Quarterback Brad Johnson prepares to fire a pass against the Falcons in Game 13. Johnson threw four touchdowns in the 34-10 rout.
[Times photo (2002): Toni L. Sandys]
Keenan McCardell’s 65-yard touchdown reception was part of a 35-point Bucs explosion in Game 4.
GAME 1: New Orleans 26, Tampa Bay 20 (OT)
Tampa Bay's Super Bowl season, Jon Gruden's debut and the Bucs' first year in the new NFC South all got off to a rocky start with this surprising home defeat. The Bucs had rallied from a 20-10 fourth-quarter deficit on a Joe Jurevicius touchdown from Brad Johnson and a 40-yard field goal by Martin Gramatica as time expired to force overtime. But punting from his own endzone on the Bucs' third overtime possession, Tom Tupa, under heavy pressure, attempted a pass that was intercepted by Saints linebacker James Allen for the winning score. The Bucs would go 7-1 at home, including a playoff win, the remainder of the season.
Game 2: Tampa Bay 25, Baltimore 0
The Bucs registered their first shutout in two years, scoring on an interception return, a punt return, three field goals and a safety for Gruden's first victory as the Bucs head coach. Karl Williams scored on a 56-yard punt return to give the Bucs a 10-0 lead in the first quarter, and Derrick Brooks presered the shutout with a 97-yard interception return late in the game. Brad Johnson completed 24 of 31 passes for 211 yards, and the Bucs defense held the Ravens to just 173 total yards.
Game 3: Tampa Bay 26, St. Louis 14
The Buccaneers defense dominated, accumulating five sacks and four interceptions (including a 39-yard INT return for a touchdown by Brooks) to give Gruden his first win in Raymond James Stadium. Playing before a national TV audience on Monday Night Football, Brooks left the game in the third quarter with a leg injury, but after the Rams pulled within 19-14, returned for one play and snared his game-clinching interception.
Game 4: Tampa Bay 35, Cincinnati 7
Brad Johnson's three touchdown passes and their third interception return for a touchdown in as many weeks (a club record) propelled the Bucs to their second largest road victory ever (28 points). After having an early pass intercepted and returned for a TD, Johnson threw touchdown passes to Rickey Dudley, Keenan McCardell and Ken Dilger, finishing with 277 passing yards. The Bucs outgained the Bengals 363 yards to 168.
Game 5: Tampa Bay 20, Atlanta 6
The Bucs defense dominated again, this time holding Michael Vick to just 37 yards passing and 1 yard rushing. It marked the third consecutive road game the defense did not allow a touchdown, and Brooks became the first linebacker in NFL history with three interception returns for touchdowns in the same season. The key play was an attempted fake punt by the Falcons that failed when Dexter Jackson knocked the ball loose from intended receiver Brian Kozlowski and Dwight Smith intercepted.
Game 6: Tampa Bay 17, Cleveland 3
The Bucs matched their best-ever start (5-1) behind Mike Alstott's 126 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Michael Pittman set up Alstott's first touchdown on a 64-yard reception, and Gramatica's second-quarter field goal was set up by a 43-yard punt return by Williams. Warren Sapp had two sacks to lead the defense, which ran its streak of not allowing a touchdown to 12 quarters.
Game 7: Philadelphia 20, Tampa Bay 10
Another trip to Philly, another Bucs defeat. Donovan McNabb threw for one touchdown and ran for another to frustrate the Bucs on yet another trip to Veterans Stadium. Two plays did the Bucs in: a 42-yard touchdown pass from McNabb to Todd Pinkston, and an Al Harris interception of a Brad Johnson pass that set up McNabb's 1-yard run in the fourth quarter. Duce Staley had 152 yards rushing for the Eagles while the Bucs offense could muster only 207 total yards.
Game 8: Tampa Bay 12, Carolina 9
With Brad Johnson injured and the offense struggling, the Bucs had to turn to reliable placekicker Gramatica, and once again he delivered. Gramatica kicked three fourth-quarter field goals, from 52, 53 and 47 yards (the last one with five seconds remaining) to salvage the victory. Shaun King threw a 7-yard pass to Williams on his only play of the game to set up the game-winning kick. The defense held Carolina to 130 total yards.
Game 9: Tampa Bay 38, Minnesota 24
Gruden's new offense came alive, piling up 446 yards behind Brad Johnson's career-high five touchdown passes. The Bucs improved to 7-2, equalling their best start (1979), after beating the Vikings for the fifth consecutive time at home. The Bucs built a 24-0 lead in the second quarter behind TD passes from Johnson to Williams, Dudley and Keyshawn Johnson, the first after the Vikings fumbled the opening kickoff. Brad's Big Day: 24 completions, 31 attempts, 5 TDs and no interceptions.
Game 10: Tampa Bay 23, Carolina 10
Two weeks after narrowly beating the Panthers, the Bucs defense dominated with four turnovers and four sacks to give Tampa Bay its best start ever at 8-2. Keyshawn Johnson caught his third TD in two games to keep the game close, McCardell caught a 22-yard score to give the Bucs a 17-10 lead, and Gramatica added two fourth-quarter field goals. The Bucs took a one-game lead in the NFC South and were tied with the Packers for the best record in the NFL.
Game 11: Tampa Bay 21, Green Bay 7
The Bucs fell behind early but rallied behind another strong defensive effort (four INTs, three sacks) and two second-half touchdown passes by Brad Johnson to record their fifth consecutive victory over the Packers at Raymond James Stadium. Bucs fans got a scare when Johnson left the game after getting poked in the eye, but returned to throw TDs to Jurevicius and Dilger. At 9-2, the Bucs own the league's best record.
