are uncanny.

1. The Bucs lost the season opener to New Orleans 02 and this year.
2. If the Bucs win the division and earn a bye, Atlanta has a darn good shot at making the playoffs as a wildcard. The Falcons were a wildcard in 2002 as well.
3. With a win over Carolina on the road in two weeks, the Bucs will sweep the season series with the Panthers. The last time that happened? You guessed it – 2002.
4. If the Bucs and Giants advance to the NFC Championship game, the Bucs will face a team in the playoffs that eliminated them the year before. The last time that happened? Yep. 2002.
5. With a victory over the New Orleans Saints this week, the Buccaneers will improve to 9-3 after 12 games. The last time the Bucs stood 9-3 after 12 games? 2002.
6. In 2002 the Buccaneers defense was a Top 5 unit but weren’t number one. The Bucs defense this year is a Top 5 unit – but they aren’t number one.
7. This year Buccaneers faced their old rivals in the NFC North and swept them. The last time the Bucs swept the NFC North? 2002.

It’s like that horrible Jim Carey Movie, the Number 23, but you get the idea. To keep the good vibes rolling for the Buccaneers, they will be taking a keen interest in the goings on this Thursday.

Tennessee at Detroit 12:30pm EST– This game is essentially meaningless to the Buccaneers, other than hoping that our former buddies Rod Marinelli, Joe Barry, Jimmy Lake, Ryan Nece, Brian Kelly, Dewayne White, Kalvin Pearson, and the other Buccaneer alumni get off the snide and find a victory. On the other hand, the Lions inch closer to replacing the 1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the last team to go winless in a non strike year. Plus, if the Lions go 0-16 this year, they only need to start 0-10 next year to break the Buccaneers record of 26 straight losses.

Bucs fans should root for: Detroit, Rod’s to great a coach and guy to live in oh-mortality

Seattle at Dallas 4:00pm EST – Well, in a perfect world, the Bucs would win the NFC South and not have to worry about wildcard tie-breakers but we all know the Bucs have a tough slate down the stretch and could very well be concerned about wildcard positioning. A loss by Dallas to Seattle would help the Bucs chances significantly.

Bucs fans should root for: Seattle, another loss for Dallas gives the Bucs a bit more cushion between them and America’s team.

Arizona at Philadelphia 8pm EST – Buccaneer fans will find themselves in the unenviable position of rooting for the Eagles Thursday night. With the NFC North’s Chicago Bears a full two games back, the Arizona Cardinals (along with the teams in the Bucs’ own division) are the primary competition for Tampa Bay achieving a first round bye.

Bucs fans should root for: Philadelphia, Yes Buc fans, I know it’s difficult for us to find a way to root for success for any team from Philadelphia – but on Thursday night, we’ll need to do it. A loss by the Cards would give the Bucs a two game buffer for the bye week, saddle Arizona with another conference loss and allow Tampa Bay to simply concentrate on taking care of business within the NFC South, also giving the Bucs a little wiggle room if they stub their toe in one of the remaining divisional games.

Bucs Defense, Garcia Waltz Past Seahawks

By JC De La Torre

It was a surreal atmosphere at Raymond James Stadium Sunday Night. With the Rays playing Game 7 of the ALCS at the exact same time, the fans' attention at Ray Jay was split down the middle. Several thousands of fans (including myself) brought radios to the game and gave updates to the ongoing game to fellow fans, causing the strange cheering outburts in the stadium at times when nothing was going on on the field. The Bucs were kind enough to keep the score of the Rays game on one of the sideline scoreboards, so with every run the Rays scored - the fans exploded in cheers. The would explode into cheers at halftime, too as the Bucs honored one of their greatest - Mike Alstott.

There was a football game played at Raymond James, btw. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers throttled the Seattle Seahawks 20-10 in a game that wasn't nearly as close as the score indicated. The Tampa Bay offense, behind the exception play of Jeff Garcia and Antonio Bryant, rolled up 402 yds, 22 first downs (including a remarkable 10 of 18 on third down), and controlled the clock for an unreal 41:41. The well rested Bucs defense continued its dominant performance, limiting the Seahawks to a meager 176 yds of total offense and forcing two turnovers.

The Bucs opened the scoring in the first quarter on a 47 yd TD pass from Garcia to Bryant to give the Bucs an early 7-0 lead. The Bucs saw a scoring oppotunity go by the boards when WR Ike Hillard fumbled after a devastating helmet-to-helmet hit that knock him unconscious. It was a scary moment for the Bucs, as Hillard laid motionless on the field for several minutes. Thankfully, Ike came to and was about rise to his feet and take a seat on the cart for his ride out of the stadium.

The Bucs would open up the scoring in the 2nd quarter as Earnest Graham capped a 6 play 59 yd drive with a 1 yd run. Aquib Talib's interception would set Bucs up for another scoring drive, this time the Bucs went 5 plays for 25 yds and capped it off with a 27 yd Matt Bryant field goal to spot the Bucs to a 17-0 lead. Bryant would miss another field goal attempt on the closing moments of the first half.

At halftime, Bucs Superstar Mike Alstott was honored and had his jersey retired by the Buccaneers. It was an emotional half-time speech for Alstott, who expressed his love for Tampa Bay and its fans, while the Buc fans returned the love. It was a great moment and a nice send off for the A-train.

