Well, that was a solid win for the Bucs who showed that they had the better talent than the Browns. Once again the offense was able to move the ball up and down the field with Rattay at QB, though they struggled again to punch the ball into the endzone. But 3 field goals and a TD was all they really needed, as the Browns offense was incapable of scoring on the Bucs, though one opportunity was lost due to a blocked field goal.

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The Talking Plank - Week 16: At Cleveland

Woof. Yeah, right. Well, needless to say the dog pound ain't quite what it used to be, and the Bucs are getting some gratuitous weather heading in, as the high will be 46 degrees. Almost unheard of for this time of year. With both teams playing out the string, what can we look forward to seeing in this game? The Browns have 14 players on the injury report and look like they will be fielding a M*A*S*H unit.

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In a sudden, and almost stunning turnaround, the Bucs were down 24-3 with just over 5 minutes to go in the 3rd quarter, when they came roaring back. The Bucs scored their first TD in nearly 4 games worth of play, with Mike Alstott bouncing outside on a nice toss play, taking it 14 yards for the TD. Then, the Bucs kick off to Hester and force the ball out when they hit him, where it landed in Mallard's hands. Just like that, the Bucs were set up for another TD, and Rattay delivered on 3rd and goal from the 9, hitting Alex Smith for the TD pass. Now the Bucs were back in the game at 24-17.

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The Talking Plank - Week 15: At Chicago

Well, the Bucs are on cruise control to a top 5 pick and they get the "opportunity" to head north to face the Bears at frigid Soldier Field. During the game, however, it's expected to be 50 degrees with a slight wind of around 6mph. Not bad for Chicago in the middle of December. But will that mean anything?

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With yet another loss, we sit here and wonder what happened. Another game we could have won slipped through our fingers once again. The defense was very solid, though it did give up a couple of long drives, one was stopped with a pick by Buchannon. The defense really only gave up 7 points, as the field goal came after a fumble by Williams deep in our own territory.

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Well, that ugly loss was brought to you by Bruce and Co. What a nice display of turnovers. I'm really starting to wonder if Bruce is ever going to improve. His interceptions were just horrible throws, and there were numerous times when he had guys open but failed to throw the ball. He's going to the check downs way too quickly, and seems to be sensing pressure and just freaking out. Then there's the one sack he took because he decided to run out to his right where Joseph and Trueblood had pushed there DE out around the pocket. He should have stayed put but ran outside and the DE just peeled off the blocks for the easy sack. Then there was the sack by Porter from behind when he knew that Porter was running him down, and he had time to throw the ball away as he ran toward the sideline. The pick in the endzone, which came two plays after Clayton sacrificed his knee to get a first down and trying to punch it in after failing to catch the wide open deep TD pass, was just absolutely horrendous. You just don't throw that pass like that. It was hideous. And the defense folded right after that. Think about the fact that we out rushed the Steelers, and could have made it a field goal game, and he does the worst thing possible.

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The Talking Plank - Week 13: At Pittsburgh


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I've been having forum arguments lately about Gruden and his role with the team. A number of people of turned sour on Gruden (man, are people fickle or what?) and want him gone, or would be fine with his departure. So what do I think of this?

Well, let's get right down to the heart of some of the issues here. Those who favor his departure site the following: 1) He won the Super Bowl with Dungy's team, 2) he's torn apart the Super Bowl team, 3) he's had plenty of time to rebuild this franchise, and 4) his offense is horrible, stinks, etc...

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