With Bucs roster set to shrink, Saturday's game was critical for some.
By JOANNE KORTH
Published August 29, 2004
TAMPA - This was their last shot.
By Tuesday, the Bucs roster will be 23 players lighter, trimmed from an unwieldy 88 to a more manageable 65. Saturday night's preseason game against the Dolphins, the third of four, was the last chance for several players to make their cases.
To survive another week, or face getting cut.
"I try not to think about it," running back Earnest Graham said. "I've played sports all my life; you go out and you play. I've never been one to think about pressure. I just try to go out and make plays, and usually when you do that, good things happen. I learned a long time ago you aren't in control of a lot of things, so I just try to make plays."
The starters played most of the first half in what likely was their most significant tuneup for the opener Sept. 12 at Washington. Tampa Bay closes the preseason Thursday night at Houston, where the starters likely will play only a series or two.
That left only the second half of Saturday's game for several players to make an indelible impression. For some, there were just a handful of plays to put something on film - a run, a tackle, a block, a crisp route or a well-executed assignment - to sway the coaches.
And not just Tampa Bay's coaches.
For those living on the roster's slippery slope, preseason games are an open audition for all 32 NFL teams. If it doesn't work out with the Bucs, it might with another team.
Since training camp began July 31, coaches have gone bleary-eyed reviewing film of every practice drill, every scrimmage, every game. Coach Jon Gruden and his staff will spend the next two days at One Buc Place reviewing the footage and making decisions. This is the part of his job Gruden likes least.
"The guys we can't keep, it's not because we don't want to," Gruden said. "These guys laid it on the line. And some of the guys we can't keep we'll see again."
Some of the tightest competition is at running back and wide receiver. For most, the final decision will come down to a player's performance on special teams.
Graham, a former Florida running back whose chance to make the roster a year ago was sidetracked by a shoulder injury, continued to impress with his third short-yardage touchdown of the preseason, a 2-yard run that tied the score at 10 with 1:20 left in the third. In the fourth, he burst through the middle, breaking tackles for a 36-yard gain.
"I think this was probably not my best game," said Graham, who scored twice in the opener against the Bengals. "I think my other two games were a lot better than this. I had some runs and some pass protections I thought I could have done a better job on. I got a little winded."
Receiver Frank Murphy, battling fifth-round draft pick Mark Jones, Charles Lee and Danny Farmer for a spot on the roster, returned a kickoff 27 yards to the Tampa Bay 35, giving the offense a chance to run the two-minute drill with 1:40 left in the half.
Every little bit counts.
"Every time you step on the field you try to go out there with confidence that you're going to get it done, whatever the coaches ask you to do," said Murphy, a fourth-year player trying to catch on with the Bucs for the second time. "We've got one more game to go."
