Blowout!

The Falcons didn’t even stand a chance. Tampa could have run up the score, but they’re not the Patriots, and they have a heart. They could have shut out the Falcons, but the last touchdown was a pity touchdown. Staying undefeated in the NFC South, the Bucs gained ground with Carolina, New Orleans, and Atlanta losing. It’s a great day to be a Bucs fan. Let’s look at some of the keys that made this game what it was:

Try and run on me…I dare ya..
The Bucs held the Falcons to only 49 yards rushing, a blow to the Falcons Warrick Dunn, who is still 26 yards shy of 10,000 career yards.

Twice as Nice
Earnest Graham had his second straight 100 yard rushing game, running for 102 yards on 17 carries, scoring a TD. The last Tampa running back to record to 100 yard games in a row was Cadillac Williams in 2005. Michael Pittman returned to action, playing the backup to Graham, running for 44 yards on 10 carries. With Pittman healthy again, the Bucs deactivated Michael Bennett.

It’s all about the D
The Bucs defense was once again the star of the game, recording their best defensive outing of the season. Not only did the Bucs hold the Falcons to 49 yards rushing, they also forced Byron Leftwich to have one of the worst games of his career, recording two interceptions, and two fumbles. Greg White, the 28-year-old rookie, recorded two sacks and forced two turnovers. Rookie Gaines Adams recorded a sack, and also hit Leftwich from behind, causing the ball to flutter right into the hands of Chris Hovan for Leftwich’s second interception, Hovan’s first career interception. The first went to Barrett Ruud, who grabbed it following a Jovan Haye hit on the QB. The biggest defensive play however, was recorded by Ronde Barber. He picked up a fumble caused by Greg White, and took it 41 yards to the endzone for the second quarter score.

Injuries Subsiding
Michael Clayton, Michael Pittman, and Alex Smith all played in Sunday’s game. Clayton and Pittman played very little, but Smith pulled in a 21-yard touchdown pass from Garcia in the third quarter. Clayton and Pittman are set to return to form in the coming weeks.

Game Notes:

• Tampa’s victory gave coach Jon Gruden his 20th road victory, tying former coach Tony Dungy for most road victories in team history.
• Joey Galloway caught his 28th career TD pass with the Bucs, moving him to third place for most career TD receptions in Bucs history.
• John Wade made his 100th career NFL start yesterday, donning the Bucs uniform for 66 of them.
• Ronde Barber’s 40-yard fumble return in the second quarter gave him nine regular-season defensive touchdowns on his career. That ties Barber for first place among all active NFL defenders, matching Minnesota’s Darren Sharper.
• Greg White recorded the first multi-sack game of his career, the first by a Buccaneer this season.
• Defensive leader Barrett Ruud grabbed the first interception of his career. He took it 5 yards before being tackled.

The Bucs will take on the Washington Redskins this upcoming week. The Redskins are a modest 5-5, a tougher test for the Bucs.