Game 12: New Orleans 23, Tampa Bay 20
A Bucs rally came up short as the Saints posted a season sweep behind Joe Horn's 106-yard receiving day. Horn had five catches, including a 14-yard TD and a 52-yard reception to set up another score, as the Saints built a 23-12 lead late in the game. A touchdown pass to McCardell and a two-point conversion pulled the Bucs within a field goal, but a 10-yard pass from backup QB Jake Delhomme to Horn for a late first down clinched it. Simeon Rice became the first NFL player in history to record two or more sacks in five consecutive games.
Game 13: Tampa Bay 34, Atlanta 10
All week long the pundits raved about Vick, but it was Tampa Bay's Brad Johnson (with four touchdowns) and the Buccaneers defense (which held Vick to 125 passing and just 9 rushing yards) that led to the rout at RJS. Johnson, who hit 23 of 31 passes for 276 yards, threw two TDs each to Jurevicius and McCardell. The Bucs defense held the vaunted Falcons offense to a season-low 181 total yards. Alstott rushed for 95 yards.
Game 14: Tampa Bay 23, Detroit 20
The Bucs needed a 38-yard field goal by Gramatica with 3:04 to play to fight off the pesky Lions. A Shelton Quarles interception paved the way for a 4-yard TD run by Pittman to put the Bucs ahead 20-13 in the fourth quarter. But Detroit's Eddie Drummond returned the ensuing kickoff 91 yards, setting up QB Mike McMahon's 2-yard run to tie the score. The Bucs then went on a nine-play, 46-yard drive to set up the winning kick.
Game 15: Pittsburgh 17, Tampa Bay 7
This one was over in a hurry as the Steelers rolled up a 17-0 lead in the first quarter and the Bucs, without starter Brad Johnson (who missed the game with an injured back), were shut out until the final quarter. The Steelers scored on their opening drive, then took a two-TD lead when Chad Scott intercepted a King pass and returned it 30 yards for a touchdown. King completed just 9 of 26 passes for 73 yards before being benched in the third quarter. The Bucs still clinched the NFC South championship after New Orleans lost to Cincinnati.
Game 16: Tampa Bay 15, Chicago 0
The Bucs finally threw the cold weather gorilla off their backs, using five Gramatica field goals and another outstanding defensive effort to win their franchise-record 12th regular season game. The kickoff temperature was 38 degrees, marking the first time the Bucs won a game when the temperature was 40 degrees or below. The defense grabbed four interceptions from first-time Bears starter Henry Burris as Tampa Bay clinched the NFC's No. 2 seed and earned a first-round bye in the playoffs.
NFC DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF
Tampa Bay 31, San Francisco 6
The Bucs put up 28 first-half points behind two Alstott touchdown runs and two scoring passes by Brad Johnson to clinch their third NFC Championship berth in team history (1979, 1999). Johnson, who missed the final two regular season games with a back injury, threw touchdowns of 20 yards to Jurevicius and 12 yards to Dudley and Alstott added a pair of 2-yard scoring runs. The Bucs defense, which finished the season ranked No. 1, forced five turnovers, including three interceptions of Jeff Garcia passes. The 49ers offense, which had scored 39 points in its wild card win over the New York Giants, were held to just two field goals and 228 total yards.
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
In what will be remembered as one of Tampa Bay's best victories ever, the Bucs advanced to their first Super Bowl with this dramatic win on the road, in the cold, and in Veterans Stadium where they had tasted disappointment several times before. It looked as if history was repeating itself early, as the Eagles returned the opening kickoff 70 yards and Staley scored from 20 yards out for an early 7-0 lead. But the Bucs cut the lead to 7-3 on Gramatica's 48-yard field goal (the longest in Bucs post-season history), then moved ahead on a 1-yard Alstott touchdown run set up by a 71-yard catch-and-run by Jurevicius. Philadelphia tied the score in the second quarter, but Brad Johnson's 9-yard touchdown to Keyshawn Johnson proved to be the winning points as the Bucs defense shut down the Eagles in the second half. The Bucs added a 27-yard field goal in the third quarter, then clinched the game when Ronde Barber hushed the Veterans Stadium crowd with a 92-yard interception return for a touchdown with 3:12 left in the game.
SUPER BOWL XXXVII
Tampa Bay 48, Oakland 21
The Bucs clinched their first Super Bowl championship behind a stellar defensive effort that included five interceptions, including a Super Bowl record three returned for touchdowns. Billed as a showdown between the league's No. 1 offense (Oakland) and No. 1 defense (Tampa Bay), the Bucs proved that good defense still wins championships as they smothered the Raiders, allowing just 11 first downs and 19 rushing yards. After falling behind on an early field goal, the Bucs posted 34 unanswered points on a pair of Gramatica field goals, an Alstott run, touchdown passes of 5 and 8 yards to McCardell and a 44-yard interception return by Smith. The Raiders posted a bit of a comeback late in the game, with two TD passes by NFL Offensive MVP Rich Gannon (24 of 44, 272 yards, 2 TDs, 5 INTs) and a 13-yard return of a blocked punt. But NFL Defensive MVP Brooks sealed the victory with a 44-yard interception return for a touch down, and Smith added a 50-yard INT return with two seconds remaining to send long-suffering Bucs fans into a frenzy. Pittman had a season-high 124 rushing yards, and safety Jackson was named the game's MVP after a pair of first-half interceptions. Gruden, who had left the Raiders for the Bucs job after the 2002 season, became the youngest coach (at 39 years old) to win a Super Bowl.
[Last modified September 4, 2003, 10:08:36]
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