PRO FOOTBALL : Redskins End Road Skid With Win Over Buccaneers

The Washington Redskins won for the first time in seven road games, and that’s all that mattered to Coach Richie Petitbon.

“We didn’t play well in a lot of areas, but we certainly played good enough to win,” Petitbon said Sunday after Washington beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 23-17.

Reggie Brooks scored on a 78-yard run and Kurt Gouveia returned an interception 59 yards for a touchdown for Washington.

Tampa Bay (3-9) is assured of finishing with a losing record for the 11th consecutive season.

Brooks broke a tackle and outran Tampa Bay’s Martin Mayhew over the final 50 yards on his run, which gave the Redskins a 17-0 lead on the first play of the second half.

The rookie, who scored on an 85-yard run against Philadelphia on Sept. 19, has the two longest runs from scrimmage in the NFL this season.

Washington (3-9) also scored on Rich Gannon’s one-yard run and Chip Lohmiller’s 51-yard field goal set up by one of Darrell Green’s two interceptions of Buccaneer quarterback Craig Erickson.

Washington forced three turnovers, the biggest of them being Gouveia’s interception which enabled the Redskins to regain the momentum after Tampa Bay scored twice in two minutes of the third quarter to pull within 17-10.