The second half was basically a snoozer as the Bucs grounded out the clock, after a long punt return set up a Seattle field goal, the Bucs would respond with a clock crushing 9:34 drive than spanned 67 yds on 16 plays and was capped by yet another Matt Bryant field goal, giving the Buccaneers a 20-3 lead. Late in the game, the Seahawks would get a garbage touchdown, ending the Bucs 7 quarter no-touchdown streak.

For the second straight week, the Bucs put together a dominating performance, this time under the bright lights of Sunday Night Football. Next up for the Bucs - the Dallas Cowboys - a team in a bit of disarray with the injury to their starting QB and losing 3 of their last 4.

Sunday Night Should Be All About 40

By JC De La Torre

One of the selfish reasons I desperately want to see the Rays win tonight is that Game 7 would happen at the exact same time as the Bucs hosting the Seattle Seahawks on NBC's Sunday Night Football. At halftime of the game, Mike Alstott - the A Train - one of the most beloved players in Bucs history will be honored by the team.

#40 won the hearts of fans, teammates and those around the league with his team-first attitude, his undying loyalty to the Buccaneers, his hard charging, powerful, bull-like, never-say-die running style, and his gutsy, big plays at big moments in Big games.

We all know his signature runs, be it pin-balling off a bunch of Washington Redskins and rolling into the endzone for a crucial touchdown in the NFC playoffs, be it steamrolling the Minnesota Vikings or the Cleveland Browns, the A-Train was always there when the Bucs needed a battering ram.

He is Tampa Bay's all-time touchdown leader and he was a leader in the locker room.

The battered Seattle Seahawks come to town, desperate for a victory - but gave the Buccaneer defense a little bulletin board material this week when RB Julius Jones said, "You have to beat them atheletically. They have a bunch of older guys who've played a long time, so you have to beat them as an athelete,"....basically saying the Bucs defense was old. Mr. Jones should be reaquainted with Tanard Jackson, Jermaine Phillips, Gaines Adams, Aquib Talib, Cato June, Barrett Ruud, Jovan Haye, and Chris Hovan - none of which are over the age of 30.

The Bucs won't lose on Mike Alstott night...they can't!

So Rays, please win - because Sunday Night belongs to #40, Mike Alstott - THE A TRAIN!

Bucs Smackdown Panthers!

By JC De La Torre

There haven't been many opportunities to say this - so I will enjoy this while I type it. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers up and laid the SMACKDOWN on the Carolina Panthers yesterday. The Bucs crushed Carolina 27-3 in a game that really wasn't even as close as the score. This was as a complete victory as we've seen from this Buccaneer squad in some time. The special teams contributed (blocked punt), the Offense contributed (20 points), and the defense absolutely dominated (3 interceptions of Jake Delhomme).

The Panthers turned the ball over three times and were limited to only 282 yds of total offense (most of which came in garbage time when the Bucs were playing reserves). The game not close from the outset. Rookie Linebacker Geno Hayes blocked Carolina punter Jason Baker's punt, recovered and took it in 27 yds for a score to give the Bucs a 7-0 lead. With 5:21 left in the first quarter, Tanard Jackson intercepted Delhomme, setting up a 5 play, 26 yd drive that culminated in a 2 yd Garcia to Alex Smith TD pass.

The teams would trade field goals in the second quarter and Matt Bryant would add another in the 3rd quarter to increase the lead to 20-3.

The Bucs would put the finishing touches on this one, driving 56 yds in 10 plays, as Earnest Graham plunged in to the end zone from the fullback position to stake Tampa Bay to a 27-3 advantage with 14:11 left in the ball game. The rest of the game consisted of failed Carolina drives and Warrick Dunn's running, as Warrick became the first back in 2008 to rush for over 100 yds against the vaunted Carolina defense. Dunn finished the day with 115 yds on 22 carries.

Tampa Bay didn't escape the game in perfect shape. Penalties continued to be a major issue for the team, as they were flagged several times for unsportsmanlike conduct. The Bucs finished the day 7 penalties for 80 yds. They also sustained injuries to FB Bryan Storer, WR Maurice Stovall, and LG Aaron Sears. Injured players Sabby Piscitelli and Barrett Ruud made it through without issue.

Then, there's the QB debate. Jeff Garcia looked steady, moving around in the pocket and making plays. He didn't turn the ball over and made the plays that resulted in the two Tampa Bay offensive touchdowns. Garcia was 15 for 20, 173 yds, with 1 TD. He was not sacked, which is a credit to the o-line who had a terrific day handling one of the fearcest front fours in football. I said to a friend, if Griese is going to be gun shy - he is no use to us. He may turn the ball over, but he also takes more chances that moves the chains and gets the Bucs into scoring position. Against Denver, he looked afraid to make a mistake, and that's not going to help the Bucs. Garcia looked confident, made plays, and most importantly, didn't turn the ball over. He looked like the old Jeff Garcia from last season. I think if Jeff Garcia has his head on right and is playing like he did last season - he is the choice for quarterback.

The Bucs improve to 4-2, dropping Carolina to an identical 4-2 record and enter a 3 way tie for first place in the NFC South with Carolina and Atlanta - two teams the Bucs dominated at home. Next week will be a big one, as it is Mike Alstott Commemorative Night. The Bucs will honor the A-train in front of a National television audience. The struggling Seattle Seahawks provide the opposition.