Talk about strange. The Falcons come to Raymond James Stadium today sporting a new general manager. You remember Rich McKay, don't you? McKay served the Bucs in that same capacity from November 1995 until . . . five days ago. McKay will attend today and sit with Falcons owner Arthur Blank. "I'm sure it will be strange for some to see Rich McKay wearing a red tie and pulling for the other team, but in the NFL in the day of free agency, you see a lot of guys come and go," Bucs quarterback Brad Johnson said. "You wish him well. He's inherited a great team up there, a lot of talent. I'm sure he'll take them places."
ANY GIVEN SATURDAY?
Playing a rare Saturday game might not be a good omen for Tampa Bay. The Bucs are 5-11 all-time on the sixth day of the week and have just two wins in the past nine.
RECORD WATCH
Cornerback Ronde Barber has a career-high 100 tackles, three shy of the team record for cornerbacks set by Jeris White in 1978. Barber had 97 in 2000, 91 in '01 and 95 in '02.
BY THE NUMBERS
7: Rushes the past two games by Michael Pittman.
16: Yards the past two games by Pittman.
54: Rushes the past two games by Thomas Jones.
223: Yards the past two games by Jones.
SMALL WORLD
Third-year Falcons kicker Jay Feely is a Tampa native. He set Jesuit High and Hillsborough County records for field goals and extra points during his prep career.
OFF LIMITS
No self-respecting Bucs fan would be caught dead today making plans for the weekend of Jan. 3-4. That's when NFL wild-card games will be played and a real fan is ever the optimist.
THE LAST WORD
"I'm not very good at math." - Receiver Charles Lee, on calculating the Bucs' playoff chances.
