Long snapper hurt; Walker out for year

TAMPA -- Bucs long-snapper Mike Solwold, an inconspicuous but significant role player who snaps the ball on all punts and field goals, has a left foot sprain and is out for Sunday's game in Atlanta and perhaps longer.

Also, rookie receiver Marquise Walker will have surgery on his left thumb and will miss the rest of the season.

It is unclear when Solwold was injured Sunday against the Bengals. He snapped the ball on all six punts and on all six of Martin Gramatica's extra points.

Coach Jon Gruden said the extent of Solwold's injury will be determined over the next few days. The Bucs could bring in a number of long snappers for tryouts today or could turn to a player on the roster who has some experience snapping the ball, such as guard Russ Hochstein or tight end Ken Dilger.

"Obviously that puts us in a pressing need at that position," Gruden said. "We will continue to see who's available that might be able to come in here and help us in that area."

Walker, who was not active for the first three games and was unlikely to see significant playing time, injured his thumb in practice Friday. The third-round pick from Michigan was playing behind starters Keyshawn Johnson and Keenan McCardell and backups Joe Jurevicius and Karl Williams.

Right tackle Kenyatta Walker's ankle sprain, sustained Sept. 23 against the Rams, is expected to sideline him for about a month, though Gruden said there was a "very, very slim chance that he will play" against the Falcons.

GET THE WHEELS GOING: The Bucs are averaging 26.5 points and have eight offensive touchdowns, but they are doing it without much of a running game. The Bucs, however, had their most productive running day against the Bengals (101 yards on 28 carries) and that, running back Michael Pittman said, was a sign of improvement.

"It's still a work in progress," he said. "They were bringing everybody. They were bringing safeties off the corners, linebackers up the middle and we started off very slow. It was pretty tough sledding (Sunday), but we did have some good runs toward the end. We'll have to go back and watch the film and see what we have to do to continue to get better."

Tampa Bay is averaging 77.5 yards rushing through the first four games, 26th in the league, and has struggled on first down. Against the Bengals, the Bucs gained 25 yards on 14 first-down carries, six for 0 or negative yards.

"We have to be a little bit more sound, especially on the first-down runs," quarterback Brad Johnson said. "Everyone's got to hit the right block, everyone's got to hit the right hole. It's no blame on anybody. It's maybe a half step here or there, but it's something that's very correctable. That's the good thing. We're winning with what we're doing, and I think we're getting better."

Gruden said running the ball well is difficult in the NFL but agreed that his team needs more yards per carry.

"We need to play better," he said. "We need to block better, and we need to call better plays. We need to run through tackles and every once in a while we need to make a guy miss and accelerate to daylight."

DEALING WITH THE BLITZ: Blitzing is part of the Bengals' defensive approach and likely something the Bucs will see frequently throughout the season. But considering the injuries on the offensive line and the fact that Johnson has thrown 145 passes, his seven sacks aren't that bad.

"We've had four totally different games," Johnson said about dealing with blitzes. "With the Saints, they're unique in what they bring. In the next games we expected Baltimore and St. Louis to really blitz us a lot and they did nothing. And then (Sunday) that was just (Bengals coach) Dick LeBeau, that's his whole life. ... The better we get our running game going, we're going to change the game. That's a big key to us, especially on our first-down runs."

Although Johnson finished 19-for-30 for 277 yards and three touchdowns at Cincinnati, he was hit routinely, even on plays when he completed passes and touchdowns. But the 11-year veteran said it hasn't taken a toll on his body.

"I feel good right now," Johnson said. "Different times, I've taken hits. The second and third game I really didn't take that many hits at all. And (Sunday) when someone blitzes you that much, at times they're going to get through. Going into those types of games you're going to know that. It's worth the big play. It's worth it."