Lynch Sets Up Last-Grasp Victory for Buccaneers

Corey Dillon lined up in the end zone, took the handoff and ran into the last guy he wanted to see in overtime: John Lynch.

With one deft tug, Tampa Bay’s safety again showed his knack for deciding games.

Lynch knocked the ball from Dillon’s left arm, then jumped on the fumble at the three-yard line. While Dillon knelt on the Bengals’ sideline with his head down, Martin Gramatica made a 21-yard field goal for a 16-13 victory in overtime Sunday.

The Buccaneers (6-5) nearly let it slip away. They missed two field goals and had a late defensive collapse that let the bumbling Bengals (4-7) rally for 10 points in the final 4:29 of regulation.

Thanks to Lynch’s play, they came away with their first consecutive wins of the season.

“It was Corey and I going one-on-one,” said Lynch, who has saved four Tampa Bay wins. “It would be nice to finish someone off earlier, though. I’ll take it if that’s my role, but this team does tend to take years off your life.”

One play took all of the emotion out of a Bengal team that hasn’t done much right since September.

Dillon caught a six-yard touchdown pass from Jon Kitna that tied it with eight seconds left in regulation, wrestling through tacklers Dexter Jackson and Jamie Duncan.

Minutes later, Dillon was crestfallen on the sideline. “I’m devastated,” he said. “I wish I could take it back, but I can’t.”

Lynch had a clinching interception in a 24-17 win over St. Louis Monday night. Earlier in the season, his fourth-quarter interception clinched a win over Dallas. He also batted down a pass in the end zone on the final play to close out a win over Green Bay.