Buccaneers Kept at Bay--for Now

By T.J. SIMERS

Oct. 6, 1997 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

GREEN BAY —

The young Buccaneers were actually grinning as they shed their pewter uniforms in an unusually mellow locker room for NFL losers Sunday, proud of their own grit and second-half comeback in hallowed Lambeau Field, and unimpressed by the Packers’ 21-16 victory.

Quick to remind everyone they remain in first place in the NFC Central Division, the Buccaneers (5-1) might have lost some of their fairy-tale luster, but they made their point: The gap between the defending world champions and the NFL’s perennial doormats makes a Dec. 7 rematch in Tampa Bay a tough assignment for the Packers (4-2).

“We walk away from this saying, ‘Whew,’ ” Green Bay quarterback Brett Favre said. “They’re good.”

Though the Buccaneers fell behind, 21-3, at halftime, they came on to outgain the Packers, winners of 19 consecutive regular season games here, 372-234, in offensive yardage. Tampa Bay was driving to win the game in the final minutes before running out of downs and good fortune.

“You’re playing the defending world champions at their place and everybody is fired up here and even with the bad plays, even with the turnovers, we have a shot to win the game,” Tampa Bay linebacker Hardy Nickerson said. “Who knows, if they call pass interference on the guy who hit Warrick Dunn there at the end, we might be in here right now cheering and having a good time.”

On fourth and six at the Green Bay 42-yard line with 1:52 to play, the Buccaneers sent Dunn, their sensational rookie running back, who had already run 16 times for 125 yards, sprinting to the right chased by veteran linebacker Wayne Simmons.

“I asked the coaches the night before the game to put that play in for me,” Tampa Bay quarterback Trent Dilfer said. “I liked the idea of having Warrick on a much slower player.”

Dunn broke free on the pass pattern, but the development of Dilfer from NFL resident stiff to big-play maker has yet to reach fruition. Dilfer resorted to bad technique on his team’s most important play and threw off his back foot. Forced to come back for the ball left floating to the whims of the wind, Dunn became entangled with Simmons and could not make the catch.

“The guy was all over him,” Nickerson said. “I know, I cover the guy in practice all the time, and the same thing happens to me trying to stay with him.”

Dunn jumped to his feet and complained to an official who made no move to penalize the defending Super Bowl champions, who were playing in front of 60,100 yellow pom-pom-waving Cheeseheads.

“You’re not going to get that call up here; we’ve seen that on film all year,” Tampa Bay Coach Tony Dungy said. “We got to make plays; we can’t get into that situation.”

With no call, the Buccaneers turned the ball over to the Packers on downs, got it back with 38 seconds and no timeouts remaining, but advanced only to the Tampa Bay 40 before the clock ran out.

“You have to give them credit, but we know we contributed to their win as well,” Dungy said. “There’s been a lot of talk about the champions being dead, but they showed a lot of heart today.”

And they showed little else, looking vulnerable and giving renewed hope to not only the NFC, but the beleaguered AFC still in search of a Super Bowl victory after 13 consecutive defeats.

The Packers opened conservatively, drawing three penalties on their first drive. They added dropped passes and poor play on third downs (two of 11) to sabotage their offense. They earned the opportunity to score only because the Buccaneers still aren’t ready yet for 60 minutes of prime-time football.

Tampa Bay took a 3-0 lead into the second quarter, but a Dunn fumble at the Buccaneer 35 set up Favre’s 31-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver Antonio Freeman three plays later.

Green Bay added to its lead a few minutes later when Packer defensive end Gabe Wilkins climbed off his knees to jump in front of a screen pass from Dilfer intended for fullback Mike Alstott. Wilkins took off running, leaping over a diving Dilfer and pulling away from the field to complete a 77-yard scoring play.

“Here’s a guy that’s 6 foot 5, 300 pounds, he’s hurdling people and outrunning people,” Freeman said. “It was like the Olympics.”

More than that, Green Bay Coach Mike Holmgren said, “it was obviously the play of the game. Talk about a mood change--a momentum change.”

The Buccaneers had just recovered a Favre fumble off an aborted quarterback sneak, and were positioned at the Green Bay 18-yard line before Wilkins made like Renaldo Nehemiah.

“It was probably at least 10-point swing there,” Dungy said.

All those wonderful opportunities for the Packers, and yet when it was all over Green Bay was clinging to a five-point lead and looking like a team ready to surrender if only there had been more time for the Buccaneers.

“We came back in the second half and just stuffed them,” Tampa defensive end Chidi Ahanotu said.

It was something the Buccaneers had noticed in preparing for the Packers. “Teams were coming back on them in the fourth quarter, so we didn’t panic when we fell behind,” Dungy said. “I think the better team usually wins, and they won today, but we will be playing again.”

By then the Packers will have played Dallas and New England, while Tampa Bay will have played Atlanta, Indianapolis and Chicago. Dec. 7 in Tampa might determine the NFC Central Division champion.

“They have an attitude like they haven’t had before,” said Wilkins, the only new starter at the beginning of the season for the Packers (in place of Sean Jones). “They probably think they can go to the Super Bowl. They’re doing things we’ve never seen them doing before, but in Green Bay we still have the tradition. And we never want to lose at home.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

THE NFL WEEK 6

UPSET

* N.Y Giants: 20

* Dallas: 17

Tito Wooten gets two interceptions to help stun the Cowboys. C4

THE REST

* Green Bay: 21

* Tampa Bay: 16

* San Diego: 25

* Oakland: 10

* Philadelphia: 24